Brave Portchester schoolgirl Laura Miles overcomes dyslexia and dyspraxia (From Daily Echo)

Brave Portchester schoolgirl Laura Miles overcomes dyslexia and dyspraxia

1:50pm Friday 12th March 2010 in

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A SCHOOL girl quietly leafing through her favourite book should be the most normal thing in the world.

However, this is the picture Debbie and Simon Miles feared she would never see when her daughter Laura showed signs of suffering severe dyslexia and dyspraxia.

Her condition was so bad words looked like they were swimming on the page, just trying to read a sentence would make her feel violently sick.

The Porchester girl was always bumping into things and couldn't even tie her own shoelaces.

Unable to do what came easily to other children she would regularly break down in tears, beg her mum for help and say she wanted to die.

After a three-year nightmare of unsuccessfully trying everything they could think of the family discovered a new form of brain training used by a new community interest company called Dore.

Using methods including juggling, balancing on a wobble board and light tests the company claims it can help improve neural passages between different parts of the brain.

Almost immediately the family saw an improvement with Laura's balance and eventually she was able to start reading books and become more independent.

Now she can't get enough of her favourite author Michael Morpurgo and is catching up on school books that before were too intimidating to open.

Mum of two Debbie, 46, said: "There is nothing worse for a mother to hear than her child saying she wants to die.

"We were really worried about her, she had very low self esteem and hated school where she was picked on and didn't feel anyone understood.

"Her life is completely turned around now. She just reads and reads, you hardly ever see her without a book in her hands."

Laura, now 12 and home schooled, said: "Before I felt awful because everyone else I knew would do all the things I couldn't.

"I would always come last in the school races and I felt really bad about myself.

"Now I feel really happy and my mum buys me loads of my favourite books, I get through about one a week."

Motivated by her own personal triumph Laura says when she passes her exams she wants to help other children and work in an orphanage in an impoverished country teaching children to read and caring for them.

Comments(5)

stay local says...
2:48pm Fri 12 Mar 10

This is really bad reporting, the dore group of companies set up by the paint magnet Wynford called in the receivers due to bankruptcy in May 2008. They had been promoting the “Dore” technique and had been appearing on good morning Britain, and other day time shows and was heavily advertised as the “cure for dyslexia”. They claimed to work with everyone until they were cured, this proved to be impossible and the company folded, leaving many families in distress and very much out of pocket.

The new companies as I understand it have been formed as franchises so that if any part of the company suffers a similar failure then the main company is protected from the costs or having to pay out.

The company claimed to have worked with NASA to develop their programme only to have NASA refute this claim.

The actual research base used to show the programmes effectiveness has been challenged and found to be wanting.

The Advertising Standards Authority have upheld a complaint about Dore, agreeing that Dore could not come up with evidence to support its claims to treat dyslexia.
As neither the first nor second study referred to Asperger’s syndrome and only two participants in the first study had dyspraxia, we considered that the evidence was inadequate to support claims to treat those conditions. With regards to dyslexia and ADHD, we did not consider that the studies were sufficiently robust to support the treatment claims for those conditions, and we therefore concluded that the claim was misleading.
The “research” that was carried out was found to be unsubstantial and exposed financial conflicts of interest between the Dore group and the researchers. When a favourable article about Dore was published about the Dore program in the British Journal Dyslexia five of the board members resigned in disgust.

I am pleased that Laura is doing so well, but horrified that once again we are being told of a wonderful “cure” which is not based on research.
Look at the bad science blog by DR Ben Goldacre for more information.

This is really bad reporting, the dore group of companies set up by the paint magnet Wynford called in the receivers due to bankruptcy in May 2008. They had been promoting the “Dore” technique and had been appearing on good morning Britain, and other day time shows and was heavily advertised as the “cure for dyslexia”. They claimed to work with everyone until they were cured, this proved to be impossible and the company folded, leaving many families in distress and very much out of pocket. The new companies as I understand it have been formed as franchises so that if any part of the company suffers a similar failure then the main company is protected from the costs or having to pay out. The company claimed to have worked with NASA to develop their programme only to have NASA refute this claim. The actual research base used to show the programmes effectiveness has been challenged and found to be wanting. The Advertising Standards Authority have upheld a complaint about Dore, agreeing that Dore could not come up with evidence to support its claims to treat dyslexia. As neither the first nor second study referred to Asperger’s syndrome and only two participants in the first study had dyspraxia, we considered that the evidence was inadequate to support claims to treat those conditions. With regards to dyslexia and ADHD, we did not consider that the studies were sufficiently robust to support the treatment claims for those conditions, and we therefore concluded that the claim was misleading. The “research” that was carried out was found to be unsubstantial and exposed financial conflicts of interest between the Dore group and the researchers. When a favourable article about Dore was published about the Dore program in the British Journal Dyslexia five of the board members resigned in disgust. I am pleased that Laura is doing so well, but horrified that once again we are being told of a wonderful “cure” which is not based on research. Look at the bad science blog by DR Ben Goldacre for more information. stay local