Our dolphin therapy with Marlies was a very pleasant experience.

Marlies is a four year old girl who was born with the Angelman syndrome. This entails a mental and physical disability. Although her body is optically normally developed, she cannot sit by herself, she cannot crawl or make herself understood. With the help of the Lionsclub we were able to book an Onmega dolphin therapy for July 2010.

The flight to Dalaman and the transfer to Antalya – although nearly 2 hours – was without problems. In the Hotel Club Turban we received a very friendly welcome, everything was clean and tidy, the usual 4 star standard.

On the first day after our arrival we had the introductory meeting in the Therapy Center. We gained a very positive impression from the agenda and the way the meeting was held. We left with the feeling that the Onmega people were capable and really wanted to help, that they were professionals who knew what they were doing and that Marlies would be in good hands.

The following day we had our first dolphin therapy. It was very welcome that we had only a five minute walk to the Dolphin Center. Marlies is a very well-behaved and willing girl, she accomplished all the tasks with the help of the therapist. One could see in her eyes that her astonishment never abated.

Dolphin therapy was in the morning, in the afternoon we either had Hippo therapy, Physiotherapy or Cranio Sacral treatment. We were taken to the horse riding by mini bus which took just over half an hour. All appointments and little things to do with the therapy was very well organized and well thought-out.
The main part was of course the dolphin therapy. Barbara, Marlies’ therapist, worked with feeling and perseverence to bring Marlies step by step further in her development. Two therapies a day were quite demanding, but Marlies was almost always in good spirits. One could see that with every day she became livelier.

Towards the end of the therapies it was quite apparent that Marlies was mentally a lot more spry. One could see in her eyes and in her face that she was interested in her surroundings and in what was going on. When she was sitting one had to be nearby to support her if necessary but also here she has made progress. Completely new was the fact that she could decline something using body language.

All in all we can say that for Marlies and the whole family the therapies in Antalya were an unforgettable experience with positive results.