I have had a few ladies comment that my posts on sensory regulation, sensory processing or challenges with eating have sparked them to ask for more professional help! Knowing when is the right time to seek OT support for your kids is tricky. However, there are a few things to consider when looking into professional support for your kids. I hope you will find support and guidance in your journey of raising kids here!

When to seek OCCUPATIONAL Therapy support for your kids

If you are reading this chances are you have thought about this for one of your kids or someone else’s kids. I’m sure the phrase “I’m sure they will grow out of it” has regularly made an appearance. Or maybe it’s “just a phase they are going through”. Well what happens when it’s not a phase and you are pulling your hair out trying to figure out what to do. I do not advocate for intervention from any type of health professional unless it is truly necessary. But how do you know when is the right time to access professional Occupational Therapy support

What is Occupational Therapy for kids

The main goal of occupational therapy is to support children to participate in the ‘occupations’ of everyday life. This include things like self-care tasks, household tasks, school and participation in hobbies and interests.

• Self-care (e.g. bathing, dressing, brushing teeth)
• Cognitive skills (e.g. attention, memory, problem-solving)
• Fine motor skills (e.g. writing, holding cutlery, fastening buttons)
• Gross motor skills (e.g. crawling, walking, standing, throwing)
• Daily living skills (e.g. cooking, cleaning, budgeting)
• Eating and drinking
• Sensory processing
• Emotional regulation
• Play and socialising
• Mental health

how does an Occupational therapist work?

• Doing assessments
• Teaching strategies to learn new skills
• Modifying activities to help your child do them easier
• Making changes to home, school, work and community environments
• Identifying aids and equipment that can assist your child to learn, develop and participate.

Guilt, Grief, Frustration, Defeat?

Through my experience working with kids with disability the grief, frustration maybe even guilt with seeking help for their child was apparent on many occasions. Some parents felt defeated “how come I can’t just figure this out on my own” “Is it my fault”. The answer is no, but with a disclaimer. You as a parent do have a responsibility to raise your kids to the best that you can. And what you do e.g. diet, activities, parenting does affect your child. However, there is often so much more going on and is not the reason your child is struggling! Let’s work through this together!

Occupational Therapy Support & FUNCTION

This is a word I will repeat over and over on my blog! The key to realise is we are all unique. Your child will not be perfect at everything. There will be moments or periods of chaos and overwhelm. This does not mean your child needs professional help! However, if more often than not you find your child struggling to get through everyday activities, deal with their emotions and learn new skills maybe you need to think about support. I link back to function here because the idea is that your child should become more independent over time. You should be able to teach your child new skills. Your child should be motivated to explore and interact with people and their environments.

Is it a struggle or does it impact their everyday activities?

Let’s dive deeper here. For example: I do not think that if your child struggles to learn to tie his shoes or isn’t the neatest write straight away that it is enough of an indicator of whether or not to seek help.

Let me clarify this point. If you child is having such a hard time putting on their shoes that they will meltdown and throw the shoes away. Or if you child is so opposed to wearing shoes on their feet they will never or rarely put them on this is a factor this is. They are probably struggling with processing or sensory challenges.

As a parent the key is to know the difference between struggling for a time (a week or a month) and impacting their ability to do everyday things like going out in proper clothing long term (very often for a few months or years). Their can be a factor of age here too. If you are 13 and still not tying your shoes well I think we have a problem and vice versa with too young.

If you don’t know the answer that is ok, your OT, GP or Paediatrician can work through this with you!.

YOu don’t need occupational Therapy Support: A Story of a Boy Who couldn’t untangle Cords

It is not worth nip picking small things. A little story here. I was once requested by a parent to work on the goal of untangling cords. ‘So I’m thinking how is this going to help this kids grow up to be an adult?’ ‘Does the child have any reason to regularly be untangling cords?’

This was not essential to his everyday wellbeing and function. He did not need this skills to go to school, learn to cook some simple meals, learn to ride public transport or make friends. So think about your child, or the child you know. Will it impact their ability to be a kid? Go to school, make friends, do simple chores around the house and learn? If not maybe it isn’t the right thing to be seeking professional help for. Maybe it’s just something that you find annoying or quirky about them. This is not a reason to seek professional help!

Duration and Frequency

If your child struggles with a particular area like mealtimes at every meal on a daily basis or even several times a week and it is lasting for a long time this is an indication that they need further occupational therapy support. Children go through short periods of challenge like not sleeping as a baby for a month and then returning to their normal routine. Track the areas your child experiences difficulty and monitor the frequency (how many times per day/week) and the duration that the problem has gone on for (1 week, month year etc).

Intensity of the challenge

Monitor the challenges, especially with things like meltdowns. Is your child melting down every time they need to brush their teeth for 20 min to an hour at a time for example. Are they so upset that you cant do anything to calm them down? Track the intensity of the challenge this will also indicate how much this challenge is impact theirs and your families everyday life.

Developmental Checklists and Milestones

Checklists and milestones for development give health professionals a good indication of where a child is at. These can be valuable in determining the need for for professional Occupational Therapy Support. The ability to monitor how many areas a child may be struggling or delayed in supports understanding how significant their needs are. However, checklists and milestones are not helpful if used incorrectly.

Check out these developmental checklists:

• https://childdevelopment.com.au/resources/child-development-charts/
• https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/pdf/checklists/all_checklists.pdf
• https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2018-02/DevelopmentalMilestonesEYLFandNQS.pdf
• https://sltforkids.co.uk/ages-and-stages-developmental-milestones/child-5-12-years/

Use Checklists as a guide for seeking OT support.

Developmental checklists are used a guide to determine what is typical for your child at this age. You can use them to give an overall view of of your child’s development. By recording how they are “tracking” it is easier to identify areas of struggle. If there are consistent challenges in a certain or multiple areas this may indicate developmental delays or the need for professional OT support.

Do Not overthink the milestones

Do not look at every single milestone and think my child must reach this now or they will be delayed. Every child will developed slightly differently. Some fast, some slow and some right on “track”. Lay it out and look at trends and notice how far back they are delayed in a specific area. Seek support from your GP or child health nurse if you need more clarification for understanding developmental checklist.

GUt Feeling Guidelines

I believe in gut feeling. As a parent you know your child. Trust your gut. If you feel like your child needs support don’t wait. Get in touch with your GP or directly with an Occupational Therapist. They will be able to counsel you in the right direction. Sometimes your child may be an absolute angel at school, they are academic, follow the rules, and are polite. At home they may be melting down, all over the place. This is often because your child bottles up these feelings and emotions at school and will “explode” at home. You are not crazy and your child may be struggling in some areas. So trust your gut here!

Early Intervention Occupational Therapy

The older we get the harder it is to change habits and learn new skills. There is so much research to say getting support early intervention. Our children have a lot better long term outcomes when we start doing earlier. This doesn’t always mean formal therapy. But building a good base for learning, development and emotional intelligence as a child goes a long way. If your child is young and you are concerned about development. Get in early for better outcomes!

Pros and Cons of Occupational Therapy INtervention

Pros

• Early intervention for better outcomes
• professional support means targeted therapy which will support better development
• A holistic, functional approach to your child’s needs.
• OT can collaborate with schools, integrate therapy into your everyday home life and identify the underlying reason for challenges e.g. sensory, health concerns, possible indication for diagnosis etc.
• OT’s coach you through understanding your child’s unique needs and can refer to other professionals as needed.
• They will help your child get the right help they need and support you to see the right people alongside OT.

COns

• May need further testing or may result in a formal diagnosis
• Can be expensive if not accessing a health fund or government initiative
• May mean intensive therapy blocks and will require you to commit your time if you want better therapy outcomes.
• Can result in diagnosis meaning you are labelling the challenge and this can sometimes lead to your child being treated differently. This is not always the case!

Still feeling lost

• This post is not exhaustive. Please get in touch and we can chat through where you child is at and determine a good course of action.
• Talk to your GP, Child Health Nurse or Paediatrician for more support in understanding general development
• Keep a diary on your phone, or notebook of 1-2 weeks. Record how often this challenge e.g. major meltdown occurs. Maybe its recording the range of food your child is eating. Whatever it may be you will find so much insight by writing it down and really understanding how much it impacting your family and your child.
• Call your local OT clinic and see if you can chat through your challenges. They may be able to tell you its normal development or they may suggest you come to see them.

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