Moms Need This: Occupational Therapy with Kayln Robertshaw
If you haven't heard of "Occupational Therapy," join the club! I literally never heard of this until Kayln reached out to me and it's something I think every mom should be aware of. In case you have NO idea what OT's do - it's holistic care from professionals that are trained to help people get back to all of their normal things they do in life. It can be as "small" as getting in and out of bed, making sure you're showered for the day, getting back to exercises or rock climbing...literally whatever your normal and joyful day looks like - they help.
It is a completely individualized approach to healthcare. You can head to your OB or pediatrician and ask for this kind of care BUT take a listen to see what may or may not qualify. The BEST part? It's usually covered by insurance so it's an inexpensive way to get the support you need no matter where you are at in your pregnancy, birth, postpartum...or life. 💜
Kayln Robertshaw is an occupational therapy doctorate student at Rocky Mountain College in Billings Montana. She grew up in Frederick County Maryland, where her passion to enter the healthcare field first started. After graduating from James Madison University in Harrisonburg VA, she earned a Bachelor's Degree in Health Sciences, with a concentration of Health Studies and a minor in special education. Kayln resides in Utah with her husband and son where she is finishing up her last year of graduate school with clinical rotations. Her current passions and interests are working with babies 0-3 years old through early intervention and working with adults who have acquired neurological conditions such as traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and strokes.
After finding out she was pregnant in March of 2021, she started listening to the My Essential Birth podcast. Thanks to the strategies, education and inspiration she gained from this podcast, she was empowered to successfully have an unmedicated birth. She now cherishes and obsesses over her 16 week old baby boy, Lincoln.
Show Notes:
1:17 -Our reviewer of the week tells us how prepared and confident she feels after binging all the episodes, having kids before AND how she purchased and is loving the birth course. You can JOIN US too!!
3:26 - Kayln introduces herself, family, and background.
7:05 - Kayln describes what occupational therapy is and how it is used for mothers. Occupational therapy is holistic healthcare that focuses on the whole person and helps people (including mothers) get back to their daily routines of life.
9:04 - Kayln works specifically with early intervention - babies 0 months to 3 years. She helps these children to hit their milestones and make sure they are on track developmentally. She uses a family coaching model to help coach the parents through the next steps for success with their children and for their family.
10:24 - Who is offered occupational therapy services and how!
12:52 - Moms will often need a referral from a primary care provider in order to receive services. SO...make sure you talk to your pediatrician and request services for occupational therapy. Some things that you can have addressed and receive services for is: posture for breastfeeding, self-care, mental health, postpartum depression, sleep, roles and routines (becoming a new mom), carpal tunnel, and so much more. I wish I had heard of this and used it as a new mom, so I hope you get a chance to do this!
15:17 - For moms experiencing postpartum depression, you can bring this up to your OB! This may be a great first step if you are looking for a holistic approach that deals with the whole person. Occupational Therapists also have resources that are local to moms in case more care is needed. With a referral, Occupational Therapy is often covered by insurance.
19:30 - OT's can help mothers with mindfulness during their pregnancy journey as well as postpartum.
22:51 - Kayln discusses the most important things for moms to remember during pregnancy and postpartum - things like open communication, gentleness with ourselves, and maternal infant bonding.
27:17 - This is very important for a baby in the NICU...BUT I want to stress the importance of this for every mom. We talked about how important it is to ask if what it being done with baby can be done while mom holds them. I love that she talks about the importance of that here and want to reiterate that to ALL moms listening. It makes a difference! 💜
30:55 - Occupational Therapists have the very best local resources for you. One of the things I say a lot is "Use your resources!" It's a big deal to me to be plugged into the local community where I'm at so that I have resources for pregnant, birthing, and postpartum mothers - local groups, professionals (IBCLC's, pediatrician's, OB's, Midwives, etc.), mental health, etc. OT's will also have all of these very best resources.
OT's also can choose to have additional certifications and this is a great benefit to women as well.
34:23 - Kayln goes over her very favorite parts of what she does. 😍
To Leave a Review ⭐️
1. Open Apple Podcasts
2. Find “Pregnancy & Birth Made Easy” podcast
3. Select “Ratings and Reviews”
4. Click the stars!
5. Select “Write a Review” and tell us what was the most amazing, comforting, eye-opening thing that you loved!
ALL the best,
Links Mentioned:
OT Student Blog on Breastfeeding:
- This is an OT student I worked with at my last rotation and she created this blog to help mothers. She is great and I found her blog to be helpful to me, so hopefully other moms can find it helpful as well.
Utah Specific:
Breastfeeding Related:
Early Intervention Programs:
International:
Resources:
Instagram
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