Many Early Interventions

     I will never forget when Mike and I were listening to the Psychologists tell us about Matthew's diagnosis. They told us that early intervention is huge for individuals with autism. The earlier they get the help they need the chances are higher for having a more productive life. They encouraged us to try everything. So needless to say I put Matthew in many different therapies. I did have to watch that we weren't too overly busy. It was easy to overbook our time. Here are some therapies that we tried:
     Hippotherapy- It's a form of physical, occupational and speech therapy in which a therapist uses the characteristic movements of a horse to provide carefully graded motor and sensory input.
    

This therapy was a challenge for Matthew. He was scared of the horse and we had to work at getting him on to ride it with the therapist. She would do speech and occupational therapy exercises with him while riding.
     Aquatic Therapy- This therapy is being used as an effective recreational treatment. The water environment appears to meet several needs of a child with autism that enables the child to respond well to therapy and grow. The pressure of the water is comforting and the warm temperature often provides a soothing learning environment.

    
This therapy was probably Matthew's favorite. The water made him happy and relaxed! If our day was challenging he would get done with therapy in a better mood.
     Easter Seals had a Summer school program that we did for a couple of summers. They had a pool at the time and offered swim lessons once a week. Everyday was free swim. Swimming was always Matthew's favorite part of each day.
     Matthew also got involved in a local social skills group when he was four years old. He enjoyed going to group every week and earning a prize at the end of group. Matthew tended to pick out the same prize every week which was one of his obsessions. The Psychologist worked with him on this. Matthew made friends at group and the moms became friends in the lobby waiting for their children to be done. This was a great outlet for him and me.
     We also had our weekly speech therapy and occupational therapy. Speech therapy was to help Matthew develop more language and communicate better. Occupational therapy helped his fine motor skills like writing, picking things up, buttoning a shirt or zipping coats. Occupational therapy also provides individualized treatment for sensory processing difficulties which can go with autism. These therapies were our regular ones. Matthew still gets speech therapy today and occupational therapy he is on consultation for sensory needs.
      These are some of the therapies we did when he was first diagnosed with autism. I will share more with you in the next post.