Is your kid having difficulty with fine and gross motor skills, which is affecting his or her handwriting, school pace, or participation in physical education and sports? Is your child overly sensitive to sounds, textures, and bright light, a picky eater, resistant to changes in routine, and having difficulty forming relationships, to the point where it interferes with his or her ability to function in daily life?
Occupational Therapy Houston takes a comprehensive approach to meeting your child's specific needs. Following an assessment of your kid, we will carefully tailor a plan of care to help him or her develop necessary skills while also improving self-esteem and self-efficacy.
Sensory Integration
Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) is a neurological condition in which the brain has trouble receiving and responding to sensory information. Sensory integration therapy helps decrease sensitivities by exposing the child to sensory stimulation in a structured, repetitive manner. Sensory integration also aids in the development of self-efficacy and esteem, as well as overall function in the child's occupations such as the school or at home.
Fine Motor Coordination
Fine motor abilities engage our hands' smallest, "intrinsic" muscles. If your child struggles with tasks such as writing, drawing, retrieving small items, and using scissors, fine motor skills training and intrinsic hand strengthening may be beneficial. To help build on these skills, OT employs enjoyable tasks and incorporates adaptations.
Visual Motor Recognition
Visual motor integration is the coordination of visual perceptual abilities and fine motor control. It is a skill that allows us to use our eyes and our hands in a coordinated and efficient way, and together they are important for pre-handwriting and handwriting skills. OT incorporates fun activities to help build upon these skills that are the foundation for handwriting.
Activities of Daily Living
Grooming, dressing, bathing, and meal preparation are examples of activities that enable us to care for ourselves throughout the day. Children with sequencing, problem-solving, executive planning, strength, and range of motion deficits may struggle with these tasks. Chaining activities, picture scheduling, and other specialized interventions are used by occupational therapists to help children become more autonomous with these tasks.
Therapeutic Art Intervention
Guidance in using art techniques as an expressive medium to calm anxiety, reduce social withdrawal, diffuse anger, and develop fine motor skills.