Sensory-integration trained occupational therapist

This is an occupational therapist Occupational therapist An occupational therapist helps with the practical everyday things a child needs to do: dressing, handwriting, using cutlery, coping at school. They work on the activity and the environment, not just the child. Read the full definition of Occupational therapist with additional postgraduate training, not a separate profession. Ayres Sensory Sensory Needs One of the eight Assembly Dimensions. It covers how your child takes in sound, touch, taste, smell and movement, and how they react to it. Read the full definition of Sensory Needs Integration therapy is a trademarked play-based intervention, delivered in person by a trained therapist, usually in a clinic with specific equipment. Alongside it, therapists use sensory-based interventions such as movement breaks or weighted items, and participation-focused sensory approaches that change the task or the environment rather than the child.

How you get to see one: through an occupational therapy referral referral When a professional passes your child on to a specialist team for assessment or treatment. A GP, school or health visitor can usually make one. Read the full definition of referral , as above, then asking whether anyone in the service has sensory integration training. NHS availability is patchy, so many families see one privately.

Can they diagnose? No. They assess sensory differences Sensory processing differences Some children take in sound, touch, taste, light and movement in their own way. They can feel some things far too much and others hardly at all. Read the full definition of Sensory processing differences and their effect on daily life. They do not diagnose autism Autism Autism is a difference in how the brain develops. It shapes how an autistic child sees and experiences the world, how they communicate, and how they respond to things like noise, light and touch. Read the full definition of Autism , ADHD or DCD on their own.

What to ask: be direct. Ask what the evidence is for what they are proposing, what the goal is in everyday terms, how long it will run, and when you will review whether it is working. RCOT tells therapists to share the evidence base with families so you can decide.