2021 is almost over. Big sigh of relief, anyone?

While it has been a topsy-turvy year for most of us, we’ve also learned a lot along the way, done things differently, and perhaps readjusted some goals and plans.

Now that the year is drawing to a close, it’s time to tie up the loose ends and give ourselves some breathing space before we launch into the new year, which will no doubt bring challenges and victories of its own.

So, here are some of my favourite tips for clearing away the clutter and getting my vision of the new year in place.

1. Get the books up to date

You need to know where you stand financially before you can plan for the coming year. So it’s a good idea to face the dreaded bookwork and have it all up to date before the holidays. Besides, you’ll enjoy the holidays more knowing that you don’t have to face it when you go back.

Once you have a clear picture of your financial position, you can start to think of the goals and plans you have for the coming year. Do you feel that your business is sustainable the way it is now? Or do you need to make some adjustments? Can you do the things you’d like to, or do you feel that you’re working hard but getting nowhere?

One of the most common mistakes small business owners make is to undercharge for their services, which brings me to my next point.

2. Check your pricing

Is your pricing adequate compensation for your time, expertise, and expenses? Are you making enough to cover the “background costs” such as superannuation, health care, insurance, retirement plans and other “hidden” expenses?

While we all want to be fair to our clients, it’s important that we also look after our own needs. If you haven’t given yourself a price rise in a while, the best time to do it is at the beginning of the new year. The time to plan for that is now so that you can give your clients time to adjust to the new pricing.

3. Talk taxes with your accountant

While absolutely no one enjoys tax time, it can actually be less stressful if you talk to your accountant mid-year. This year has been an unusual one as far as tax goes, so if you received any financial assistance because of the pandemic, it’s a good idea to make sure that you’re on track for the end of the financial year and don’t receive any nasty surprises.

Even if things are going smoothly at the moment, your accountant may spot something that will help at the end of the year. Small tweaks can make a big difference when they happen early enough.

4. Revamp your digital presence

Is there something you know you absolutely should do to make yourself more visible or more approachable on social media or in the digital world? Is your website looking tired? Do your social media profiles need some attention?

Now is the time to prepare for 2022 and a fresh new digital presence. With so many people discovering new therapists and other professionals online (especially during the pandemic), you can’t afford to look unprofessional or allow your digital profile to languish in obscurity. Hire someone to do it for you if you must, but get everything up to date to begin the new year.

5. Plan your holidays

Most people expect that their therapist will take some time off over Christmas and the New Year. Anyone who’s worked around that time will know that things are often quiet as people spend time away or doing other things.

So no one is going to find it unreasonable for you to take some time off. But you need to plan it now so you can let your clients know when you will or won’t be available. They will appreciate the notice so they can plan around it.

6. Review your business goals or set new ones

Did you set goals for 2021? How successful were you in achieving them?

The end of the year is the time to revisit the things you planned to do at the beginning of the year. Did you hit some or all of your goals? Or did you fall short?

Let’s face it, 2021 wasn’t a very kind year! It was more challenging than ever for businesses to hit their goals with all the events happening in the world.

So, if you fell short of your goals, don’t beat yourself up. But don’t ignore it, either. It’s important to understand why you didn’t reach your goals and what strategies you can put in place to reach them in the coming year. Don’t give up; just reset your course and continue to strive for the things that are important to you.

The past year may have seen a change in the way you do business or your focus on a particular area. If that’s the case, it’s perfectly fine to discard goals that no longer serve your purpose. Set some new goals that are more aligned with your current direction and move on.

7. Touch base with your clients

Your clients are the lifeblood of your business. Your continued success lies in their hands because, without them, you wouldn’t have a business.

So it’s important to get in touch at the end of the year, thank them for their support, and ask if there’s some way you can serve them better in the new year. One way to do this would be via an anonymous survey. Or, for customers you’d like to win back to your business, you could offer a discount on a consultation or service that you offer. There are many ways you can engage with your clients, and sometimes it only takes something small to help them feel good about you.

Clear the clutter, enjoy a break

By tidying away the loose ends and preparing for success in the coming year, therapists and you can enjoy a break both mentally and physically, knowing you’ll be able to pick up again where you stopped. It’s essential for your health and wellbeing and the success of your business.

School closures have been frustrating and tedious for parents during the Covid lockdowns. They can happen with very little warning, creating family chaos, problems with work and other normal life activities, and causing anxiety for kids who don’t know what to expect.

The dreaded announcement … What should you do?

No one wants to hear that their child’s school has been closed because of positive Covid cases, and any parent who’s heard the dreaded announcement will be familiar with the sinking feeling that accompanies it.

First of all … breathe! You can get through this.

The other important thing to remember is that while Covid is serious for older people, children usually fare better if they do catch it and might only have mild symptoms and recover quickly. Just think of the best outcome, take a deep breath, and turn your attention to what you can do to get through this.

Be a sleuth

OK, sometimes it feels as if you need a degree in sleuthing to get to the bottom of government rules for school closures and other lockdowns! They can be confusing and change from one day to the next.

Read through the following checklist of questions you need to find answers for.

· What are the rules for isolation?

· Do I need to isolate along with my child?

· Does the whole family need to stay at home?

· Can my partner still go to work?

· Do I need to cancel or rearrange my work?

· Do I need to contact others we have been with to let them know?

Decide how to tell your child

Lots of kids suffer from anxiety with sudden changes of plan, so if this happens to your child, you’re not alone!

The best approach is to remain calm and be aware of your own anxiety levels. Take some time out to centre yourself if you need to. Then talk to your child about how plans change sometimes and this week will be a little different to usual.

Use a visual weekly planner

If your child is young, you can use a visual weekly planner to explain that there’s been a change of plan. Explain that school will be from home for at least one day, maybe more, and create a new plan for the week.

In your visual planner, you can paste pictures of what’s going to happen on each day of the week. If you don’t know yet, that’s OK. We have a strategy for that (see below). For older children, you might prefer to write in your planner instead of using pictures.

So, for example, if your isolation period begins on a Monday, get your child to choose a picture of a home to put in the planner. Now when anxiety strikes, your child can look at the planner and know that Monday will be spent at home.

For the next day, place a picture of a question mark on the planner with blu-tack. This means that you don’t know yet whether school is on. If you still don’t have information for the following day, move the question mark to the next day. This will help your child to understand that you are waiting for the information that will tell you whether school is back on.

Once you have a return date for school, place a picture of a school (or your child’s school) in the appropriate square.

This is a great strategy for anxious kids who can look at the planner to remind themselves about what is happening next.

Plan to succeed at home

Home isolation can be very trying with everyone falling over each other or experiencing negative feelings about being cooped up in the house.

But it doesn’t have to become a disaster, especially for a child experiencing anxiety.

One of the best ways to help your child feel secure is to create a plan for each day. Predictability and structure help children feel safe when the world around them is full of uncertainty.

So you can use the same strategies above for a daily planner. For younger children, use a visual daily planner that you can stick pictures in. With older children, you might prefer to write in the daily activities.

Your new home routine doesn’t have to be complex, and you need to allow some flexibility or it will become too difficult to stick with. But you should include the “milestones” or big events of the day such as bedtime, waking up, meal times, or the start and finish of school. You choose what’s important in your family.

You can do your plan for the entire day, or you can divide it up into morning and afternoon – whatever works best.

Beware of too much screen time

Don’t worry, we’ve all done it! Screen time is a handy babysitter when you’re trying to work at home or even when you just want some peace.

But in the longer term, too much is harmful to kids’ wellbeing. It can make bedtimes more difficult and increase social anxiety, among other things.

So the best thing is to aim for a balanced routine that includes exercise, time outdoors if possible, and time spent doing interactive activities with other members of the family.

You can do this!

You’ve got this! As some of you who have already been through it know, this too shall pass. Nothing lasts forever, and it’s just a matter of doing the best you can until schools reopen and you can resume your normal life again.

You’re doing an amazing job of holding it together under difficult circumstances, so give yourself a pat on the back, take a deep breath, and make sure you’re caring for yourself, too. You’ve got this!

Teachers, childcare workers and other professionals have long known that some children cannot tolerate experiences that other children don’t even notice. Certain sounds, a noisy environment, some visual elements or even being touched can trigger a meltdown that is exhausting for everyone. In addition, a child that is constantly triggered by various sensory experiences is not learning as they should because they are constantly in fight-or-flight mode. This has caused many professionals a great deal of concern but it wasn’t until recently that we began to understand more about why these children need sensory-friendly classrooms to achieve the best learning outcomes.

Brain Research Reveals Clues

Children with Sensory Processing Disorder share many characteristics with those on the autism spectrum. In fact, there has long been a debate about whether SPD should be classified under the umbrella of autism, and professional opinion has remained divided until recent research revealed some distinct differences in brain structure.

Comparing Brain Structure in Kids with Autism and SPD

Elysa Marco and associates, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, conducted a study that compared the brain structures of boys with an autism diagnosis, those with a sensory processing disorder diagnosis and those that were developing normally. They found a quantifiable difference between the boys with an SPD diagnosis when compared to those with typical development, proving that the disorder is rooted in biological factors. The questions then turned to how the brains of these children compared with those that have other neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.

Sensory Similarities between Autism and Sensory Processing Disorder

The research examined the structural connectivity in areas of the brain that process sensory stimuli and found decreased connectivity in these areas in the boys with autism as well as those with SPD. However, there was a divergence when it came to the areas of the brain responsible for social-emotional processing. The boys with autism showed decreased connectivity in these areas, while those with SPD did not. Another crucial difference between the two diagnoses was the lack of repetitive behaviours in the SPD group, along with other distinctive indicators of autism.

It’s not just Theory

This finding translates into the classroom as well. Children with SPD actually want social and emotional connections but may find the sensory stimulation of connection overwhelming. Children with autism have less interest in social and emotional connections and may struggle to form friendships or interact in socially acceptable ways with peers.

How a Sensory-Friendly Classroom Fills the Gap

As many teachers and professionals know, children with SPD and autism struggle to cope with sensory overload or specific sensory triggers. When teachers and professionals get the balance right, the classroom can become a safe place where triggers are less likely to occur. When these kids feel safe, they can relax and begin to learn rather than being in a constant state of fight-or-flight, living in fear of a new experience or a reaction to one.

Tips for Creating Sensory-Friendly Classrooms

As teachers, parents and professionals know, children with sensory processing issues do best when they know what to expect and their environment is comfortable. Keep these tips in mind to create a sensory-friendly classroom that is a safe space for students that need extra help in this area.

1. Create daily routines and stick to them
2. Use visual cues to help students know what is coming next
3. Allow time for sensory breaks to prevent sensory overwhelm
4. Work with students to establish a signal when they are feeling overwhelmed
5. Have a plan in place to manage situations before they turn into meltdowns
6. Make sure that the environment is comfortable with lighting levels, temperature and air quality
7. Create “quiet zones” and allow students to retreat to these if they are feeling overwhelmed
8. Provide headphones to block out classroom noise when students are sensitive
9. Allow students to use alternative forms of seating
10. Provide advance warning using visuals or other cues when changes of routine occur or a one-off event is coming up, such as a fire drill or excursion

The Next Step

As parents and professionals, we want all our kids to thrive in the classroom, regardless of the hurdles they face. Creating sensory-friendly classrooms doesn’t need to be difficult or costly and it can make a huge difference to the kids that struggle with sensory issues. If you would like to know more about what you can do to make sensory-friendly classrooms, check out my classroom detox program. Or you can contact us here if you have questions. We would love to hear from you!

At Life Skills 4 Kids, we recognize that anxiety has no age limit and kids are not exempt from all the feelings and symptoms that adults experience. Of course, we realize that they are usually unable to articulate exactly what is causing them to feel the way they do, so an anxious child will tell us that something is wrong through behaviour, body language or related symptoms.

Why a Stomach Ache is a Common Symptom of Anxiety

When kids are feeling anxious, they will often complain of a stomach ache. The feelings are real; they really do have pain in their tummies. This is because the enteric nervous system resides in the gastrointestinal tract and is closely linked with the brain. In fact, it is often called the second brain.
So when kids complain of a tummy ache when they are feeling anxious, it is because the chemicals and hormones associated with anxiety are causing a response in their tummies.

An Anxious Child isn’t Making it Up

If you have ruled out illness or health issues that are causing your child’s  tummy aches, there’s a good chance that you are dealing with anxiety. It might be tempting to think that your child is telling stories or trying to get attention, but this is not usually the case. (And parents are pretty good at getting to the truth anyway!).
Your child is most likely experiencing anxiety that is manifesting itself in physical symptoms such as a stomach ache, or occasionally, a headache or other aches or pains.

Is it Anxiety or Physical Illness?

There are some clues that a stomach ache is anxiety-related, rather than being caused by illness or health issues. Take note of when your child complains about tummy pain – is it at a regular time, such as before school or at night before bed?
If it is happening regularly, your child is telling you that a particular event or experience is causing feelings of anxiety. There may also be other underlying concerns around the event or experience that are causing the feelings of fear or worry, such as being afraid of the dark or feeling alone at bedtime.

Other Anxiety Symptoms

There are other clues to watch for if you believe you might have an anxious child:

• Inability to focus
• Agitation or restlessness
• Wanting to avoid situations, events or experiences
• Tantrums
• Crying
• Not wanting to go to school
• Meltdowns about minor or unrelated matters
• Having high expectations of their own performance at sports or school work
• Difficulty adjusting to transitions between school and other activities
• Difficulty settling down to sleep at night

How to Help Your Anxious Child

When your child complains of a tummy ache or you observe other anxiety-related symptoms, it’s important to approach the issue in the right way. Check out these tips for ways to help your child manage anxiety.

1. Encourage Your Child to Face Fear

Avoiding an experience or event may bring short-term peace but its better to teach your anxious child to face their fears. Anxious or worried feelings become bigger and more overwhelming if they are allowed to rule choices and behaviour. By facing them, your child will experience the positive feelings of a “win” as well as knowing that they can do something that was previously scary or impossible. When fears are starved, they shrink.

2. Stay Calm Yourself

It’s important that your child sees that you are calm when they are experiencing fear or worry. A calm adult is like a rock in an ocean of fear to an anxious child. They can reason that everything is going to be ok because Mum/Dad isn’t worried or fearful.

3. Use Positive Reinforcement

When your child makes progress, be there to cheer them on. Take notice of the small victories and praise them for being brave and facing their fears. A little encouragement can go a long way. At the same time, avoid punishment for failures or reacting negatively as this can make anxiety issues worse. Try praise for taking small steps or rewards for hitting goals instead.

4. Teach Your Child Relaxation Techniques

Kids respond well to relaxation techniques such as mindfulness or breathing exercises that help to calm or ground them. You can do these together and you will both benefit! One easy exercise is to breathe in while counting to five, then breathe out while counting to five. You can find lots of great resources for mindfulness and relaxation on YouTube or other websites. One of my personal favourites is Cosmic Kids’ Yoga.

5. Pay Attention to Your Child’s Feelings

It’s important to acknowledge your child’s feelings because it helps them to recognize what’s going on. It also helps to empower them to take charge of solutions to the problem when they feel listened to and understood. Talk to your child about what’s going on and why they feel the way they do. Try to get to the bottom of feelings of worry or a stomach ache. Identifying the issues behind the scene will go a long way to helping both you and your child come up with strategies to manage them.
While an anxious child and a stomach ache go hand in hand, there are ways to manage anxiety so that it doesn’t hinder everyday life. Check out my new book for practical strategies that can help kids overcome this debilitating issue and thrive in every situation.

That’s right! What are your plans for self care and smart action this year? Check this out!

This week we have a vlog!  Feel free to watch above or read below.

Hey, how are you? It’s the beginning of the year. It’s the first week of term here in New South Wales where we are. I know that teachers are getting ready to go back to school or at school already. I just wanted to touch base about how we are planning to look after ourselves personally, health-wise, professionally in the next few months and for the rest of the year. So, I’m not talking about having new year’s resolutions because they often don’t stick but I want us to think about how are we planning to look after ourselves and what can we action right now to make sure that we meet those goals?

Before we start to figure that out, I want to just think who were you last year when you did really well, who was showing up, how were you showing up. When you showed up and did things that went really well, how did that make you feel, and what were you really committed to? So, that can be thought about in both the positive ways and also in a constructive way. When we committed to looking after ourselves and eating healthfully, going for walks or exercise or going to the gym, I guess you might have been showing up for yourself to be healthier and to be more positive which roles over all areas of life. When we are fit and healthy, then everything else seems to go better but on the flip side of that, those weeks, those months when we might be tired, when we might be unwell or when we just are a bit lazy perhaps, how do we go …

Who was showing up and what were we being committed to when things didn’t go so well?

For example, those morning when we’re lying in bed and we feel too tired and it feels way too much just to hit the snooze and to skip that walk or to skip the gym, what are we really committed to? Sometimes this can be really confronting to think about. Are we in those moments when we make those perhaps not so positive decisions. Are we really being committed to the best for ourselves or do we really need to stand up to ourselves and decide no, I’m really committed to being there for my health and just getting up and doing it.

So, we’ve talked a bit about fitness. What about our professional development and our personal development?

Personal development could be professional but it could also be learning a new hobby or doing some research with your child about a new activity or going with them to try something new. We need to commit to our financial goals as well. If we are teachers, what are committing to? Are we committing to our students, which I know you guys all do but seeing as sometimes we go through energy lags where it’s harder to do that, it’s harder to show up, sometimes it’s harder to do that preparation time. Life happens. Life throws us events that we’re not expecting and it’s really hard just to get through the basics but we really need to think about what are we committed to, how can we keep going with the most important things and how can we protect ourselves from the future.

With all the clinicians out there, same thing.  Are we showing up with planning efficiently and effectively? Do we timetable enough preparation time? Do we timetable enough buffer time between clients for preparation or for doing those extra phone calls? Because it can be really tempting, especially when you’re working for yourself or in private practice, to have those key performer indicators that we need to have because we are a business and we need to be able to meet our financial targets but we also need to look after ourselves and not try and put too many clients in, which means that we might have to work at night and lose some sleep and not look after ourselves quite as much. Whether you are a teacher or a clinician, it’s really important to have a plan and to get that locked in as soon as you can so that you can make sure that you’re supported, especially professionally because when we support it professionally, then our personal lives can go a lot easier because we’re not taking that baggage, that thinking through from … taking it home from work and just mulling over it or worrying about things.

So, yes. Whether you’re a teacher and you have those structures inside your school, that you have supervisors or mentors that you can catch up with regularly or a trusted teacher to offload to and work through things that might come up or different difficult students that might be tricky, make sure you got that structure in place and book it in your diary straight away. And if you’re an OT or a speech or other health professional, same thing. Make sure you got someone on your team, especially if you are in your own business on your own and/or if you are in a rural area where you have less support.

If you would like to connect with me, I also offer supervisor mentoring mainly for occupational therapists but also for some teachers who would really like to get their skills up in setting up their classrooms from a sensory safe perspective. But yes, so I mainly do that supervisor and mentoring for occupational therapists and I do that remotely right around Australia, so it doesn’t matter where you are. I have clinicians who are in the cities and I have clinicians who are in rural areas.  When we’re working on our own, no matter where we are, there’s very common issues and I’m very happy to talk over clinical issues, self-care issues and also a bit about business management and some tips of where to go to for help or how to make things easier.
Anyway,  I have three or four spots left for this year. If you’d like to book in for a free 15 minute chat, you’re most welcome to but no matter what type of professional you are, make sure you have a plan for both personal, healthy fitness and fun time, but also for that professional mentoring and backup. And on a regular basis, I have some clinicians who are catching up weekly, some who are monthly and some who are once a term.

If you would like to connect with me for a free 15 minute chat, just click here on the link below and we will be in contact with you to arrange a time. Okay, have a great day. Bye!

Link to : Free 15-minute chat with Deb Hopper
Written by Deb Hopper, Occupational Therapist