“At home, Liam is quite an active and playful child, but he becomes extremely anxious when he is outside or at school. Aside from not being able to keep up with classes, I’m more worried about his social interactions with other children,” was what the mother said on the phone before coming in for their first session.

Liam is a 4-year-old boy with bilateral hearing impairment who had a difficult time adapting to school, crying for nearly a whole semester before his kindergarten teacher recommended KickStart. I still remember the first time I met Liam – he hid behind his mother and bit his nails anxiously. To soothe Liam’s restless and tense emotions, I designed many proprioception and tactile activities into our therapy sessions to help regulate his sensory and emotional needs. I also taught his mother how to use The Wilbarger Protocol (brushing therapy), paired with joint compression and Dr. Silva’s QST Massage techniques for them to maintain progress from home.

One month into therapy, Liam’s kindergarten teacher commented on how much Liam had improved regarding his emotional stability and social interactions – Liam was now willing to participate in group activities with other children. They also noticed that Liam wasn’t as scared of being corrected by others as before.

To continue improving Liam’s interpersonal skills, he transferred into a group class. At times, he played happily with the other children; other times, he needed time to recover from being upset due to losing a competitive game – the way that every kid learns and grows. As Liam’s therapist, it has just been an amazing experience to see him overcome his difficulties and embrace every new day with a smile on his face.

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