Let Them Choose First… Then Therapy Works Better 👩🏼🎈 | Level 3 Autism Physical Therapy #2

👋🏽 Hi, I’m Amy Sturkey, a retired pediatric physical therapist with over 35 years of experience. Meet Emily, my wonderful co-instructor for this series. 👩🏻 Emily is 23 years old and has autism. She was a typically developing child until about 2½ years of age, when she experienced a regression in her communication skills after already beginning to talk. She was diagnosed with autism shortly thereafter. Emily presents with a complex clinical picture, including a seizure disorder, aphasia, significant motor planning challenges, and a processing delay. She is nonverbal and demonstrates postural insecurity, along with anxiety. She has difficulty with mood regulation and can be very emotionally labile, with a history of physical aggression and breath-holding behaviors. Emily participates in a variety of therapies and activities to support her development and regulation, including physical therapy, speech therapy, and applied behavior analysis (ABA). She also engages in therapeutic horseback riding and adaptive cheerleading. In this video, I demonstrate how I like to begin sessions with sensory work while honoring choice and communication. Emily uses her communication device to choose her starting activity, which helps empower her and supports regulation for the rest of the session. She selects whole body vibration (WBV), which I often find to be modulating for many clients on the autism spectrum—though it is always important to watch each individual’s response, as it can sometimes increase arousal instead. While seated on the vibration platform, we add a simple balloon activity using a lightweight racket. The racket allows her to see through it more easily, improving visual tracking and success. I also use short repetitions and counting to support engagement. 👉🏾 If you want to see more with Emily, watch the full playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAkJbMrHyKjMhJpspdu7hQdaSPW2GzE8Z 📚 My Books for Kids & Therapists Children’s Books "P is for Poop and Pee Accidents" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BLSRJ483 "A is for Anxiety" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09LXQ3W6V "A is for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QH9H5HR "C is for Cerebral Palsy" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B088TSJCYP "D is for Down Syndrome" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079P8HH49 "A is for Autism" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071F4FFTB Professional Books "Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Hips" https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998156736 "Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Knees" https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998156760 "Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Ankles" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08TX2ZCFD 📧 Contact amysturkey@gmail.com 🌍 Captions Help Everyone 🌍 I carefully review captions so more people can follow along, even if English isn’t your first language 🧑🏿‍🤝‍🧑🏻👩🏾‍🤝‍👨🏼👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 To turn on captions: Click CC To change the language: Settings (⚙️) → Subtitles/CC → Auto-translate 🌐 ⏱️ Video Chapters 0:00 Intro & meet Emily 0:10 Choosing sensory activity with AAC 0:25 Selecting whole body vibration (WBV) 0:40 Seated WBV setup 0:55 Balloon activity with racket 1:20 Counting repetitions together 1:45 Sensory regulation before harder work 2:05 Closing message ⚠️ Important note: Sensory and motor responses vary widely between individuals. What is effective for one person may not be appropriate for another 🧑🏾‍🦽↔️👩🏼‍🦯 (Please note: It is not ethical for me to provide treatment recommendations for a child I have not personally evaluated.) 👩🏽‍⚕️📌