Tamara Mathews Occupational Therapy Services in Albury, New South Wales, Australia | Medical and health

Tamara Mathews Occupational Therapy Services

Locality: Albury, New South Wales, Australia

Address: 645 David Street 2640 Albury, NSW, Australia

Website: http://www.interactspeech.com.au

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• Medical and health
• Speech pathologist
• Mental health service
• Occupational therapist

25.01.2022 Does any of this sound familiar? http://learningspecialistmaterials.blogspot.com//how-can-i

25.01.2022 Babies figure out whats going on in the world by watching parents (and caregiver's) reactions. "Babies can begin feeling sadness and fear as early as 3-5 mont...hs of age. Our research revealed that 42% of parents believe babies begin experiencing these feelings at one year or older. But, the fact is that way before they can say their first words, as early as 3 to 5 months old, babies experience a whole range of emotions including sadness, anger, and fear. A critical factor in nurturing healthy development is parents ability to read and respond in to their babys cues about how they are feeling and what they need to feel safe and secure." See more

23.01.2022 Please fill out this short survey. Thank you!

23.01.2022 Do you know what primitive motor reflexes are? This is a wonderful resource for understanding their impact on function. https://www.toolstogrowot.com//primitive-motor-reflexes-th

23.01.2022 To all the mums (and dads) out there!

23.01.2022 Tony Attwood & Sue Larkey in Albury

22.01.2022 What a wonderful post!

21.01.2022 To support teachers and parents whose schools have closed or are soon to close due to COVID-19, we have made Twinkl completely free for one month. Go to www.twi...nkl.com.au/offer and enter the offer code AUSTRCODE for immediate access. Teachers can use this as they plan remote learning for their students. Parents can use this to access high-quality educational materials from home. Read our helpful blog for more info here>> https://www.twinkl.com.au/l/1n918g

21.01.2022 Fabulous advice!

20.01.2022 Like other gadgets that confine babies, including walkers, exercise saucers and bouncy seats, the Bumbo Baby Seat is not popular among physical therapists. "No ...equipment enhances a child's motor development; equipment is a 'baby sitter' so a parent can cook dinner, eat dinner or take a shower," Harper said. "A gross motor skill, like sitting, is achieved through movement and practice. Children fall out of Bumbo seats because they do not yet have the requisite strength, balance and coordination needed for sitting." http://articles.chicagotribune.com//ct-met-bumbo-posture-2? See more

18.01.2022 Future workshop just for the Girls!

18.01.2022 Defensive Brain verses Receptive Brain When the world is chaotic, confusing and intensively bombarding the brain become anxious and insecure. It feels unsafe a...nd is hyper-vigilant for the next unexpected insult. This is why anxiety is so prevalent in autism. Unexpected changes, unpredictable reactions and sensory overload all present ongoing anxiety. Like any of us, when placed in situations that are chaotic, confusing and overwhelming we become anxious, frighten and extremely reactive. The difference between neuro-typical people and those on the spectrum is that for the NT person such overwhelming situations are infrequent and they recover quickly after the threat subsides. Our fight or flight response recovers quickly once the threat is over. For many on the spectrum, since the world is always unpredictable and overwhelming they experience very frequent threatening situations and their brains often take much longer to rebound. This persistent state of anxiety and apprehension creates a brain that is defensive and reactive, always on guard for the next potential assault. Never understanding when the next sensory threat, social misunderstanding, miscued response, negative reaction from another or unexpected snag will occur, the brain is on high alert and hyper-focused for any potential threat. This puts the brain in an escape/avoidance mode. An apprehensive defensive mode, which anxiety generates. Just like all of us when anxious and defensive, the brain will impulsively over-react to minor threats and snags which often create strong emotional reactions. Over the years of facing numerous threating assaults, the brain become habitually in a defensive mode. The defensive brain is spending so much energy trying to protect itself that it often has little left for learning. When we dont feel safe, accepted and competent, we have one eye widely open for any possible threat and one foot turned away to quickly escape if needed. Safety is the brains first priority. It will take precedence over learning. We have to feel safe and secure in order to be receptive to learning. When defensive the person is always tip toeing into new situations, very apprehensive to threats and ready to run or fight to escape the uncertainty. For some children this anxiety is often expressed as extreme opposition and defiance in an attempt to control everything around them to feel safe, or withdraw into shutdown and passive avoidance and learned helplessness. This severe defensiveness and anxiety is the reason why this page and books focus on providing supports to help the children feel safe, accepted and competent. The strategies are tailored to help identify, respect and support the childs comfort zones, build in accommodations and strategies for reducing the sensory, cognitive, social and emotional overload, make the world more understandable and predictable and teach effective skills for tackling future challenges. By identifying the childs profiles (strengths and vulnerabilities in each area social, sensory, cognitive, social and emotional) and tailoring the environmental demands to these comfort zones, the children can start to feel safe and accepted enough to lower their anxiety and become receptive to learning. Only then can they begin to trust the world and people around them, feel safe enough to risk and stretch their comfort zones and begin to develop the competence and confidence to tackle new challenges. The brain must feel safe to exit the defensive mode and become responsive to new learning. When the child is not doing well assume the child may feel unsafe, insecure, overwhelmed and inadequate. More than likely we are placing the child in a situation where the expectations are greater than his perceived abilities for dealing with them. Back up, temporarily lower the demands, offer greater assistance and provide greater support. By doing so the child experiences greater success, feels more confident tackling challenges and learns to trust following our lead. Even then, expect for some children (especially those with pathological demand avoidance) this will take a long time to break through the rigid defensiveness and develop trust in following your lead. Patience, understanding and acceptance while allowing the child to pace and control the new learning will eventually get you there. The brain gradually becomes less defensive and more receptive. The Fragile World on the Spectrum documented attached below helps summarize some of the main areas of vulnerabilities and some common supports for helping. The blue book, Autism Discussion Page on the Core Challenges of Autism goes into these areas with step by step strategies for helping. https://drive.google.com//0B1DaJtXzRn91YjM3NTBkZWQtM/view http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2

17.01.2022 Wow. "Children are holding crayons and scissors less and making fewer things with their hands."

15.01.2022 Now that we know it's safest for babies to sleep on their backs, it's important that we prioritise tummy time during play. This course is great for showing you ...how. It's video based, so it's easy to watch and has lots of simple ways to get even the most stubborn bubs on their tummy http://the-play-project.teachable.com/p/tummy-time

14.01.2022 There is a lot happening all at once when we jump, swing, spin, or roll! Here is a graphic explanation of the vestibular system: http://www.theottoolbox.com/p/vestibular-activities.html

12.01.2022 Children need much more OUTDOOR PLAY than we realize!

11.01.2022 DRUMBEAT workshops coming your way in Term 1 2020!

10.01.2022 PTSD and Autism It has amazed me how long it has taken for the field to accept sensory processing dysfunctioning in autism spectrum disorder. For years, the f...ield of psychology practically ignored the sensory issues. Applied Behavior Analysis ignored it while forcing children to obey and stay in situations that were overwhelming for them. If the children acted out, we made them stick it out; so their acting out behavior was not reinforced by escaping the unwanted situation. Over twenty years ago when I first started incorporating sensory processing strategies into my behavior plans, the psychologists all looked down on it because you could not observe it and measure it. Agencies would try and stop me from using the strategies because they were not evidenced based. Sensory processing problems were not real. They were in the business of changing behavior. Treating autism was nothing more than changing their behavior. The childs internal experiences were not recognized, considered, nor valued. The ends (changing behavior) justified the means (extinction, punishment, forcing compliance. Sensory processing issues were not real. Even though adults on the spectrum were writing extensively about these traumatizing experiences, the psychologists still claimed they were not real. Sensory dysfunction in autism is being recognized now. Finally after many years of people on the spectrum speaking out and demanding to be listened to, this experience is being taken serious. However, another topic not mentioned much in autism spectrum disorder is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Since most PTSD is caused by extreme sexual or physical abuse, and war time emotional trauma, it is not often suspected in ASD. However, I see evidence of it, and many of the self reports of adults on the spectrum relate experiences that seem very similar to post traumatic stress. Post traumatic stress occurs when there is severe insult to the nervous system. It results in changes in both brain chemistry and suspected structural changes in the brain. The person exhibits generalized anxiety, depression and isolation, panic attacks for no apparent reason, and sometimes rages. PTSD can come from one of more emotional traumas, or long term distress from severe sensory processing dysfunction. Many of the nonverbal people on the spectrum, who also experience severe sensory defensiveness, are often experiencing intense physical and emotional trauma from the overwhelming sensory insult to their nervous systems. Since the child never knows when the sensory bombardment is going to occur, it often attacks without warning, leaving the child helpless in defending against it. The constant fight or flight, panic reaction has long term effects on the nervous system; leaving the individuals battling stress and anxiety for many years. Each time the nervous system experiences intense sensory bombardment, the stimulus characteristics of the event becomes associated with the severe panic response. At other times in the future, when these common stimuli occur again it can produce an immediate panic reaction that was originally associated with the traumatic event. For these individuals, immediate panic occurs, for no apparent reason. Neither the person, nor those around him, may understand why the panic reaction occurs. This response can occur when a given sound, color, or smell occurs that was originally associated with the traumatic event. Our sensory memories are very intense. When your sensory experiences are very intense and inconsistent, like those experienced by people with sensory processing disorders, such overwhelming emotion can be associated with, and set off easily, by simple sensory memories. So, when working with severely impaired individuals on the spectrum, tread very lightly. Be very respectful of their comfort zones. Be very careful of how you touch them, talk to them, and press them. Their nervous systems are very vulnerable and easily traumatized. Their reactions can be very guarded, and intense. They can be very emotionally reactive, and need you to be very calm, gentle, and compassionate. Always be looking for defensive reactions and immediately pull back when you see it. Never press the child into situations they are scared of. Guide them, but let them pace their actions. Let them feel in control so they can immediately end any situation of panic. Learn what touch, words, actions, and stimulation helps them feel safe and secure. Always listen and understand first, before intervening and redirecting their actions. Always assume that underlying their defensive reactions is intense emotional upheaval. Be respectful and compassionate, allow them to pull back, escape and rebound. Teach them coping skills for dealing with these intense experiences, but most importantly teach them to feel safe in your presence, and to trust following our lead. This series on Sensory Issues can be found in the blue book, Autism Discussion Page on the Core Challenges of Autism. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2

10.01.2022 Did you know we are a Registered NDIS Provider? - Custom exercise and nutrition programs - Experienced personal trainer to guide you - Comfortable private studio in central Albury

10.01.2022 This is a great app!

09.01.2022 Social Stories can be an important way to teach children about new "social" situations.... expectations, behaviour, how to interact with others, etc. Here are ...some great tips for "how to write a social story with visual supports"! https://www.yourtherapysource.com//write-social-story-vis/

09.01.2022 "The bond that a caregiver establishes with a child is really important for their development. In fact, we believe that a secure infant attachment is one of th...e most important factors in child development. This bond helps both the child and the caregiver in many ways. It is the building block to many social, emotional, behavioural and cognitive skills. In this article we will explain how a good child-caregiver bond shapes the developing brain. We will describe what a caregiver needs to do in order to create healthy attachment bonds. There are practical games and activities that you can integrate into your home or school to assist in this process..." See more

08.01.2022 This is such an important thing for us to know & understand!

07.01.2022 Did you know that gross motor skills and postural control have a HUGE impact on a child's independence during mealtime? Read more --> https://www.yourtherapysource.com//postural-control-mealt/

06.01.2022 "We learn to self-regulate through co-regulating. The baby cries, we pick them up and calm them down, and if we cant calm them down, we worry that something is very wrong." http://ow.ly/URCT30j3mgJ #spd #asd #adhd #anxiety #regulation #calm #soothe #thrive

06.01.2022 New Blog Post: "Be Prepared! Are you ready for your NDIS planning meeting?" Our tips to have a stress free, productive first NDIS planning meeting. myplanmanager.com.au/be-prepared-are-you-ready-for-your-nd/

06.01.2022 Development is the term used to describe the physical changes in your baby, as well as their amazing ability to learn the skills they need for life. As your baby grows, these skills and abilities become more and more complex.

06.01.2022 "The students who were taking longhand notes in our studies were forced to be more selective because you can't write as fast as you can type. And that extra processing of the material that they were doing benefited them." Handwriting and kinesthetic learning!

02.01.2022 PRIMITIVE REFLEXES - A possible cause for poor balance and coordination. Below are ways to check for poor balance and coordination, what may cause it, and how you can help.

01.01.2022 The Positives of Autism