How does Guided Drawing assist people with ASD, Dyslexia, Tourette Syndrome and Intellectual Disabilities?

These conditions are commonly known as neurodevelopmental disorders, meaning that there has been a complication with the development of the nervous system. Typically, this relates to the brain and how it functions as it transmits messages throughout the body in response to the environment.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental condition that affects how a person behaves and interacts with the world. People with ASD often have difficulty with social interactions, communication and exhibit repetitive or restrictive behaviours and interests.

Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a learning disorder that affects a person’s ability to process language and is characterised by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition, poor spelling and decoding abilities. These challenges are not related to intelligence but rather to how the brain interprets and processes written information.

Tourette Syndrome (TS)

Tourette Syndrome is a neurological disorder characterized by involuntary, repetitive movements and vocalizations called tics. These tics can range from simple tics such as eye blinking or facial twitches, to more complex tics, such as repeating phrases or movements.

Intellectual Disability (ID)

Intellectual Disability is a term used to describe a range of conditions that result in limitations with intellectual functioning and adaptive behaviours. This covers many everyday social and practical skills, as well as learning, reasoning, problem-solving and decision-making abilities.

How Can Guided Drawing Help ?

Guided Drawing is a form of Bilateral Stimulation which involves stimulating both sides of the brain through coordinated movements with both hands at the same time, which produce a series of different shapes. In doing so, this technique helps to integrate the left and right sides of the brain, promoting better communication between both hemispheres.

Benefits for Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Self-Regulation: Bilateral drawing can help individuals regulate their emotions and behaviours by grounding them in the present moment and connecting their physical felt sense with their cognitive thoughts (that is, connecting both the left and right hemispheres). Often with neurodevelopmental disorders, the body and mind are separate and are unable to communicate with each other. Thus the individual may get physically hurt, yet they do not display emotions that match – they don’t cry or scream, and if they do, it tends to be extremely delayed.
Reduced Anxiety and Stress: Engaging in bilateral activities can reduce anxiety and stress by promoting relaxation and calming the nervous system, reducing the over-stimulated physical sense.
Improved Focus and Attention: By stimulating both hemispheres of the brain, bilateral activities can enhance focus and attention, again by promoting the communication between the physical body and the cognitive thoughts. In doing so, individuals become less distracted as they are grounded and centred within themselves.
Enhanced Emotional Expression: Guided Drawing promotes self-expression in a non-verbal way through the use of colour, pressure, texture and shapes. In doing so, strong emotions held within the physical body – often making the body rigid and inflexible – are able to be released, allowing the physical body to adopt a more relaxed state. This in turn promotes better sleep quality and breaks unfavourable patterns of behaviour.
Sensory Integration: Bilateral stimulation through guided drawing can help individuals with sensory processing disorders by organising and integrating sensory information more effectively. This is where the pain response improves as well as responses to sounds, tastes and smells, as well as visual images, such as seeing loved ones will initiate a smile faster.