Youngest dd's OT appointment today

[Bagpuss]

Hmmmm, not sure what to make of it really. Took months to be arranged, due to lack of OT's in our area, and I wasn't getting my hopes up beforehand. She was referred by her paediatrician for visual processing probs (tends to walk into peeps, door handles, etc) and poor pencil grip. OT asked dd what she was good at....got a blank and lots of fidgeting....so she asked her what she wanted to improve at....got a blank and more fidgeting. Those types of questions go right over dd's head. With regards to the poor grip, after she'd got dd to write letters, shapes, words, and patterns, she said that it wasn't hindering her writing or drawing, although dd told her that her hands ached after a while. She has suggested grips for pens/pencils, which we tried, but dd not impressed, and kept reverting to her original grip, so I'm unsure how successful they will be. OT also recommended a table top that tilts, can't remember it's proper name. She is going into school to have a chat with her teacher, which is great, but I got the impression she didn't feel her need was particularly great tbh. With regards to her bumping into things, she said she looked fine to her, and was running about the assessment room with no difficulty She said she hadn't ran into anything whilst at the appointment, and felt that dd wanted to do everything quickly, and the problem she was having was resulting from that Tried explaining that she has walked into people when we are out, that she walks into shelves in shops, door handles etc, but as far as OT was concerned, she was not encountering any probs during appt, so nothing to worry about I raised the concern we have, and the school have, that dd can't wipe her own bottom after having a poo. Can't work out if it's immaturity, or lack of dexterity, or lack of muscle definition in her hands (they are quite squishy and not strong). She won't have a poo at school, and waits till she gets home, and the EP had advised that she needed urgent OT referral. OT asked if there were any siblings in our house, so I told her ds 14 and eldest dd. OT suggested that we let her watch eldest dd (10 AS) have a poo and wipe her bum Told her eldest dd would not allow ANYONE in to watch her having a poo, blimey, what child of 10 would, never mind one with AS who likes her privacy I felt that she didn't really understand why this would be a problem Anyhow, she's suggested we try with youngest dd again, which I think is probably the best way forward, as we had sort of left it on a back burner. Definately came away feeling that OT thinks we do too much for youngest dd, infact she asked if we felt we did too much for her. Explained that she was immature for her age, her development had been and is delayed, so obviously she is less able than your average 7 year old. She said we needed to encourage independance, yet dd does most things for herself now. She brushes her own teeth, get washed herself, puts her own shoes and coat on, I help her with tricky clothing like tights, and will dress her if we need to be quick, but otherwise she does it herself. She asked dd if she liked swimming, and dd said yes, and that she wears armbands. So OT asked why, and she said because she'd sink . OT looked shocked and said, you shouldn't be told that Then she asked if she liked riding a bike, and dd said yes, and she had stabilisers so she didn't fall off .....OT again made some passing comment..along the lines of being over cautious, can't remember exact words I don't know, it was one of those apointments, where you come away feeling the professional you've seen, just doesn't "get" it. Be interesting to see how it pans out and if anything positive will come from it.

[Clare63]

Oooooh yes Bagpuss, know only too well, feels like they don't believe you or that your being over protective. As for watching her sister have a poo, for goodness sake, what is this person doing working with children has she no idea !!!!!!

 

So disappointing though after waiting so long for an appointment.

 

Clare x x x

[krystaltps]

Yep! Had that appointment too. It's very frustrating isn't it? C's OT has seen him twice in the 20 months since he was dx, and has not been very helpful at all. She recommended things, but didn't provide them or any support.

 

TBH, the school have been much better at providing strategies and support - they have started him on a "Speed-Up" handwriting course to try to help with the poor pencil grip and the pain he experiences while handwriting.

 

I have noticed that OTs seem to provide the same for all children no matter what the issues are - the sloping desk, the pencil grips and an occasional fidget cushion.

[JsMum]

Crumbs, she sounds like a sargent in the Army, a bit abrupt or what, I would request a second opinion and with an OT with some form of specialism.

 

JsMum

[oxgirl]

Sorry to hear you came away frustrated, Bagpuss. <'> I know exactly what you mean, have been there myself. We had big concerns about Jay's gait when he was younger, he was all over the place, feet turned in, constantly tripping, etc., but when he finally got an appointment the doc just asked him to walk over to the window and back, as if this was a fair representation of what it was like to take him for a walk to the shops! When we saw an OT she more or less told us that his problems were just due to lack of practice and experience, but, of course, getting them to practice things they find difficult is half the problem, isn't it!

 

I hope you get some useful results from the appointment. You never know, her report might highlight things that can help, but it's so annoying when you end up feeling like you're just being preached at and ticked off in a way, rather than the concerns being taken seriously. <'> <'>

 

~ Mel ~

[pearl]

<'> Baggy <'> soooo frustrating for you.

[justamum]

Can I ask, is she hypermobile?

 

People with hypermobility syndrome have problem with proprioception.

[Bagpuss]

Thanks all for the lovely replies <'>

 

Sorry Justamum, should of mentioned that dd has muscular dystrophy too, so she had a tendancy to stumble & fall, especially when she's physically very tired. She's also VERY bendy

[westie]

Hi Both my sons have low muscle tone and the eldest has very poor handwriting and gets tired quickly. (he is yr 4 and handwriting was 1b when he has last assessed at school.

 

When he saw his OT she recommended a special kind of pen - its a Stabilo "Smove easy" pen and it is a really strange shape. You can buy then for left and right handed people, and they are on general sale. I have seen them in supermarkets. They cost about 4 or 5 pounds and come with refills. It may be worth giving them a try.

 

I hope I am allowed to put the name up, sorry if I have broken any rules - if name gets removed then pm me and I will tell you what it is called!

[Guest Lya of the Nox]

oooh

x

[lynne]

It sounds like your child saw a normal OT, when she needed to see an OT who specialises in Sensory. The problem is not many areas have these special OT. But some primary care trust will pay the bill for you to see a private one.

 

Lyn

[forbsay]

Bagpuss <'> <'>

[KarenT]

Bleedin' frustrating for you. Why oh why don't people read notes and make themselves aware of children's conditions?! What a waste of time and resources.

 

What will you do now?

 

K

x

[Bagpuss]

Stock up on wet wipes, and get cracking

[Bagpuss]

And we've cracked it

 

We are pleased to announce, youngest dd can now wipe her own bottom

 

Feeling ridiculously proud

[Clare63]

 

Clare x x x

[forbsay]

Fab news!

 

I can relate to this as M can do this now as well

 

Forbsay

[pearl]

[Karen A]

Karen.

[KateBall]

And we've cracked it

 

We are pleased to announce, youngest dd can now wipe her own bottom

 

Feeling ridiculously proud

 

Thats interesting to me ( ) as my ds often refuses to do his. I've assumed because he doesn't like the thought of getting messy but perhaps its because he finds it difficult with bendy fingers and simply can't rather than won't.

[Bagpuss]

Thanks all.

 

Kate, our dd's fingers and hands are the same. For us, I think she just wasn't ready, because she seems to have picked it up quite easily this time around. She isn't as dextrous (sp?) as our elder two children though, and we do check her afterwards.

[oxgirl]

That's great, Baggy, well done all!

 

~ Mel ~

[Bagpuss]

Thanks Mel