Emotional Regulation

Navigating the Transition to High School: A Parent’s Guide

exploreandsoar · 17 January 2024 · Leave a Comment

NAVIGATING THE TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL: A PARENT’S GUIDE

Over the past few weeks, we have visited many of our local schools to talk to parents and families of children starting kindergarten in 2024. During these talks, we provide lots of information about how you can support your little person for a successful transition to big school. You can click here to read more about the transition to kindergarten.

We understand that your child’s journey through the educational system is filled with milestones and transitions from the very beginning; however, the preschool to kindergarten transition isn’t the only transition in our schooling lives. One of the next big milestones is transitioning from primary school to high school.

This move can be filled with just as many emotions and feelings – excitement for finishing primary school, growing up and what lies ahead. It can also be anxiety-provoking at the thought of changing schools, changing routines and the challenge of friendship groups changing and needing to make new friendships. All of which are valid feelings and thoughts!

In this blog, we’ll explore the various challenges your child may encounter during this transition and provide practical strategies to support them as they step into high school life.

Some of the challenges your child may face could include:

New Friendships – Making new friends or friendship groups changing; having to be vulnerable in talking to other people we don’t know or feel comfortable around just yet.
New Routines – High school bell times may be slightly earlier or later; how will this impact upon the daily routines of your child?
New Environment – Navigating their way around a new school can be overwhelming, knowing where the toilets are, where to go for help, or where their next class is. Or even navigating their way to and from school.
New Rules and Expectations – Having multiple subjects with different teachers in a new school can be daunting, being unsure of what the expectations are in and out of the classroom.

So, how can we best support our children in this transition to high school?

Get to know the school: Talk about it; arrange additional transition days to allow your child to feel more comfortable in this new space if needed.
Practice any new routines: Practice ways to get to and from high school; make sure your child knows which bus to catch or where they will be dropped off or picked up from.
Visual Aids: Create a visual schedule or simple checklist to determine what they must take each day. Timetables can be tricky to work out! Break it down into what they need each day and then for each subject.
Map out the school: Get a copy of the school map if possible and colour code important areas such as the library, toilets, canteen, office etc.
Prepare for Social Interaction: Create “cheat cards” for conversation starters and role-play how to introduce themself to others. Remind them that it is highly likely that other children in the group are just as nervous about making new friends as they are.
Time Management and Assignments: Help them schedule, plan and prioritise how to complete assignments. Keep in communication with their teachers to know when things are due and how you can support your child.
Advocacy: Advocate and encourage your child to advocate also for their needs! A new school means new teachers who don’t know your child’s cues or needs. Provide as much information as possible to support consistency for your child across their teachers.

As your child embarks on this exciting journey to high school, remember that you are not alone. We are here to support you. If you would like more information about our group program, click here to check out the flyer. You can also reach out to us on 0477 708 217 or admin@exploreandsoar.com.au.

We would love to see you in our groups!

Until next time,
Lori

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED OCTOBER 31, 2023

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Sensory Defensiveness: What is this Oversensitive and Overwhelming feeling?

exploreandsoar · 17 January 2024 · Leave a Comment

SENSORY DEFENSIVENESS: WHAT IS THIS OVERSENSITIVE AND OVERWHELMING FEELING?

Spring is upon us, but that also means we are now heading full steam ahead into some of the busiest months of the year. Term 3 is almost over; Term 4 is just around the corner, which means so is Christmas! Just the thought of that alone is overwhelming to me.

The feeling of overwhelm is sometimes linked to being a negative feeling – of being stressed or frustrated that we can not do all that we want to do. But really, we should reframe that feeling of overwhelm into a positive: What can we do to lessen our load? How can we slow down or ask for help? Maybe take a moment of mindfulness.

In our day-to-day lives, we encounter multiple sensory experiences each and every second of every minute. Sit for one minute and notice the world around you:

What can you hear?
What can you feel?
What can you smell?
What can you taste?
What can you see?

Our brain’s job is to take in all of this information and automatically sort, filter and organise that information to produce a meaningful and purposeful response in the way we move, feel or react. This is Sensory Integration. When we see difficulty in the processing of sensory information, we start to look at why this may be happening – is it difficulty with modulation or discrimination of the senses?

When we have difficulty with modulating sensory information, we may only need a small amount of information before our system becomes overwhelmed. Or we may need a large amount of information before our system even notices what is going on. Our own tolerance levels at that point in time will also impact upon our responses. We have expectations of what our response to certain sensory experiences will be – like a hug from a loved one; we expect it to feel good, not painful, or the smell of a BBQ cooking makes us hungry and excited to eat, not fearful.

But sometimes, our body links different sensations to negative experiences. And when these experiences occur, our brain goes into survival mode – fight, fright, flee or freeze. When we react to sensory input in such a way, it is called Sensory Defensiveness.

What is Sensory Defensiveness?

Sensory Defensiveness is an extreme response to sensory input from the world around you when the sensory stimuli are generally considered not threatening or harmful. This could be an aversion to touch, dislike of certain textures or foods, or poor tolerance of bright lights, loud noises or certain smells. Such defensiveness creates a roadblock to being able to do the things that you or your child want to do. It can lead to big emotions, stress and anxiety, as well as behaviour patterns such as avoiding situations or an increased need for control.

So how can OT help with Sensory Defensiveness?

OT can help by creating an individualised sensory diet to work on providing the right sensory information, in the right amount, at the right time, to allow your child to do the things they want and need to do.

Activities may include things such as:

DPPT – brushing protocol
Auditory interventions
Heavy work ideas
Roughhousing
Oral motor strategies

Please get in touch with us if you want to know more or have any questions. We highly recommend talking with an OT about this, as everyone experiences their sensory world differently. We are here to help and work with you in supporting your child and family.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon. Contact us on 0477 708 217 or admin@exploreandsoar.com.au

Until next time,
Lori

What’s really happening when your kids play pretend?

exploreandsoar · 17 January 2024 · Leave a Comment

WHAT’S REALLY HAPPENING WHEN YOUR KIDS PLAY PRETEND

When I hear the words ‘pretend play’, my mind instantly goes to playing ’parents’ with my sisters, using our teddies as babies and making our little brother play the mean mum. I remember playing shops with a shoe box as the cash register, using the coins next to dad’s bed and stealing mum’s lipstick to look older as the shop attendant. My brother was obsessed with dinosaurs when he was younger, and to include him in our play, his dinosaurs often took on a lot less scarier roles, my personal favourite being our vehicles for transportation.

What I didn’t know then was that my play themes relied heavily on my own experiences within the world through books, movies, and stories as well as what my parents had shown me through their introduction of play as well as their own everyday life activities such as eating, sleeping, and bathing.

Pretend play shaped my childhood, it provided me with opportunities for creativity, imagination, emotional development, role playing, social development, increased confidence and so much more!

The Explore and Soar team recently took a course about play therapy and we had a collection realisation of the impact that pretend play can have on early development, also how pretend play can tell us more about a child’s development.

What is pretend play?

The ability to pretend in play is about understanding the meaning of what is happening beyond the literal function of toys.

In other terms, it is ‘thinking play’.

When children are playing pretend, they are playing as if something or someone is real. They are creating a situation where there is more going on that what is literally happening.

While there are many different types of play, pretend play is unique due to the specific key development skills it focuses on. These include:

Ability to spontaneously self-initiate play
Sequencing play actions logically
Using objects as something else (object substitution or symbols in play),
Engaging with a doll or teddy character outside of themselves
Integrating their play so a clear play script is evident
Role play and socially interacting using play.

Even having a cup of tea with a child is pretend play, when you are pretending to drink from an empty cup or blowing on the empty cup because the tea is hot.

Why is pretend play important?

Pretend play is closely linked with language development, narrative language, abstract thought, social interaction, self-regulation, emotional integration of child’s experiences and creativity.

Play sets the foundation for the development of critical social and emotional knowledge and skills. Through play, children learn how to forge connections with others, share, negotiate and resolve conflicts. Play also teaches children leadership, group interaction, and self-advocacy skills.

Play is a natural tool that children use to build their resilience and coping skills as they learn to navigate relationships and deal with social challenges. It is also a way that kids conquer their fears, for example through re-enacting fantasy heroes.

Pretend play satisfies a basic human need to express imagination, curiosity and creativity, which are key resources in a knowledge-driven world. They help us to cope, to find pleasure, and to use our imaginative and innovative powers.

Pretend play can also be mixed in with other types of play. For example, when children are running around in gross motor play , they might also be pretending they are running in the Olympics or being chased by a crocodile. Or in fine motor play, they may be threading a necklace but the ultimate goal of making the necklace is for the princess in the play scenario to wear it.

How will the team use pretend play to hit goals?

Pretend play is a tool that we occupational therapists look forward to adding into sessions and sharing with parents and caregivers to explore avenues for creativity and spontaneity.

As a team at Explore and Soar, our focus for this year is Safety for Vulnerability. Pretend play is a way that children unconsciously choose to present their emotions. It is here that we can model true self-expression and vulnerability, where there is no judgement on their chosen actions or themes as they are showing us their honest imaginations. Supporting this creativity is crucial to building a trusting and joyous relationship.

General ideas for pretend play.

Creating your own cubby house,
placing a variety of objects into a tub such as kitchen utensils, flowers, sticks and inviting your child to explore them,
Narrating and asking questions how they feel, the colour, shape and size. For older children this could look like discussing what each object could represent in a play scene,
Pretend objects can be different things.
- For example, boxes can be cards, beds, tables, oven, house and so on. Cloth can be grass, ocean, deserts and snow,
Create spaces where you can join your child in role play.
- For example, different rooms in the house could represent different everyday settings such as a shop or petrol stations, where the children have to use objects in their rooms to represent that,
Play Dress ups,
Play mums and dad’s,
Have a tea party,
Play Cars, trucks, Dinosaurs adventures,
On a smaller scale, try creating meaningful movements with figurines or small toys where the child can manipulate the toys and have their characters interact with each other.

Ask our Explore and Soar team for more specific activities or ideas on age-appropriate play themes and ideas to help start playing with your children today!

Until next time,
Molly

CALL US TODAY

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED APRIL 5, 2023

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Tools to Support our Emotions

exploreandsoar · 17 January 2024 · Leave a Comment

TOOLS TO SUPPORT OUR EMOTIONS

A common ask from our families is help regulate their child’s emotions.

As the new year is still fresh and we are all working hard to settle into the new routine of life, the big transitions or changes that have taken place, a common theme I’m hearing among our families is Emotional Regulation.

This allows a lot of reflection in how we explain emotional regulation, what it means and how we show up. Over the last 3 years, we have explored what emotional regulation is, The Emotional Regulation Continuum and Safety & Connection, they are all essential to every stage of development and emotional awareness.

What is Emotional Regulation?

Emotional regulation refers to an individual’s ability to recognise, process and act upon the emotions that they feel within different situations on a regular day. It is one’s ability to adjust and control their energy level, emotions, behaviours, and attention to allow for success in connecting with our loved ones and engaging in our daily lives.

Emotional regulation is a continuum, constantly changing

Emotional regulation is vital as it impacts not only our confidence and sense of self but also our ability to interact, develop and maintain relationships with others. As a whole this includes how we talk, listen and act towards others when we are presented with some form of physical, mental, or emotional stimulus.

How does Explore and Soar support our clients?

At Explore and Soar, we describe this as our band of arousal. Within sessions, we work with our families and children to identify their optimal band of arousal (where they feel most comfortable and safe) and work closely with them to expand their optimal band to increase flexibility, adaptability and often more capacity to deal with daily stressors.

We do this by

Strengthening and developing co-regulation and self-regulation skills,
Supporting recovery times and processing,
Increasing time spent in optimal,
Increasing self-awareness, and
Developing the foundational skills of perspective taking and empathising for social development.

The word ‘safety’ can be more deeply explained by Dr Stephen Porges, a pioneer in the field of neuroscience and one of the world’s leading experts on the autonomic nervous system. Dr Porges states that we all have an innate need for safety that is wired into our beings and that when we feel emotionally unsafe, our nervous system goes into a state of defence, creating our fight, flight, fright, or freeze responses.

As occupational therapists when working with our clients and families, we begin by establishing what safety looks like for each family, so we can adapt our therapeutic practices in the most efficient and successful manner. Before any goals can be targeted or reached, it is essential for a sense of safety and security to be built between our client and their therapist.

Being ‘Emotionally Vulnerable‘ to feel Safe

This year, from our previous blog, we are embracing Safety for Vulnerability; focusing on the path of true human connection with the ability to express thoughts, feelings, desires and opinions with yourself, your children, and others around you.

Vulnerability is consciously choosing to not hide emotions and to be present

Vulnerability is about opening up to emotions and becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable. This allows for emotional safety, allowing feelings and emotions to the surface.

As Brene Brown states “Vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, courage, empathy, accountability authenticity”.

In the sense of emotions, we cannot teach someone to be resilient, curious or to connect. However, we can model this and help to script what this might look like by creating a safe environment for the process to unfold. A child who feels safe, knows that they can express their emotions because they will not be judged for having them. It allows them to be who they really are with anybody. Being able to play ands are in fun positive experiences, as clinicians we establish safe relationship and connections in order for us to being tailoring the therapeutic practices to each child.

Explore & Soar’s Therapeutic Tools

DIR Floortime

DIR stands for the Developmental, Individual-differences, & Relationship-based model. It was developed by the late Dr. Stanley Greenspan to provide a foundational framework for understanding human development.

The ‘Floortime’ aspects refers to getting down on the floor, interacting with the child on their level and taking their lead in play.

D – Development

This is where we look at how the child is developing, emotionally and cognitively. Establishing a firm understanding of how the child is performing in relation to a model of “Shared Attention and Regulation”. This is a foundational pillar that child needs to master beginning at birth.

I – Individual Difference

The unique ways each person takes in, regulates, responds to, and comprehends the world around them. Understanding the child’s particular pattern of challenges is essential for helping them. These differences can include sensory processing, motor planning or daily living skills.

R – Relationship

This is how relationships fuel our development. Humans are social beings and relationships are vital to our human development.

This approach assists caregivers in developing their relationship with their child, so they can be effective in helping the child learn and grow. The approach also aims to ensure that the child is developing meaningful relationships with peers and siblings. to build healthy foundations for social, emotional, and intellectual capacities rather than focusing exclusively on skills and isolated behaviours.

Greenspan, S. I., & Wieder, S. (2006). Engaging autism: Using the Floortime approach to help children relate, communicate, and think.

Womb Space

The in-utero was predictable, constant, and safe, designed for growth and development of the baby. This is In contrast to the complexity of our sensory world, where we know our children can become overwhelmed with sounds, visual stimuli, and fatigue to name a few.

A womb space is a small, enclosed area that reduces the amount of visual and auditory stimuli in the child’s environment to promote reorganization and self-regulation. It is a therapy tool often used to support children to feel safe when overwhelmed. it is a therapy tool often used to support children to feel safe when overwhelmed.

A child may independently seek out a womb space, or you can passively facilitate one to help them reorganise. Womb spaces can be temporary or semi-permanent, depending on the situation or environment.

It is a combination of reduction of sensory over stimulation, physical connection, gentle movements, being present and consistent. Ways in which we can create womb space include tents, blanket forts and lycra tunnels, reduced light, foetal positioning, music, respiration and singing.

The provision of womb space allows time to adapt to the intensity of the sensory world.

Holding Space

Holding space means being physically, mentally, and emotionally present for someone.

This involves putting your focus on the individual to support them as they feel their feelings. It is not about dampening or changing the emotion. An important aspect of holding space is managing judgment while you are present. This sets the tone for curiousness and judgement-free interactions, opening way to safety for vulnerability.

In this interaction, minimal to no words can be used, being present is enough and wait for them to show you what they need to support their emotions. Being present for each person is different, for one person it might be in a hug, for another it might be side by side or across the room.

The holding space concept is very powerful, asr the physical space between you does not matter. The other person’s ability to hold space emotionally, mentally or spiritually is enough to allow for calming.

Have you ever noticed anyone holding space for you when experiencing your emotions?

Therapeutic Use of Self

At Explore and Soar, the way in which we interact with children and families is built on the foundational beliefs of the value of humanity and the importance of being able connect.

To create feelings of calm, safety and support we use our powerful and individual therapy tool ‘Therapeutic use of self’ in all interactions. It is a therapist’s conscious efforts to optimise interactions with clients through the use of personal characteristics, which are of benefit to the therapeutic relationship. Conducting ourselves in this way that one becomes an effective tool in the intervention process.

In essence, it is being aware of yourself in terms of verbal communication, body language, eye contact, our own regulation and overall presence to build trust and comfort. To use yourself therapeutically, you must first be aware of your interactions with the child to then be able to adapt them to suit their needs.

Being Kind to yourself!

The process of working through and understanding what it truly means to create safety for vulnerability can be overwhelming. Its acknowledging yourself and others with the complexity of emotions we all have. It is human nature to avoid the uncomfortable, painful, or scary emotions.

Just know, we are here with you along the journey.

“Vulnerability is not a weakness; it’s our greatest measure of courage.” Brene Brown.

Greenspan, S. I., & Wieder, S. (2006). Engaging autism: Using the Floortime approach to help children relate, communicate, and think.

Until next time,
Maddie

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 27, 2023

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Safety for Vulnerability

exploreandsoar · 17 January 2024 · Leave a Comment

SAFETY FOR VULNERABILITY

Happy New Year everyone! I hope everyone has had a magical Christmas and New Year with your family, friends and community.

I know December was a busy time for a lot of people, navigating all the demands of the end of year. I hope there has been lots of resting, sharing quality time and making memories for you and your family, to set you up for another successful year ahead. I truly cannot wait to see you all continue to grow, share who you are with the world and shine.

At the beginning of each year we reflect on the previous year’s theme and set intentions for the year to come. This year our intentions and the way you will see us show up within ourselves, our team and with you, our families and communities is Safety for Vulnerability.

Why this theme?

How this came about is for the last few years we have had significant change, including life and world events; but also growth of the company, which has meant a lot of movement, adapting, changing and requiring to always be on. This year, it is about getting back to our core knowledge and foundations.

It is about holding space for people to feel ‘Safe’ to allow for ‘Vulnerability’. When this happens, this is where the magic happens.

The clinical side of it

From an OT perspective, there is a lot of research around the importance of feeling safe before beginning any work with any child, family member or community.

When we feel safe, secure, and protected, we are comfortable to let our true self shine, to show people our true selves, including our quirks, strengths and limitations. This is where the true beauty is. Being able to share who you are unapologetically is the essence of what brings you joy in your everyday activities; it brings about wellbeing and enhances our confidence in everything we do. As OT’s this is part of our job – to facilitate and support all our children, parents and community members to achieve this. To create a feeling of safe, to allow you to be vulnerable and share who you are.

This is where our point of difference at Explore and Soar is for our clients and families, because connection, relationships, establishing trust and safety are at the forefront and the beginning of everything we do. We take pride in these relationships with you all, because we know when we have this safety and connection, only then can we address and begin the real work.

Once we feel safe, we can be vulnerable

We can share and express how we feel, and work through these feelings. It is these moments that we as part of your team, get to support you further and be there with you in those moments. It is where we can assist in identifying activities that are leading to such feelings where things feel like they are unattainable or unachievable.

This is where we grade these activities for success in learning that new skill and then, where appropriate share them with your people and community.

So something that felt big and challenging is now an obstacle overcome and done so with everyone supporting you.

Vulnerability also brings the need for flexibility

When we share our true selves – our emotions and feelings – we cannot be sure how people will react; its unpredictable.

For our children, unpredictability is the opposite of what they need. It is the opposite of what they seek. They seek the predictable, to know the boundaries and limits and have control. However, ensuring strong connections and relationships allow our children the safety and securing within this unpredictability.

It is here we can show our flexibility. It is here that we can still provide our children with the predictability they seek. Our ability to be flexible in our thoughts, plans and actions is teaching our children that skill also! It is breaking down a skill that seems big and challenging to our children in real time.

Being flexible and dealing with change is something every one of us has to be at some point in our lives.

So it is our commitment to our Explore and Soar families that we will show Safety in Vulnerability in 2023 – to develop our children’s flexibility and dealing with change.

Until next time,
Jess & Lori

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 10, 2023

Emotional Regulation

NAVIGATING THE TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL: A PARENT’S GUIDE

Latest Posts

SENSORY DEFENSIVENESS: WHAT IS THIS OVERSENSITIVE AND OVERWHELMING FEELING?

WHAT’S REALLY HAPPENING WHEN YOUR KIDS PLAY PRETEND

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TOOLS TO SUPPORT OUR EMOTIONS

Latest Posts

SAFETY FOR VULNERABILITY

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