How Mental Health Occupational Therapy and Psychology can benefit your child
By Claire Bathgate and Chloe Scott
Why Mental Health OT?
You may have heard about OT for your child, but unsure of what we do and the support we can provide for young people. The Occupational Therapy world is vast, and child and adolescent mental health is one small piece of that picture that we are very passionate about here at NEST.
Our Mental Health OTs can offer support for children having some challenges with big emotions, tricky behaviours, sensory responses, social engagement and daily life routines.
We have a unique role in offering a play based approach that will be engaging and comfortable for your child, while also helping us to better understand their individual needs from a brain perspective. We take a child-led approach, meaning that your child has a sense of autonomy which helps them to feel safe and connected as we explore their needs.
Our OTs will also work together with parents to collaborate on ideas for home and school, in order to support your child’s ongoing development and achieve the goals that are important to your family.
Why Psych?
Psychologists can help to treat a broad array of mental health conditions and related concerns by employing a variety of evidence-based therapeutic approaches. A child psychologist focuses on the formative years of a person’s life.
Our qualified and compassionate psychology team has clinical experience in child and adolescent psychology. We shape our care to suit the specific needs of this age group to help them achieve their goals and maintain a good quality of life. The guidance and treatment involved can differ from that which is part of adult psychology.
We use a combination of clinical psychology and neuroscience to provide a personalised, holistic therapy and develop an intervention program for your child.
How do OTs and Psychologists work together?
At The Nest Health Hub we are lucky to have Psychologists and Mental Health OTs working collaboratively to meet the needs of our clients.
A psychologist usually takes a ‘top-down’ approach, building understanding with clients and helping them to adapt their thoughts and behaviours to make helpful improvements in life. OT’s usually take a ‘bottom-up’ approach, providing enriching sensory experiences to help build new pathways in regulation and relationships. Involving both ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’ approaches covers more ground for positive developmental experiences.
The Nest Health Hub
Within the NEST program, our Mental Health OTs work directly with children, giving them those nurturing and rich sensory experiences in the clinic and getting the bottom of what works best for their unique system. At the same time, our psychologists work with parents and caregivers to explore challenges, problem-solve, set experiments to see what changes might be possible outside of the clinic, and notice and celebrate positive improvements and wins. Having the opportunity for Psychologists and Mental Health OTs to work so closely together means we can be on the same page and our clients can get the most benefit from both approaches.
If you or your child feel they could benefit from talking to someone with experience and knowledge regarding mental health concerns, please contact our team to organise an initial consultation.
