Occupational Therapy for kids - What it is?

When you hear the word 'occupation', what do you think of? You may be thinking along the lines of 'work skills' and wondering, what does that have to do with my child? Occupational Therapists define the word ‘occupation’ as the activities and tasks that individuals perform in their everyday lives that have value and meaning for them. This can include looking after themselves (self-care), enjoying life (leisure) and contributing to their communities (productivity) (CAOT, 1997a).

For a child, their main occupation is PLAY. It is through play that they grow and learn to experience the world and how things work. Play has a huge influence on many domains of child development including:

-          Gross and fine motor

-          Sensory processing

-          Cognition

-          Language

-          Social-emotional

-          Perception

-          Behaviour

Children with disabilities often face many barriers to play – these can be physical, social, cognitive, etc (Majnemer, 2010). These barriers often are associated with issues in development that cause difficulties in their ability to carry out their daily activities. This is where Occupational Therapists can help! By using a client centred, evidence-based and holistic approach, Occupational Therapists assess the child, in their occupations, within the context of their environment to determine where the difficulties may lie. Then they set goals and collaboratively determine practical solutions to enable the child’s engagement!

To help guide our practice, we use the Person Environment Occupation Model (Law et al., 1996). Here’s an example: A child is having trouble putting on their velcro shoes which in turn is leading to the frustration of not being able to go play outside with his friends as fast as he would like (their occupation). In this case, the Occupational Therapist would work with the child to provide activities to improve his hand and finger strength (the person) as well as search for environmental modifications that could help with the task i.e. providing larger velcro straps (their environment).

Occupational Therapists are always working towards helping to enable independence for children to learn the skills that will lead to increased confidence, self-esteem and overall quality of life!

written by Rachel Tavares Reg.(OT)

BODiWORKS Institute

www.healthisfreedom.net

The Cumulative Effects in a 'good' program

Adapted Gym Program

The measure of a 'good' program for special needs children is difficult.  Often parents focus more on the perceived initial benefits such as behaviour, enjoyment and improvements seen.  These can be very subjective because each day with a special needs child is not the same as the next...as you already know if you are reading this blog! 

Having personal and professional experience with the latter I know that our 'stress' persists, and clouds what we see to be improvements or NON-improvements.

A 'good' program is often dictated by its realistic goals and intent.  We cannot determine improvements over a short term, as this is not realistic. Nor should we expect them. However the measure of a 'good' program comes with the acknowledgement that this will take awhile and the folks that are leading and assessing my child have the knowledge, experience and the will to pursue the improvements.

The Cumulative Effect (added in amount of time spent doing)  of several years in a program cannot be overlooked. It has been this author's experience that children who remain in a program, best experience the cumulative effects of the ever changing and improving environment from which they are exposed. The professionals that work with them can adapt and change over time to make the necessary developmental adjustments. The Adapted Gym Program for instance is not the same year to year for a singular child and the development and growth, changes. It is very helpful for a child to have  continuance for improvement rather that changing programs constantly.

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Art Therapy and Autism

Art therapy, has its origin in psychotherapy, thus plays a significant role in the treatment of children and teens diagnosed with ASD. Images and art making is naturally a safe way for children and teens to communicate and relate to the world around them. (Kramer, 1971; Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1964; Meyerowitz-Katz, 2003; Waller, 2006). When this experience is shared and facilitated by a professional art therapist, a meaningful opportunity is provided for the individual to express their psychological needs that often go unaddressed by other forms of therapies (Martin, 2009).  This use of nonverbal expression and the rich experience of utilizing visual modalities to stimulate cognitive, emotional and social development is what sets art therapy a part from similar professions (Gilroy, 2006; Martin, 2009).

Art therapists do not simply assign therapeutic directives; rather, by establishing a trusting relationship, they work jointly with the individual-sensitively guiding the art making to contribute to a positive change in their social behaviour, emotional expression, focus attention, self-regulation, flexibility, problem solving, communication skills, self-awareness and self-esteem (Martin, 2009; Pioch, 2010; Schweizer, 2014).

As Art therapy provides an fundamental avenue for the individual to understand and express their inner thoughts and emotions, it is crucial to consider this form of treatment in order to serve all aspects of the teen or child’s holistic development. 

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Why is Motor Skills Development so important?

All children have rapid changes in development in their CNS (Central Nervous System) as they age.  In brief…the CNS consists of the brain and spinal cord.  The CNS uses sensory receptors throughout the body to assist movement.  Movement is motor function that results from a series of sensory and motor neuron events occurring in very short succession. The groundwork for the CNS begins in the womb, and is partially influenced even then, by their environment. 

Voluntary movements (initiated by self) are the first means of communication between baby and its family.  Sometimes the CNS develops “slower” as compared to their neurotypical counterparts. 

This slower development does not always result in delayed or impaired motor development.  However when it does, it can be immediately noticeable or later in life (months or years).  If the CNS is compromised at all in the birthing process or later by infection or disease the motor development of the child is affected.   

Delayed motor skills are those skills that are underdeveloped compared to other children of similar age.  These skills can be developed using clever gross motor (multiple joint/sensors) and fine motor (single joint) programming.  It is very successful when this programming is consistent, individualized and progressive.  Programming involves segmented movements that relate to the weakest points for the child.   Some examples of topics are jumping, stepping, picking up weight, cycling, climbing and catching where skills are broken down into their finest form to development movement patterns that last.   In some cases we see children with delayed skills to have less efficient metabolisms, thereby increasing body weight easily.

In the cases of children with behavioural and social challenges  the “emotional override” by the brain’s limbic system of the CNS will disrupt motor skills.  In this case its necessary to work on their preparation for movement.  There are delays in the CNS that cause balance issues in this regard.  A child at any age can improve their motor functions.  Yes, adults also can, but not as rapidly.

Neurological disorders can cause semi-permanent or permanent motor skill loss.  In these children there is a good opportunity to aid the body in recruiting new motor nerves to help improve movement.  All bodies have the ability to improve in some capacity and also compensate for inadequate abilities.

Motor skill development is very important for safety, social life and health.  Most children naturally want to interact with other children or at least have a sense of self-esteem.  Some children have motor delays and impulsivity tendencies, which is a combination for injury.  Spending time on specific motor development aids the child throughout their entire life.  Balance control and strength for safety, relationships and sport development, and brain and circulatory health.  So often the motor development aids the mental focus too!  Best practices or strategies in motor development require goals and evaluation.

In all, children need to have fun and developing these necessary skills only helps in the fun and participation.  Children like physical outlets and this ultimately helps manage emotions and behaviour.  When children do not develop their “potential” skills the challenges can be greater in other areas of their life experience.

written by Mr. Corey Evans Executive Director of BODiWORKS Institute, Founder of the Adapted Gym Program  (AGP)

Disturbed NOT Ignored Social Communication

In our society, human beings are driven to accomplish goals and succeed at any task, whether it is related to the work force, the family, or self-improvement. It is reasonable to assume that the primary motivation for all humans that engage in tremendous efforts to attain these goals is to experience a sense of self-fulfilment, of reaching happiness. As people, our affective states change as a response to the gains and losses we experience during the course of our life, and our interpretation of these gains and losses will vary depending on an individual’s personality and genetic makeup. For children with special needs, there is often a disruption in their ability to perceive a task as a success or failure, and this misinterpretation can often lead to expressions of frustration, stress, or inability to interact appropriately with other social beings. This can explain why you may have observed a child with special needs respond with anger or fear, frustration or anxiety when in a novel situation. Their ability to interpret the situation or event as positive or negative will determine their future actions. To cope, it is important that individuals involved within the life of a child with special needs recognize that these children are aware of the social cues and the communications occurring in any given environment, but that a disruption can occur in their interpretation of the event. Like any behaviour, a response is the result of the interpretation of a sensory input, whether it be the context of a social conversation or the observed interactions between children playing at a playground.

                A recognized difficulty for children with autism is verbal or non-verbal disturbed communication. This is primarily known for non-verbal cues, such as a deficient or atypical perception of nonverbal communication from the eyes or the face. A distinct example would be a child with autism demonstrating difficulty in making or maintaining eye contact with someone they are engaged with, or focusing on atypical features of the face such as the nose or forehead. For verbal communication, there is often demonstrations of babbling or abnormal verbalizations in tone, pitch, and rhythm.

A primary example of atypical verbal communication is echolalia, where the child with autism will echo back what another social being has said, without necessarily interpreting or understanding the social meaning of that echoed speech. This emphasizes the difficulties children with special needs may experience when attempting to connect socially with their peers, as they often have notable deficits in pragmatics, the social use of language. Their social interactions are often characterized by irrelevant details in conversation, demonstrating inappropriate shifts in topic especially to topics of their own interest, or a complete disregard for the normal interchange in conversation, where one person speaks and then another can respond to the topic presented by the first speaker. Although these disruptions in communication are well-known and can characterize several children within the spectrum, variability in comprehension and expression exists. Some children are more effective at telling stories, communicating better with prompts, or when reading or writing rather than speaking. In summary, children with special needs will often demonstrate some atypical responses to social cues, whether verbal or non-verbal, but they are aware on a brain-based level of the social context of every environment they are exposed to.  Their expression of this brain-based process does not match, therefore is often misinterpreted.

Written in connection with BBAIM
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Social Milestones ?

What are Social Milestones?

Social Development Milestones – What to Expect

                Often when we hear someone discussing social development, we assume they are referring to the development of friendships and the interactions we generally see in middle-school children and adolescents. However, social development begins at birth and the type of social experiences we have as infants and young children often dictate the way we interact and socialize as adults. In order to develop social skills and exhibit normative social development, there are particular milestones that each individual should successfully demonstrate or achieve as they progress from infancy to adolescence.

                At birth until the age of five years old, children need the stability of early social relationships and essential needs available to them. These early social relationships are generally the primary caregivers of the infant, such as a mother or father, but it can also be an alternative constant caregiver such as a grandmother or foster parent. Infants need to know they are loved and cared for in order for them to learn its significance when they later reciprocate those feelings in their future relationships. The need for food and other essentials like shelter must be available as this can also influence the form of attachment the child develops to caregivers. For instance, an infant will quickly learn whether or not they can trust a caregiver if in their care they are deprived of their needs when needed. This will influence their ability to establish secure attachments with others and trust them in future relationships.  There are several forms of attachment that are possible for children to develop as a result of their social experiences, but they are primarily categorized as secure attachment and insecure attachment. The preferred attachment is secure, where the child feels their caregiver is a secure base in their life and they feel comfortable exploring their environment or interacting with new people because their caregiver is always available if the novel stimuli or person is too overwhelming for them. An insecure attachment can be when the child depends on the parent and clings to them in novel environments or when they do not consider the caregiver as a secure base. In these circumstances, a child can have a difficult time developing trust, initiating social play or interactions with others, or distinguishing between a safe and unsafe environment. As a result of early interactions, future life strategies for developing social relationships can be modified or adapted.

 ...In the first year of life, infants also begin to respond to social stimuli by exhibiting a “social smile”, which is the ability for a child to respond to another person and illustrate to the parent that they are aware and can react to a social context, such as a parent talking to the child.  Infants also demonstrate distinct facial expressions in their first year of life, including expressions of sadness, happiness, and anger. As their attachment style develops, the reaction to strangers generally becomes more fearful as the attachment to caregivers becomes stronger. This year of life is also a critical period in the development of separation anxiety as children are able to recognize familiar and unfamiliar people.

...In early and mid-childhood, children are engaging in more social interactions with their peers and start forming friendships and various attachments to people present in their lives. Children begin to develop their adult personality based on their social experiences that will introduce and solidify their values, interests, goals, and life strategies. Since children need and depend on both parents and peers for normal social developments, the absence of peers can have a detrimental impact on their ability to become socialized. A developing child receives their personality traits and values from their parents through learning and socialization, however peers and siblings have a measureable impact on personality development. Depending on the social dynamic, peer groups can influence which values and traits introduced by parents to accept and reject. Peer socialization is most important in late childhood and adolescence, where children will adopt the group’s attitudes and norms of behaviour and in adolescence groups will be segregated based on similar abilities and interests. It is during adolescence that the skills and milestones reached in infancy and childhood will play a crucial role in selecting and rejecting elements of the adult culture in the process of developing their own culture.

written by Orla Tyrrell of BODiWORKS Institute and Facilitator of SPP  

www.healthisfreedom.net

 

importance of MOTOR SKILL development

Why is Motor Skills Development so important?

All children have rapid changes in development in their CNS (Central Nervous System) as they age.  In brief…the CNS consists of the brain and spinal cord.  The CNS uses sensory receptors throughout the body to assist movement.  Movement is motor function that results from a series of sensory and motor neuron events occurring in very short succession. The groundwork for the CNS begins in the womb, and is partially influenced even then, by their environment. 

Voluntary movements (initiated by self) are the first means of communication between baby and its family.  Sometimes the CNS develops “slower” as compared to their neurotypical counterparts. 

This slower development does not always result in delayed or impaired motor development.  However when it does, it can be immediately noticeable or later in life (months or years).  If the CNS is compromised at all in the birthing process or later by infection or disease the motor development of the child is affected.   

Delayed motor skills are those skills that are underdeveloped compared to other children of similar age.  These skills can be developed using clever gross motor (multiple joint/sensors) and fine motor (single joint) programming.  It is very successful when this programming is consistent, individualized and progressive.  Programming involves segmented movements that relate to the weakest points for the child.   Some examples of topics are jumping, stepping, picking up weight, cycling, climbing and catching where skills are broken down into their finest form to development movement patterns that last.   In some cases we see children with delayed skills to have less efficient metabolisms, thereby increasing body weight easily.

In the cases of children with behavioural and social challenges  the “emotional override” by the brain’s limbic system of the CNS will disrupt motor skills.  In this case its necessary to work on their preparation for movement.  There are delays in the CNS that cause balance issues in this regard.  A child at any age can improve their motor functions.  Yes, adults also can, but not as rapidly.

Neurological disorders can cause semi-permanent or permanent motor skill loss.  In these children there is a good opportunity to aid the body in recruiting new motor nerves to help improve movement.  All bodies have the ability to improve in some capacity and also compensate for inadequate abilities.

Motor skill development is very important for safety, social life and health.  Most children naturally want to interact with other children or at least have a sense of self-esteem.  Some children have motor delays and impulsivity tendencies, which is a combination for injury.  Spending time on specific motor development aids the child throughout their entire life.  Balance control and strength for safety, relationships and sport development, and brain and circulatory health.  So often the motor development aids the mental focus too!  Best practices or strategies in motor development require goals and evaluation.

In all, children need to have fun and developing these necessary skills only helps in the fun and participation.  Children like physical outlets and this ultimately helps manage emotions and behaviour.  When children do not develop their “potential” skills the challenges can be greater in other areas of their life experience.

written by Mr. Corey Evans Executive Director of BODiWORKS Institute, Founder of the Adapted Gym Program  (AGP)

www.healthisfreedom.net