Overscheduled, Part 2

In my last post, I mean to say that Thomas is not overscheduled. I know that because he is engaged and participates in activities with his therapists. He is excited to see them when they come. He doesn't always want to do exactly what they want him to do, but that is a part of learning, and a part of being a toddler.

Dance party in the waiting room - Don't tell the doctor!

Thomas started out with only vision therapy at about six weeks old and physical therapy was added to address his hypertonia when he was about 8 months old. The other therapists were gradually added as he developed and his needs were assessed. He could not have handled his current therapy schedule when he was an infant and having constant surgeries. He is in a completely different place now.

Please don't think that I am saying other parents are lazy unless their children get as much therapy as Thomas does. I am only saying that if the kids are participating - don't stop, keep going because it is so worth it! It make take a while to see some results but you will start seeing them.

It's not all work and no play for Tom. He gets plenty of down time. I never schedule more than three therapy sessions in one day; usually he has two sessions daily and one day off a week.

Here are some pictures of Tom doing "Tom stuff."

We also don't try to "school" him at all times. He gets time to play and he gets dirty. I feel that it's really important for him to be able to explore and try things that kids his age are doing. We are getting him used to playing outside again now that the weather is nice. It's almost abnormally nice weather for Spring but I'll take it!He likes to play outside for about 20-30 minutes but then he signs "all done" and starts dragging me back inside. Once it gets warm enough to bring out the pool I think our time outside will increase dramatically. He is a little fish in the water.

He never wants to get out of the tub.

Remember that you can call your program coordinator if you have questions about the therapy your child receives or the professionals that provide your child's therapy. Your program coordinator can advise you and provide you with options you may not even know exist. You can also ask your child's therapist for advice. When I didn't get anywhere with Tom's first feeding evaluation I spoke with his occupational therapist who recommended another feeding evaluation at a different facility. This led us to a great new resource that I was unaware of. Don't be afraid to ask for help!