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Kicking down barriers
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Local martial arts instructor hosts class for autism support group
By Jessica Wiant - jwiant@nvdaily.com
FRONT ROYAL -- Increased physical fitness. Self-discipline. Greater concentration. Any martial arts instructor will tout the benefits of the sport for his students, and for members of the My Child and Aspergers Support Group, a summer camp at U.S. Martial Arts Academy has been no exception.
"It has just been a smashing success," head instructor Milt McInturff said. "It's been a win-win for every person that's been involved. I don't think I'm doing anything special. I'm just giving them a chance."
The group first visited the dojo for a field trip, explained one of its founders, Linda Hurd, of Front Royal.
Everyone was so into it that afterward McInturff agreed to set aside 45 minutes twice a week for four weeks for members of the group and some of their siblings. While he'd worked with youths in different school gym classes and at the academy and has several certifications -- including one in anger management -- he had never done a special needs class before, he said.
To prepare, McInturff said he read up on Asperger syndrome, autism, attention deficit disorder and other conditions.
Autism is a "spectrum disorder" according to www.autism-society.org, with varying symptoms and degrees of symptoms, but it is primarily a developmental disability that affects a person's ability to communicate and interact with others.
People with autism may be resistant to change, repeat words and phrases, throw tantrums, not make eye contact, have an obsessive attachment to objects, or be nonresponsive to verbal cues, among other things.
Asperger syndrome, also called Asperger's syndrome, meanwhile, is a condition that lies on the spectrum, marked by autism-like problems with social interaction, but people with it have normal intelligence and motor-skill problems like clumsy movement, according to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development website, www.nichd.nih.gov.
The support group came about after Hurd's son, Matthew, now 10, was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, she explained.
At the time, she had no idea what the condition was, she said, and it was hard for her and members of her family to understand. She wanted to find people who were going through the same thing, and it took some searching, she said.
The group now has 16 or 17 steady moms and several others who stay in touch. They get together for play dates and field trips, mostly for the social interaction it gives the children, said Hurd, who also has a 9-year-old son, Daniel, who participates in the group.
Members, with a diagnosis of autism or Asperger syndrome, often find it hard to make friends, and often face being made fun of during activities with other children.
"The word autism, it scares people away sometimes," Hurd said.
Even McInturff thought working with the group might be difficult. Parents warned him that the children would test his patience.
"I'll be the first to admit this is uncharted territory for me," he said.
He started out the class at a slower pace than his others, and allowed the students to wear shirts and shorts instead of the traditional martial arts uniform. He kept extra instructors on hand. He allowed the parents to be more involved than in a traditional class.
What everyone quickly found out was that McInturff and the rest of the group were a perfect match.
The students adapted quickly, he said, and the pace of the class soon resembled any of the academy's other classes.
Having a class separate from the others, however, allowed the boys -- who, among other things, are often not as coordinated -- to try out martial arts with no one judging them or making fun, Hurd said.
The class has built self-confidence for them, she said, and helped them learn to listen and more.
"They get to yell, and that's an outlet," she said. "They love it. It uses up that energy they have."
For Karen Young, who took the class along with her son, Logan, 10, it was amazing how much everyone learned, she said. It has helped with attention and focus, she added.
For Laurie Adams' son Samuel, 11, the class was overwhelming the first few sessions, but he is learning what to expect and seems interested in continuing, she said. She has tried Challenger league soccer with Samuel, who has autism, but it didn't work out.
Martial arts seemed to work better because it offered the group setting but is still an individual effort, Adams said.
Students in the class, who range in age from 51⁄2 to 13, go from sitting in crooked silent rows to being up and doing jumping jacks in a flash. The studio goes from quiet to a chaotic room full of squealing, shouting and even counting in Korean. There's lots of praise coming from the parents and instructors on the sidelines as the boys run through a series of exercises, from kicks and punches to balancing acts across a line down the middle of the room.
When McInturff asks who can do the next exercise, plenty of hands shoot up high.
Just as quickly, it's quiet again.
Taking the boys from bursting with energy down to calm is something McInturff incorporates into the class intentionally, he explained, teaching them to pull themselves back down.
Martial arts seems fitting as an activity that would benefit the group.
It is an individual sport, McInturff said. Just like life, it takes focus, and you get in what you put out.
"It's all about you," he said.
Dr. Richard Christoph, with Front Royal Pediatrics, said in an e-mail that a regular exercise program would benefit children with Asperger syndrome in the same way it benefits all children.
Martial arts, in particular, offers both a structured exercise program emphasizing self-discipline and self-restraint of impulsiveness.
"In this highly structured setting self-esteem is enhanced, gradual increases in social interactions occur with others, gross motor coordination and fluidity improves, and the child is gently guided by the Master to self-regulate socially inappropriate behaviors," he said in the e-mail.
The boys are pretty introspective, McInturff said, socially and in their own activities, so it's something they can put their energy into.
"It's something special," he said.
Seeing the excitement of one wheelchair-bound boy getting to try rolls on the green and red mats proved particularly touching for the head instructor.
"That moment brought a tear to my eye," McInturff said. "I'm mister big tough guy. I'm not supposed to cry."
Through the class, McInturff said he's seen how the children are labeled, and it has become a personal mission and a passion to get rid of the stigma that comes with autism spectrum disorders.
"These are kids," he said. "Embrace them, love them, help them. These are the best group of kids I've worked with."
For more information on U.S. Martial Arts Academy in Front Royal, go online to www.facebook.com/usmafr or call 660-1245. For more information about the My Child and Aspergers Support Group, call 636-2854 or e-mail rznboys@comcast.net.
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