Easterseals Celebrates Occupational Therapy Month

With preschool on the horizon, Cameron Collier’s parents were concerned that he was not quite ready. It was challenging for him to sit still long enough to attend to a task, and his speech was very jumbled and difficult to understand. Thankfully, Easterseals Children’s Therapy Services was there to help Cameron meet his Occupational and Speech therapy goals just in time for his first day of school.

“Cameron loves Easterseals. He sees they are helping him and has become more confident,” Cameron’s mom, Sarah Collier, of Milford, says. “Easterseals has been fabulous. They are really great at getting him to the next step and showing us how we will get there.”

April is National Occupational Therapy Month, a time to celebrate the important roles that occupational therapists play in the lives of people of all ages. Like all Easterseals services, Children’s Therapy is comprehensive and individualized to meet each child’s needs, family-focused to meet each family member's concerns, and has the goal of enhanced independence.

“I have seen Cameron grow leaps and bounds. When he first arrived, he would not leave mom or dad's side the entire time; he would hide under the table, and he would have limited engagement in tasks,” Adam Nikkel, Easterseals Occupational Therapist, says. “Now, he will walk back to the session by himself while helping me carry some sort of activity. He will sit at the table without his parents throughout the session. He no longer hides under the table. He is actively engaged throughout the session.”

Cameron has learned to slow down his body so he can participate successfully in activities, and to slow down his speech so others can understand him. Both of these skills are essential for his preschool experience.

“Early intervention is important as it allows the child to start to work on the skills needed to be successful across various environments at an earlier age. If a child can receive services at 1 or 2 years of age versus 5 or 6 years, he/she is going to have a much better opportunity to be ready for school when the time comes,” Adam says. “I also think early intervention allows the parents to have a better opportunity to carry over strategies needed for the child to be successful at an earlier age.”