West Coast Occupational Therapy Services

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

One morning this week, we encourage you to try the ‘Morning Pages’ exercise. ✍️

THE EXERCISE:
☀️ Morning Pages ☀️
After you wake up, grab your journal and jot down three pages of anything that comes to mind as the first thing you that day.🪴
It doesn't have to be creative or beautiful. It doesn't have to be mind-blowing or even make sense.
This a stream-of-consciousness exercise meant to clear your mind.🧠

Notice how you feel before and after the exercise - do you feel more prepared to start the day, with a clearer mind?🌟

Is your jaw causing you discomfort? 🗣

Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) are a group of pathologies that affect the masticatory muscles, the temporomandibular joint, and related structures. 📊
TMD can cause pain and discomfort in the jaw joint and muscles, and are one of the main sources of chronic orofacial pain interfering with daily activities. 📆
TMD are also commonly associated with other symptoms affecting the head and neck region, such as headache, ear-related symptoms, cervical spine dysfunction, and altered head and cervical posture.🧠

A recent study by Armijo-Olivo and colleagues (2016) evaluated the effectiveness of manual therapy and exercise interventions for TMD. 📋
The study found that these interventions were effective in reducing pain, improving range of motion, and enhancing oral function in adults with TMD. ✅
This research suggests manual therapy to release myofascial trigger points within the region may encourage the restoration of normal range of motion of the jaw, reduce pain and tension. 📉

Effectiveness of manual therapy and therapeutic exercise for temporomandibular disorders: systematic review and meta-analysis. Physical
therapy, 96(1), 9-25.
(Armijo-Olivo et al., 2016)

Effectiveness of Manual Therapy and Therapeutic Exercise for Temporomandibular
Disorders: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Armijo-Olivo, S., Pitance, L., Singh, V., Neto, F., Thie, N., & Michelo>, A. (2016).

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

One time this week, we encourage you to try mindful drawing 🖍

Mindful drawing incorporates the focus and calmness of meditation, combined with the creativity of drawing to focus and relax the mind.🧠
The goal isn’t to create a perfect drawing, but to mindfully ground yourself in the present moment 🌟

Below are 5 different mindful drawing exercises we encourage you to try:

🌱 Awareness circle: Start by drawing a simple circle. Fill the circle with patterns, colors, or whatever comes to mind. Focus on the repetitive motion and let it guide your thoughts.

🌱 Draw your feelings: Use shapes and colors to express your current emotions. Don't think too hard, just let your feelings guide your hand.

🌱 Anxiety in, anxiety out: Draw an image that represents your anxiety or stress. Next, draw another image that symbolizes calm and peace. This exercise can help in visualizing and managing anxious feelings.

🌱 Drawing mandalas: Mandalas are circular designs that are often used in meditation. Creating your own mandala can be a deeply relaxing and centering experience. Start from the center and work your way outwards with symmetrical patterns.

🌱 Nature sketching: If you can, go outside and find a natural object to draw, like a leaf or a flower. Focus on the details and textures, and let the act of drawing connect you with the natural world.

✍️ HANDWRITING is a very complex skill, though a skill your child will use everyday at school.

🖍When we talk about handwriting we are referring to the ability to form letters and words in order to communicate information. Handwriting develops over time, and as a child learns to write they develop their own 'handwriting style' that is personal to them and is a form of self-expression.

🎨We have provided some fun writing activities for kids to try at home...Handwriting practise doesn’t have to be boring! Swipe to the end to see some activities for you to try

🌼MINDFUL MONDAY🌼

Try setting aside a few minutes daily to sit quietly and focus on your breath, to try intentional breathing. ☀️

Observe each inhale and exhale, noticing how your belly and chest rise and fall with your breath. Whenever your mind starts to wander, gently bring it back to your breath.🧠
By bringing your attention back to your breathe, you are intentionally bringing your attention back to the present moment.🌱

Notice how you feel before + after and try it at different times throughout the day to see how it can benefit you the most.🌟

If you need to book an appointment or have any queries or concerns, we can be contacted via phone, email or through our website!

☎️ (08) 9301 0052
📧 [email protected]
🌐 https://www.westcoasttherapy.com.au

If you ever need to cancel or reschedule an existing appointment, please contact us as soon as possible via phone or email.

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

Multitasking has become the norm, but it often leads to stress and reduces productivity. 🪴
Try single-tasking instead.🌱

What is single-tasking?🌱
Mindfully dedicate your full attention to one task at a time. 🧠
You'll likely find that you're more efficient and less stressed whilst completing the task.🌟

We encourage you to intentionally try this with mundane tasks you usually multi-task, and notice how it changes the way to complete any day-to-day activities. ☀️

🧑‍💻 WORKSTATION ASSESSMENTS 🧑‍💻

Here at WCOTS, we offer workstation assessments to new and existing clients! ✅
Our qualified therapists assist to prevent injury and improve overall worksite wellness. 📈

Assessments can be organised privately, individually, or in groups for staff members. 📋

To find out more, feel free to get in contact via phone, email or have a look at our website. 📞

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

This week, we encourage you to set aside time to try the mindfulness ‘Breathing Colours’ exercise. 🌈

BREATHING COLOURS:
Choose two different colors, one to breathe in and one to breathe out.
💙Blue works well for the in-breath since it matches the cool feeling of the air coming in.
❤️Red works well for the out-breath, as it matches the warm feeling of the air leaving your body.
🎨However, choose the colors you want, for the reasons you want.
Close your eyes and pair each color with its breath.
Aim to do this for around 5 mins, or longer if you wish!

Notice how you feel before and after the practice - Do you feel more present? More aware of how your body feels? 🧠
If you enjoy this exercise, you may want to make it apart of your daily mindfulness routine ☀️

⭐️ EMOTIONAL REGULATION ⭐️

Emotional regulation is important to develop at a young age as it encourages children to consider how they are feeling and learn techniques to change or maintain these emotions, even if they don’t know why they are feeling them.

A good tool for learning about emotional regulation is the ‘Zones of Regulation’.

There are 4 major zones:
❤️RED zone
💛YELLOW zone
💙BLUE zone
💚GREEN zone

Below, we have provided examples of emotions in each zone, and activities to try to assist with regulation of these emotions ☀️

Our paediatric OTs have plenty of resources and techniques surrounding emotion regulation - if you have any queries, visit our website or call us on 9301 0052 ⭐️

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

This week, we encourage you to make time to mindfully listen to 5 songs this week - they can be new or old songs, and you can do it all at once, or at different times throughout the week. 🎼

🎶Mindful music listening🎶

Pick a song, close your eyes, and listen closely to the music.
Follow the lyrics, notice the different instruments, or take in the song as a whole experience.
If you have heard the song before, did you notice anything new?
Alternatively, pick a song that has a repetitive lyric, phrase, or melody line.
Count how many times you hear the reoccurring detail.

Notice how you feel before and after the practice, and if you’re listening to different styles of music, notice if the different songs change the practice at all - was it easier to slower songs perhaps? 🎧
We encourage you to make time to do this on different occasions throughout the week to feel the change in your overall experience of the day and week. 🪴

The Benefits of Dry Needling 🌟

Dry needling is a technique that involves inserting a thin needle into trigger points in the muscle to reduce pain and improve function. 💪
It does this by causing small muscle contractions, increasing blood flow to the area, and calming the nerves to reduce pain.📉

A recent study Ge**er and colleagues (2017) found that dry needling can provide long-lasting relief for up to 6 weeks after treatment completion. ✅
This study also found that dry needling targets the source of the pain rather than just the symptoms, making it a more effective treatment option than other methods. ⭐️
While there may be some mild side effects such as soreness or bruising, the benefits of dry needling outweigh the risks for many patients.📊

These findings suggest that dry needling may be a viable option for patients with chronic myofascial pain who are seeking a long-lasting solution. 📈
However, it is important to consult with a healthcare provider to determine f dry needling is appropriate in individual cases.

Ge**er, L. H., Sikdar, S., Aredo, J. V., Armstrong, K., Rosenberger, W. F., Shao, H., & Shah, J. P. (2017). Beneficial effects of dry needling for treatment of chronic myofascial pain persist for 6 weeks after treatment completion. PM&R, 9(2), 105-112.

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

MINDFUL WALKING 🧠

If you’re someone who has trouble sitting still and meditating, mindful walking is a good idea to try. 🚶
Below are 3 different ways you can practice it:

1. Slow motion walk 🌱
Pick up one foot and take a step forward, as slowly as you can. Notice which muscles are helping you keep your balance while standing on one leg. Repeat this pattern with your other leg. See how slowly you can walk while paying full attention to every sensation in your body, and breathe in and out with each step.

2. Walking body scan 👟
While walking, bring your awareness first into your feet and toes. Notice every sensation in these parts of your body, and how they feel while walking. Then slowly guide your attention to your ankles, your calves, your knees, etc., until you’ve reached your head. Notice how every part of your body feels while in motion.

3. Walking meditation 🧘‍♀️
Choose a type of meditation, like a simple mindfulness meditation and practice it while walking, rather than being still.
Of course, you won’t want to close your eyes while practicing this type of meditation, since you need to see where you’re walking.

We encourage you to try and attempt at least one of these methods one time this week, whether its while walking your dog or on your way to work. ☀️
Notice how you feel before and after the mindful walk, and how it impacts your experience of the day. 🌟

Now that we’ve nearly concluded our first week of winter, we can embrace the hot chocolates, snuggly blankets, warm fires and good conversation. ☕️

What are some things you love about winter? 🌦

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼
Each day this week, we encourage you to try to do a body scan at different points during the day to become more present throughout your daily routine. 🪴

What is a body scan? 🧠
A body scan is where bring your attention to different parts of your body - typically starting from your head and moving through to your toes. While doing this, bring your attention to any feelings in that part of your body including tension, warmth, tingling or relaxation.🧘‍♀️

By taking this time to 'assess' how your body is feeling, you are bringing your mind to the present moment - notice if this makes a difference in the way you feel throughout the day.☀️

Improving symptoms of knee or hip osteoarthritis with manual therapy 🦴

Hip and knee osteoarthritis related pain represents a large burden for society, and individuals who are susceptible to experiencing impaired sleep, diminished participation in work, exercise, and social activities. ⌛️

Results from a recent systematic review conducted by Runge and colleagues (2022) found there was a large benefit to adding manual therapies in addition to exercise programs to improve short term pain for those with hip and knee osteoarthritis. 📈

Findings suggest by improving pain levels, manual therapies have the potential to aid sleep and overall short-term functioning for those with hip and knee osteoarthritis pain. ✅

The study highlights that by adding manual therapies to improve pain and function, those with hip and knee osteoarthritis may be able to have greater chance to engage in regular exercises. 💪

Runge, N., Aina, A., & May, S. (2022). The benefits of adding manual therapy to exercise therapy for improving pain and function in patients with knee or hip osteoarthritis: a systematic review with metaanalysis. journal of orthopaedic & sports physical therapy, 52(10), 675-A13.

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

We encourage you to set aside a 10 minute block this week to try out mindful colouring or drawing. ✍️
You can use a mindfulness colouring book, or print out some images you find online, or draw on a blank piece of paper. 🖍
During this time feel free to sit in a quiet room or put on some soothing music. 🎧
Rather than focusing on trying to draw something specific, try and focus on the colours you are using and the sound of the pencils on the page. 🎨
Let your mind wonder and see where it takes you.💭
After the 10 minutes are done, we encourage you to reflect on how you are feeling compared to how you felt before the activity - do you feel any different? 🌟

Happy Mother's Day from the team here at West Coast! 💚💙

“To the world, you are a mother, but to your family, you are the world.” 🌸
—Unknown

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

One day this week, we challenge you to list 3 people and 3 things you are grateful for as the first thing you do that morning☀️

Throughout the day, notice how practicing gratitude and having positive thoughts as soon as you woke up affected your mindset and productivity, and maybe try to incorporate this into your morning routine regularly 🌟

How your sleep posture may be affecting your back pain 🛌

Sleep posture may be a relevant factor to consider in the management of non-specific spinal symptoms in adults, according to a recent scoping review. Reviewed studies assessed sleep posture in a domestic environment, with self-report used to measure sleep posture in all studies, with pain being the most common outcome measure of symptoms. 📊

The review found that the side lying posture for the cervical spine, and side lying, and supine were the sleep postures recommended by authors for those with lumbar spinal pain. The study highlights that different variation of side lying postures are less provocative of spinal symptoms than others. ✅

Further research has demonstrated that we should be avoiding the foetal position and other positions which tuck our chin in, disruption the natural curve of our neck. 🌟
For those sleeping on their backs it is recommended to place a small pillow underneath the knees to avoid causing the lower back to arch. 🛏

Cary, D., Briffa, K., & McKenna, L. (2019). Identifying relationships between sleep posture and non-specific spinal symptoms in adults: A scoping review. BMJ open, 9(6), e027633.

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

We encourage you to find 3 things you see in your regular, everyday life (perhaps a tree in your garden, or house on your daily route) and take time to look at it, until you notice 1 new thing about it you haven't noticed before. 🌳

Try to do this 3 different times during the day, ideally in 3 different environments to practice being more present, particularly in places you are familiar with!🌟

Fine Motor skills are important to develop at a young age as they are used in many everyday tasks, including writing, brushing teeth and getting dressed. 📝
Our paediatric OTs are able to help the development and improvement of fine motor skills if your child is having difficulties to ensure they are able to participate in activities they care about 🤹‍♂️📖🖍🎮🎸

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

To practice mindulness this week, we encourage you to sit down, close your eyes and notice 5 different sounds you can hear. 👂
Sometimes we can tune out the noise around us but listening to the different sounds can help us stay more present in our day to day life! 🌳

Happy Easter from the team here at WCOTS! 🐣💚💙

We wish everyone a very happy and joyful long weekend!☀️

Happy International Day of Happiness! 😁

It’s helpful to recognise the importance of happiness in our lives and especially how to inspire it, for ourselves and for others ☀️

Today, we encourage you to find 1 way to inspire happiness in your life 🌼

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

This week, we encourage you to make time to sit in the sunshine and take some deep breaths. 🌞
It is important for your mind to have a break and for your body to be in the sun (even for a short period of time), particularly if you spend majority of your day inside. 🧠

Never underestimate the power of vitamin D! ☀️

Happy International Women's Day! 💜

This years theme for International Women's Day is 'Inspire Inclusion' because when we inspire others to understand and value women's inclusion, we forge a better world.🌏

This theme encourages everyone to recognize the unique perspectives and contributions of women from all walks of life, including those from marginalized communities, and emphasizes the importance of diversity and empowerment in all aspects of society. 🌟

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

Take time this week to do something you enjoy doing (whether that's buying yourself a coffee and breakfast, or sitting on the couch watching you favourite show!) and focus on ONLY doing that thing ☀️

It's important to intentionally make time to let your mind rest - especially if you're feeling overwhelmed or stressed! 🌟

Happy First Day of Autumn 🍁🍂

“When everything looks like a magical oil painting, you know you are in Autumn!”- Mehmet Murat Ildan

🌼 MINDFUL MONDAY 🌼

For one minute today, whether it's while you are waiting for the kettle to boil or at the start of your work day, take one minute to yourself to sit and be still - don't try to plan or think, just focus on your breathing for 1 minute. 🧘‍♀️