#developmentaljigsaw

By Gilbert Valdez & Gabriel Sena

PIECING IT ALL TOGETHER

Enter the phrase that encompasses the complex and dynamic processes we have been speaking about… the developmental jigsaw.

But first, what is a jigsaw?

Simply put, it’s a puzzle.

To an extent, there is a certain high level of abstract thinking (i.e. cognitive development) that providers and parents need to obtain in order to grasp the complexity of this jigsaw IDEA. This concept is asking us to hold in our minds eye multiple degrees of many dimensions of development to form one picture…

…multiple degrees of many dimensions of development to form one picture…

This would be a challenge for anyone.

The developmental jigsaw, the various areas of growth, has one point of origin…

THE BRAIN!

The most complex piece of machinery that has come to exist in the universe (<- said the narcissistic brain), and each of us has one of these 5-pound super computers floating around in our skull. NEATO!

NEURAL DEVELOPMENT

When speaking about development, it is easy to get lost in the trees (the details). What is important to remember is that the deeper/simpler answers are found in knowing about the forest (more so, how an organic forest grows).

When speaking about development, we must step back, and put on our neurobiologist caps. The current wave of advancements in neuroscience is giving us a wider and deeper picture of the impact of neural structure and it’s respective functions.

We are trillions of miles away from Descart’s original ideas of mind vs. body dualism. The consciousness of our modern scientific times, aka the lens we see the world through today, is currently predominated by a lens of neurobiology.

Heck, even the NIMH has pushed us forth into a neurobiological way of thinking (this is the type of scientific research they are funding more often, among others). We can no longer have an accurate discussion about emotions, thought, cravings, pleasure, behaviors, pain, hunger, etc. without the awareness and integration of brain structures and how they function.

What does delayed development imply about neural development?

This is what it all comes down to…

The common denominator…

NEURAL DEVELOPMENT is the foundation in every domain of development.

The genesis. The alpha.The culprit. The protagonist.

Nature via Nurture. Our environment shapes how our genetic code is expressed. Some people are exposed to the harshest of life conditions, chronic stress, poverty, malnutrition, chaotic home environments, abuse & neglect, and other traumatic experiences…  

Their neural development is skewed, if not impaired significantly, by these exposures.

They literally have all the neural material in their head, but it may be mal-organized or it may be underdeveloped (un-mylinated axons, poor connectivity to other areas of the brain).

Neurobiologists and neurologists have come to discover a neurological impairment/deficit/ hypo/hyper reaction in the brain, correlated to certain behaviors and characteristics. Is this just a scapegoat? Advancement in modern science?

Our brains are wonderful in their plasticity (or so science tells us). The brain is a reflexive organ; it is shaped by what it is exposed to. The chronicity, severity and intensity of these exposures build long lasting highways of neural networks that shape how we interact and perceive the world.

For the providers in the human services field, the people charged with “helping” our species to overcome such adversities, how do we feel when a client with “delays” comes to us asking for assistance?

For those working with children, there is a lot of hope for them still. With repetitive, reparative, rhythmic treatment interventions, the brain has been shown to reorganize, reconstitute its structures and repair it’s functioning. (For more information on this type of work, please see Dr. Bruce Perry’s Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics or The Child Trauma Academy).

Unfortunately, we can’t crack open anyone’s skull while they are still alive, and get a snapshot of their developing brain. We do not have the technology for such a safe and painless procedure. We are limited by the technology of our time.

Stephen Covey, the prolific writer and renowned speaker on leadership spoke of the law of the harvest. In order for a crop to grow successfully, you have to till the soil in the right season, plant the seeds appropriately, water the seeds constantly, pull the weeds out, ensure pests did not eat the growing crop, and harvest when the crop was matured.

This is a lengthy process. It does not happen overnight.

If any of these steps are left out, i.e. just planting the seeds and hoping for a bountiful harvest, the outcome is not going to be a realistic one, and would be disappointing to anyone hoping for a BIG return.

There are no short cuts.

Although, at times, we hope, pray and wish there are.

The developmental jigsaw reminds us to see DEVELOPMENT as an organic process.

Not static. Not boring. But continuous and DYANMIC! (Can you feel the HOPE people!?)

Sometimes, the families we work with, they are hoping for a bountiful harvest WITH their children (e.g. straight As, no Juvenile Justice Involvement, no criminal activity, no dyslexia, high IQs, high EQs, listens every time and all the time, doesn’t talk back… ad infinitum…)[enter your ideals of a perfect child here].

Some caregivers have nurtured and enriched the soil; planted the seeds of education, morality, prosocial values, and communication and watered them constantly; they have pulled the weeds of negative influences, substance abuse; they ensured safety by removing predators and pests to protect their precious crops. These families have followed the law of the harvest, and they are rewarded with the results of such foresight, care and time invested.

Some families we are fortunate to serve, they expect the same results, a “bountiful harvest,” although they may not have followed the law of the harvest.

This is where we do most of our work, and as long as there are fallible human beings, there is work to be done!

We can teach families about development. We can show caregivers how to parent in developmentally appropriate ways.

We can collaborate with school personnel on “where” this child is developmentally so they can benefit from a formal academic education.

We can give the influential people in this youth’s ecology (see Bronfrenbrenner’s ecological model) the necessary and sufficient tools to scaffold successful interventions, accommodations and services so they can catch up.

Isn’t that our hope, for these children to catch up and be successful? To THRIVE?!

Neural development is the forest, understanding the various areas of development are the trees. We don’t have to be a neurobiologist or a lumberjack to understand when a forest/brain is not nurtured, or is not thriving… just look around with a developmental sensitivity.

How complex, each individual truly is… cannot be fully understood, this is a great mystery of the human condition. (But we hope we don’t stop attempting to further our understanding).

Each of us is born into a context; we are molded by an environment; this has shaped and influenced us. Born into a family system full of vulnerabilities and protective factors.

A brain nurtured and stimulated to reflect it’s surrounding circumstances.

We share this, our HUMANITY. We all have a childhood. We were once teenagers etc. Each of us has a unique brain (well, some of us… JUST JOKING!).

By Gilbert Valdez & Gabriel Sena

What do you think you know about “development” of the human mind and body?

Have you ever heard someone speak about their emotional age? Or know someone who has an “old soul?” What about the phrase “she/he is very mature for her age”? Age? Maturity?

What does it all mean?

Let’s break down some of these ideas and get a better understanding of what they mean. We will also examine how we can apply this knowledge in the work we do with children and adolescents.

You can’t work long in the field of human services, specifically with children and adolescents, before you hear about the idea of development. We hear it all the time in our work with families who have children with special needs, “the parents may not have much knowledge of child development” or “the parents are expecting a lot out of their child and it’s not developmentally appropriate.”

What does “developmentally appropriate” mean? And is there such a thing as developmentally appropriate? Who is this according to? Did someone Google developmentally appropriateness and decided this or that is how a child or individual SHOULD behave, act, be.

When we take a look at a human’s developmental jigsaw puzzle we must take into consideration events, environment, biology and unknown, uncovered mysteries of the human neuron. Much of which has yet to be explored and understood by scientists around the world. But what we do know is that human beings are dynamic and brilliant complex creatures.

  Take into consideration a young lady who was born out of a domestically violent family. What’s that you say? You are correct I did not say born into, because at times the violence, substance abuse and trauma in some families occur while the child is still in the womb! Hard to believe? Believe it.

Unfortunately, this young person is born into the world already developmentally behind our so-called “appropriate” normal curve. Developmentally, he may never recover from the pain and suffering he incurred in the womb.

These traumatic insults could potentially hurt their ability to regulate (their autonomic nervous system) and later on in life, impair their ability to learn and quite possibly hinder their higher order processes for decision-making. Later on in the child’s lifetime, they may be more vulnerable to experience more stressors such as physical/sexual abuse, neglect and the inability to learn how to show compassion, love, sympathy or the simple, and not so simple understanding of pain, hurt or struggle of others.

So what does this all mean? What is the result of these developmental insults, trauma and suffering? For some it may look like a jigsaw puzzle. Many awkward, unique, important pieces that “should” fit together to form a human energy. Not developmentally appropriate, but developmentally exceptional and distinct.

Perhaps, chronologically they may be the age of a teenager, say thirteen (13) i.e. they have lived 13 years on Earth. However, sexually, this person may have explored sexuality, which may have led to being a new parent during their ripe teenage years. Mentally, due to the trauma, substance abuse and pain suffered in the womb, this adolescent person is unable to read and write, but has been “given” passing grades by teachers in order to “move them along.” Unfortunately, this developmentally exceptional person may, throughout their lifetime, continue to experience life through an unforgiving filter. These effects may have continued inter-generational challenges to his/her newborn child. Thus, the cycle continues. This could be the start (or continuation) of Transgenerational problems (<- a topic for another time).

There are grave consequences from these developmental insults and they can last a lifetime, permeating every developmental stage. But it does not have to be this way. We can change. We can help others. We can foster the environment and conditions where change is not just possible but an expected outcome. We can heal developmental insults.

What do we mean when we say someone has impaired development? What types of development are there? How do clinicians in the field figure out these degrees of maturity? These will be explored next.

We suggest you stick around.

NEXT: The Developmental Jigsaw- Part II