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The HANDLE® Institute Newsletter

Summer 2002

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Ask HANDLE

tario. When there is a weakness in the integration of the two cerebral hemispheres, we see many problems including the inability to make decisions based on the whole and its parts, impulsivity and bipolar behaviors. Since the corpus callosum is "white matter"--that is, connective neural fibers that need to be covered by a white fatty myelin sheath--inadequate nutrition and weak myelination also impair smooth interhemispheric integration.
Another phenomenon we see in bipolar disorder is irregularity in binocular teaming. Integration of the eyes is one of the most complex activities of coordinating movement and perception from both sides of the body and for various visual fields.
By examining visual functions and processing, it is possible to determine if an individual has adequate binocular teaming and if he/she has a condition known as "alternating suppression."
Jack Pettigrew, Professor of Physiology and Director of the Vision Touch and Hearing Research Centre at the University of Queensland, published research in which he found an extremely strong correlation in adults with bipolarity and alternating suppression. He called this

finding an indication of a "sticky wicket in interhemispheric integration." I have, over the years, been viewing bipolarity as a weakness in interhemispheric integration, and have been dealing with alternating suppression in the instances it was a discernable problem.
Linking the recent MRI findings with regard to the development of the prefrontal cortex together with the findings on alternating suppression and bipolarity, and those on weak myelination and bipolar disorder, neuroscientific research is beginning to support the theories on which HANDLE therapy has been working these past twelve or thirteen years. Combining the theories with anecdotal information, such as an adolescent's abandoning music despite earlier signs of great talent, demonstrating difficulty with geometry or avoiding other intense visual demands of homework, one could conclude that it is worthwhile assessing their neurodevelopmental status. If, then, there are valid concerns, it is advised to treat them at their roots rather than merely masking symptoms with medication and providing stopgap tutoring to help the teen get through school.

From my 35 years in the field of education, I have found, and the current research shows, that almost all behavioral problems are the result of unresolved neurological deficits or irregularities.

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