Skills such as smiling, taking a first step, and waving are part of the developmental milestones of children. They can reach many more milestones through learning, playing, moving, and other enjoyable activities. Oftentimes, they develop at their own pace, so there really is no uniform rule in telling when children should learn a particular skill. Nonetheless, these milestones give a general idea on what developments to expect as a child ages.
With this, some parents may find their children not meeting the milestones typically expected for them to reach at their age. They may notice problems with how their children behave, interact, or move. These may be indications of developmental disorders.
Developmental disorders are neurological conditions that can impair a child’s acquisition, retention, or application of specific skills or information sets. These may include mild to severe problems with attention, memory, perception, language, or social interactions, typically affected by genetic disabilities, preterm birth, and low birth weight, among others. According to studies, these adversely impact the psychological and social well-being of children, which, in the long run, account for a significant health and societal burden. Nonetheless, there are key interventions that can potentially reduce these disorders among children. One of them is through occupational therapy.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy is a process that involves interventions to help children develop their ability to engage in physical, mental, and social activities. This is usually done through various undertakings that would assess their fine motor skills, eye-hand coordination, basic life skills, and behaviors.
This process is facilitated by occupational therapists, allied health professionals who use therapeutic techniques to improve or maintain a person’s ability to perform everyday activities. They are trained to identify children who may have developmental disorders and facilitate referrals for diagnosis and other related services.
Recognizing Developmental Disorders Early through Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy is typically composed of specialized techniques which follow behavioral approaches. These are the activities involved in occupational therapy that can detect developmental disorders early on:
- Child-centered play
Child-centered plays allow children to explore their feelings and problems through mediums which they are most comfortable with. According to studies, this will give them the autonomy to express themselves at the precise moment.
During occupational therapy sessions, children undergo various play sessions, like drawing, coloring, playing Uno, and shooting basketballs, where they can act without the pressures of external expectations. This will eventually allow them to be real, displaying anger management issues or anti-social behaviors early, that would consequently enable occupational therapists to see problem behaviors and timely address them.
- Sensory integration approaches
Sensory integration allows children to take information from what they receive from their five senses, organize it, and respond accordingly. During occupational therapy sessions, they undergo certain activities like bouncing on a trampoline, blowing bubbles with a straw, and making characters out of playdough, sensory integrated approaches that would test their concentration, motor skills, and eye-hand coordination. Through these, occupational therapists would be able to detect children with sensory processing problems who may have difficulties translating and organizing the information they receive from their five senses.
If you are among the parents who would like to detect developmental problems among children early on and improve their quality of life in the long run, you may reach out to The Hundred for occupational therapy in Dubai.
