What is OT?
Occupational Therapists (OTs) are the therapists who address functional barriers. They are healthcare providers who have gone to graduate school, just like a counselor or a physical therapist!
A lot of things can be a barrier and so OTs have a lot of different skills. For instance, you may have seen an OT prescribe someone a wheelchair, do an ergonomic assessment, or teach someone to write after a stroke. Those are all ways to address barriers to function!
People, especially children, have a lot of different functional activities: playing with other children, taking care of their bodies, focusing in class, playing sports, making friends, sleeping at night…the list is endless. And so are the barriers! That’s why our skill set is so diverse.
In this practice, we focus on activities that require self regulation, managing emotions, focusing or attention, or sensory processing.
Here are some Ways OTs address function for Kids:
- Identifying strategies to make sensory experiences-like loud noises in class or the water in the bathtub- more manageable (and sometimes enjoyable!)
- Adapting the classroom or homework environment to make it easier to focus.
- Finding ways to promote development when someone has a disability, like Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) or Autism
- Helping children understand and manage their emotions like anger and anxiety
- Finding strategies to take mealtimes fun
- Learning new ways to play and have fun (all play is okay!)
- Exploring how their brain works, so children can understand their disability
- Learning how to plan, start, and complete tasks
- Teaching children about their disability and their strengths, so they can become self advocates