HP becomes an OT

Prior to starting OT school, I completed many hours of observation and one session specifically stood out to me. I was volunteering at a pediatric clinic and had the privilege of sitting in on a session with a young boy who must have been in about 2nd grade. At the beginning of the session, I went with the occupational therapist to the waiting room to meet with the boy and his father. When the OT asked the father how their week had been and whether there was anything new coming up, the father explained that they had been struggling with some emotional outbreaks at home. For example, when the boy was not allowed to play on his iPad he would yell "I hate you" and kick and scream. The boy's father explained that this hurt his feelings and he would really like it if we could practice different ways to handle this situation. I remember being so impressed by the way the OT responded to the father and so seamlessly worked his concern into the session which she already had planne...

In an episode of the Glass Half Full podcast, Amy Seymore discusses her practice of nature-based therapy . Amy uses this therapy in her pediatric private practice with children of all diagnoses. She explains that many of the therapeutic techniques that are used in occupational therapy clinics are an "echo" of activities that children would be doing if they were just playing outdoors. For example, swinging from a trapeze vs. swinging from a tree or jumping across stepping stones vs. actual stones in a river. However, practicing these exercises indoors excludes certain elements such as wind, bright sunlight, and other noises. Amy gives an example of working with a child who has sensory processing challenges. In this case, she would use nature-based interventions such as playing in the mud, hanging upside from a tree, or playing in water which provides extra feedback against their skin. These interventions can be graded, for example, by changing the consistency of a medium suc...