October 19, 2012

Occupational Therapy

Ashlyn has been going to occupational therapy for a few months now and is doing really well.  The therapist is trying to get Ashlyn accustomed to different situations, movement through space, and proper eating techniques.  The therapist also commented on Ashlyn's low muscle tone.  We thought Ashlyn needed some help with sensory type things but she has really made progress in this area, so the main focus now is EATING.

Eating is a catch 22 at this age, is she just being picky or is there more of an underlying problem?  The therapist wants Ashlyn to see a dentist about her jaw to see if her eating is a sensory or anatomical issue.  For the most part, Ashlyn's diet consists of liquid: 100% juice and Pediasure.  Any other food that Ashlyn consumes, we consider bonus.  About 50% of the time, Ashlyn will chew her food but then spit it out, the other half of the time, she swallows it.  At this point, I don't know if her swallowing is a Chiari issue or not.  Her choking has improved tremendously so that is great!

So, little by little (this seems to be my motto for Ashlyn) we will work on eating, chewing, and swallowing, and getting Ashlyn to gain some weight.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Occupational Therapist Rocks!!! they took time but coming up with great results in most of cases.