I love to cook and bake with my clients. A therapy session that ends with something delicious? Perfect! A session that ends in hand pain or major spills? Not part of MY plan! Almost all of my clients find opening containers challenging. Cans and jars are big problems for them. Fortunately, there are 2…… Continue reading Hand Pain or Weakness? These Two Kitchen Tools Make Life Easier!
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Strategies to Manage Your Special Needs Kid’s Exposure to Wildfire Smoke
Wide swaths of Canada and the North/Northeast U.S. are being swathed in wildfire smoke. Exposure to pollutants like smoke isn’t good for anyone, but it is really not good for kids with special needs. This includes the entire rainbow of special needs children, not only the kids with respiratory or cardiac conditions. WHY is this…… Continue reading Strategies to Manage Your Special Needs Kid’s Exposure to Wildfire Smoke
Want Better Focus? Clear Your Desk and Walls Off!
For those of us without attentional issues, decorations and signs inspire us. We love to put up treasured pictures and mount shelves filled with trinkets. We make our space, well, ours. If you have problems focusing, your tchotchkes can harm you. They won’t attack you. Your stuff doesn’t bite. But they can harm you…… Continue reading Want Better Focus? Clear Your Desk and Walls Off!
Special Needs Kids in Extreme Heat: What You Need to Know
We just endured a massive heatwave here in New York. It was tough on everyone. Local and national papers encouraged people to care for their pets, the elderly, and the unhoused. There were a lot of articles on how to stay cool. They never mentioned special needs kids. They should have. The guidance parents and…… Continue reading Special Needs Kids in Extreme Heat: What You Need to Know
Can Your Special Needs Son Zip Up? It Changes How Others Treat Them
If your son is still wearing sweats every day, all day, you might want to reconsider. The reason is that when your guy looks more mature, they will be treated differently. They will be spoken to more, and listened to with a different lens. They will be invited to participate in ways they need, even…… Continue reading Can Your Special Needs Son Zip Up? It Changes How Others Treat Them
Why Can’t Psychotherapists Target Interoception as Well as OT’s?
There is so much out there about trauma therapy that addresses the brain and body. As if the idea is new. It is only new to you if you thought talking alone solved problems that originate in terror. Every OT knows that you are more than your mind. It is integral to our profession. We…… Continue reading Why Can’t Psychotherapists Target Interoception as Well as OT’s?
“Spoon Theory” for Extreme Fatigue Isn’t Enough: You Deserve Better Tools
The concept of “spoons” is a popular one for people who are dealing with fatigue, pain, and weakness from any condition. It references the idea of pacing activities to prevent reaching a point of no return. Counting your spoons, using your spoons, saving your spoons; there are tons of SnapChat and Instagram posts on how…… Continue reading “Spoon Theory” for Extreme Fatigue Isn’t Enough: You Deserve Better Tools
POTS and Learning to Drive
Why care about learning to drive? After all, POTS is a serious MEDICAL condition. Well….. Learning to drive is a rite of passage for almost all teens. But it is more than that. Using a private vehicle to get around can be huge for self-esteem. It can also make life easier. Buses…… Continue reading POTS and Learning to Drive
Low Tone or Hypermobility? Don’t Ignore “Nature’s Call”
Never ignore “nature’s call”. Ever. Your body is speaking. Listen up. Respect it. If you or your child is hypotonic and/or hypermobile, ignoring the urge to eliminate is a poor choice. Kids can learn this principle more easily than adults. As adults, we are able to come up with reasons to wait,…… Continue reading Low Tone or Hypermobility? Don’t Ignore “Nature’s Call”
This Book Series Builds Your Child’s Eye Hand Coordination!
As a pediatric occupational therapist, I love recommending books. My favorite books for kids who need to build pre-writing skills are the books with flaps, pull tabs, and bubbles to poke. They are fun, they are entertaining, and children have no idea that they are working on hand control. They are simply having fun. Here…… Continue reading This Book Series Builds Your Child’s Eye Hand Coordination!
Should You Wait to Pee? Take a “Power Pee”? Not if You Have Low Tone or Hypermobility!
Pelvic floor therapists and urologists are telling people not to urinate “just in case”. Their reasoning is that people would be training their bladder to signal urgency too soon. They aren’t saying something extremely important: This does not apply to hypermobile people, or those with low muscle tone. WHY NOT? If your muscle tone or…… Continue reading Should You Wait to Pee? Take a “Power Pee”? Not if You Have Low Tone or Hypermobility!
Headed Back to Pee Too Soon? Do a “Double Void”Instead!
Stop running back to the potty and get on with your life! A lot of my clients with low muscle tone or hypermobility have to run BACK to the toilet to pee again shortly after their first visit. They are surprised at how quickly this happens. Some of them don’t make it in time. They…… Continue reading Headed Back to Pee Too Soon? Do a “Double Void”Instead!
Does your child have problems holding a pencil? The problem could be…the PENCIL!
When I look at a child’s pencil grasp, I identify anything that could be making it difficult for them. It isn’t always their fingers. Here is how I think about pencil grasp: Very few kids are taught how to hold a pencil. A clever and observant handful mimic their siblings or teachers. They are usually…… Continue reading Does your child have problems holding a pencil? The problem could be…the PENCIL!
Vaccine Reactions in Your Kid with Low Muscle Tone? Don’t Panic!
I treat a mostly non-verbal young man who has moderate-severe low muscle tone. Yesterday, he was his usual, cheerful self. And he could barely move. Nothing that usually motivates him worked. He wasn’t feverish, visibly ill, or in pain. This young man was smiling and happy to see me. He is taking a new…… Continue reading Vaccine Reactions in Your Kid with Low Muscle Tone? Don’t Panic!
The Easiest Manual Razor to Teach Your Special Needs Son to Shave
It is time to teach your son to shave. Shaving wasn’t on your radar until now. Maybe you have been shaving him or taking him to the barber. BUT…….. His beard is growing in too fast for the occasional barber visit. His coordination and safety awareness? Not as fast. He needs to learn to…… Continue reading The Easiest Manual Razor to Teach Your Special Needs Son to Shave
“Toilet Training Your Child with Low Muscle Tone” is Now an Audiobook!
This was my very first book. I think it has helped a lot of parents. But parents are so busy. Too busy to read. Sometimes too busy to shower or eat more than a protein bar! I am so happy that now parents who have no time to read a book can get access to…… Continue reading “Toilet Training Your Child with Low Muscle Tone” is Now an Audiobook!
“Get Your Autistic Child to Sleep” Will Change Your (Night)Life!
Parents need more support to address sleep problems with their autistic kids. Too many sleepless nights. Too many terrible mornings. Good luck finding a provider that is both a licensed therapist AND a certified sleep therapist. Wait…. You just did; I am on of those rare unicorns, and I wrote a short ebook for you!!…… Continue reading “Get Your Autistic Child to Sleep” Will Change Your (Night)Life!
Build A Child’s Utensil Skills (Spoons, Forks, Knives) with my New Handout Pack!
Using a spoon and a fork are the beginnings of skilled tool use for children. It isn’t always easy. For special needs kids, these skills can take time and practice to develop. Sometimes, kids decide they will use their fingers or suck their meals from a pouch. They will let someone else cut…… Continue reading Build A Child’s Utensil Skills (Spoons, Forks, Knives) with my New Handout Pack!
“The Young Gifted Child: A Quick Reference Guide for Parents” Has Finally Arrived!
Parents of Young Gifted Children: This is the Information You Have Been Searching For! Young gifted kids are some of the most interesting kids I see all year. Really. Gifted kids are wonderful. They are always surprising me. They are the people who will improve our world. I am working with a young gifted…… Continue reading “The Young Gifted Child: A Quick Reference Guide for Parents” Has Finally Arrived!
Does Your ASD Child Avoid Looking at You? Is it Gaze Indifference or Gaze Aversion?
There is a difference between gaze indifference and gaze aversion. One requires treatments that focus on sensory processing to lower a child’s overall neurological arousal level. The other won’t respond significantly to sensory treatment, and requires behavioral and psycho-educational strategies. Can YOU tell the difference between them? Gaze aversion has a distinct emotional component to…… Continue reading Does Your ASD Child Avoid Looking at You? Is it Gaze Indifference or Gaze Aversion?