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It is always easy to find ourselves slouching over a tab or laptop for hours. Being at home during the lockdown and working from home sure helped us to stay safe, but it made for bad and painful posture. Below are a few healthy habitsto help you improve your posture; after all, we all want a good, sleek posture for that first impression.

What are the Reasons for Posture Problems?

Poor posture often arises from our daily habits like working in front of a computer, lying on a couch throughout the day, or even looking down at our cellphones. Poor posture can also be caused by carrying heavy objects at work or grocery stores. All these activities overstretch and often weaken the muscles in the back of the shoulders thus making your shoulders arch forward. Gravity further helps these muscles pull forward as they become too weak to pull themselves back.

We all have core muscles in our backs. These muscles are important and need to become more active because if both the core muscles in the back and abdomen grow weak from inactivity, it can cause you to stoop. Core muscles help in lifting one’s frame and staying upright.

Another reason for poor posture comes from brittle bones. There are people out there with osteoporosis who experience compression fractures when the bones located near the vertebra aren’t strong enough to support their posture. Thus, the bones collapse on the front of the body, and the spine starts bending forward. In certain cases, occupational therapy works wonders.

What Are the Healthy Habits to Improve Posture?

Including small changes in your daily routine and adopting simple habits will show significant improvement in your posture. Here are few habits you can include in your routine:

Stretching is always great when it comes to improvingposture. Start your day with light stretching that includes your upper back and chest. This will ensure that your body remains active.

Anothergreat way to improve posture is to remind yourself to reposition your body and sit properly. You can set an alarm every half an hour to remind yourself. While working, we tend to forget the world outside the office. So, relax and reposition yourself every hour to help maintain good posture.

You can also do core and upper back exercises. There are plenty of such exercises online to choose from. Do not go overboard and start with a light hand. It will make a difference after few weeks. You can search for occupational therapy near mefor an appointment.

Make sure that you do not rely on the support of the back of a chair when sitting. Sit straight and try to engage your stomach muscles. At first, it might be difficult, but slowly it will help you improve your position.

Try not to use your smartphone all the time. Position your cellphone so that your head does not have to look downward for a long time. While working,take a mini-break every hour to ease your lower back. You can also take a mini walk for 10-15minutes.

Optimum Movement is a registered NDIS provider. We train individuals to provide the best to your child and are among the best of all the Disability Service Clinics in Australia. It is a fully client-centric health care centre that enables people to participate in the activities of everyday life. But how exactly can we help you? Below are all the services we provide so you can choose among them.

Occupational Therapy

Our specialty lies with our various services and different therapies. One such special therapy is occupational therapy. The occupational therapists at Optimum Movement are highly-skilled doctors who are focused on improving a participant’s independence in all areas of life. This includes self-care, leisure interests, community participation, etc.

Optimum Movement is a registered service provider thatsupplies early childhood intervention. Children who need assistance with the development process can seek help here. Early intervention is the key across diagnostic groups and should be scheduled as soon as possible.

What Does Early Intervention Focus on?

Our specialised early intervention therapists focus on developing your child’s assets such as social skills, communication skills, gross motor skills, cognitive skills, etc. In today’s world, developing such skills is mandatory and should be taken care of at an early age.

Here, comprehensive assessments are available to identify your child’s strengths. The assessment will be based on your child’s concerns and includes development assessment, handwriting, sensory processing, daily activities, etc. We strongly believe that the participation of parents is a must, and all assessments along with the therapy should be a collaborative process between parents, teachers, children, and healthcare professionals.

Disability Services

Here, at Optimum Movement, we have a multidisciplinary team consisting of OTs, physiotherapists, speech pathologists, and a paediatrician. We are known to provide nothing but the best service to our clients. Disability services include physiotherapyand hydrotherapy for adults, children, and teens. They also includes therapy for a wide range of conditions that may be lifelong and acute.

Pilates

Pilates is a method of exercise that consists of low-impact muscular control. Top-trained professionals will guide the client through the whole session. We also provide kids’Pilates and clinical exercise sessions. If you are suffering from any type of muscular or physical pain, our physiotherapists willfirst consult with you and run a few tests on your body, after which they will determine the exercises suitable for your body. Going for a one-on-one session with a physiotherapist is a must.

Specialised Groups

At Optimum Movement, along with our medical services, we consecutively provide special classes. Starting from cooking to yoga, you will surely find a class of interest. We even have a specialized group for all those who love Legos. The aim of the club is to develop all the necessary skills through structured fun, and engaging activities. Our quality team will help your child’s mind develop in all ways possible.

Looking to comprehensively improve your daily life? (Especially after you’ve fallen sick, or figured in an accident?) Well, perhaps you could try connecting with an occupational therapist! In simple terms, occupational therapy, or OT, helps individuals (especially those who have health issues or challenges) participate in daily life to their fullest. This means that OT can help the individual establish their health and life goals despite having health issues. Read on to find out more about occupational therapy.

What Activities Can Occupational Therapy Help the Individual With?

Occupational therapy is not actually just for working adults or senior citizens, because it’s great for kids too. For adults, this might mean that occupation therapy can help them go back to performing their work tasks. For kids, ot for children could mean helping them to learn how to play and have fun with their friends again.

And since the basic building blocks of everyday life can become much tougher after a person gets injured, disabled or ill, occupational therapists can help them slowly attain and develop the skills that will allow them to once again participate in everyday activities with confidence.

The activities of daily living that occupational therapy can help the individual enjoy or cherish once again are aplenty. These include bating and showering, dressing, eating, personal hygiene and grooming, sexual activity, shopping, work, play, leisure, social interaction, driving and walking, health management and maintenance, caring for pets and family members and more.

How Do Occupational Therapists Do Their Work?

An occupational therapists job varies across different work or social settings, although the treatment process often tends to follow a specific workflow. For example, in ot for kids , the process usually begins with an evaluation or assessment, where the therapist collects pertinent information on the patient’s health status or medical history, and asks the patient if he or she has any activities that are currently limited.

The therapist will then use this information to work with the patient in creating their POC, of Plan of Care (which may include short-term and long-term objectives and treatment methods). The subsequent treatment regimen in general will provide a combo of techniques that offer physical, social and emotional (as well as cognitive) interventions to help the person achieve their goals in life.

The occupational therapy in Gold Coast expert could then prescribe and train the patient to use assistive tools or devices like wheelchairs, powered scooters or raised toilet seats. The patient could also be taught new ways on how to tie their shoes, get in and out of the shower, go up and down a flight of stairs, and work on their computer and more.

The OT professional could also assist the patient with organizing their medications or household tools and equipment, as well as help the person to effectively address any behavioral or emotional issues that may continue to hound them while they work their way towards normality.

Is your child (or even any adult in your family) suffering from articulation or fluency disorders? Or do they suffer from something more serious like cognitive disorders that are brought forth by a brain injury or developmental disorder? If you answer yes to any of these, then perhaps you should have the patient scheduled for consultation with a speech therapist! According to health experts, speech therapy is defined as the evaluation and treatment of speech disorders and communication problems. Before consulting with any speech therapist out there, read first to determine the pros and cons of speech therapy.

Speech Therapy in Schools – The Pros and Cons

According to experts, speech therapy involves an assortment of techniques that are utilized to improve communication, fluency and even social interaction. The most popular methods include language intervention activities, articulation therapy and speech therapy for autism.

Now, let’s look at the pros and cons of letting an individual attend speech therapy in school. For the pros, the therapy takes place at the school during school hours, and the educators as well as speech therapists can work together to craft the curriculum to the student’s special needs.

For the cons, these may include missed classes, as the child can be pulled out for therapy, which can have an impact on their academic and social life. Second, the school’s speech therapist may not have the expertise or experience for treating the specific language or speech disorder that the child has. Third, adding speech therapy to the regular subjects can lead to heavy case loads, which can make individual therapy a tougher thing to do.

Speech Therapy at Home – The Pros and Cons

After discussing the pros and cons of undertaking speech therapy in school, let’s now take a look at the potential ups and downs of conducting it at home. For the upside, a home-based speech therapy session offers flexible hours, and the session can be more convenient for the child because it all happens at home (and within their preferred schedules).

Now for the potential downsides of home-based speech therapy; first, the child could be hampered by the many distractions he or she faces at home. Second, the speech therapist and the child could be hampered by the lack of access to learning materials, because the therapist may not be able to bring all of the needed materials to the patient’s home.

Speech Therapy at a Clinic – The Ups and Downs

At this juncture, we shall now discuss the potential ups and downs of conducting a speech therapy session inside a clinic. For the pros, in-clinic sessions, especially speech therapy for autism, affords the patient and the therapist with flexible schedules and easy access to required learning materials.

Second, a speech therapy session in a clinic allows for more individualized attention, as parents are given the choice of having the sessions done in small well-paired groups or in one-on-one sessions.

Most speech therapy clinics today also have access to a coordinated team or group of therapists, whether its speech, occupational, behavioral therapy and others. In-clinic speech therapy sessions also offer lesser distractions to the patient, as the sessions are done in specially-designed child-friendly counseling rooms.

Have you ever see a person who’s wobbly, or is unable to maintain his or her posture? Well, if you already have, then that person may be suffering from a condition called cerebral palsy! (CP). Cerebral palsy is defined as a group of disorders that impair or affect an individual’s posture and mobility (with “cerebral” meaning it has something to do with the brain, while “palsy” means weakness or issues with the muscles). CP is also very common during childhood, which makes this medical condition a truly sad and mysterious one. However, the good thing is that there are potent methods for treating or alleviating CP.

The Use of Certain Medications

One of the most common avenues for cerebral palsy treatment in  Brisbane is the use of certain medications, which can either lessen abnormal movement or relieve overactive muscles. The medicines can be injected into the affected area, infused into the fluid that surrounds the spinal cord through a pump or taken by mouth. But, for kids who suffer from CP and seizures, conventional medicines for epilepsy are often considered.

Physical Therapy

Since kids and adults who have cerebral palsy have problems with balance and mobility, physical therapy is one of the most crucial aspects of cerebral palsy treatment. The physical therapy options include occupational therapy (OT) which helps the child learn everyday activities to, speech and language therapy, recreational therapy (arts, sports and cultural activities) and specialized cerebral palsy exercises.

But, while all kids and adults who suffer from CP have problems have issues with posture and movement, some have issues like intellectual instability, vision and hearing problems, joint problems and spinal issues like scoliosis.

Surgery

Kids who suffer from cerebral palsy may require varying degrees of surgery, especially if the symptoms are really bad. For example, surgery can ease tightly-contracted muscles, or it can correct an abnormal spine curve. However, before doctors perform surgery, they would first assess or analyze the patient’s current medical condition, and assess the benefits of the medical procedure.

Use Orthotic Devices

Kids (and even adults) who suffer from cerebral palsy can also find relief by using orthotic and other assistive devices. Examples of these include casts, splints and braces which can be placed on the affected body part, if only to enhance balance and mobility. The other orthotic and assistive devices include powered scooters, rolling walkers and wheelchairs.

Alternative Medicine

Apart from using conventional treatments, a handful of alternative or traditional medical interventions have also been noted to treat or ease the symptoms of cerebral palsy. Among these include nutrition therapy and counseling, wherein a diet is designed for individual patients.

Another amazing treatment mode which originated from the east is acupuncture, where fine needles are inserted into specific and defined parts of the body to correct abnormalities or disruptions in harmony, and restore the body’s normal flow of energy.

And though acupuncture’s effectiveness has not yet been fully determined, there’s ample evidence to show that it can reduce pain and enhance motor function and mobility. Thus, it has been hailed as one of the best alternative cerebral palsy treatments.

Of the various developmental disorders that affect children today, perhaps autism is the most prevalent. According to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, autism is defined as a broad array of conditions that are characterized by repetitive behaviors, speech and non-verbal communication (along with impaired social skills). Although an autism diagnosis can definitely be worrisome and terrifying (as it can’t be treated), it doesn’t mean that it can be alleviated. Let’s look at the various ways for helping kids with autism.

Medications

The sad truth is that there are no medicines that can treat autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and its main symptoms. However, there are a lot of ways for helping children with autism , and one of it is by employing the use of certain medications.

Today, there are medications that help autistic kids effectively manage anxiety and depression, behavioral reactivity, self-injury, seizures and inability to focus. Although the medicines may not affect autistic kids in the same way, with the help of a health care expert the child can be closely monitored with their progress and reactions.

Alternative Medical Treatments

To ease the many symptoms of autism, certain alternative autism therapy interventions can be done. For starters, the healthcare expert or alternative medicine practitioner can make use of specialized diets and dietary supplements (like chelation, which is a treatment for removing certain heavy metals from the body).

But since chelation has not yet been fully analyzed for its effectiveness, parents are first advised to consult with their physician or healthcare provider before undergoing any alternative medical intervention.

Dietary Approaches

Certain dietary approaches or interventions have been noted to offer hope when it comes to alleviating the harsh symptoms of autism. Some of these include changes in the child’s diet, like removing certain food items from their meals, or using vitamin and mineral supplements.

The various dietary approaches are often based on the assumption that the lack of vitamins or certain food allergies cause some of autism’s symptoms. Many parents have already attested to the efficacy of certain dietary approaches towards alleviating autism, as they’ve noted positive improvements in how their child acts or feels.

But, before employing any dietary approach for easing autism, parents are first advised to consult with their doctor, or with a registered dietitian, to ensure that the child’s diet still includes the vitamins and minerals needed for their normal growth and development.

Behavior and Communication Approaches

Another effective autism treatment Brisbane Southside intervention would be to adopt certain behavior and communication therapies. Among the most effective behavior and communication approaches includes Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), which experts say encourages positive behaviors to improve a wide array of skills.

Another effective approach is Pivotal response Training (PRT), which is aimed at increasing a child’s motivation to learn and monitor their own behavior, as well as encourage them to initiate communication with kids and other people.

Regardless of what medical approach or therapy parents wish to espouse to help their autistic child, early intervention is still hailed as the most effective way to speed up the child’s early development (and to considerably reduce autism’s negative symptoms over time).

If you think that therapeutic inventions like occupational therapy (OT) are only good for adults, especially the ones who are working in the office or in manufacturing, construction and other jobs, think again. In fact, medical experts today say that OT presents an amazing opportunity for folks of all ages and persuasions (especially those who have physical or cognitive disabilities) to improve their quality of life and become as independent as possible. Read on to find out more how OT can be helpful for children.

OT Helps Kids Perform Activities of Daily Living

One of the major perks of occupational therapy for children is that it helps kids perform their activities of daily living. Occupational therapy holds more importance for kids because it can have a profound effect on their learning and development experience.

According to health experts, if a child is left without OT, not only would it be inconvenient for them, but it would be dangerous as well. Why? Because the kid who is suffering from physical or cognitive disabilities could pose a threat to themselves and to those around them, as they may not be able to function properly. Thus, to reduce this threat, OT is done to reinforce the child’s independence and mobility.

Occupational Therapists Can Properly Monitor the Child’s Growth

If a kid who has physical or cognitive impairments undergoes OT, one of the best things is that the occupational therapist can effectively monitor their performance and improvement. Occupational therapy for kids includes a bundle of intervention programs, therapies and support services to help kids deal with their disabilities, and slowly work their way towards independent living.

OT Can Help Treat Several Childhood Diseases or Abnormalities

Another amazing benefit of childrens occupational therapy Redlands is that it can help treat, or alleviate, certain childhood abnormalities or diseases. For starters, OT can help alleviate dyspraxia, which is a brain-based condition which makes it tough for kids to coordinate physical movement.

Kids with dyspraxia often look clumsy and out of sync with their thoughts or emotions. If left untreated, dyspraxia can make the child struggle to perform tasks like balancing or maintaining posture. But with OT, the child can slowly be able to write, dress up, tie their shoes or use scissors safely.

Another childhood condition that OT can help ease is sensory processing disorder, which makes the child have tough time processing information. These results in the kid becoming too anxious overwhelmed, uncomfortable and too sensitive.

But with OT, the therapist can explain to the kid what each type of incoming information means, and they can also provide helpful exercises to help the child effectively process and understand whatever information is given to him or her.

And, OT can also help kids who suffer from autism. Autistic kids often have a hard time communicating and interacting, of which their actions often lead to them endangering themselves and others. But with occupational therapy, autistic kids would be able to improve their attention span, social skills, and response to stimuli, motor functions and analytic abilities!

What’s physical therapy? It’s mainly focused on the identification & maximization of the quality of movement & life potentials. This is true in regard with the spheres of prevention, promotion, habilitation, rehabilitation, & treatment.

Since this is a known health profession, it’s ordinarily concerned with the diagnosis & treatment after the assessment of a disability & disease by physical means. What it desires to bring are services to those who want to maintain, develop, & restore maximum movement. Truly, it has a lot of pros and also cons to offer especially for kids that are as follow.

Pros

Treatment of Serious Physical Conditions

OT for kids or physiotherapy for kids is after better managing childhood injuries. It also is geared at developing their motor skills. It truly has a huge & positive impact in the lives of the kids particularly those who are living with some serious conditions. It is indeed applicable to most children & infants who are suffering from many different ailments like cerebral palsy, spina bifida, Down’s syndrome, hypotonia, genetic conditions, & developmental coordination disorder.

Helping children with autism is also made a lot easier with physiotherapy. It just can help your child in realizing his or her potentials that you think are impossible. If you believe your child has the condition limiting his or her physical capabilities, it is better contacting a known physiotherapist right away. This way, an effective therapy and treatment plan can be designed well suited to their needs.

Help Kids in School

Is your child shifting & fidgeting around the chair while going through some simple chores? If yes, this is something that must be paid attention to. For sure, there are underlying issues that come with it. It truly can bring a negative effect in their core after sitting around in class in the entire day. That’s why it leads up to improper seating posture and discomfort.

Since no real pain is reported, it then is left untreated. Actually, this certain discomfort can be brought about by more physical reasons. It likewise affects the cognitive performance. Inability to focus and complete the learning tasks in a timely manner is mostly observed to them. The poor posture and discomfort might be the result of poor sleep. This then has a negative & direct impact in the cognitive performance.

Physiotherapy is indeed the best solution to ever have. Physical treatment and therapy has its positive and direct impact on the physical and postural related symptoms. As the kid is returned to his or her state of physical comfort, it’s when a table is set for an improved performance in the class.

Treat Serious Physical Conditions

It not only is about managing childhood injuries. It further is about the development of motor skills. Physiotherapy is so far helpful for its huge & positive impact in the lives of the kids. This is especially to those who are suffering from more serious conditions. Truly developing, rehabilitating, & improving performance & movement skills is made easier with following physiotherapy. It can also be applied to children & infants suffering from many ailments. Physical therapy treatment for cerebral palsy , spina bifida, Down’s syndrome, developmental coordination disorder, genetic conditions, & hypotonia is just so highly appreciated.

In studies also conducted, physiotherapy helps with some neuro-developmental disorders like autism. It can help your child in realizing further the potentials he or she has. Contacting a physiotherapist is just essential if your child is limited in his or her physical capabilities. Then, discuss an effective therapy & treatment plan that suits to his or her needs.

Offer Them Greater Awareness with Their Physical Self

What’s more with physiotherapy is that it helps your child in knowing & understanding more about the pain that is experienced. He or she will learn more about their tissues, muscles, bones, ligaments, & tendons interconnected. Thus, your child will better understand how his or her body is working.

A sustained ailment or injury is also better identified that may be dismissed as a growing pain by parents. The kids will learn the right form participating in the physical sports and physical activities. Injury prevention is then assisted in this case. Performance is also further improved for the kids.

Cons

While there may seem advantages in physiotherapy, there also are a few disadvantages to be aware of. These can include the multiple weekly appointments parents like you may not be prepared of. The treatments sessions can also be that long. And even the cost of the treatment is high. Plus, the kids may develop an unexpected reliance on the treatment.

In all these, physiotherapy still is beneficial with the highlighted advantages! Considering it for your kids with some specific conditions is indeed a great idea!

Has it come to you to introduce your child to physiotherapy? This one is beneficial to infants, babies, the youth of all ages, & children. Children’s physiotherapy services provided by therapists are something you should look for. For one, childhood health conditions can best be alleviated by physiotherapy like congenital issues, developmental delays, hip dysplasia, neurological conditions, & torticollis.

Here are more significant reasons why you should introduce physiotherapy with your child:

Delayed Milestones

If you think your child is behind or is delayed in achieving his or her next milestone, physiotherapy in Cleveland is just indeed the right option to consider. Whether it is due to conditions like Cerebral Palsy or Down’s syndrome, a program of play can then be created for your child. It’s something personally designed & intended in helping him or her grows.

Disturbed Sleep

Is your child struggling with sleeping the entire night? Upon waking up, he or she is complaining of restless legs? It’s when lack of sleep becomes a problem for your child. Lacking it can ultimately be brought by discomfort. The sleeping patterns serve as a good indicator of what goes inside the body of your child. Now if he or she is still in pain and is suffering mobility issues, let him or her be assessed by a physiotherapist. This way, you’ll know what is to best do to alleviate his or her discomfort. It can then easily be treated leaving you not stressed with your child, too.

Aches, Pains, & Injuries

Kids may believe in themselves as indestructible. They like it playing around as always. But just the same with adults, they also are prone to certain injuries. With developing bones and growth spurts, they are more at risk of getting injured. This is especially true to their daily activities. Good thing, physiotherapy in the Sunshine Coast  is the best solution to help them get back to being a kid.

Fatigue & Stamina

If your child comes unnaturally tired after attending school activities, it’s when physiotherapy makes perfect sense here. Help him or her to easily keep up with the family on the family day out. Stop the struggles that your child is facing when attending trips & birthday parties.

Stamina and fatigue are common complaints of mostly all children. But, it never should limit your child to function well. If tiredness still becomes a problem for your child, physiotherapy is more than useful to consider. It teaches your child so many ways to manage fatigue and increase his or her stamina & fitness. This way, he or she will live an active & full lifestyle.

Scoliosis

Is there any abnormality observed in the back of your child? If yes, it can be defined as scoliosis. Physiotherapy comes in as the best course of action. What this incorporates are other recommendations and gentle manual technique exercises. It’s purposeful in the sense that it reduces impacts. It also avoids the progression of any changes in the spine.

Coordination & Balance

Is your child clumsy or accident-prone? Does he or she fall over in the playground as always? While you may be upset because of it, but know that you’re never alone. A lot of children have a poor coordination and balance. That’s why they fall over on frequent times.

Children’s physiotherapy can help retrain your child’s body in moving without even falling over. Know that poor balance can be attributed to different underlying issues. The solution presented can solve the deepest root of the problem. It can further challenge your child’s body and improve more of his or her specific muscle strength. Finally, you can say goodbye to torn trousers, grazed knees, & holes in tights.

All these reasons mentioned simply are enough in making you realize the true power of physiotherapy. This is what your child needs the most for him or her to function well in life!