Author: Cathy Collyer

I am a licensed occupational therapist, licensed massage therapist, and certified CBT-i sleep coach in private practice in the NYC area.

I have over 25 years of professional experience in adult and pediatric treatment. It has been a joy to help people of all ages improve their ability to grow and thrive! Occupational therapists are focused on enhancing a client's functioning in everyday life. We are practical healthcare providers, interested in teaching, adapting actions and environments, and building a client's useful skills for living their best life, regardless of their challenges.

I am the author of five books, including "Staying In The Room: Managing Medical And Dental Care When You Have DID" and "The Practical Guide To Toilet Training the Autistic Child". I lecture on many subjects, including sleep, trauma, and development. Contact me to learn more about how I can help you achieve YOUR goals!

Teaching Kids To Cut With Scissors? Don’t Use Cheap Paper

As a pediatric occupational therapist, I would guess that every third IEP I have seen for preschool children includes some version of being able to cut with scissors. Understanding anatomy and neurology certainly help therapists understand why a child struggles. But when teaching a motor skill, it also helps to know what tools make a…… Continue reading Teaching Kids To Cut With Scissors? Don’t Use Cheap Paper

How To Write Numbers And Letters To Avoid Confusing Young Children

One of the common questions children will ask me when I am working with them on handwriting is “Why is your “6” different from my book’s “6”? , or why is your ” M” different from my book’s “M” ? This is an EXCELLENT question. Here is the answer: because a computer made those numbers…… Continue reading How To Write Numbers And Letters To Avoid Confusing Young Children

Like The Cube Chair? Here Is a Table and Chairs Set For Younger Toddlers!

My post on the classic Cube Chair The Cube Chair: Your Special Needs Toddler’s New Favorite Seat!  has been popular, but it isn’t always a great choice for the smaller toddler that was a preemie (they tend to stay smaller in size).  So…enter the next choice for toddlers that need some back support and need…… Continue reading Like The Cube Chair? Here Is a Table and Chairs Set For Younger Toddlers!

Why A Circular Scribble ISN’T a Circle

I spend a lot of time in telehealth with toddlers and young preschoolers doing pre-writing.  It requires few tools, it is easy to demonstrate, and it is fun.  But when parents tell their two year-old that they drew a circle after they scribbled in a circular pattern, I stop them. Why? After all, copying a…… Continue reading Why A Circular Scribble ISN’T a Circle

Doing Quickshifts? Modulated Music? Therapeutic Listening? Get These Affordable, Comfortable, Kid-Size Bluetooth Headphones From PURO!

Wirecutter, owned by the New York Times, just did a piece on great gifts. The PURO BT2200 models were featured because they are child-sized NOISE-LIMITING headphones with a BUILT-IN MIC, which is great for virtual school participation. I am recommending them because they will not destroy your child’s hearing. They max out at 85 decibels.…… Continue reading Doing Quickshifts? Modulated Music? Therapeutic Listening? Get These Affordable, Comfortable, Kid-Size Bluetooth Headphones From PURO!

Book Review By An OTR: Life, Disrupted; Getting Real About Chronic Illness in Your Twenties and Thirties

Although I work in pediatrics now, I spent the first 10 years of my career in adult ortho-neuro rehab. This means that I worked with many young adults facing issues from RA, MS, Lupus, spinal cord injuries, and more. They were just getting started with jobs, raising children, and making an adult life, but they…… Continue reading Book Review By An OTR: Life, Disrupted; Getting Real About Chronic Illness in Your Twenties and Thirties

Book Review From an OTR: Easy For You To Say Q and A’s for Teens Living with Chronic Illness or Disability

If you are a teen with JRA, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, MD, paraplegia, or any of the many conditions that create daily challenges in your life, you need to read this book. If you are the parent of a teen or tween with these medical conditions, you REALLY need to read this book. Dr. Miriam Kaufman wrote…… Continue reading Book Review From an OTR: Easy For You To Say Q and A’s for Teens Living with Chronic Illness or Disability

Should You Use White Noise With Toddlers?

I teach The Happiest Baby on the Block techniques to calm newborns because it is based in science.  The science of neurology and early development.  But babies grow.  The 5 S’s, used all together, really don’t work much past 12 weeks of age.  Nobody is swaddling a 6-month old, or jiggling an 8-month old. But…… Continue reading Should You Use White Noise With Toddlers?

The Three Stages of Color Recognition in Toddlers and Preschoolers

Although this is not officially an OT issue, I regularly field questions about when and how to teach color recognition to young children.  Like many of my other posts, I am writing this one so that I have something I can send parents; they can read about the concepts we discuss.  There is so much…… Continue reading The Three Stages of Color Recognition in Toddlers and Preschoolers

How The Pandemic is Affecting A Toddler’s Learning

The New York Times ran a ridiculous piece today about the effects of the pandemic on early learning.  It had quotes from staff at programs for music class about the amazing motor and cognitive benefits of clapping in time to a song and imitating animal sounds.  It had quotes from parents in wealthy NY suburbs,…… Continue reading How The Pandemic is Affecting A Toddler’s Learning

Is Your Child Bright or Gifted? Spot the Differences

  One of my posts, Why Gifted Children Aren’t Their Teacher’s Favorite Students….  gets a lot of interest.  Parents are surprised that having a gifted child doesn’t reap enthusiasm from the average educator.  The general characteristics of a gifted person (intensity, drive, and complexity) can be downright disruptive in a general classroom.  It often isn’t any…… Continue reading Is Your Child Bright or Gifted? Spot the Differences

Is It Sensory Treatment…Or Sensory Stimulation? How To Know The Difference

cco I have spent the first part of my career in pediatrics convincing parents, teachers, and other therapists that sensory processing is important for development, and that sensory processing disorders are a real “thing”.  I am spending the latter part of my career trying to explain to the same groups that using a sensory-based activity…… Continue reading Is It Sensory Treatment…Or Sensory Stimulation? How To Know The Difference

Help Your Toddler Prepare to Write

Ian, Lila, and Tom aren’t writing. They are drawing! Contrary to the ideas of some preschool teachers, most three year olds don’t write their names.  In truth, most young fours don’t either.  I refuse to count the kids who “draw” their names like the photo above.  That isn’t writing.  That is drawing, the same as…… Continue reading Help Your Toddler Prepare to Write

Remote Learning Strategies for Special Needs Students

Remote learning isn’t easy.  Helping a special needs student navigate it isn’t easy either. Here are some strategies to improve outcomes and reduce everyone’s stress about it: If your child’s OT has created a sensory diet for them, this is the time to use it.  A sensory diet is a series of activities and actions…… Continue reading Remote Learning Strategies for Special Needs Students

Why Your Kid Still Needs To Be Able to Write With A Pencil

I just watched a Google tech guy try to explain why digital education is so great. Maybe it is, for older kids and college students, and kids in rural parts of the world. But for the youngest children, and for kids with special needs of all types, digital instruction has proven to be lacking in…… Continue reading Why Your Kid Still Needs To Be Able to Write With A Pencil

How To Remember to Do A Sensory Diet With Your Child

A “sensory diet” is the cornerstone of managing a child’s sensory processing issues.  Every therapist knows that without a good home program that only addressing a child’s needs in a session, we aren’t going to see much progress.  Treatment sessions are spent half playing catch-up:  trying to increase postural activation, calming them down, or waking…… Continue reading How To Remember to Do A Sensory Diet With Your Child

A Fun Way to Help Kids With Low Tone Stand Up Straight: Stomp-Stomp!

Kids with hypermobility or low tone are often found standing in the most dysfunctional of positions.  Toes pointing in, feet rolled in or out, feet on top of each other: take your pick, because these kids will alternate between these wobbly choices and more!  Read How To Improve Posture In Children With Low Muscle Tone… Without…… Continue reading A Fun Way to Help Kids With Low Tone Stand Up Straight: Stomp-Stomp!

Why Joint Protection Solutions for Hypermobility Aren’t Your Granny’s Joint Protection Strategies

I spent almost 10 years working in adult rehab before I transitioned to pediatrics.  I still teach joint protection, but I teach it differently to hypermobile kids and their parents.  Kids rarely have JRA, or joint damage in general.  What they have in spades are serious degrees of hypermobility.  And the methods to use joint…… Continue reading Why Joint Protection Solutions for Hypermobility Aren’t Your Granny’s Joint Protection Strategies

Got a Whining Child Under 5? Here Is Why They Whine, And What To Do About It

A lot of my youngest clients have started to whine.  That cute toddler has turned into a whiny young preschooler.  The pandemic isn’t helping them avoid it, or help their stressed parents handle it. But I can help both parties.  I cannot make these kids grow up any faster, but understanding many of the reasons…… Continue reading Got a Whining Child Under 5? Here Is Why They Whine, And What To Do About It

How To Respond to Your Child’s Aggressive or Defiant Acts To Get Results That Last

Throwing toys.  Screaming “NO!!!!!”  Dumping a plate of food on the floor while they look right at you in defiance. Kids can go from cute to aggressive in the blink of an eye. Is it annoying?  Sure.  Is it dangerous?  Not all the time.  Should you completely ignore it?  Not unless you’d like to see…… Continue reading How To Respond to Your Child’s Aggressive or Defiant Acts To Get Results That Last