No Time for Jello: One Family's Experiences with the Doman-Delacato Pattering Program [Paperback]

Berneen Bratt (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0914797565 | ISBN-13: 978-0914797562 | Publication Date: January 26, 1999 | Edition: First Edition Used

Heart-rending account of one family's adjustment to a child's cerebral palsy.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Glenn Doman, creator of the controversial Doman-Delacato patterning program, claims to cure brain damage if his demanding program of almost continuous exercises is strictly followed. Bratt religiously performed the exercises prescribed for her son, who has cerebral palsy, then had the courage to accept that his failure to be cured was the fault of neither mother or son. Bratt details her dreams for her son, the rigors of the program, its impact on her family, her disillusionment with the program, and her ultimate acceptance of her son with his handicaps. Not much of substance has been written about Doman's approach. His techniques seem to have results similar to other therapies, but take a huge physical and emotional toll, and Bratt displays the wish-guilt formula which constitutes Doman's appeal. Recommended for parents and professionals interested in the program.
- Amy Goffman, Kluge Children's Rehabilitation Ctr., Univ. of Virginia
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 201 pages
• Publisher: Brookline Books/Lumen Editions; First Edition Used edition (January 26, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0914797565
• ISBN-13: 978-0914797562
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,535,038 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A still small voice, October 10, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: No Time for Jello: One Family's Experiences with the Doman-Delacato Pattering Program (Paperback)

An honest and thoughtful account of one parent's growing disillusionment with the Doman/Delacato "patterning" therapy for her son with cerebral palsy. An effective counter-balance to the tendency of accounts of "miracle" alternative treatments to describe only the isolated "miracle cures" results and ignore with the far more common "failures", it also includes an appended summary of the scientific research on Doman's therapies which quietly and devastatingly demolishes the claims made for them.

I totally agree with the previous reviewer that this book should be compulsory reading for anyone even considering Doman's therapies, but it should also be relevant and interesting to a wider audience. Bratt examines the complex psychological issues involved in the pursuit of a 'cure" for a child with special needs - how parents are made to feel (and make themselves feel) that they are positively immoral unless they are willing to try anything that holds out even the faintest hope of a cure (at whatever cost), the costs of an exhausting and coercive treatment plan on the family as a whole, the psychological effect on a child of a treatment which implies so clearly that he's not OK as he is and needs to be "fixed", and the emotional consequences for both child and parents when such a cure fails to materialize and they finally have to accept the child's disability as a permanent part of his life. At the end of the book, her description of her acceptance of Jamie as he is, disability and all, is deeply moving.

Of course, a quiet and intelligent book like this will never win even a tenth of the readership of the sensational and mendacious books that sell the promise of miracles. All people who really care about children with special needs should regret this.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a MUST for anyone considering Doman's therapies for kids, November 6, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: No Time for Jello: One Family's Experiences with the Doman-Delacato Pattering Program (Paperback)

A family member has cerebral palsy from a pre-birth complication and the parents have been working with Doman's Institute. We came across this book in our continuing research. It is a must read. For the depth of personal experience and emotional turmoil, the author did a remarkable job of presenting an objective and thorough evaluation. My thanks to her as well for the extensive bibliography.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read for any parent whose child has a disability, April 1, 2009

By 

Chris Haynes (Seattle, wA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: No Time for Jello: One Family's Experiences with the Doman-Delacato Pattering Program (Paperback)

Ms. Cooper wrote "My heart goes out to the mother who wrote this book,"

Too bad she either did not finish this very short book or even read it. At the end of the book Ms. Bratt celebrates the progress and how wonderful her son is as an older child (he plays trumpet in the school band!).

At the very end of the book she also goes into the science, or lack of science behind the intensive physical therapy program pushed by Doman. It is part of her graduate school thesis, and is very enlightening to those of us who need this dose of sanity.

This book is a must read for any parent whose child has been diagnosed with any developmental condition, and who may want to try anything to "fix" the child. There are lots of people who like to cash in on the desperation of parents like us, and Ms. Bratt shines a light of reality and even a bit of hope. Especially when there are quacks out there pushing even more dangerous cures (like one pair who are advocating chemical castration!).