Bathtime is usually a fun experience for young children. Toys, splashing, bubbles. But it’s not always fun for parents. If your child has issues with sensory sensitivity, sensory seeking or hypermobility, you can feel like a one-armed paperhanger; juggling toys, washcloth and child! One solution is to use a bath seat. A word of common…… Continue reading Tub Safety For Special Needs Children
Tag: hypermobility
Teaching Safety Awareness To Special Needs Toddlers
Parents anxiously wait for their special needs infants to sit up, crawl and walk. That last skill can take extra months or years. Everyone, and I mean everyone, uses walking as a benchmark for maturity and independence. They shouldn’t. A child with poor safety awareness isn’t safer when they acquire mobility skills. Sometimes they are…… Continue reading Teaching Safety Awareness To Special Needs Toddlers
Three Ways To Reduce W-Sitting (And Why It Matters)
Children who sit on the floor with their thighs rolled inward and their calves rotated out to the sides are told that they are “W-sitting”. Parents are told to reposition their kids immediately. There are even garments like Hip Helpers that make it nearly impossible to sit in this manner. Some therapists get practically apoplectic…… Continue reading Three Ways To Reduce W-Sitting (And Why It Matters)
Picking The Best Bikes, Scooters, Etc. For Kids With Low Tone and Hypermobility
Welcome to the world of faster (and faster) movement! After mastering walking and possibly running, kids are often eager to jump on a ride-on toy and get moving. If a child has had motor delays and has had to wait to develop the strength and balance needed to use a bike, they may be a…… Continue reading Picking The Best Bikes, Scooters, Etc. For Kids With Low Tone and Hypermobility
For Hypermobile Kids, “Listen To Your Body” Doesn’t Teach Them To Pace Themselves. Here’s What Really Helps.
I ran across a comment piece online that recommended parents teach their hypermobile children to “listen to your body” to pace activities in an effort to avoid fatigue, pain or injury. My reaction was fairly strong and immediate. The sensory-based effects of hypermobility (HM) reduce interoception (internal body awareness) and proprioception/kinesthesia (position and movement sense,…… Continue reading For Hypermobile Kids, “Listen To Your Body” Doesn’t Teach Them To Pace Themselves. Here’s What Really Helps.
Can You Use The Wilbarger Protocol With Kids That Have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome?
My posts on proprioception and hypermobility have been popular lately, leading me to think that parents (and therapists) want more information on the sensory basis for their children’s struggles, and that often their treatments don’t include addressing their sensory processing issues. The Ehles-Danlos Syndromes (yes, there are more variants than just vascular and hypermobile!) are…… Continue reading Can You Use The Wilbarger Protocol With Kids That Have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome?
Hypermobility and ADHD? Take Stability, Proprioception, Pain and Fatigue Into Account Before Labeling Behavior
ADHD is a disorder that is diagnosed clinically. This means that there are no brain examinations, no measures that are not behavioral, when determining whether or not to give a child this label. The younger the child, the less accurate behavioral measurements are. But the risks in quickly giving a child this label are significant.…… Continue reading Hypermobility and ADHD? Take Stability, Proprioception, Pain and Fatigue Into Account Before Labeling Behavior
Hypermobile Child? Simple Dental Moves That Make a Real Difference in Your Child’s Health
As the OTR on a treatment team, I am the ADL (Activities of Daily Living) go-to person. Why then, do so few parents ask me what ideas I have about ADLs, especially dental care? Probably because OT as a profession has developed this reputation as the therapist either focused on handwriting or…… Continue reading Hypermobile Child? Simple Dental Moves That Make a Real Difference in Your Child’s Health
Hypermobile Toddlers: It’s What Not To Do That Matters Most
Do you pick up your toddler and feel that shoulder or those wrist bones moving a lot under your touch? Does your child do a “downward dog” and her elbows look like they are bending backward? Does it seem that his ankles are rolling over toward the floor when he stands up? That is…… Continue reading Hypermobile Toddlers: It’s What Not To Do That Matters Most
Is Your Hypermobile Child JointSmart?
Sometimes it must seem that OTs and PTs are the ultimate buzz killers. “Don’t do gymnastics; it could damage your knees” and “I don’t recommend those shoes. Not enough support”. Just like the financial planner that tells you to sell the boat and save more for a rainy day, we therapists can sound like we…… Continue reading Is Your Hypermobile Child JointSmart?
Low Tone and Toilet Training: Learning to Hold It In Long Enough to Make It to The Potty
If your child can’t stay dry at night after 5, or can’t make it to the potty on time, there are a number of things that could be going wrong. I won’t list them all, but your pediatrician may send you to a pediatric urologist to evaluate whether there are any functional (kidney issues,…… Continue reading Low Tone and Toilet Training: Learning to Hold It In Long Enough to Make It to The Potty
Hypermobility in Young Children: When Flexibility Isn’t Functional
Your grandma would have called it being ” double jointed”. Your mom might mention that she was the most flexible person in every yoga class she attended. But when extra joint motion reduces your child’s performance or creates pain, parents get concerned. Sometimes pediatricians and orthopedists do not. Why would that happen? A measure…… Continue reading Hypermobility in Young Children: When Flexibility Isn’t Functional
Why Low Muscle Tone Creates More Toilet Training Struggles for Toddlers (and Parents!)
Most parents assume that toilet training a child with low tone (also called hypotonia) isn’t going to be easy. A child with low muscle tone often crawls later, walks later, and may speak later. Low tone can affect toilet training in ways both obvious and subtle. As an occupational therapist, I want to share…… Continue reading Why Low Muscle Tone Creates More Toilet Training Struggles for Toddlers (and Parents!)