What is Occupational Therapy?

Occupational Therapy helps children develop functional skills to that helps them perform the activities that make up everyday life. Occupational Therapy aims to help children be as independent as possible in their everyday lives and everyday activities that they need to do.

An Occupational Therapist (OT) working with children typically after understanding the concerns expressed by the parents and a thorough clinical observation and assessment and understanding the underlying causes designs a therapy plan. The therapy plan is used as a basis for doing the therapy. An OT uses techniques that are child friendly and play-based, targeting all the areas of delay and difficulty the child has.

Here are a few signs that you need to watch out to know if your child might need occupational therapy. An OT can help address a wide range of difficulties experienced by a child with special needs.

Delayed Development:

• Developmental milestones are physical skills like neck holding, rolling over, sitting, crawling, standing, walking, and talking etc. Developmental milestones vary according to the age of the child.

Delayed or Poor Fine Motor Skills:

• Difficulty in pencil grasp for their age.

• Have slow, or challenging drawing, colouring, or writing skills.

• Find it exceedingly difficult to use scissors.

Trouble with Gross Motor Skills:

• Difficulty in catching a ball

• Lack of balance while climbing, jumping on a trampoline

Sensory Processing, Behaviour and Social Difficulties:

• Does not like certain textures are clothing

• Picky eating

• Exhibit touch aversion

• Hypersensitive hearing

• Poor motor coordination

• No sense of boundaries

• High tolerance for pain

• Overly aggressive.

• Easily distracted

• Hyperactivity

• Difficulty in making and keeping friends

References:

1. https://www.verywellfamily.com/what-is-occupational-therapy-3106603

2. https://www.nurseregistry.com/blog/occupational-therapy-for-special-needs-children/

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