Massage is seen as a therapeutic tool used mainly for adults to aid in muscle relaxation, stress relief, and mental health and physical health benefits. However, kids face the same stressors and ailments. Today, kids are faced with educational, social, and emotional stressors, as well as varying diagnoses and motor, sensory, and medical ailments. What happens when we are stressed or in pain? One may feel tension, soreness, tightness, lethargy, fatigue, depression, the list goes on. I do not know about you, but I have felt all these before. Massage, for me, has always been a mental escape, muscle relief, and a place where my mind and body can find peace. There is no reason why children can’t experience these same pleasures.

When a child experiences stress, the adrenal glands increase cortisol levels which decrease the immune system. Thyroxin can lead to insomnia, shaky nerves, endorphins are depleted, pain tolerance decreases, digestive system shuts down, blood sugar rises, cholesterol increases, heart beats faster and higher. During periods of stress, one’s senses become heightened, but after prolonged exposure, burn out and become less efficient. In children, stomachaches, headaches, allergic reactions, cold and flu are common signs of stress , and pain. The above listed symptoms can cause trigger points.

Massage can stimulate the nervous system- temperature, skin flexibility, skin thickness, body in space awareness, and tension. Stimulation of tactile experiences increase brain growth through increase in neurons, as well as decreasing anxiety, increasing self-esteem, body image, emotional attachments, engages pressure receptors, increases feedback on density and tension of muscle tissue. Tactile comfort is increased in children who are distressed and calm down quicker than with verbal outputs. Acute early tactile deprivation causes increased muscle tension in infants and may lead to repetitive, self-soothing movements. Massage therapy increases body awareness as a child may not be aware of muscle tension. The human brain and body is extremely malleable, especially in children. However, as the human body grows this characteristic decreases. For this reason, it is important to provide massage therapy intervention early on.

While massage can benefit both adults and children, the administration of this will vary. Pediatric massage may be conducted on pillows/blankets instead of a massage table, child friendly music instead of white noise/classical music, stuffed animals, textured tools/balls, scented lotion/oils, ice packs/heat pad, massage during relaxed play, and massaging for decreased time intervals (e.g., starting at 10 minutes).

For most, one of the downfalls of massage therapy can be cost. These days, parents are faced with many financial stressors, which is why I want pediatric massage therapy to be attainable. Massage therapy services at strOnger Together, LLC will be financially accessible, and can be accessed through insurance.

strOnger Together, LLC is a pediatric occupational therapy based clinic that offers fitness to yoga classes. Our first event will begin on December 12th at 4-4:30, and will continue throughout the winter. Within the 30 minutes, kids will be lead through a fitness routine and the end the session wit a yoga flow. This event is $15 per session, or $50/mo (4 sessions).

Occupational therapy services can be done in the clinic for 30 or 60-minute increments, for $75 and $120 respectively. For home based occupational therapy services sessions will be 60-minutes at $150. If an evaluation needs to be conducted it will be $200 for both the evaluation and the report that follows. However, if you schedule an evaluation and your first session at the same time the cost is $250. Additionally, if you pay for five sessions upfront, you get the sixth session free. Lastly, first responders and active duty receive 5% off all services.

Currently, the company only accepts private pay, but is in the process of completing applications for insurance companies to become credentialed. We know that services aren’t cheap, and the certainly can add up, which is why we are working to make this process less of a financial strain on you and your family. Email brittney.strongertogether@yahoo.com if you have any specific questions or concerns!

“You’re like physical therapy right?” “That’s great, you give people jobs!” “You just play with kids all day.” These are all common statements made by people outside the realm of occupational therapy. So here I am bridging the gap between being a physical therapist and someone that helps people get jobs.

Occupational therapy (OT) is a means of giving individuals access to their functional and meaningful daily occupations, roles, routines, and tasks. OT’s can work in schools, outpatient clinics, homes, hospitals, mental health centers, military services, jails, and much more. Since I am a pediatric occupational therapist, I am going to focus on OT as it relates to kiddos. A child’s main occupations are play, activities of daily living, social participation, and education. OT works to help kiddos that have limitations that are impeding participation in the above listed occupations through establishing, restoring, modifying, or preventing necessary skills. OT will work on fine motor, gross motor, visual motor, visual perception, social interaction, play, attention, regulation, sensory, and self-care skills. Sessions can be done in both a group and individual setting, where both has its pros and cons. For some kids, they enjoy being in a group because it brings them out of their shell, and they can feed off of each other. Additionally, the therapist is able to plan group activities to create social interaction. However, attention can be affected, which can decrease skill production and increase behavior management. Individual sessions are great for kids that benefit from direct instruction, may have a hard time focusing with distractions present, or feel uncomfortable in large groups.

Why does OT look like play? Well, how do you motivate kids? Kids are generally motivated by preferred activities, because it increases confidence and self-worth. Through using preferred activities, and creating a playful atmosphere, the child has a better chance at participation in OT treatment. I have found my greatest success when I get down to the child’s level (both literally and figuratively) and play, while keeping the child’s goals in mind.

Working with kids has been one of the most rewarding experiences I have had, because I have been able to witness change. From being able to see a kiddo who was unable to attend in class be able to participate, to teaching a child how to write his/her name successfully, is truly rewarding. I am not trying to sell my business or the career, but I think that we as adults are in a perfect spot to create the best life possible for kids by giving them all the skills they need to be successful.

11/18/19.

strOnger Together, LLC offers both individual and group based yoga classes in order to improve mental health, sensory processing, motor, and self-regulation skills. Brittney took an online Pediatric Yoga course through SUMMIT Professional Education, where the presenter was Allison Morgan, OT, RYT, MA. This blog post serves to create an awareness of the power yoga can have on children!

Yoga literally means “To Yoke”, which is defined as integrating the body, mind, and spirit. A common observation among children is that their bodies move faster than their minds, or that their minds move faster than their bodies. Through practicing yoga, the child can begin to integrate these two processes. Spirit does not relate to the religion to which an individual practices, but rather an energetic part of who we are. Spirit is the beautiful part of what makes children such playful, energetic, and creative beings. But how do we get a child to integrate their body, mind, and spirit? Through breath, movement, meditation/mindfulness, and relaxation. If we can incorporate these four components, children can experience a decrease in stress, and an increase in internal awareness, self-regulation, and social and emotional intelligence.

A major goal of yoga is to balance the Autonomic Nervous System. This system comprises the Parasympathetic Nervous System, which is the relaxation response, and the Sympathetic Nervous System, which is the stress response. The kiddos that always seem to be dys-regulated, impulsive, agitated, or have a low frustration tolerance are most likely functioning through their sympathetic nervous system, as they are in constant fight or flight. Generally speaking, breathing is an inherent skill amongst humans that comes easily, but is a skill that is of substantial importance for self-regulation. Breathing balances the sympathetic (inhale) and parasympathetic (exhale) nervous system. Breathing increases oxygen, energy, velocity of fluids moving through the body, and helps change one’s emotional pattern. Research shows that students who practice mindful breathing reported better abilities to focus, relax, reduce anxiety before taking a test, and make better decisions in conflict.

Movement in yoga is termed “Asana”. Movement stimulates the pituitary, pineal, thyroid, and parathyroid gland, which causes an increase in the secretion of dopamine (how we feel pleasure) and serotonin (associated with happiness). Movement builds brain recourses, metabolizes cortisol (stress response), and improves the body-brain connection, motor planning, coordination, balance, strength, dexterity, and flexibility. Research has shown that children who participate in yoga experienced an improvement in executive functioning when mindful movement was completed.

Mindfulness is the practice of focusing attention. When we are being mindful we are turning on our frontal lobes, turning off our reactive brain, and calming down the limbic system. Frontal lobes are in charge of executive functioning, thus, when they are “turned on” there is improved executive functioning, self-regulation, judgement, and self-awareness. When the reactive brain is “turned off” there is an improvement in reactive emotions. Lastly, when the limbic system is calmed down, there is an increase in resiliency. Research shows that when mindfulness is practiced among children, there is a reduction in stress, anxiety, and behaviors, with improved self-awareness and sleep. Research has shown that children who participate in yoga experienced an improvement in behavioral regulation, meta-cognition, executive functioning when mindful awareness practices were completed.

Relaxation is the final step in the yoga process, where the breathing, movement, and mindfulness come together for full learning and reflection on what has been accomplished. This can be done through “Savasana,” where the child is supine, arms by his/her side, with eyes closed. This final step completes yoga.

For those of you familiar with traditional yoga, pediatric yoga has both similarities and differences. The child is led through standard yogi movements and postures, but more games and props are utilized and incorporated. As mentioned before, breathing is the first step in completing a beneficial yoga practice. It can be difficult for kids to understand “breath” and how to exhale. Pediatric yoga utilizes straws, feathers, balloons, etc. to help encourage breath. Pediatric yogi flows and postures take on a more creative meaning and expression to help the child “buy in” to what the yogi is trying to accomplish.

Yoga is not about right or wrong, success or failure. But rather, yoga looks at a child as being perfect just the way they are. How a child maintains a posture or flows through a routine is perfect for him/her, and should not be corrected to achieve what we as adults think is “right”. By allowing children to move their body the way they want, it allows them to gain awareness of their body in space and create a greater internal awareness. Looking at what a child can do, instead of what they can’t do, is where positive change is made.

strOnger Together, LLC is a pediatric occupational therapy company, incorporating yoga and fitness classes in order to achieve a more holistic child. The company was founded by Brittney Hall, who is a registered occupational therapist through the NBCOT®, and is licensed in both New Hampshire and Massachusetts. She grew up in Salem, NH, where she has always been close to her family and friends. From doing dance, softball, field hockey, to coaching field hockey and spinning, as well as being an avid crossfitter, fitness has always been a huge part of her life. Brittney graduated from Quinnipiac University in 2017, with her masters in Occupational Therapy, and has been practicing pediatric occupational therapy ever since. Her first exposure to pediatric occupational therapy was during her last Level II fieldwork at Project CHILLD, a private practice in Beverly, MA. She loved seeing the impact and change that the kiddos she worked with experienced, as well as the overall playfulness and creativity they encompassed. From there, her first “big girl” job was at SNH Speech Therapy & Learning Center, LLC, a private practice in Nashua, NH. It was there that she found her confidence and passion for helping young kids be able to grow, improve, and live a more joyful life. It was during this job that she formed some of the best connections and relationships with the kiddos she treated then she ever thought possible. Brittney transferred from the private practice setting to school based occupational therapy in Manchester, NH to be able to treat an increased number of kids, as well as a more vast range of diagnoses.

Brittney was inspired to create her own company in order to encompass all of the attributes it takes to form a complete, holistic child. With her passion for health and fitness, she attained a Pediatric Yoga certification in order to carry this over to her practice (stay tuned for a follow up blog post regarding this), after seeing the benefits of having a mindful, movement session. She is confident in her adaptability, flexibility, and playfulness that drive successful pediatric occupational therapy. Her passion for kids and occupational therapy drove her to take a risk in doing what she believes in!

Brittney currently holds the following certifications: The Print Tool®, Therapeutic Listening®, Astronaut Training, The Professional Course on The Greenspan Floortime Approach®, Pediatric AquaHab, Intro to Aquatic Therapy and Rehab, Safety and Liability Protection Protocol, and Pediatric Yoga. 

Why strOnger Together, LLC? Occupational therapy is not a single, one person relationship. It takes collaboration among family, child, practitioners, schools, doctors, etc. in order to complete a whole picture. “Strong” does not mean how much a child can deadlift, or how much trauma they can endure, but rather how the child copes, regulates, and persists among both hardships and successes. The “O” in “stronger” and “T” in “together” are capitalized to emphasize the occupational therapy (OT) roots in the company. Brittney hopes that with her playful, fitness, and holistic approach, that we all can be strOnger Together!

10/31/2019.