children

parents of mandy, age 25 months, after 80 hours of enlisten® training.

"after 60 hours of enlisten® training, mandy is talking so much, we can’t believe she was not talking at all three months ago! she is counting up to 10, putting the alphabet letters into the puzzle for more than half the letters all by herself. she gets our attention not by grabbing our hands and leading us somewhere but by talking. ‘hey, guys, let’s play.’ or she says ‘i want play dough’ or makes another request. she has more than caught up in language after having 4 ear infections during her first year and falling behind. she was not catching up on her own. we were surprised that she seemed to like the music and kept the headphones on for two hours. she even tries to sing and dance with some of the children’s songs in her program. what a different child, and her grandparents notice quite an increase in language, too!”

mother of sam, age 11, after completing 60 hours of enlisten® home program training.

“sam reads aloud each day without complaining. his attention span has increased from a maximum of 30 minutes to several hours. he said yesterday that he did not seem to shake anymore and that he could control his arms and legs and that they were able to be still now. he is doing his homework with a better attitude and completing it a little faster. he is doing better in school, which is just what we wanted! the enlisten® home program has been easy to use and we appreciate not having to travel to a center to do this program several weeks at a time.”

mother of lisa, age 6, and danny, age 13, after completing 90 hours of enlisten® home program training.

“both kids are doing good in school, which was one of our goals. lisa is not going to be held back, and danny’s behavior and grades are so improved that he will not have to be home schooled this year. lisa is starting to sound out sounds and her teacher is no longer concerned about her advancing to first grade next year. lisa is so much fun right now i am thoroughly enjoying her. she is proving to be my best problem solver yet. her dance teacher today commented on the incredible changes she has made. she walked right in to the class and went and sat quietly down. (usually there are clings, hugs and kisses.) her artwork at school is so very thought-based. i cannot see what she means by her drawing but when she explains it to me i am amazed by what she sees.

“danny got his first 100% on a math test yesterday. he also wound up getting 90% on a project he didn’t want to do, and his grades are improving overall! he learned not to be afraid of getting a bad grade and just not doing assignments. also, he is not bothered by the school alarm any more and now likes to go to school. his behavior at home and school is mostly cooperative and responsible. he is much easier to live with and less argumentative. when he reads out loud, it is very fast, but he is reading!

"as for me, my two goals this week are to stop what i am doing and look at the children as they talk to me and to be aware of my very expressive face as they act and say things that are not in keeping with our agreement to be our best selves. my face undoes much of what my words say some time. thank you for your support of me and my family as we try to become more appropriate."

children with autistic spectrum diagnoses

parents of jack (3.7 years, diagnosed with autism) after completing 30 hours of enlisten® training in an outreach program.

"jack is using his limited vocabulary more frequently. he tries harder to use more sounds. he is speaking in full sentences using sign-language and body language and sound combinations. eating and sleeping are great as always. jack has displayed a few aggressive actions such as pushing and hitting 3 smaller children in school. he never has confrontations with larger kids. he is definitely more aware of the world around him. we are doing reading, swimming, exercising, and puzzles to get him to use new skills. he understands instructions. neighbors, friends, school teachers, pt and ot all commented that his motor skills (running especially) seem much better. he is much stronger and his coordination is improving. also his speech therapist and teachers and all said that he seems more aware and cognizant of his surroundings.

overall he is certainly more vocal and is better at communicating his feelings. he does not have real words, but he is more fluent in his babbling.”

neurologist of jack, (now 4.3 years), three months after completing 90 hours of enlisten® training, with the latter 30 hours done in a home program.

“jack was more appropriate in his interactive play and followed most if not all one-step commands in a highly consistent manner. communication was primarily with signs but sounds were emerging such as producing the initial consonant sounds for animals as well as other consonant sounds such as g and t. there were effective use of signs and the parents demonstrated the effectiveness of augmentative communication. by history a music program [enlisten®] has recently been provided. interactive and imaginative play was markedly improved without any behaviors of an autistic spectrum disorder. …he was more proficient in building with blocks….gross motor skills have improved….motor examination shows a significant improvement in muscle tone with only a minimal and variable muscular hypotonia. …sensory examination was normal to touch without tactile defensiveness. cerebellar examination showed deficient but improved eye-hand and fine finger motor coordination with greater proficiencies in throwing and kicking a ball. oro-motor function is normal with good mouth closure… in summary, jack is a 4 year 3 month old who has shown a significant and remarkable interval improvement when compared to the prior evaluation.”

mother of autistic siblings steven, age 14, and ellen, age 8, during first 30 hours of enlisten® training at home, mostly while sleeping.

email note from mother after third day of listening. “things are going well. ellen fell asleep while the music was on; she sleeps great now. she doesn’t like onions in her food, always takes them out. i asked her yesterday, why she does that. she said "they taste too strong."that was great and relevant to the question! she also seems calmer overall. steven woke up this morning and turned and hugged me and kept hugging.i always hug him first.it was a normal hug,balanced pressure. i had him type on the alpha smart what happened. he said he always thought about hugging me but couldn’t get his body to move towards that thought. he is feeling connected to his body now and was able to think and do. what a breakthrough. thanks you so much!!!”

mother’s email on fifth day: “steven and ellen both slept great last night. ellen went to sleep 10 minutes into the music, peacefully, when normally it take her at least an hour squeezing pillows and rolling around to fall asleep. she also didn’t ask for food before going to bed, which she has always done, too much food. she woke up happy and said “i want to play with my toys, mommy.” normally she says, "play with toys." steven woke up happy and had many sentences in a conversation with me this morning. it just came out naturally, back and forth dialogue. he also said, this time using the alpha smart computer, facilitated, that he could feel his body.”

notes on the sixth day: “steven woke up smiling and verbally said "it pulled, it pulled [trying very hard to pronounce well] my attention, attention.” i got out the alpha smart to see if i heard right, and i did. i said “what attention,” and he typed "to my body the music." ellen had a great day at school yesterday, paid attention, and was calm, which is unusual for her.”

notes on the seventh day: “steven told me yesterday in the morning that his stomach was telling his body to get connected. ellen is so much more relaxed and sleeping better, but still covers her ears when the bell rings at school.”

observation from licensed enlisten® consultant dr. billie thompson working with steven and ellen after completing 30 hours of enlisten® training
“i saw steven and he talked with me. though he talks very fast using phrases and sentences, i can understand him. it appears that he is now able to express his words with speech and not just via facilitated alpha smart conversation. his mother reports that he wants to throw his alpha smart away and just talk! (note: eight years ago steven did 60 hours of tomatis listening training at age six years; it is possible that this previous amount of sound stimulation contributed to his breakthrough now. other children with previous sound stimulation training have also made new breakthroughs as they continue with enlisten® sound stimulation.)”

"at the conclusion of 60 hours of enlisten® training, ellen is reading faster, speaking more fluently, and consistently sleeping and acting more calmly. steven continues to speak. both children have improved their connections with their bodies, their speech, and their language fluency.”

mother of alex, age 9, diagnosed with autism)
“we went to see the chiropractor on wednesday night after completing the first 30 hour enlisten® home program, and we are seeing some very good changes. the dr. said alex was very relaxed and he seemed to have his strength back.

“i have noticed that alex has been very social at school and out of school. he even asked to have a friend over the other day, which he has never done before. he is going to school everyday with out too much fuss.”

“we just finished 90 hours of enlisten® home program. alex is doing so well. he is talking like crazy and he isn't just fixed on one topic like he usually does. all of the therapists are commenting on how social he is and what nice conversations he has with them. we signed him up for basketball and he is so thrilled to be part of a team. he went to school and told all of the teachers about his first game and some of them came to watch him play. he has been such a joy to watch over the last couple of weeks. he is coming out of his shell. while we were listening he continued to tell me that the gregorian chants are his favorite music. he said that it makes him feel good to listen. he never gave me a hard time about listening. i can't thank you enough for helping us out!”

mother of simon, age 6, diagnosed with autism, after 60 hours of enlisten® training while sleeping.

“during the first intensive of 30 hours, simon was saying more words. he said, "i hear a truck". he rarely uses articles. and, i love to hear those pronouns. he got his report card after completing most of the break before his next intensive and he had improved in several areas of behavior, communication, and social interaction with peers. his two therapists commented that he was talking more and a little hyper. he let me read 5 books last night. he had to hold the book, but he let me read each page. usually he won’t stay listening when i read aloud to him. one book had 3-4 sentences per page. he is sleeping well, too.

“after completing 60 hours, simon has a little more language, is more confident, takes a little more risk, reads more books, and he turns the pages. we have signed him up for t-ball because he is now able to hit the ball and run. simon is saying more words and has less scripting. i see extended eye contact. we continue to try activities he could not do before to see if he can do them now. to our delight, he is now riding his bicycle without training wheels in our cul-de-sac.

“simon finished 90 hours of enlisten® last month and has had one month of integration. we got his report card today, and every grade is normal. his teacher is recommended he go on to regular first grade and not be held back! we’re so pleased with his progress!”

mother of phillip, age 6,diagnosed with autism. his previous tomatis training ended two years prior to his work with enlisten®.

when starting the enlisten® home program, after resisting the headsets the first day, phillip’s mother wrote: “when we came back from vacation and started the listening up again, the first day he cried some and did not want to put the headphones on. he was crying and looked at me eye to eye and said, ‘why are you doing this to me?’ i think it was the longest complete sentence he has ever said. i was shocked. i answered ‘i am just trying to help you. this will make your ears better.’ he stopped crying and was fine. he did not cry or fuss any day after that about the headphones. his eye contact is improving, lasting longer when he does look at me. my mother-in-law says she can understand much more of what he is saying, and she thinks he is calmer and following directions better.”

after completing 30 hours of enlisten® training: “phillip is talking more clearly and more about the environment. we were leaving a store and a loud plane was going by. he said ‘what's that noise?’ i said, ‘it's a plane, look up.’ he said ‘oh, a plane.’ in the past he would cover his ears and fuss. he is still covering his ears some. i am trying what you said about changing his habit of response by saying ‘it's ok, your ears are much better now.’ he looks at me funny and repeats ‘ears are better’ and puts his hands down. he is answering ‘yes’ and ‘no’ questions louder and clearer, instead of hesitating or mumbling the answer. he also was looking for his daddy in the house and was calling down the hall looking around ‘daddy, where are you?’ he has never called for us on his own without prompt. thanks for bringing us this program.”
just before starting 60 hours: “just had a question about phillip. he is asking for ‘music and headphones, please.’ he has asked 3 or 4 times in the past week. when can we start again?”

just after 60 hours: “phillip has a follow up appointment with the developmental pediatrician today. i can't wait for her to see how much he has changed. she hasn't seen him for six months. phillip is changing daily. he is now interested ina cooking show on food network and will ask ‘cooking show, please, food network.’ he is really paying attention to what she is cooking and will go to the kitchen and try to pretend to cook or stir something! also, he is paying more attention to the types of food. ‘that's an onion’ and ‘that's a banana’ (at the grocery store, at home and on tv!), all without any prompting from me. before it would be a big ordeal just to get his attention long enough to talk about what a different food was (like at the grocery). oh yeah, the grocery store trips are getting more fun. he is helping get items i request and put them in the buggy (not running off like usual). he is asking ‘what's that’ and pointing out things he knows. last trip, he discovered how the checkout actually works, putting items on top, watching them go down the conveyor, watching items being scanned and bagged, and then paying. he wanted to help the next person in line when we were done!

“he has said hello to a couple of people that he doesn't know. just out of the blue. we were at a restaurant this weekend and he was waiting on me at the front area and just struck up a conversation with the hostess. they had a chalkboard for the specials and he asked her to "draw a castle, please". she started talking to him and then he asked her for a "surprise" and started to count to 3 and said ‘surprise!’ she was laughing and said ‘i am sorry, i don't have a surprise.’ she sat down to talk to him more and he was touching her hair and arm. i didn't understand everything he was saying. but he really seemed to like her. i told her that he was autistic and did not usually just talk to anyone. she could not believe he was autistic. she said “oh, he must be very mild.” i was so proud of him. he is so much easier to talk to and teach, more focused, easier to get his attention and he is really interested in everything, wanting to learn.”

after 60 hours of enlisten® home program plus a break of six months for integration: “phillip is growing and progressing. he is almost fully potty trained!!!! (except for pull-up at night) and is learning and speaking more spontaneously. phillip is actually communicating with me. he started asking ‘what are you doing?’ and ‘mommy, come sit down. mommy, read to me.’ his eye contact is improving. phillip has learned so much since school started. he now understands what day it is. he is learning math, comprehending more words and sequencing better. he can almost dress himself and is learning how to brush his teeth. he also goes through phases where he wants to know what everything says, such as cereal boxes and advertisements. he is also trying to write and draw shapes on his own, although he gets frustrated and erases it if it doesn’t look perfect. he said hello to our neighbor the other day, loud enough to be heard, and his singing voice is coming out! he used to stop singing if i tried to join in. now we sing songs together!

‘phillip keeps growing and progressing, although he still has social and behavioral issues. we had about 8 children here for a couple of hours on saturday and phillip did very well. he watched a movie with them, allowing them to sit touching him. in the past he would have left the room until everyone was gone. he allowed them to play with his toys and observed them. he still does not interact, but he is starting to become more patient and interested.’

parents of charles, age 6, in an article by linea mclellan, writer for the dothan, alabama newspaper al eagle, april 18, 2005, tells about a young boy who with speech and attention problems, who progressed first with tomatis and then with enlisten®.

“charles was never diagnosed with autism, but showed early signs of speech delays and possible autistic traits, including attention deficits. he completed two 15-day sessions of the tomatis method in new orleans and then another 30 hours of enlisten® listening training at home. each intensive of 30 hours was separated by 4 or more weeks break for integration of changes. the results were very good throughout his training.

charles’ mother said, “even in the hotel during the first 15-day program [in new orleans], he started to communicate better and started to say bigger words and the words that came out were a lot more easily understood. and he didn’t tend to repeat words. it’s been the most incredible experience. we feel really, really blessed to have found this process.

“when he left [home], he didn’t respond to any questions,” charles’ father said. “it was remarkable. he can count to 40 now and read and write. two years ago he wasn’t smiling much and he would just sit there.
“in fact, charles reads to his classmates at daycare and anyone else who will listen. [he reads at a sixth grade level now!]”

teens

mother of james, age 13 after completing 60 hrs of enlisten® home program
“james is an incredible athlete and we wanted him to improve his academic performance to excel, too. difficulty with reading was holding him back, despite tutoring over several years. since doing enlisten®, mostly while sleeping, he is now reading out loud very well with good comprehension and without complaining at all. he got all a’s this past semester, a first for him. he is very talkative and feels he is learning more easily at school. i don’t know how to explain how this program works, but it has improved his reading and comprehension so that he actually likes to read. since james achieved the goals for doing this program, we now want our younger son to do it, too. thank you!”

accomplishments for teens in alternative school after completing 90 hours of enlisten® pilot program

teen 1: “my reading level went from fourth grade to 11th grade. i feel confident enough to stand in front of a group and either talk about myself or read aloud. thank you!”

teen 2: “i won the most improved student in the school award this year. i have been writing long stories every day that just seem to come to me. i like to do this and tell what i am thinking.”

mother of teen 3: “my daughter has been more cooperative at home, less emotional, more able to talk about what she wants and doesn’t want. something has changed. she is doing better at school, too.”

teen 4: “before i listened, i couldn’t do anything for more than 30 minutes. after i finished the first 30 hours of listening training, i took a ninety minute test and got 95% on it. it was even easy! thank you.”

speech therapist for teen 5: “i’ve worked with teen 5 over this past year. since he has been doing the enlisten® program, his fluency is improved, his comprehension is much better, and he remembers more of his work. his attention is also better and longer for our work together. i’m impressed, since he made little progress before the listening program.”

psychologist administering pilot program: “if i hadn’t seen it myself, i would not have believed how many changes the students made in social, behavioral, academic, and personal growth areas. at the start of the program, they complained about the mozart music and keeping the headphones on for two hours. they were constantly putting each other down to put themselves up. they did not bring in work from their class they were missing, mostly because they did not know how to do it. we had a behavioral specialist in the listening session each day to maintain cooperation. by the end of 90 hours, some of the students even admitted liking the mozart music, were doing projects with art and legos with each other, brought work from class to complete, encouraged someone having a behavior meltdown to cooperate, and occasionally say “thank you for this program. i can read better and understand, too. i’m getting better grades and getting along better with others.” the behavioral specialist was doing art projects with some of the students and found them much more cooperative. most of these students have an opportunity to learn and be successful now because they can learn more easily. i plan to add enlisten® programs to my private practice based on the experience i’ve had with these students.”

adults

cynthia, adult, teacher (47 yrs) after completing 50 hours of enlisten® training with home program

“it's impossible to say for sure or to trace the threads of things that happen to us on this earth to see what leads to what. but that doesn't matter. what matters is that the search continues ‘til we die! well, sometime during the past few months i have felt a movement deep within me toward spirit again. this comes and goes with me, since pre-adolescence, i suppose. i am always wanting to know more and to seek greater consciousness. i was deep in the middle of this next phase, this spiritual movement within my soul, when it finally "clicked" in my head and i thought: oh, my gosh, dr billie's program [enlisten®] probably had something to do with this….i do feel i'm moving quickly into another phase of my life and it does feel that some circuitry changed in a way for me to be able to "see" in a different way. it's all wonderful, and i thank you. i laugh all the time with my "higher self" and thank her for making the ride such a joyous one and the constant grin on my face when i think of these things is simply because “she” has always been in charge and "i" seem to be the last to know.“

mark, college senior (22 yrs) after completing 30 hours of enlisten® home program

“i took this program with me when i was in europe for a semester abroad. it helped me focus better on my business course work. i also noticed my coordination with kick boxing was better and my speed a little faster. i noticed an improvement in my balance, too. it’s interesting that one program can make such different improvements in body coordination, athletic precision, and academic learning. having it on my computer made it possible for me to do the enlisten® program. thanks.”

janice, adult, teacher (48 yrs)

“the biggest thing i'm noticing is a realization that what i was previously interpreting as "fullness in my ears" is actually a state of my ears being open! it was just an unfamiliar sensation, and i initially connected it with "something wrong" when in fact it was an opening up and expanding.

“i am noticing that when i am truly listening with my entire being, sounds seem to drop into a kind of crystalline silence, leaving psychic imprints in consciousness like ripples of water emanating from a stone dropped into a lake. it is beautiful, and joyful.

“i am noticing that i seem able to adjust my ears to seek out and capture different sounds.

“i toned today for the first time since my last listening block, and felt a huge difference in my vocal quality in the lower registers. at times i felt like my body had disappeared and my energetic body was "riding" the sound, kind of like riding on the back of a dolphin.

“i notice that there are times, when tired or stressed, that i slip back behind my wall and tune people out. i am seeing this not so much something that "happens to me" as coping mechanism i learned as a child, and that i now can choose to take care of my need for rejuvenation in a healthier way. it seems that when i become aware that i'm tuning out i can refocus my awareness and tune back in, or communicate my need for "time out" instead of just checking out without explanation.

“i am amazed by the effectiveness of the reading aloud in maintaining the listening. when i'm reading, i can feel my ears 'working" to catch and hold the sounds of the music as well as my voice. i also feel something happening in my brain, as i simultaneously attend to the meaning of what is being read and appreciate the music. it's fascinating!

“and, lastly, [some close colleagues] told me, spontaneously, that my voice is deeper and fuller now. i can hear the change as well.

father of lucy, adult, 26, learning disabled, after 60 hours of enlisten® home program

“lucy has made subtle changes. overall she has more awareness and comprehension. today she wanted to vacuum the whole house. a few weeks before she began to help clean up the kitchen and organize things in the house. she usually does not do that. she appears to have a different sense of organization in space. also, she has decided to quit a job she has had in a store for three years and get another job that she will like better, perhaps working with animals. she is speaking up more about what she wants and doesn’t want. we are sometimes surprised by what she says, but we are getting to know our daughter in a new way.”

hank, adult, 27, after 30 hours of enlisten® training to improve his music career:

“wow. something shifted in me over the last 48 hours, it was like part of me died and a new part of me was born. i don't know how to describe it but the feelings were intense both painful and immense joy. it is very weird. and i got two great new songs out of it that i composed!”

after 60 hours of enlisten® training: “interesting revelation: i've just about found my voice, i'm a lyric or high tenor. not a baritone/bass like i thought i was my whole life. that is also weird. lots of stuff is coming up around that, emotionally, spiritually and physically.  i am letting go of an old, artificial me and making room for the true me.  wow!”

after two months of integration: “my voice is not where i want it, yet, this is quite a journey for me, changing everything that i used to do incorrectly, to a voice that will be used to professionally convey a message -- probably still another 6-12 months away.  but i'm in this for life.”