Cerebral palsy refers to a group of conditions that are caused by problems in brain development and that affect how movement and motor control happen in children. Problems with walking and talking are often the way people start a conversation about cerebral palsy.
I have cerebral palsy spastic diplegia. So it affects my legs and sometimes my fine motor skills. I walk with two canes. I do things a little slower, but I get things done.
One thing that parents can say to start a conversation with their kids is, "Let's talk".
Neuroplasticity is the ability that the brain has to form new connections between different cells or between different areas of the brain.
Exploration for an infant means discovering anything about that environment. If that infant needs an opportunity to be brought to them, that's okay. Let an infant explore through their senses, whether it's touch, or smell, or taste, or sight, or hearing.
One of the things that we typically forget when we look at kids who have conditions like CP, is that they're first and foremost, children.
My name is Nathalie Maitre, I work at Nationwide Children's Hospital. I'm a physician and a researcher