I have a distinct memories in elementary school of being really uncomfortable sitting on the floor for group learning and struggling to write neatly as I rewrote my work for the second and third time.  As an overachiever, I hated that my teacher's answer for how I could improve was "well some people just write better than others." 

It wasn't until my mom, a nurse, suggested that I look into occupational therapy as a possible career that my journey of self discovery began. I fell in love with occupational therapy as a career that was focused on "meaningful occupations" in people's lives and then found my true path after doing a skills lab in pediatric sensory integration. Turns out that my low average muscle tone was to blame for my shortcomings and discomfort. I also learned over the years that my love for dancing, singing, and swimming were all sensory lifestyle choices that helped to keep me alert and regulated.  

I have spent the last 21 years working as an occupational therapist. I have owned my own practice for 15 years, consulting with school districts, training other professionals, and speaking internationally. As a specialist in sensory integration and learning, it’s my job to understand the unique way that each child takes in the world from their senses and learns how to adapt to meet the demands of the world around them. This is the foundation for learning, problem solving, emotional resilience, and independence.

As the presence of the digital world has continued to expand, more and more children struggle learning and with managing their emotions. They are easily frustrated when they can’t figure things out and rely on their parents to create a world that is manageable for them. Rather than learning skills for adaptability and resilience, children are drawn into a world of “done for you” technology with quick rewards.  Now they are experiencing more health problems, more mental health issues, more social difficulties, and more struggles with learning than ever before as they face a world where job opportunities are rapidly changing with the growth of AI.

It's my goal to help others understand how the brain uses sensory information to adapt to the world, harnessing the amazing power of the brain and body in everyday decisions and experiences to help children to be happy, healthy, and successful.