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 Neuro-Developmental Treatment (NDT)?
Neuro-Developmental 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. For more information visit www.ndta.org.

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?
Services provided primarily in clinic. As needed visits may be provided in home, and/or in the local community (daycare, kindergarten, local park), in our local neighborhood, including: East Valley: Foothills, Pasadena, South Pasadena, Altadena, Sierra Madre, Monrovia, Arcadia, Baldwin Park, Azusa. Area Map