Priya-the-OT

  If you would have noticed, you would know that children love lining up their toys or placing objects in very specific ways. It may not necessarily make sense to an adult but it definitely makes complete sense to their little minds.  They find it best to have things a certain way, that if ever a parent tries to reorganize or upset their ‘pattern’, it may result in tears or screams of frustration, followed by a tantrum, even. Sometimes children position, order and arrange objects in very obsessive and rigid manners. For example, lining up things in order of size, colour or shape or even texture. Some children also like their food to be placed in a certain way on their plate and they can be very upset and react strongly & negatively if certain types of food are touching.  Lining up things can be looked at, from a child's perspective, as organizing or sorting. When they put similar items close to each other in a row, or stack them one above the other, they are actually learning t

  'A' is a 5 year old boy I see at the clinic. He is on the spectrum and is very proprioceptive and tactile seeking. 'A' is not completely toilet trained. He does not consistently indicate his need to use the toilet, and he has a tendency to dribble multiple times in a day, and sometimes hardly notices that he is wet. 'A' is also constipated most of the time as he holds himself  for days together to avoid going to the toilet for the 'big job', as he doesn't feel 'safe' sitting on the toilet. 'A' has been off therapy for over 3 months as they have moved out of town, and is yet to find a Therapy Centre in their immediate locality. A 's mother called me one evening with concerns over his frequent accidents. "Who would you suggest I take 'A' to, a Nephrologist or a Urologist?", was her question. (Names hidden to protect identity) Before I go into what I told A's mother, let's first look at toilet training in

Parent-Teacher Meetings came by twice a year at the Centre I worked in. There was one right after the IEPs for the year were made and another towards the close of the year. When most parents were happy with their child's progress and eager to know what the next steps were, there was one particular couple that had something very different to say. 'S' was a little girl, 5 years of age. She was on the Autism spectrum and was non-verbal. When she first joined the Centre, S had poor eye contact, a decreased attention span, poor recognition of common objects, and poor comprehension of facial expressions & environmental cues. By the end of one academic year, S was by then able to identify her school bag, could point to the picture of a glass to ask for water, and signal for 'toilet'. She would recognize the names of the most common things she carried in her snack box, like banana and sandwich. S could also eye-point to the identify her teacher and the class helper, whe

Z was one of my clients when I worked in Dubai. He was a smart and sweet little 7 year old on the spectrum. He had a lot of sensory seeking and self stimulatory behaviours, of which chewing on his shirt and anything else he found within reach, was the most predominant  one. Z had amazing and very supportive parents. The mom would regularly contact me for tips and remedies at each stage for Z.  One holiday period, mom mailed me regarding Z's chewing behaviour which seemed to have increased due to the break in his therapy. Sharing here, the reply I sent to her. (Names hidden to protect identity) Picture courtesy: Google Hi Mrs. F, Just thought I’ll put the things I wanted to suggest into a mail so you can read over in your free time and try out with  Z . I have used these tips for few of my children with oral sensory issues and they have helped them reduce their mouthing behaviors. So, nothing to worry. It’s going to be fine. Always remember “ DO NOT ” force  Z  to stop. It’s not tha