Circle of Security: Raising Emotionally Connected Children
Your child is happily playing on their own, then suddenly they are at your side, clinging and wanting a cuddle. Or you move in to comfort them after something hard, and they pull away. Moments like these can feel confusing. But your child is not being difficult. They are communicating a need in the way […]
Finding It Hard to Get Things Done? Strategies for Teens and Young Adults
In this post, we’ll look at what executive functioning actually is, why it can feel so tricky during the teen and young adult years, and most importantly, some practical strategies that can make a real difference in everyday life. What Is Executive Functioning? Executive functioning is the set of mental skills that help us […]
Why Your Child Keeps It Together at School — Then Falls Apart at Home
You hear ‘They’re so well-behaved in class!’ and then spend most evenings managing meltdowns, tears, or emotional shutdowns. You’re not imagining the contrast. And you’re definitely not doing anything wrong. What you’re witnessing has a name: restraint collapse. Understanding it can genuinely shift how you see those difficult after-school hours, and how you respond to […]
Understanding the Window of Tolerance
Some days your child handles change with ease. Other days, putting on shoes becomes a crisis. It can feel baffling, even exhausting, when you can’t predict what kind of day it will be. This isn’t inconsistency or manipulation. There’s a reason for it. The window of tolerance is a concept developed by neuropsychiatrist Dr. Dan […]
Why We Start With What Your Child Loves
If you’ve ever sat in on a therapy session and thought, ‘This just looks like playing Pokemon cards’, you’re not wrong. And that’s exactly the point. Interest-based, strengths-first therapy isn’t about making sessions fun for the sake of it. It’s grounded in solid evidence about how children actually learn, build skills, and develop lasting confidence. […]
Supporting Your Child Through Big Feelings
When your child is in meltdown — crying, shouting, or completely shut down — every instinct tells you to fix it. But what if the most helpful thing you can do isn’t fixing at all? Neuroscience is clear: children cannot regulate big emotions alone. They need a co-regulator — someone calm and present who helps […]
It’s Not About Control — What’s Really Behind Your Child’s Need to Do Things Their Way
Why does everything have to be a negotiation? Why does a change in plans feel catastrophic? If your child needs to know every detail, insists on doing things in a specific order, or pushes back on even the simplest requests, you’re not imagining how exhausting it is. But the behaviour often isn’t about being difficult. […]
How Occupational Therapy Supports Children Through School Transitions
You can see your child’s capability and potential. But when a big school transition is coming up – starting kindergarten, moving to high school, or changing schools – you might feel uncertain about how to help them prepare. School transitions bring real changes: new environments, different routines, unfamiliar expectations, and new people to meet. For many children, these changes can feel overwhelming – that’s where occupational therapy support comes in.
A Parent’s Guide to Supporting a Child with PDA: 5A Framework
The 5A Framework is a practical guide to supporting your child with PDA. It focuses on Awareness, Acceptance, Accommodation, Affirmation, and Advocacy. These five steps that help families reduce stress, improve cooperation, and strengthen connection.
Sensory Cup Analogy
Have you ever noticed that your child handles the supermarket fine on Monday, but completely loses it there on Friday afternoon? Or manages birthday parties in winter but melts down at every one in summer? If they have sensory processing differences, the Sensory Cup analogy helps explain it. It’s one of the most useful concepts […]