Welcome to SoBrook Occupational Therapy
Unique Perspective at SoBrook Occupational Therapy
SoBrook Occupational Therapy combines pediatric occupational therapy expertise with the specialized skill set of certified hand therapy. This unique blend allows us to offer a different perspective and a distinct approach to treatment, ensuring comprehensive and effective care for our clients.
Collaborative Family Approach
At SoBrook Occupational Therapy, we believe that working closely with families to seamlessly integrate necessary activities and adjustments into the daily routine is key to success. This collaborative approach ensures that therapy has the utmost impact, helping to build essential skills in a natural and effective manner.
We incorporate primitive reflex and sensory screenings as a key component of our evaluation process. This helps us identify any retained reflexes, and sensory needs that may be impacting development, learning, and overall function, allowing us to create a comprehensive and effective treatment plan tailored to each individual’s needs.
Why Primitive Reflexes Need to Be Integrated
Primitive reflexes are automatic movements that develop in the womb and are typically integrated or inhibited within the first year of life. While these reflexes are essential for an infant’s initial survival and development, their persistence beyond the appropriate age can hinder normal growth and function. Here’s why it’s crucial to integrate primitive reflexes:
- Supports Developmental Milestones: Integration of primitive reflexes is necessary for the progression of higher-level motor skills and cognitive functions. Persistent reflexes can delay milestones such as crawling, walking, and speaking.
- Enhances Learning and Behavior: Unintegrated reflexes can interfere with learning, attention, and behavior. These reflexes may make it difficult for children to sit still, concentrate, and perform tasks requiring fine motor skills, like writing.
- Improves Coordination and Balance: Proper reflex integration leads to better coordination, balance, and motor control. Children with unintegrated reflexes might exhibit awkward movements, poor posture, and challenges with activities that require coordination, such as sports.
- Aids Sensory Processing: Efficient sensory processing is supported by the integration of primitive reflexes. Children with retained reflexes may have difficulties with sensory integration, resulting in hypersensitivity or hyposensitivity to stimuli, which can affect their daily functioning.
- Promotes Emotional Regulation: Unintegrated reflexes can impact emotional regulation and stress responses. Children may show heightened anxiety, emotional outbursts, or difficulty coping with stress due to these reflexes interfering with their nervous system.
- Lays the Foundation for Advanced Skills: Integrating primitive reflexes is crucial for developing more advanced and complex skills, including academic abilities, social interactions, and physical activities that require higher-level brain functions and coordination.
Occupational therapy can help identify and address retained primitive reflexes through targeted exercises and activities designed to promote integration. Early intervention ensures children develop the necessary skills to succeed in various aspects of life.
What is Sensory Integration?
Sensory integration is how the brain processes and makes sense of information from the senses—like what we see, hear, touch, taste, and smell. It helps children react appropriately to different situations and manage their responses to everyday experiences.
Sensory integration is important in helping children perform tasks like getting dressed, eating, and playing. It also supports children’s emotional wellbeing, helping to manage feelings and stress and promotes movement coordination, assisting with writing, playing sports, or climbing. In addition, sensory integration enhances focus, memory, and problem-solving skills.
Children with Sensory Integration Issues May:
- Feel Overwhelmed
- Seem Aggressive or Clumsy
- Be Less Responsive
- Have Coordination Issues
How Pediatric Occupational Therapy Can Help
Occupational Therapists help children with sensory integration challenges through:
- Sensory Diets: Custom activities that meet a child’s sensory needs.
- Sensory Integration Therapy: Exercises to improve how the brain processes sensory information.
- Environmental Changes: Adjustments to the home or school to support better sensory experiences.
Good sensory integration helps children interact with their world effectively and comfortably.