It can be helpful, but only if you work with the therapist to get to useful goals. If they try to give you some kind of standardized treatment, that's not a very good sign.
An occupational therapist is basically a specialized sort of teacher. They can work with people of all sorts, just so long as the person can learn (which means anybody who isn't in a coma). They can teach you all kinds of things. My mom works as an OT, and she has taught people things that are very simple, like how to roll from back to stomach; or how to use a spoon; or how to put on a shirt. She's also taught more complex things, like how to make a sandwich, how to shop at a supermarket, how to use a calculator. Sometimes she does things with a patient that don't have explicit purpose, but are useful activity that help a person recovering from an injury or getting therapy for a disability to get more comfortable with themselves and with interacting with the world around them. She does a lot of crafts, like she might teach somebody how to make a clay pot or knit a pot holder or do finger-painting. She does a lot of teaching self-care skills.
A physical therapist is different, and works a lot with balance, coordination, and movement. They might teach you to do things like walk gracefully, write smoothly, ride a bike. If you're really dyspraxic, a physical therapist can help.
A speech therapist helps with communication, language; spoken, written, signed, and symbolic, both the mechanics and the application.
02 Jun 2012, 10:09 am
