Using the MAF Method to help parents and children with neurological issues
Few people know the challenges faced by parents of neurodiverse children better than Darci Hawxhurst. Her daughter Haylie nearly died of spinal meningitis at the age of 12 weeks and was left brain-injured by the illness.
Darci, a single mother and college student at the time, watched as Haylie struggled with the lingering effects, including risk of seizures, developmental problems and learning disabilities. As she fought to keep pace with her peers both physically and intellectually, she also was often confused and forgetful, and battled emotional meltdowns.
The ensuing struggle of this resilient mother has not only led to a success story for Haylie, but also a calling to help other parents fighting this same battle, whether it’s a brain injury caused by a disease, or other neurodiversities such as autism, dyslexia, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which she says are problems in the brain caused by neurological disorganization.
While Haylie was functioning at the level of a 2-year-old at age 4, Darci went back to school part time, and became a teacher, with a masters in literacy and education. Her ongoing quest to help her daughter also led her to The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential where she met Dr. Phil Maffetone and became aware of the MAF Method.
Along her journey, Darci not only found MAF Method helpful for her daughter, but it also saved her from the throes of her own adrenal meltdown.
“I had a nervous breakdown and a full adrenal blowout.” Darci recalls. “I just about ended up on thyroid medication.”
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Darci says she managed by basically applying MAF to the letter. “I was able to heal myself completely naturally,” she says. “The MAF principles, and applying them and living them, are really no joke. I was able to overcome all of that and get myself back to better than I was. It’s pretty powerful stuff and a powerful testimony.”
Today, Haylie is attending Indiana University, and Darci is focusing her 20 years of experience on helping other parents, particularly moms, who are finding themselves in the same shoes she was years ago.
“Mommas are melting down all over the place these days,” she says. “I work with parents who struggle with kids who have learning differences, teaching parents about the brain and some interventions.”
Darci is helping other women tap into the wisdom of their own bodies to achieve this same energy, well-being, and vibrancy using MAF Method in her upcoming Vibrant Woman Course in January. Click here for registration.
When not helping parents help their kids, Darci can often be found riding her bike through the rolling Indiana countryside.
“The point is I don’t just teach this because it’s something I know. I teach it because I live it and implemented all of the MAF skills with my daughter,” she says. “This is my lifestyle. This is my life. I only eat real food, I eat below my carb limit. I do my MAF workout every day.”
