Helping Hands pediatric tHerapy, inc. • Developmental delays • Genetic disorders • Autism spectrum disorders • Cerebral palsy • Speech delay • Oral motor/feeding concerns In-home, daycare/preschool, or at our clinic location www.helpinghandspediatrictherapy.com
678-482-6100 470 S. Hill St., Buford
Greater Atlanta Speech & Language Clinics, Inc. Specializing with Children for over 27 years
TM
Speech & Language Therapy Occupational & Physical Therapy
• Comprehensive Evaluations • Earobics™ • Early Intervention Specialists • Myofunctional Therapy • Sensory Integration Dysfunction • Handwriting • Oral Motor • Preschool & Private School Screenings • Floor Time
Call for information.
Quality Hippotherapy
Speech Aerobics Exercise & language combine to make the body-mind connection. Small groups.
New Programs
Infant and toddler programs for children with or without developmental concerns. • Talking Tots • Baby Whys • Baby Sign • Early Intervention
Cobb Gwinnett
770-977-9457 770-831-2313
www.greateratlantaspeech.com
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BIG BOOK of Info
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
Common Therapies for Special Needs Kids Numerous types of therapies exist, from physical therapy to play therapy, to help special needs children with everything from developmental delays to neuromuscular conditions. n Occupational therapy (OT): OT focuses on helping children cope with emotional, social and physical difficulties. It builds a foundation for the types of skills that children need to accomplish everyday tasks. A treatment program for children who have trouble sitting still, for example, may involve an obstacle course that helps improve handeye coordination. For more, see American Occupational Therapist Association at aota.org.
n Play therapy: Play therapy draws on the curative powers of play to help children with a broad range of social, behavioral, emotional and other developmental issues. The use of toys and activities have been shown to promote creative problem solving, improve social skills and foster learning and acceptable behaviors. For more, see Association for Play Therapy at A4pt.org. – Kate Wicker
n Physical therapy (PT): Through the use of exercises and physical activities, PT manages and improves patients’ physical limitations and helps them achieve the highest level of function possible. It is a tried-and-true form of therapy for children with conditions such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida or traumatic brain injury. For more, see American Physical Therapy Association at apta.org.
Specialized Therapies Other specialized forms are also available to children with a variety of special needs.
n Speech therapy: Children with speech delays, past hearing loss, craniofacial disorders such as a cleft palate, functional articulation and/ or phonological disorders often benefit from speech therapy. Treatment may incorporate reading, recognition games and other activities. For more, see American Speech-LanguageHearing Association at asha.org. n Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT): CBT is a structured form of therapy used to treat depression, anxiety, phobias and other mental disorders. It is based on the idea that thoughts cause feelings and behaviors. Treatment helps patients unlearn unwanted behaviors and discover new ways of responding to situations. For more, see National Association of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists at nacbt.org
n Hippotherapy: The word means “treatment with the help of the horse” and is often used to help improve posture, strength, balance, coordination and attention span. n Music therapy: This creative therapy uses music and music activities to address an individual’s physical, emotional, cognitive and/or social needs. n Aquatic therapy: Also known as hydrotherapy, this discipline uses the unique physical properties of water to facilitate rehabilitation and helps children achieve a greater range of motion than with land-based therapy. n Dance therapy: This creative therapy uses choreographed or improvised movement to promote healing, release tension and anxiety and help develop gross motor skills, coordination, balance and flexibility. n Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT): This medical treatment delivers pure oxygen at higher-than-normal pressures to patients sitting or lying in a special chamber. It helps improve speech, memory and other cognitive abilities in patients with brain deficits.
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