"Joey" is a child that I have been working with for a few months. He is 7 years old and has many of the developmental issues that I commonly see as an OT in an outpatient clinic. The biggest concerns that his mother brought up when I first began with him were related to his emotional regulation. He is a very anxious child, becomes upset and agitated easily, he's very rigid in his thinking, and has tactile and auditory hypersensitivities. Additionally he has a lot of difficulty with hand-eye coordination, many letter and number reversals, and most things requiring bilateral coordination.

I have noticed tremendous change him [after doing rhythmic movements and reflex integration movements]. His mom reports that he is in a better mood much of the time, that he is kinder and not so quick to become upset over trivial things. She said that he used to cry every time they went to the beach because he would be overwhelmed by the noise and irritated by the sand. The other week she said that they'd gone there over the weekend and she could barely get him to leave because he loved it! I have also noticed a significant decline in letter/number reversals when he's writing. Another huge change I saw in him last week was his catching/throwing abilities. He is still far behind his peers but when I first began seeing him, he had absolutely no trunk rotation. Even with a ton of assistance, he just could not coordinate stepping forward with his opposing foot to throw a ball overhand. The other day we were practicing this skill and I couldn't believe how much easier it was for him. He still needed some cueing but he was able to actually do the movement on his own. His mom has commented that he just seems more confident in his body overall. She sees him participating more with other kids at the park and he doesn't give up so quickly in gym class. It has been very exciting to see all the changes and I'm looking forward to the progress I know he'll continue to make!”

S.P., Occupational Therapist
August 2016