April is OT Month (How Occupational Therapists can help you move more .. to tie into Move More Month)

April not only brings spring time weather and longer days, it also brings Occupational Therapy Month and Move More Month! Getting up and moving and occupational therapy go hand in hand! Are you wondering how occupational therapists can help you move more? Let’s find out!

According to coto.org, occupational therapy helps people regain skills and develop new skills, learn new ways of doing things, utilize equipment or materials to make their daily tasks easier, and assist with adapting individuals’ environments to help them lead more independent lives. Occupational therapists are healthcare providers who assist individuals with maintaining or resuming their jobs, self care tasks, social activities, mobility, and overall daily routines. 

There are many different areas and ways that an occupational therapist (OT) can help you, or your loved one, get up and move! One of the main ways an OT can help, is help increase your independence with your daily routine. An OT can provide therapy interventions within the home or in a clinic setting. Some examples of how an OT can help you get up and moving with your daily routine are:

Helping increase your mobility with transfers to/from the toilet and shower/bathtub

Provide education, modifications/adaptations, and recommendations for adaptive equipment to increase your independence with your self care

Help increase your strength and range of motion for you to be able to dress yourself, bathe yourself, and groom yourself

An OT can help increase your mobility, strength, range of motion, educate on modifications/adaptations to increase your independence with cooking, cleaning, and daily household maintenance tasks

Occupational therapists provide therapy interventions that are client centered, and focused around your daily routine, to improve your strength, endurance, and range of motion through typical daily tasks.

Besides providing interventions that directly involve your daily routine, an OT provides endurance exercises, strengthening exercises, range of motion exercises, and dynamic/static balance exercises, to improve your mobility! Occupational therapists also provide group exercise programs at local senior centers, assisted living centers, and skilled nursing facilities for individuals who would like to increase their strength and endurance outside of an OT session.

Occupational therapists will educate you, or your loved one, on modifications to your home environment, to help you, or your loved one, stay more active with activities you enjoy! For example, if you aren’t able to kneel down to garden, and OT can provide resources/education on a raised garden, so you, or your loved one can garden without having to bend down to the ground. If you, or your loved one, is unable to stand for long periods of time to participate in exercises, and OT will modify the exercises to a seated position, to continue to address strengthening/endurance, while maintaining a safe position.

Occupational therapists can educate you on local programs that provide activities, exercise programs, and hobbies of your interest, along with transportation options, to provide opportunities for you, or your loved one, to participate in activities you enjoy. 

OT’s provide many different opportunities to get you up and moving! From therapy sessions, to education and resources on how to improve your mobility, to providing programs for you to attend that will keep you active. Talk to us at Home Therapy Solutions today, to see how we can help you, or your loved on, get up and moving!