The FAB Coping card gives clients, teachers and therapists a visual support strategy for achieving their goals. Based on Power Cards, coping cards use the child’s preferred interest to guide goal-directed behavior. Clients use an index card to depict their preferred interest, behavioral goal, coping strategies, and reinforcement schedule. Constructing and displaying the coping card […]
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I frequently use Sensory Integration/Sensory Processing Intervention in my work as an occupational therapist with clients who have severe behavioral, sensory processing and developmental challenges. I get criticism both by professionals who question the validity of sensory processing intervention and those who dislike my integrating it with other treatment approaches. It is time to transcend
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Many clients have interrelated sensory processing and behavior challenges that interfere with their functioning. Sensory processing disorders are distinct from behavior disorders (e.g., Oppositional Defiant, Post Traumatic Stress, Autism Spectrum, and Bipolar Disorder) but clients who have these mental health diagnoses are significantly more likely to have sensory processing challenges as well. It is important
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Mindfulness is the process of paying attention to what you are currently doing and feeling. Attention is a vital skill that is too often underemphasized, particularly when teaching young and developmentally challenged individuals. Movement strategies are useful for teaching mindfulness, self-control, and attention. Several useful movement strategies are listed below that can help young and developmentally challenged
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Strategies combining movement with expressing feelings motivates students to improve their self-regulation skills. Movement activities that involve emotion expression are especially helpful for motivating students who have behavioral, developmental, trauma history and/or sensory processing challenges. Movement activities are fun and can easily be integrated into strategies to encourage the expression and understanding of feelings. A strategy
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School occupational therapists and teachers can combine functional sensory and behavioral strategies to reduce student aggression, restraint, and seclusion. School aggression, seclusion and restraint have become a major concern, particularly with students who have complex behavioral, mental health, trauma history, family, and/or sensory processing challenges. Reducing-Restraint-and-Seclusion Combined sensory and behavioral strategies help decrease aggression in students
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Sensory modulation strategies, a component of sensory integration intervention, help improve behavior and reduce the need for harsh discipline in schools. Sensory modulation strategies teach students to be aware of and regulate their arousal levels for appropriate behavior and learning. Sensory modulation strategies are particularly useful for students with behavioral, mental health, trauma history, developmental,
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A lot of occupational therapy referrals at my psychiatric hospital are for adolescents and young adults with mental health, trauma history, developmental, and/or sensory processing challenges who repeatedly injure themselves. Individuals with trauma history and developmental challenges have greater incidences of neurological, sensory processing, and self-injury challenges. Clients with these complex difficulties benefit from integrated
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Occupational therapy uses specific child-directed sensory activities to achieve adaptive behavioral responses. To achieve adaptive responses specific support is provided to assure that the behavioral demands are challenging but not too difficult to achieve. Sensory coping strategies and sensory coping areas can be used to obtain the right combination of challenges and supports for adaptive
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Occupational therapy improves the functioning of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), behavioral, and sensory processing challenges. Inclusion of sensory symptoms (e.g., over or under-responsive to or atypical interest in sensory stimuli) in the new DSM-5 ASD diagnosis has the potential to further promote the use of occupational therapy (OT) interventions for Autism. Research currently
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