Patterning Exercises: FSA Eligibility

What are patterning exercises?

Patterning exercises are exercises intended to assist the development of an individual with a brain injury, mental condition, or disorder. Patterning exercises mimic or recapitulate stages of phylogeny, which is a species' evolutionary history, through physical action. Thus, patterning exercises are intended to "walk" an individual through physical exercises intended to stimulate their brain development through various stages of growth mirroring human evolutionary history (amphibian, reptilian, mammalian, etc.). Several adults are involved in patterning exercise sessions which involve manipulation of the head and limbs in certain patterns in order to demonstrate this movement pattern and mimic the stages of evolution (Scientific Review of Mental Health Practice).

All of this is built on the assumption that mental development disabilities and brain injuries are the result of an individual failing to exceed, or reverting to a stage of development preceding that of a healthy adult human.

Fortunately for patterning exercise enthusiasts and believers, the IRS has determined that expenses associated with patterning exercises are eligible for reimbursement with consumer-directed healthcare accounts. The exercises are only eligible for reimbursement for treating a mental condition, injury or disease.