I thought Annie was a witch.  How did she know things about people, especially me, that were not shared with her?  I paid attention when she spoke, trying to figure out her method.  “I express what is screaming to be said,”  she told me when I finally mustered the courage to ask.  “But how do you know?” I inquired further.  “I listen,” she stated.  Ironically, Annie was virtually deaf.

Listen for what is screaming to be said.  I decided I would utilize this method in all of my interactions with people.  “Listen for what is screaming to be said, listen for what is screaming to be said,” became my internal mantra.  As someone who loves to talk, all of this listening was a challenge in itself, but I kept at it determined to learn Annie’s trick.  Then, I heard it.  A thought popped into my consciousness, it was almost alarming at first, but it was there.  The unsaid now screaming in my head to be heard quickly became difficult to ignore.  I was on a telephone coaching call with someone in a fragile state.  Now that I could finally hear what was screaming to be said I was afraid to say it!  What if it offended him?  What if it was totally off base and saying it damaged his trust in me?  What if I didn’t say it and it was the exact thing he needed to hear?  I confided in him, “I have a thought I want to share with you that may be totally off base but I think it might make a difference.  Is it okay with you if I share it?”  He granted me permission, I told him what had popped into my head, and he was flabbergasted.  How did I know that?  It worked!!  I said what he had been afraid to face.  We were then able to deal with an issue he had been avoiding and to ultimately achieve his coaching goals.

The more I took the risk of sharing “what was screaming to be said,” the easier it became, and the more confidence I gained in my abilities.  As an added benefit, I found my interactions with people were deeper and more genuine.  I started to use this method with my personal decisions as well.  I began to listen for what was screaming to be said in my internal dialogue.  I even started to listen to what my body wanted to eat, which way I needed to turn in the mall to find the item I was looking for, and what book on the shelf had a message for me.  I was developing my intuition without realizing it by learning to “listen” to my internal “knowing”.

The biggest risk would be sharing my new found intuition with the parents of my Developmental Assessment clients.  My clients were often children with what I termed “Alphabet Soup” added to the end of their names – A.D.D. (attention deficit disorder), O.C.D.(oppositional defiant disorder), and L.D. (learning disabled) were a few I saw often.  The parents did not think the medical community was providing adequate solutions to their children’s issues .  These parents brought their children to me for an “eclectic” point of view and an individualized home based program of activities geared toward their child’s functional improvement.  At the best these parents were skeptical, stressed, and scared of another dead end.  At worst they had reached the end of their proverbial ropes and I was a last ditch effort at hope.  I was worried they would not want to hear the far out thoughts which had popped into my head.  The fact was, my insights time and again validated their concerns or uncovered areas previously unexplored.

One of my most memorable examples was a little boy who was classified O.C.D., by far my least favorite of the Alphabet Soup labels.  Show me a child labeled oppositional defiant disorder and I will show you a child who is either seeking for avoiding stimulation.  This little boy refused to do school work.  On all other accounts he was pleasant, followed directions, and was a joy to be around.  When asked he usually knew the answers to his school based questions but would not complete his assignments.  His mother was at her wits end.  She tried bribery, punishment, and rewards without success.  I began to ask her what may have occurred as unrelated questions regarding her son.  I took the chance of asking whatever popped into my mind, trusting the insight into this beautiful boy’s issues would be revealed to me by following my intuition.  Indeed, it was.  I began to see a pattern of tactile development fluctuations and realized his wrists and forearms were highly sensitive to the sensation of paper rubbing against them.  As much as he wanted to please his parents and teachers, he could not tolerate the feel of the paper stimulating his arms.  I suggested that his mother purchase athletic wrist bands for him to wear as a means of keeping his wrists and arms from touching the paper when he wrote.  I also designed a series of tactile development exercises to balance his tactile system so the problem would diminish and the wrist bands would no longer be necessary over time.  Within a few months his mother called to tell me he received the principal’s award for most improved student in front of the entire student body!  We cried over his success and eventually celebrated his being de-classified with O.C.D.

The most fun memory using my intuition with a Developmental Assessment client resulted in a family finally being able to share and come to terms with what had become an embarrassing family secret.  Their son had a variety of quirky issues, non of which appeared related and many of which were impairing his day to day functioning.  He was having problems focusing in school, he had few friends, and he behaved differently then other children.  His grades were good though, and he was not classifiable by the school system.  As I was narrowing down the root cause of his issues I asked a pointed question, “Does he like to wear items of clothing that are out of the ordinary?”  This was not a question I had asked of any client previously, nor have I asked since.  His mother and father got pale and looked at me, and then each other, stunned.  I assured them I would not judge their answer and knew intuitively their response would provide important information to their son’s issues.  With much hesitancy they admitted their son liked to sneak his mothers stockings and wear them.  He appeared more relaxed and focused when wearing them but this behavior was so disturbing to them that they forbade him to continue it.  He snuck them anyway, regardless of the consequences.  I told them their son was brilliant and had found the exact sensory stimulation input he needed to feed his proprioceptive sense, his sense of where he begins and ends in space.  They were elated and relieved!  They had been so afraid that his desire was sensual that they weren’t able see the actual purpose behind wearing a garment that was tight fitting.  While using the proprioceptive enhancement  program I designed for their son, they also allowed him to wear stockings under his pants when he felt the need.  It was so gratifying for me to have created an opportunity for acceptance and understanding between these parents and their son by my willingness to ask the bizarre question that was screaming to be heard.

Much to my delight it is often insinuated that I must be a witch because of what I know and say.  I consider this a great compliment and think I am lucky to viewed like my mentor Annie.  When this accusation is made I simply smile and let my accuser know that I am merely saying what is screaming to be said.

Janine Burnham Ruth combines her training as a Neuroeducational Consultant, Neurodevelopmental Therapist, and Sound Therapist with her passion and experience practicing Attachment/Connection Parenting, Holistic Living and Energy Healing to be of service to others.  Janine conducts developmental assessments and then creates individualized home based activity programs for clients who desire fuller functioning abilities.  She is an educator, lecturer, healer, consciousness coach, intuitive and writer who is currently working on her first book to provide parents with practical tools and insights they can use for healthy and whole child development.  Janine lives North of Philadelphia, PA with her husband and two sons whom she homeschools.   Contact Janie at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 267-812-5098 or www.janineburnhamruth.com.