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🌿 Thrive Together: A Family Wellness Day for San Diego Families 🌿 Are you looking for a fun and meaningful family event in San Diego that supports your child’s development, connection, and wellness? Join us for Thrive Together: A Family Wellness Day —a one-of-a-kind event designed to nurture parents, kids, and the whole family. 🗓 Date: Saturday, April 13, 2024 ⏰ Time: 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM 📍 Location: Fox Point Farms, Encinitas, CA 🎟 Grab your tickets here ! What is Thrive Together? Thrive Together is a family wellness event created by a local OT and SLP, experts in child development and family wellness, co-hosted by Fox Point Farms and By the Sea Mommy and Me, a fellow San Diego mom: ✨ Eat Play Love Occupational Therapy ✨ Family First Speech Therapy ✨ Fox Point Farms ✨ By The Sea Mommy and Me This event is designed to give San Diego families a chance to connect, play, learn, and grow—together. We’re bringing you hands-on activities, expert tips, and a beautiful outdoor setting perfect for making memories. What Families Can Expect: 🌱 Sensory Play Stations - Created to support regulation, creativity, and fun. 🗣️ Speech & Language Development Activities - Practical strategies and play-based learning to boost communication skills. 🧠 Mindful Parenting & Connection Tools - Tips from child development professionals to help you thrive as a parent. 🌸 Nature Play and Farm Fun - Explore the beauty of Fox Point Farms, a unique family-friendly venue in Encinitas. 👶 Baby & Toddler Zone - Safe and engaging activities just for our littlest guests. 🎨 Crafts, Music, and Movement - Opportunities to create, dance, and enjoy being together as a family. 💬 Meet Local Experts & Community Resources - Chat with everyone from therapists, wellness experts, and parenting coaches to real estate experts, home organization, and jewelry designers! We've got 25+ of the top local San Diego businesses attending to help support your family's journey! Why Should San Diego Families Attend? 💛 Because parenting is hard—and community matters. Thrive Together is designed to empower families with support, resources, and fun—all in one day. 💛 Because connection is powerful. This is your chance to connect with local child development experts, other parents, and your own children in meaningful ways. 💛 Because wellness starts early. Learn simple strategies to support your child’s sensory, speech, motor, and emotional development—right from the experts. 💛 Because your family deserves a joyful, screen-free day outdoors. Perfect For: ✅ Families with kids of all ages and abilities ✅ Parents looking for San Diego family events with expert support ✅ Families interested in sensory play, speech & language tips, and early childhood wellness ✅ Anyone ready for a fun, relaxing morning connecting with their kids 🌿 Join Us for Thrive Together! 🌿 Don’t miss this special day designed to help your family THRIVE—emotionally, physically, and socially. 🎟 Tickets are limited! Reserve your spot here Every ticket a dmits your entire family PLUS gets you entered in the raffle to win one of our amazing prizes from local businesses! Come play, connect, and grow with us at beautiful Fox Point Farms . We can’t wait to see you there!

5 Myths About Picky Eating and What You Actually Need to Know: Tips from a Pediatric OT and Feeding Specialist 🍓🍑🥒 If you’re a parent of a picky eater, you’ve probably searched high and low for solutions to make mealtimes less stressful. Navigating meals with a selective eater can be overwhelming, especially with conflicting information online. As a pediatric occupational therapist (OT) and feeding specialist, I’m here to debunk common myths about picky eating and share actionable tips that work. Read on to discover the truth behind picky eating and how to create stress-free meals your child will love. Myth #1: "Picky Eating Is Just a Phase" The Reality: It might be more than a phase. While picky eating is common among toddlers and preschoolers, for some children, it can persist beyond the typical developmental stages. In some cases, picky eating may indicate underlying issues, such as sensory processing difficulties, oral motor challenges, or even anxiety around food. What You Need to Know: Developmental Milestones Matter: Around 18 months to 3 years, children often experience food neophobia—a natural resistance to new foods. However, if your child’s eating habits severely limit their diet or persist well past age 5, it may require additional support. Trust Your Instincts: If you’re concerned about your child’s eating habits, trust your gut. It’s better to seek help early rather than assume your child will grow out of it. Tips for Parents: Keep a food diary to track what your child eats over a week. This can help identify patterns and nutritional gaps. Seek an evaluation from a pediatric feeding specialist or OT if your child’s diet is highly restrictive. Myth #2: "They’ll Eat When They’re Hungry" The Reality: Hunger doesn’t always win. Many parents believe that if a child is hungry enough, they’ll eat whatever is available. For selective eaters, especially those with sensory or medical challenges, hunger doesn’t necessarily override their discomfort or aversion to certain foods. What You Need to Know: Food Avoidance Is Complex: Sensory sensitivities, textures, smells, or even past negative experiences with food can cause a child to avoid eating, no matter how hungry they are. Pressure Backfires: Forcing a child to eat or withholding preferred foods until they eat something new can increase anxiety and lead to negative associations with mealtime. Tips for Parents: Offer a mix of familiar and new foods without pressure. Let your child decide what and how much to eat. Use a "safe food" approach: Always include at least one food your child likes at every meal. Myth #3: "Picky Eaters Are Just Being Stubborn" The Reality: It’s not about defiance. Picky eating is rarely a matter of willful behavior. Many children struggle with selective eating due to underlying sensory, motor, or emotional factors. What You Need to Know: Sensory Sensitivities: Some children have heightened sensitivities to textures, temperatures, or flavors, making certain foods overwhelming or even unbearable. Oral Motor Skills: Difficulty chewing or swallowing can lead to food avoidance. Children with oral motor challenges may prefer soft, easy-to-eat foods and reject others. Anxiety: Negative past experiences, such as choking or vomiting, can create a fear of eating certain foods. Tips for Parents: Approach mealtimes with empathy. Recognize that picky eating is often beyond your child’s control. Introduce new foods gradually. Allow your child to explore the food through touch or smell before expecting them to taste it. Myth #4: "Just Hide Veggies in Their Food" The Reality: Sneaky strategies can backfire. While sneaking veggies into foods like smoothies or sauces can ensure some nutrient intake, it doesn’t help your child build a positive relationship with food or learn to try new things. What You Need to Know: Honesty Builds Trust: Deceiving your child by hiding ingredients can lead to mistrust, especially if they discover the hidden food. Exposure Is Key: Kids need repeated, positive exposures to new foods to become comfortable with them. Hiding veggies doesn’t provide this opportunity. Tips for Parents: Get your child involved in meal prep. Washing, chopping, or stirring can make new foods less intimidating. Use "food chaining": Introduce new foods that are similar in taste, texture, or appearance to foods your child already likes. Myth #5: "It’s All About the Nutrition" The Reality: Mealtimes are about more than food. While nutrition is important, focusing solely on what your child eats can create unnecessary pressure and conflict. Mealtimes are an opportunity to build social skills, encourage independence, and foster a positive relationship with food. What You Need to Know: Connection Over Consumption: Creating a relaxed mealtime atmosphere can help your child feel safe and more open to trying new foods. Picky Eating Often Resolves Gradually: It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Small, consistent steps lead to long-term success. Tips for Parents: Establish a mealtime routine with clear expectations (e.g., sitting at the table for a set time). Celebrate small wins, like touching or smelling a new food, even if your child doesn’t eat it. Model healthy eating habits. Let your child see you enjoying a variety of foods. How a Pediatric OT Can Help If your child’s picky eating feels overwhelming, a pediatric occupational therapist can provide tailored strategies to support their unique needs. Here’s how: Assessment: An OT will evaluate your child’s sensory, motor, and oral skills to identify underlying challenges. Individualized Interventions: Therapy sessions may include sensory play, oral motor exercises, and gradual food exposure. Parent Training: Learn practical, evidence-based techniques to use at home. Final Thoughts Picky eating can feel like a daunting challenge, but it doesn’t have to define your mealtime experience. By understanding the myths and focusing on what really matters—connection, patience, and positive exposure—you can support your child in developing a healthy relationship with food. Remember, progress takes time, and every small step forward is a win. If you need extra support, don’t hesitate to reach out to a pediatric OT or feeding specialist. You’ve got this, and help is always available when you need it!

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Autism and Picky Eating: Insights and Strategies from a Pediatric Occupational Therapist Picky eating is a common concern for many parents, but for families with children on the autism spectrum, it can be especially challenging. While most children go through phases of food preferences, the relationship between autism and picky eating often runs deeper. The struggle to introduce new foods, the limited variety of acceptable textures, and the anxiety surrounding mealtimes can leave both parents and children feeling frustrated. As a pediatric occupational therapist specializing in feeding, I’ve worked with many children on the autism spectrum who experience significant feeding difficulties. In this blog, we will explore the reasons behind picky eating in children with autism, offer strategies for families to approach mealtimes with less stress, and highlight how occupational therapy can play a crucial role in improving feeding habits. Understanding the Link Between Autism and Picky Eating Picky eating in children with autism often stems from a combination of sensory processing challenges, rigid routines, and communication difficulties. While every child with autism is unique, there are common factors that contribute to feeding difficulties. 1. Sensory Processing Issues Children with autism often experience heightened or diminished sensory responses, including to taste, texture, smell, and appearance of food. These sensory sensitivities can make the experience of eating overwhelming. For example: A child may be hypersensitive to certain textures (e.g., soft, mushy foods like mashed potatoes), finding them uncomfortable or even unbearable to touch or eat. Strong flavors or unfamiliar smells may trigger a negative response, causing the child to avoid specific foods. Visual aspects of food, such as the color or presentation, might also play a role. A child may refuse to eat a meal if it doesn't "look right" to them. 2. Limited Variety Due to Rigid Routines Children on the autism spectrum often rely on routine and predictability to feel safe and secure. This extends to their eating habits. They may develop a very limited diet consisting of only a few specific foods that they feel comfortable with. Attempts to introduce new foods can cause distress, leading to food refusal or tantrums at mealtime. The repetitive behavior and need for sameness commonly seen in autism can make it difficult for children to tolerate changes in their meals, such as a different brand of the same food item. Even minor alterations in how food is prepared or presented can cause a child to reject the food altogether. 3. Communication Barriers Children with autism may have difficulties expressing their needs and preferences, making it hard for caregivers to understand why they are refusing food. A child may not be able to verbalize that they dislike the texture of a certain food or that the smell is overwhelming. Instead, they might communicate their discomfort through behaviors such as crying, pushing the food away, or throwing tantrums at the table. Common Feeding Behaviors in Children with Autism When it comes to feeding, children with autism can exhibit a range of challenging behaviors that make mealtimes difficult for both the child and their caregivers. Some of the most common behaviors include: Narrow Food Preferences: Sticking to a few select foods, often from the same food group (e.g., eating only carbs like crackers, bread, or pasta). Refusing Certain Textures: Avoiding specific textures, such as crunchy, soft, or chewy foods. Strong Aversion to New Foods: Refusing to try new foods, even after multiple exposures. Sensitivity to Temperature: Preferring foods to be served at a specific temperature and refusing to eat if it’s too hot or cold. Visual Rejection: Rejecting foods based on their appearance, such as color, size, or shape. Impact of Picky Eating on Nutrition and Growth While picky eating can be frustrating, it’s important to consider the nutritional and developmental impact this can have on children with autism. Many children on the autism spectrum consume diets that are low in variety, which can lead to: Nutrient Deficiencies: A lack of fruits, vegetables, and proteins can result in deficiencies in vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin C, iron, and calcium. Growth Delays: Limited caloric intake or poor nutrition can impact a child’s growth and development, leading to weight loss, stunted growth, or malnutrition. Gut Health Issues: A restricted diet, especially one low in fiber, can contribute to gastrointestinal issues, which are common in children with autism. Parents often feel caught between wanting to ensure their child is getting enough to eat and trying to introduce healthier, more diverse options into their diet. How Occupational Therapy Can Help with Picky Eating Occupational therapy (OT) is highly effective in addressing picky eating and feeding challenges in children with autism. As a pediatric OT, I use a variety of strategies to help children gradually expand their food preferences while reducing mealtime stress. 1. Sensory Integration Techniques Sensory integration therapy helps children become more comfortable with different textures, smells, and tastes. By gradually exposing children to sensory experiences in a safe and supportive environment, we can reduce their aversion to certain foods. Desensitization activities: These might include playing with food outside of mealtime, allowing the child to touch and explore food textures without the pressure to eat them. This can help reduce sensory defensiveness. Graded exposure: Slowly introducing new foods alongside familiar, preferred foods. For example, offering a new vegetable in small portions on the same plate as a favorite food can increase familiarity and reduce fear. 2. Food Play and Exploration Occupational therapy often involves food play, where children engage with food in a non-threatening way. This might include activities such as: Playing with food textures (e.g., finger-painting with mashed sweet potatoes) to help them become more comfortable with different sensations. Using food in creative ways like building with cut-up vegetables or creating shapes with mashed foods. This helps children become more familiar with foods without the pressure of eating them immediately. 3. Gradual Food Transitions OTs can help children with autism expand their food preferences by using a technique called food chaining. This involves introducing new foods that are similar to foods the child already enjoys. For example, if a child likes chicken nuggets, we might gradually introduce grilled chicken by altering the texture slowly over time. 4. Mealtime Structure and Routine For children who rely on routine, establishing a structured mealtime routine can help them feel more comfortable and less anxious during meals. As an OT, I work with families to develop strategies such as: Creating visual schedules for mealtimes that outline what will happen during the meal. Using timers to set boundaries for how long the child needs to sit at the table, reducing mealtime power struggles. Consistent mealtime routines to create predictability, such as always starting with a preferred food and gradually introducing a new one. 5. Collaboration with Dietitians and Feeding Teams For children with significant nutritional concerns, occupational therapists often work closely with dietitians and pediatricians to ensure the child is getting the necessary nutrients for healthy growth and development. A team approach ensures that the child’s dietary needs are met while addressing behavioral and sensory feeding challenges. Strategies for Parents to Try at Home Parents can also implement some strategies at home to help their child with autism become more comfortable with a variety of foods and reduce picky eating behaviors. Here are some tips: 1. Be Patient and Persistent Introducing new foods to a child with autism takes time, and it’s important to be patient. Research shows that it can take up to 10-15 exposures to a new food before a child will accept it. Offer new foods without pressure, and celebrate small victories, such as touching or smelling the food. 2. Start Small and Gradual Start with small changes to your child’s preferred foods. For example, if your child only eats chicken nuggets, try introducing a different brand or slightly altering the texture. Gradual changes are less likely to overwhelm your child and lead to food refusal. 3. Offer Choices Giving your child a sense of control over their food choices can reduce anxiety around mealtimes. Offer two or three options for each meal so that your child can choose what they feel comfortable eating. Ensure that at least one of the options is a food they already enjoy. 4. Stay Consistent Consistency is key for children with autism. Try to maintain regular meal and snack times each day, and avoid making mealtime too stressful. If your child refuses a new food, avoid pressuring them, and try offering it again at a later time. 5. Positive Reinforcement Use positive reinforcement to encourage your child to try new foods. Praise them for small steps, such as touching or smelling the food, and offer non-food rewards for making progress, such as extra playtime or a favorite activity. When to Seek Help While picky eating is common in children with autism, it’s important to seek help if your child’s eating habits are causing significant nutritional concerns, weight loss, or family stress. If your child has a very limited diet, experiences extreme anxiety around mealtimes, or refuses entire food groups, it may be time to consult a pediatric occupational therapist or feeding specialist. Conclusion Picky eating in children with autism is often a multifaceted challenge involving sensory sensitivities, rigid routines, and communication barriers. However, with patience, the right strategies, and support from professionals such as occupational therapists, children can expand their food preferences and reduce the stress associated with mealtimes. As a pediatric occupational therapist, I have seen firsthand how individualized feeding therapy can make a positive impact during mealtime!