5 Ways Occupational Therapy Helps Build Healthy Habits

Therapeutic practice helps people with disabilities, chronic illnesses, and mental health issues improve their quality of life. Occupational therapists can help people with fine motor skills, such as hand-eye coordination and writing; gross motor skills, like mobility and balance; sensory processing disorders; communication skills like speech and language; cognitive functioning such as memory and learning; self-care such as dressing or feeding oneself; social skills like interacting with others or playing games with peers; adaptive behavior in the home or community setting; play activities for children between 3–5 years old who have developmental delays. A therapist can also help patients develop good habits by assisting them in daily activities they may struggle with due to their condition.

Occupation and Daily Living

Occupational therapy (OT) helps to develop, maintain and improve daily living activities, skills, habits, and tasks. This is important for people who have experienced a stroke, or other brain injuries, or have arthritis or other significant health issues that limit their ability to perform these activities. For example, OT can help people learn how to make their beds with one hand(which can make it difficult after a stroke).

They may also use different materials than they’ve been using before so that they’re more comfortable with them in the long run. They could try using pillows instead of extra sheets under their feet while making the bed when they know they’re having trouble bending over due to pain or stiffness in their back muscles (as is often common among those with arthritis).

Grasping Skills

Grasping is a crucial skill for children to develop. It’s often the first step in developing fine motor control, which is necessary for completing daily tasks like eating, writing, and dressing. The mechanics of grasping are complex and involve many joints and muscles working together. This can make it difficult to work on this skill without help from an occupational therapist (OT). OTs can guide how to hold objects correctly to grasp them better. They provide information about what toys are appropriate for your child’s age range and level of grasping skills. They teach you to adjust your expectations when playing with your child if they struggle with grasping.

Sensory and Motor Skills

Sensory integration plays a vital role in the development of healthy habits. This can be described as the body’s ability to process different sensory information and use that information to help with everyday tasks. Sensory integration includes four main areas:

Sensory processing – The brain’s ability to receive, organize and interpret information from the senses
Sensory modulation – How well your nervous system responds appropriately to sensory stimuli (e.g., pain)
Sensory seeking – Enjoying novel or intense sensations (e.g., jumping into cold water)
Sensory avoidance – Having difficulty tolerating specific sounds or tactile sensations (e.g., wearing winter gloves)

Sensory defensiveness is another way people process their environment differently from others: It can cause an exaggerated response to external stimuli such as noise, light, or touch when perceived as threatening or unpleasant.

Nutrition and Meal Preparation

You may not think it, but your occupational therapist can help you make healthy eating a priority in your life. An occupational therapist will teach you how to plan meals, prepare food and store it properly so that you don’t eat unhealthy snacks all the time. They will also show you how to cook healthy foods to taste good and give you energy. Eating a healthy diet is one of the best ways to promote good health, and it’s important for people of all ages. But even though you know this, you don’t always eat enough vegetables (fruits or whole grains) daily. Your OT can help you develop new habits that make eating a healthy diet easier, like setting aside time during the day when you’ll eat lunch on nice days or having snack options that include fruits and veggies instead of cookies or chips.

Cooking Activities

Cooking activities are one of the most popular in occupational therapy. Food preparation is a way to take care of yourself and your loved ones, allowing you to be creative while connecting with others. For example, when cooking with children, they learn to set goals and take responsibility for their actions; they also learn to be patient while waiting for food to cook or bake—getting messy while cooking helps children develop self-control by learning how to control their impulses so that they don’t make a mess everywhere! This activity also strengthens cognitive skills like attention span, focus, problem-solving skills, etc., which gives kids more confidence in school and life outside school (in other words: the “real world”). When you start incorporating healthy habits into your daily routine, those habits become second nature.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for ways to give your child a healthy start, OT can be one of the most effective tools. The right therapist can help you build your child’s health habits and skills by focusing on their specific needs. If they have trouble grasping items, they can work with someone specializing in these activities. Suppose they have trouble focusing on tasks requiring fine motor skills, like handwriting or cutting with scissors. In that case, an occupational therapist can help them practice these techniques until they get better. They also offer nutrition counseling through their training and cooking classes, where kids learn how food affects their bodies which could lead to more nutritious choices later on down the road!