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| Frequently Asked Questions |
1 • My
child's teacher told me that my child might benefit from occupational
therapy. What is it?
My child's teacher told me that my child might benefit from occupational therapy. What is it? Occupational Therapists who specialize in pediatrics are trained to create opportunities for children to master developmental tasks and achieve independence in their home, school, and community. A few reasons for referral for evaluation and treatment include clumsiness, difficulty with grasp or motor skills and difficulty playing or socializing effectively. Direct service or consultation may be provided by your school's therapist if your child's difficulties directly interfere with education. Private occupational therapists, often covered by insurance companies, focus on a greater variety of intensive treatment interventions. What is sensory integration? What does the term mean? The term 'Sensory Integration" is be used to reflect the theory developed by A. Jean Ayres, an occupational therapist, as well as for the intervention strategy that was based on that original theory. Sensory Integration is used to describe certain processes that go on in our brain, allowing us to make sense of the information we get from our environment and act on it. The term refers to the process by which the brain interprets and organizes various sensory experiences including sight, sound, smell, touch, movement, body awareness, and the pull of gravity. Sensory integration is a normal phenomenon of central nervous system functioning and provides a foundation for more complex learning and behavior. For some individuals sensory integration does not develop as efficiently as it should. Sensory integration dysfunction can result in motor development difficulties, learning difficulties, or behavioral concerns. How do I know if my child has a sensory integration disorder? As efficient organization of sensory information provides the foundation for the development of functional skills, there can be many potential outcomes that might cause a parent concern. A disruption in sensory processing can result in sensory defensiveness (sensory seeking or sensory avoiding behaviors), problems in self-regulation (activity levels too high or too low, not matched for the task at hand), and difficulties with praxis (the ability to conceive, organize and execute skills of all kinds). Disruptions in processing sensory information can interfere with self-care skills, language skills, motor skills, academic skills, and social/emotional skills. Some specific concerns might be:
What should I do if I suspect that my child has this difficulty? If a child is suspected of having a sensory integrative disorder, an evaluation is in order. An evaluation usually consists of standardized testing (when possible), a structured observation of play and responses to sensory input, and an interview with the parent or adult. If intervention is recommended it can be intensive (more than once a week), weekly, or consultative. We are sure that the family and teaching staff have tried to "teach" the child skills that appear difficult. Unfortunately, unless the child has the underlying ability to "be taught" the skill, it will not be mastered. It is important to remember that not all types of learning, particularly motor learning, can be mastered by practicing. No matter how many times children practice a wrong pattern, it won't make it right. Until they have the internal ability to do it correctly, they will be unable to correct the problem. What would happen during therapy? An important component of sensory integrative therapy is the inner drive, and motivation of the child. This plays a crucial role in the selection of the therapeutic activities. The therapist, based on the evaluation results, utilize their specialized knowledge to analyze the tasks your child needs to master for successful involvement in life's roles. The therapist will customize the activities during the session based on your child's needs. Simply put, the therapist will set up the treatment room with the types of activities that the child needs in order to have more efficient processing of sensory input. This allows the child to guide the session, within the activities that the therapist has set-up, and therefore, capitalize on the inner drive. This active involvement and exploration enables the individual's nervous system to become a more efficient organizer of sensory information. The intention of intervention is to provide the child with a physically and emotionally environment, so that this comfortable experience allows for the development for more functional and efficient skills. What is sensory processing, and how is it different from SI? Sensory processing is the initial step of sensory integration. Inputs must be taken in, filtered, and organize before integration can occur. Integration is the final step of an organized response to inputs received. It includes a motor response typically called an adaptive response by followers of Ayres. There is an internal body "map" each of us has that allows us to know where we are, what position we are in, and how we are moving at any given moment. The body map allows us to move without relying on our visual system to guide each movement.The body map is created over time as we develop from infancy throughout childhood, via repeated accurate sensory inputs produced from our motion through space. Inaccurate sensory perceptions do not allow for the creation of accurate body maps. Children with inaccurate body maps typically rely heavily on their visual systems and have significant difficulty with many aspects of motor skill. What is the vestibular system? This sense allows us to maintain our balance and upright posture. It is also closely involved with the visual system, allowing us to judge our motion in relation to the objects around us. This can sometimes play tricks on us (sitting in one of those movies where you feel like you are moving when you aren't). This sense allows us to feel secure with gravity and is a way of knowing where we are in relation to gravity (i.e.. if we are upside-down or sideways). This is the sense that allows us to know what position our body parts are in. For example, without looking at them, you can tell if your elbows or knees are bent or straight. This sense also tells us about the force of our movements. So if we see a cup and want to reach for it, we can judge how much force and speed we are reaching with so we can accurately get our hand to the cup without knocking it over or missing it. We can also tell how hard we need to hold on to lift the cup without squashing it or dropping it. It is primarily proprioception you are using when you walk a familiar flight of stairs in the dark and know exactly where to place your feet and how high the steps are by the feel of the movement of your legs. This sense is extremely important for body awareness and coordinated movements. What is sensory defensiveness? Sensory defensiveness is a term coined by some OT's to describe a group of oversensitivities to touch, vision, auditory, movement and smell sensations. Sensory defensiveness is just oversensitivity to certain input. With the term defensiveness, a range of behaviors is implied. These behaviors are the things we can observe that indicate that a sensory input is aversive. Most insurance companies will pay for "medically necessary" therapy. Otherwise the family will assume financial responsibility. Our experience with this process is that the insurance company will cover the cost of the evaluation, and then determine funding of the services from the results of the evaluation. When you contact the office for an evaluation, we will assist you in determining what your insurance benefits are. |
