Headphones and Music: What’s Therapeutic Listening?

3 year old Alexa wears headphones during writing activity.

You may have seen kids wearing headphones in and around the clinic.  Your therapist may or may not have talked to you about TLP, or the Therapeutic Listening Program.  As therapists, we frequently refer to the program as “TLP” or “listening.” Any of us would love to answer any questions you might have about the program.

In a nutshell, therapeutic listening is a tool for treating a variety of issues related to problems with sensory processing including focus/attention, mood, energy, tolerance for noise, sleep, handwriting and anxiety.  One of the best ways to learn about therapeutic listening and its benefits is to visit the website vitallinks.net and view the video on the front page.  With a smattering of case examples and the scientific basis for the program, you are sure to understand TLP more completely.

Your APT therapists all attended the Mentorship Listening day.

Last month, all APT occupational therapists and some invited colleagues attended a mentorship day with Sharron Donnelly to refresh our skills in providing listening to kids, choosing music, sharing case stories and troubleshooting.  It was a fantastic gathering with lots of professional problem solving and interaction.  We all left with renewed confidence both in the program and in our skills implementing it.

Please visit the Vital Links website, talk with your therapist and even other families who have used the program.  We have informational articles, research and home programs we can discuss with you.

Get Listening!

Welcome to the Advanced Pediatric Therapies blog!

Welcome to the new Advanced Pediatric Therapies blog!  Please refer to our website for information on our clinic including our staff, location and how to find out if APT is right for your child.  Our goal is to provide a forum that not only tells who we are and what we do, but also allows for fun, community and active engagement.  Please let us know if there is a topic you would like covered in the blog.  We want you to be part of it’s development.

So let’s get started!

We thought we’d tell you about the phenomenal weekend we spent with Patty Oetter.  Patty comes to us from a private consulting practice in California and is well known to OT’s as the founder of the MORE (acronym for motor components, oral organization, respiratory demands and elements of toys that can be used to promote all of them) program.  She has an easy and natural way with kids that makes them feel instantly comfortable.  It may seem unusual, but Patty tells us that the mouth is the starting point of development throughout the rest of the body.  We spent the weekend with not only all of us at APT but other local OT’s who gathered to hear Patty’s pearls of wisdom.  We all came out rejuvenated and ready to share our knowledge with all of you!  We want to thank the families who brought their children in to us for Patty to treat and also all our OT friends who came and helped make the weekend such a fun and educational one.

Patty helps EJ jump from the platform for the very first time!

The OT’s are the ones watching for a change…

Patty is the author of “M.O.R.E. Integrating the Mouth with Sensory and Postural Functions” which has a companion DVD.  At the course, we learned techniques for use of oral motor intervention strategies, respiratory strategies and postural development.  We also were reminded about the healing power of touch and the importance of the energy we feel from each other in the therapeutic process.   Ask your therapist for more information.  The most important thing we learned from Patty is that you have to work from where you are and not try to jump ahead too quickly.  That way all kids are able to feel successful.