What does an Occupational Therapist do
The Gist:
Occupational Therapy can be effective for young kids experiencing sensory, motor, behavior, or balance issues.
Sensory integration/processing issues can look like bad behavior: they’re not.
Read more…
Have you ever watched your child:
Crash into things and people as if they didn’t know where their body ends and the world begins?
Say “ouch” when you touched them really gently (maybe from behind where they couldn’t see you)?
Withhold bowel movements to the point where they were in pain?
Have many pee accidents even though they “should” be toilet trained?
Go from “zero to ninety” (either angry or happy) seemingly without any reason?
Hit another person who got “too close” to them?
Fall down a lot or trip over items in the environment?
Avoid messy, wet, mushy or dirty things?
Hold out their hands immediately to be wiped?
Cover their ears or become very upset by loud noises (even familiar ones)?
If you’ve noticed any of these things and they’ve become a problem over time, chances are your child’s brain is experiencing challenges with sensory integration -- how we experience information from the world.
The “sensory” part is what you think it is: our senses of touch, taste, smell, hearing and sight.
(There are a few others in there too: vestibular - our sense of balance; proprioception - the sense of one’s own body in space; and interoception - awareness of one’s internal states. If you want to learn more about these lesser known senses, check out THIS VIDEO on proprioception. Also keep an eye out for an interview I recorded with Kelly Mahler, OTR/L on interoception).
The second word: Integration refers to how the brain interprets the signals that it gets from the body. Without the interpretation, there is no response (if a tree falls in the forest and all that).
When the brain is interpreting sensory information, it classifies that information as being either “safe”, “unsafe”, or “new: not sure yet”. Some of the problems we see in kiddos who have difficulty with sensory integration result from the brain interpreting experiences “incorrectly” -- either by overreacting or underreacting.
A light touch might feel excruciatingly painful or threatening; a really strong crash might not generate enough feeling; loud noises can be aversive or a child might crave loud sounds; certain tastes and smells can be overwhelming or they might not register at all.; certain movements will get kids so far off balance that they fall. All of these over- or under-sensitivities can lead to avoidance of certain activities or lashing out at others with behavior that looks like your kiddo is just “bad”.
They’re not bad. They’re struggling.
Enter a Pediatric Occupational Therapist (OT). OTs help children (and adults) acquire, and sometimes regain, a better sense of their own bodies and how they work.
OTs can help parents understand why our kids aren’t potty trained; why they can only knock stuff over rather than build things up; why they don’t put on their own shoes; why they cringe every single time the doorbell rings; why they fall down so much; and why they just WON’T play in the sand at the beach or go on the swings at the park.
OTs can usually determine how sensory information is affecting our kids, and they can program activities (and give us stuff to do at home) that will address those sensitive areas of development.
OTs in schools mostly work on Fine Motor skills as they relate to handwriting. Think: academic readiness.
In private practice, OTs evaluate, diagnose and treat fine motor difficulties AND sensory processing difficulties too.
If you recognized your child in some of the questions above, and you’ve been concerned about your child’s behavior, it might be worth asking a Pediatric Occupational Therapist to take a look. I’ve seen the sensory piece be the missing link for many families. The one that helped when nothing else seemed to.
As always, we’re here to help answer questions if you have them. Just email us at info@speechkids.com.
All my best-
Gabriele
PS.
Our new online class for parents, Raising Orchids, starts TOMORROW!
Join myself and Jen Dryer for a 6 week class designed for parents of 3 - 12 year olds with special needs and learning differences.
We will explore valuable and practical strategies for encouraging and empowering your child to learn new skills, understanding difficult behaviors, supporting your child's independence and sense of confidence, planning for your child's success and troubleshooting difficult situations.
Register today to get valuable tools and strategies from the experts and to connect with other parents who "get it".
Class starts TOMORROW! This is your last chance to sign up—Don’t miss this amazing opportunity!!
I hope to see you there!