The Brushing Program

The Wilbarger Brushing Program has been around for over a decade. More and more people have heard about this sensory treatment and seen its results firsthand. We prescribe this home/school program either as a tool for calming, or most commonly, to decrease tactile (touch) defensiveness (extreme hypersensitivity). As therapists, we teach families and other caregivers the protocol by demonstration, use of handouts, and close monitoring. This is to ensure optimal outcomes by making sure technique is correct and that high frequence of every one and a half - two hours it is performed for a minimum of two weeks. The families that see the benefits are the ones that follow through with this high frequency thus creating further motivation to continue the program. Unfortunately the benefits are not seen when the follow-through is not consistent. Families that are not able to achieve this high frequency do not see results are not commited to continue with the program. Depending on when your therapist went to training, you might see some variation in the actual "speed" of the brushing, but one thing they should be telling you is that the deep pressure you use to the specified areas is most important. We want to get those deep receptors in the skin, not the light touch receptors that trigger a negative "fright, flight, or fight" response. We use a surgical soft plastic brush and cover the surface area of the skin of the arms, hands, legs, feet, and back. Then we follow up with some proprioception (input to the muscles and joints). The whole thing is like a massage. If your child has oral sensory defensiveness, we may try an oral brushing protocol, along with the body. The whole protocol should only take a few minutes to complete. The positive outcomes we see are many. Included may be the following: less irritable, improved focus and attention, improved tolerance to complete hygiene tasks and wearing a variety of clothing, less rigid behaviors, improved calming, better sleep and improved eating, just to name a few. Ask your therapist if the program could help you and your child.