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What
is Occupational Therapy?
Occupational Therapy helps children with sensory
issues, motor difficulties and cognitive problems, to
reach their potential. Occupational Therapy helps
children engage in all aspects of their lives,
including developmental movement and play, mealtimes
and self-care, learning and school performance, and socially.
Occupational Therapists provide evaluation and
treatment of :
- Fine motor skills, dexterity and coordination,
- Developmental motor skills,
- Functional gross motor skills,
- Sensory skills (tactile, vestibular, proprioceptive,
visual, auditory, regulation)
- Oral motor, oral sensory, feeding and swallowing
- Visual skills: visual perceptual, visual motor,
eye-hand coordination skills
- Developmental skills
- Self-help skills: dressing, bathing, mealtime skills
- Cognitive skills, such as attention, concentration,
following directions, problem solving
- Handwriting and accessing a curriculum
- Social skills
- Positioning, adaptive equipment, upper extremity splinting, taping, casting
What is Neurodevelopmental Treatment (NDT)?
Neurodevelopmental Treatment is an advanced therapeutic approach,
practiced by experienced therapists. Therapists using NDT with children
have completed advanced training in NDT, for the child and/or the
baby. NDT is a hands-on approach used for children with central nervous
system insults such as cerebral palsy or head injury, resulting in
movement deficits. Therapists work closely with children with a range
of movement challenges varying from mild to severe, to promote optimal
motor performance, function and independence.
What is Sensory Integration (SI)?
Sensory Integration is the ability to organize sensory information
from the body and from the environment and then use it to function
effectively. Learning is dependent on our ability to process and
integrate the sensory inputs, and to plan and organize behavior.
When deficits in sensory processing and sensory integration occur,
problems with movement and behavior can result. This can interfere
with many aspects of a child’s learning, play, development and movement.
Sensory Integrative problems may present as a number, or combination
of problems and/or behaviors such as: difficulty with gross or fine
motor skills, delayed sitting, crawling or walking, clumsy with frequent
falls, poor balance, praxis problems (ability to conceive, organize,
carry-out coordinated motor skills), overly sensitive or under sensitive
to movement, touch, sight, sounds, smell and taste, difficulty with
attention and concentration.
Sensory problems can interfere with motor, play, self-care, academic,
social/emotional and, language skills.
Refer for an OT Sensory Integration Screening or Evaluation to determine
if there are Sensory integration problems limiting the child’s abilities. If
treatment is required it is often most effective initiated early
and, it may be intensive such as bi-weekly or weekly.
Fiona is “SIPT Certified” (Sensory Integration and Praxis Test).
Where do you provide services?
I travel to you, to provide services in the natural environment (your
home, your community such as the park, the gym, preschool). This
enables the child to be treated in comfort and safety, and saves
you traveling time and stress. Servicing the East side: Foothills,
Pasadena, South Pasadena, Altadena, Sierra Madre, Monrovia, Arcadia,
Baldwin Park, Azusa. Area
Map
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