Learning disorders now affect approximately 10% of our young kids today, which equates to about 1 in 5 children in the US. Today there is more help and advocacy than ever before for these children, but one potentially important piece that is not often accomplished is early intervention. It is challenging to assess an actual learning disorder until the child is old enough for preschool, however there may be signs earlier on, pointing us to weaknesses that can strengthened before they are in preschool.

Green book? What's a Green book? It is a series of 39 volumes written mostly by BJ Palmer from about 1910 to 1961, containing the essence of chiropractic philosophy. If you haven't read Green Books, then you haven't really felt the passion and urgency of the BJ Palmer chiropractic philosophy. Where to start? The Bigness of the Fellow Within!

"Think & Grow Rich" is one of the most influential books I have ever read. Written by Napoleon Hill in 1937, it is as applicable today as it was when I first read it in 1993. Hill would say that the combination of written down goals and a burning desire to achieve them makes you almost unstoppable. Get busy writing 2019 goals!

How many of you have read the book, "Are You The Doctor, Doctor?" Dr. Fred Barge was an icon but his legacy lives on with his books and the spirit of chiropractic that he embodied. Another great book of his is: "Life Without Fear." These both should be required reading in chiropractic school, along with BJ Palmer's "Bigness of the Fellow Within" and "The Glory of Going On" and Dr. Sid Williams, "Lasting Purpose." This IS now the correct Fred Barge podcast. The 1st download yesterday was incorrect. Thanks and sorry about the confusion!

How does Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville and chiropractic fit together? They both started with an idea and then built an empire around it. BJ Palmer could have kept chiropractic a family secret like his dad wanted, but he knew it was bigger than the 2 of them. Jimmy Buffett has taken 1 hit song and knew he could make something more out of it, and is one of the top grossing recording artists of today! Not because he has more hit records, but because he knows how to market himself. We can take a lesson from that! Happy Holidays!

Milestones are not called mile suggestions. When you are on a jogging trail and you pass by a mile marker, it doesn't say "somewhere between 3/4 of a mile and 1 mile." The mile marker is very specifically at the 1 mile mark. Same thing with milestones. They are the way the infant and toddlers' brain literally turns on or boots up. Sure there are variations, especially with preemies, but for the most part, certain things should happen within very certain times or else concern should be raised.

Glenn Doman wrote the book, "What to do about your Brain Injured Child" over 30 years ago but it is still a classic. Anybody who either has a child with disabilities or has a child who has sustained a brain injury should read this. It talks about roadblock injuries, the place in the brain where the child cannot get past. Doman mentions the 'workplace' of a child with brain challenges should be the floor and not a chair or carseat.

Recently I was asked to speak about concussions to a large group of chiropractors, and 2 of the most important topics in that 4 hour class were: there are 6 types of concussion, and their are some very interesting risk factors for certain people who will have a more challenging time healing from concussions. Many of the risk factors truly make sense once you understand the 6 types of concussion.

Do you explain why you do what you do? Your job is not simply to adjust mechanically, but to transfer a feeling from you to them about how amazing their body (or their kids body is) and how you want to reconnect them. Our patients come to us in varying degress of 'disconnectedness' and our mission is to change that.

Dr. Jeanne Ohm is one of my heroes and mentors in chiropractic today, as she is to thousands of other pediatric and family based DC's. Years ago she introduced me to the book Manual Therapy in Children by Dr. Heiner Biedermann, an Osteopath from Germany. It is an incredible read and shines with incredible quotes that are so chiro-centric even though Dr. Beidermann was more traditionally trained. Check this out!