ABSTRACT
Neurobiological change occurs as a function of experience. Novel stimuli and learning opportunities engineer new connections between different brain regions that then communicate more rapidly and efficiently the more they are exercised (Cozolino, 2002; Perry, 2009; Siegel, 1999). Because the brain initially develops in a bottom-up fashion, with the lower regions helping to organize the higher ones, some clinicians suggest that treatment should replicate that sequence (Perry, 2009; Warner, Cook, Westcott, & Koomar, 2011). A few studies support this approach (Barfield, Dobson, Gaskill, & Perry, 2012; Warner et al., 2013). “Bottom-up” tactics first target somatosensory selfregulation through repeated rhythmic activities (dance, drumming, rocking, and other types of movement), then relational skills, followed by verbal and insight-oriented work. Because those lower-level brain realms show less plasticity than higher-level cognitive domains, Perry (2009) notes that altering them requires more patterned, frequent, and predictable enrichment opportunities.
