Occupational Therapy and Sensory Integration Unit
About the Department
Occupational therapy aims to help individuals achieve the highest possible level of independence through personalized interventions. It serves all age groups, from 7 to 70. It engages in activities designed to help individuals develop self-care skills and achieve self-actualization.
He uses meaningful and purposeful activities to promote the greatest possible functional independence for children living with the effects of illness, injury, birth defects, disabilities, or developmental delays.
Treatment is planned for children between the ages of 3 months and 15 years. The focus of the pediatric clinic is to help children achieve greater success in activities that are meaningful to them. This may include increased independence in personal care tasks such as eating or dressing; enhancing age-appropriate socialization skills and play abilities; learning to write more legibly; learning strategies to stay calm; and adapting to daily life.
After administering a series of tests to individuals with sensory issues, occupational therapists identify these sensory problems through clinical evaluations. Based on an analysis of information gathered from other specialties and from the family, a comprehensive assessment is conducted to determine a therapy program.
The therapy process proceeds at a regular weekly pace based on the individual’s engagement with therapy (socialization) and the severity of the disorder. In cases of severe impairment, an intensive therapy program is implemented; as improvement occurs, the interval between sessions is gradually increased while maintaining a controlled pace.
Conditions Treated with Occupational Therapy and Sensory Integration:
- Sensory Integration Disorder
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
- Autism
- Cerebral Palsy
- Down Syndrome
- Developmental delays
- Fine and gross motor skill disorders
- Intellectual Disabilities
- Psychosocial disorders, etc.
Health is not merely the absence of disease or disability, but a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being. When health is compromised, we work with individuals across a wide range of medical conditions to help them achieve the highest possible level of well-being.
There are therapy areas—primarily activity spaces for adults—that feature activity workshops. These include the marbling workshop, handicrafts workshop, ceramics workshop, art workshop, gym, and kitchen workshop. Therapy processes in these areas are monitored in collaboration with our specialist (occupational therapist). Services are provided to pediatric patients aged 3 months to 15 years in the sensory integration clinic. Interventions are implemented to address a wide range of specific issues in children, such as sensory difficulties, motor function problems, attention deficits, behavioral issues, and academic challenges. The therapy environment is designed to help children demonstrate their various functions, identify situations they avoid, or highlight areas where they perform better.
Occupational therapy is applied to all problems children face in daily life. These may seem minor but can lay the groundwork for underlying disorders or address issues that may arise as the child grows older. For this reason, a specialist conducts a comprehensive analysis of the child’s specific issue.
For example, a child who is clumsy or falls frequently may be experiencing motor difficulties or sensory issues related to what we call “depth perception.” Children who avoid taking a bath or dislike shaking hands may also have sensory issues. In such cases, if the situation is not analyzed by a specialist, the child may face difficulties participating in his social environment—a condition known as social isolation—as the situation progresses. This not only affects his communication with those around him but also leads to underdeveloped speech skills and hinders his ability to express himself.
As illustrated by this example, if a child exhibits movements or behaviors outside the norm during the early stages, consulting an occupational therapist can provide insight into the situation and help prevent potential problems from developing later on.
Occupational therapy plays a supportive or complementary role in individuals’ treatments. For this reason, it operates within a multidisciplinary framework, collaborating with many different specialties. These include neurology, psychiatry, psychology, speech-language therapy, orthopedics, and surgical specialties. For example, a child who needs speech-language therapy must first be able to control himself and participate effectively in therapy. For individuals who cannot stay still and rely solely on an assistant for control, applying sensory integration therapy—which helps them follow certain commands and remain calm—and then continuing with speech-language therapy through collaborative efforts can lead to faster and more effective results.
At our hospital, the presence of multiple specialties and the high level of communication between them allows for faster and more effective results, as well as optimal follow-up. With our advanced brain imaging techniques, we are able to implement more advanced applications for evidence-based and systematic monitoring of developmental progress, with the assistance of the psychiatry and neurology departments.
- Occupational Therapy Assessment
- On-site Ergonomic Assessment and Consultation
- Customized treatment programs to improve the ability to perform activities of daily living
- Recommendations and training on adaptive equipment
- Guidance for family members and caregivers
At our hospital, we aim to help him reduce his symptoms, maintain his health, and socialize; to help him develop his self-confidence, various skills, and abilities; encourage him to apply these skills and abilities in daily life, and help him recognize that making productive use of his free time enhances his quality of life. To this end, we offer recreational occupational therapy activities that include music, painting, crafts, ceramics, sports, cooking, and marbling.
When he is mentally and physically engaged in an activity and focuses his full attention on it, he naturally experiences a sense of relaxation and lives in the moment; therefore, it is important for him to spend his free time on a variety of activities. Artistic and sports activities are also used as a means of communication, and the result is often a sense of relief from stress and tension, as well as a feeling of purification and renewal.
Therapies involving music, painting, and marbling art foster creativity because creativity is the ability to solve problems and generate new ideas—it is seeing something different when looking at the same thing as others and producing something new. Those who can ask questions, act boldly, enjoy thinking differently, use various techniques to solve problems, and possess a vivid imagination are more creative. For these reasons, creativity is important in complex societies filled with challenges.
People cannot develop themselves if they are not nourished by art. Art is a stage in the mutual interaction between humans and nature. It has a social character. Art is a phenomenon that humanizes life. Art can be used to shape and strengthen the boundaries of one’s personality and to establish connections between inner experiences and external reality. Allowing patients to express their problems through drawing and helping them relax by talking about their drawings is one of the therapeutic methods.
Our areas of interest may include music, painting, sports, dance, photography, ceramics, model-making, reading, gardening, poetry, writing stories, cooking, sewing, and crafts; These activities allow him to step away from daily chores and the hustle and bustle, do something for himself, and take a break to relieve the day’s fatigue and tension.
Sensory systems are the gateways through which the brain and body receive information. Our senses make it possible for us to learn about the world around us. The brain must interpret various sensory information from the body and the environment in order to respond to events, pay attention, learn, teach, plan, and organize. This process is called “sensory integration.” For
most people, sensory integration develops naturally through normal childhood activities. For some people, however, sensory integration does not develop as effectively as it should, affecting how a child responds to and interacts with his environment and the people around him.
For example, some people cannot hear well if they cannot clearly see the source of the sound. In other cases, seeing something moving—such as a train—makes people feel as though they are moving.
Children who have difficulty processing sensory information:
- Is restless,
- Are slow to learn new motor skills,
- Is sensitive to clothing,
- Should be described as “smart but lazy.”
- Creating Effective Interventions,
Occupational therapists working in pediatrics use sensory integration principles during treatment to address the underlying sensory and motor foundations, helping children learn new skills more easily. Our approach is individualized for each child and the family’s functional needs. We explain our observations regarding the child’s strengths and challenges, enabling family members to identify how the child’s difficulties in processing sensory input affect daily activities, and to develop a personalized treatment plan.
When parents and therapists work together, both gain new insights that lead to a better understanding of each child and more effective interventions, sustaining the effectiveness of the treatment process and the child’s adaptation to daily life.
Sensory Integration Disorder (SID, also known as sensory processing disorder) is a neurological disorder that causes difficulties in processing information from the five classic senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste) or from the sense of movement (the vestibular system) and/or the sense of body position (proprioception). For people with SID, sensory information is received normally but is perceived abnormally. This is not the same as blindness or deafness. Unlike those conditions, people with SID do perceive sensory information; however, the brain tends to process the information in an unusual way that causes distress or confusion.
SID can be a disorder in its own right, but it can also be a characteristic of other neurological conditions such as Autism Spectrum Disorders, dyslexia (reading difficulty), developmental dyspraxia (a disorder of movement planning), speech delays, and others.
This condition is typically diagnosed by an occupational therapist. Diagnosis is also provided by specialists such as developmental pediatricians and pediatric neurologists.
Sensory Processing Disorder is used as a universal umbrella term encompassing three main diagnostic groups that include every form of this disorder:
Type I – Sensory Modulation Disorder,
Type II – Sensory-Based Motor Disorder,
Type III – Sensory Discrimination Disorder,
Type I – Sensory Modulation Disorder (SMD): Responding to sensory stimuli with either excessive or minimal intensity, or seeking out sensory stimulation. This group may involve patterns that cause fear and/or anxiety, negative and/or persistent behaviors, self-absorbed behaviors, and difficulty with attachment or the active pursuit of emotional engagement.
Type II – Sensory-Based Motor Disorder (SBMD): Characterized by irregular motor output resulting from the misprocessing of sensory information.
Type III - Sensory Discrimination Disorder (SDD): Difficulties with sensory discrimination or postural control and/or dyspraxia (movement planning disorder) are observed in inattention, disorganization, and poor academic performance.
Sensory integration disorders vary among individuals depending on their characteristics and severity. Some individuals experience mild symptoms that are barely noticeable, while others may be severely affected and face difficulties with daily functioning. While occupational therapy sessions focus on enhancing a child’s ability to tolerate various sensory experiences, both activities and the environment must be evaluated to ensure the “right” fit for the child. Parents can help their child by recognizing that play is an important part of the child’s development. Therapy involves working with an occupational therapist and engaging in activities that provide the child with vestibular, proprioceptive, and tactile stimulation. Therapy is individualized to meet the child’s specific developmental needs. During goal-oriented activities, emphasis is placed on automatic sensory processes. Children engage with therapy through play, which includes activities such as finger painting, using Play-Doh modeling clay, swinging, playing in boxes of rice or water, climbing, and more.
Sensory Integration Therapy is based on four fundamental principles:
1) Just the Right Challenge (the child must successfully overcome challenges presented through fun activities)
2) Adaptive Response (the child adapts his behavior using new and useful strategies in response to the challenges presented)
3) Active Participation (the child will want to participate because the activity is enjoyable)
4) Child-Centered Approach (the child’s preferences are used to initiate therapeutic experiences during the session).
Children with lower sensitivity (hyposensitivity) may be exposed to strong sensations such as stroking with a brush, vibrations, or rubbing. The play may include a variety of materials designed to stimulate the senses, such as playdough or finger painting.
Children with higher sensitivity (hypersensitivity) may be exposed to calming activities such as soft music and gentle rocking in a dimly lit room. Treatments and rewards can be used to encourage children to tolerate activities they would normally avoid.
“Sensory Integration” Therapy in Autism
Sensory issues are prominent among the symptoms observed in autism. Sensory issues reduce the individual’s ability to adapt to his environment and prevent him from exhibiting appropriate behaviors. They hinder the individual’s adaptation to life, impede the demonstration of daily living skills, make academic learning difficult, and cause problems with self-care. Through the comprehensive approach of sensory integration therapy, improvements in the individual’s behavior are observed, and the therapy can help foster the development and control of his sense of self. It provides therapeutic support to minimize the severity of the aforementioned problems. For more information, please visit our page at https://cdn.npistanbul.com/otizmde-duyu-butunleme-tedavisi.
