Built Like Me. Occupational Therapist: Child & Adolescent Mental Health

Built Like Me. Occupational Therapist: Child & Adolescent Mental Health Private Occupational Therapist experienced In Child and Adolescent Mental heath.

With a special interest in sensory modulation, emotional regulation, strength based, family focused.

29/04/2026

Sick of ‘fast’ play ideas that are not fast and rely on your having an art room full of stuff.
Kids don’t care about the aesthetic.
This scrappy bit of cardboard could become their prized car garage.
Parents are busy with so many competing demands and pressure to make play screen free, educational, supportive of developmental stage and work on skills.
Also spending an hour cutting/ pasting/ drawing for them so show no or minimal interest isn’t anyone’s idea of a good time.
Parents want to sit down with a hot drink, they want to engage their kids, they want to support their interests and development, and they are busy and tired.
Kids want to play with parents, they don’t want to wait around while you set up something fancy.
Cars are a common play interest for kinder kids, they also are often getting interested in numbers! If that if your child this one is for you.

Pop your kids interest and developmental stage in the comments and I’ll create more ideas for you!

28/04/2026

Challenges in the classroom
TOY OR TOOL…

If it’s helping you stay focused and do the set learning task it’s a tool.

If you are focusing on the item and it’s stopping you from completing the learning task it’s a toy.

What is a tool for one may be a toy for another.

What’s a tool today might be a toy tomorrow.

If distress is high, the tool might be helping reduce distress so we can start the leaning task in a couple of minutes, which means it’s a tool that might become a toy once we are regulated.

It takes kids time to learn the difference and what works for them when.

Patience, understanding and support to learn the difference is a way more effective long term strategy then blanket black and white rules around fidget items.

Self care looks different all the time. Today my millennial heart is going back in time to 2006 and getting reacquainted...
28/04/2026

Self care looks different all the time.
Today my millennial heart is going back in time to 2006 and getting reacquainted with Miranda, Andy and Emily all in preparation to see what they are up to 20 years later.

28/04/2026

The longer you spend setting it up =the less time it gets played with….

Use what you have, don’t over think it.

27/04/2026

Don’t be limited by the instructions or the picture on the box.
Games can be used in so many different ways.

Just by setting up this postbox game on a slightly different surface we incorporate a whole lot of different skills!

@

Stopped in at The Coffee Apple in east Ringwood Friday afternoon. A beautiful little toy shop with so many games, puzzl...
26/04/2026

Stopped in at The Coffee Apple in east Ringwood Friday afternoon. A beautiful little toy shop with so many games, puzzles, fidgets and more.

Couldn’t help myself when I spotted so many great games that align with a lot of the goals I Built Like Me kids have right now!!

Settled on these 3 and have spent my Sunday afternoon learning how to play them!

I hope the kids have as much fun in the clinic this week with them 🥳

24/04/2026

Crunching through fresh autumn leaves before they have been rained on is a sensory experience we only get for a few short weeks a year.
A wonderful way to sneak in a mindful moment on a walk
Or
Have a magical moment of playfulness with your kids while you remember your own childhood fun with autumn leaves.
These tiny moments can be great contributors to overall wellbeing and are a small way to support positive mental health.

Ps: Junior sports coaches, playing in the leaves is a great warm up game to keep training fun and promote team cohesiveness., and remind up that sport is about fun, staying active and friendship.

23/04/2026

Just because you have been told this tough parenting season is ‘normal’ doesn’t mean you automatically have the knowledge or skills you need.

I don’t have the skills to service my car, cut my own hair, teach a child how to play piano, coach a basketball team…
I access this skills of people who do.
Becoming a parent doesn’t mean you automatically have every skill you will need to raise them.

So if you get stuck with a particular skill or developmental stage and don’t know how to help it’s ok to seek the support of those who do.
Like an occupational therapist.

22/04/2026

Did you know all Occupational Therapists (and many other health professionals) must be registered with Ahpra.

We have to meet standards around professional development, recency of practice insurance, how we can advertise, what we post of socials and more to maintain our registration.

As an OT with additional endorsement under the Better Access to Mental Health I also must be a member with OT Australia and meet the ongoing requirements for my endorsement.

Anyone can check the health professional they are visiting has current registration by checking the public register on the ahpra website.

21/04/2026

Nature provides so many regulation tools.
Love the smell of rosemary?
Pick some, rub it on your hands and your shirt.
Shove some in your pocket.
You have an instant calming mindful moment with you all day.

21/04/2026

Do you have a job that you love but takes everything out of you by the end of the day? 🙋‍♀️
Does your slow cooked save you from endless take away? 🙋‍♀️
Do you get stuck with what to throw in it that is yummy and takes less than 5min? 🙋‍♀️

Help us all out and share your go to slow cooker 5 min wonder.

21/04/2026

I love the community garden. So many sights, smells and tastes to explore.

Today young people and I have been making the most of the sunshine and working on regulation, motor skills, community access and interoception in the real world.

And I happened to pick up some fresh fragrant herbs to add to my dinner!!

Address

96 Manchester Road Mooroolbark
Melbourne, VIC
3138

Opening Hours

Tuesday 9am - 5:30pm
Wednesday 9am - 6pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+61413812295

Website

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