Occupational Therapy Experiences?

[Anonymous]

I have a son in early elementary school. He has gotten in trouble several times this year for issues I'd categorize as impulse control related. This winter he began talk therapy to help him with that and I've seen remarkable improvement at home. He is stopping and processing much more. The school is still concerned that he's behind his peers and so we are now planning to complement the talk therapy with occupational therapy to help with impulse control and focus. FWIW, his counselor does not have ADHD/ ADD concerns.

I am wondering if anyone has taken their child to OT for these issues and what their experience has been? Have you seen progress, is there an "end date" in sight or is the treatment ongoing? Anything you wish you'd known at the beginning? At what point in treatment did you begin observing positive results? I have no experience in this space and I am interested in learning about other people's experiences.

[Anonymous]

OT was a game changer for my impulsive and immature first grade boy. They mainly worked on "making a plan" which he generalized to all kinds of school and social situations. The therapist also provided a lot of fantastic suggestions for school. We did 10 months of therapy and are going to stop for the summer. I'm a bit sad to end because I have really learned a lot from this therapist!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OT was a game changer for my impulsive and immature first grade boy. They mainly worked on "making a plan" which he generalized to all kinds of school and social situations. The therapist also provided a lot of fantastic suggestions for school. We did 10 months of therapy and are going to stop for the summer. I'm a bit sad to end because I have really learned a lot from this therapist!

Thank you, this is so helpful! Did you go with him to each appointment? Based on the timeslots, I think it will primarily be our nanny taking him but I am wondering if I should carve this out on my calendar.

[Anonymous]

My kids have really benefitted from OT but if you have concerns with impulsivity and focus to the point that you are seeking medical treatment, I'd get an evaluation for ADHD even if the counselor doesn't think he has it.

[Anonymous]

OT helped DC a lot with that. Part of it was making plans (ahead of time) about how to handle certain common situations at school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids have really benefitted from OT but if you have concerns with impulsivity and focus to the point that you are seeking medical treatment, I'd get an evaluation for ADHD even if the counselor doesn't think he has it.

+1000

[Anonymous]

OT was fantastic for my impulse-control-challenged 8 year old! One thing I will add-progress did not happen evenly over time, it was sporadic large jumps. So, maybe two months in, we had seen no changes, and then in a span of a week he would make a huge leap. And so on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OT was fantastic for my impulse-control-challenged 8 year old! One thing I will add-progress did not happen evenly over time, it was sporadic large jumps. So, maybe two months in, we had seen no changes, and then in a span of a week he would make a huge leap. And so on.

NP here. PP, does your kiddo still see the OT? How long have they been working with them?