Posts by Meg Scaling
Cooking Checklist
Cooking seems like a simple task, but when there are multiple steps in a cooking task, it can sometimes be difficult to keep track of which steps have been completed. The occupational therapists here at Galaxy Brain and Therapy Center have a helpful tip to help you stay organized when cooking! Print your recipe and…
Read MoreCooking Made Simple
Cooking can be hard. It requires memory, problem solving, safety awareness, and multi-tasking, all things that can be more difficult after a brain injury. Here at Galaxy Brain and Therapy Center, we work to simplify tasks such as cooking with customized and detailed step-by-step directions. Comprehensive directions decrease the cognitive demands of the task and…
Read More“Doing laundry is too overwhelming, especially trying to separate all of my kids’ clothes!”
Is doing laundry overwhelming or stressful? Do you have a hard time sorting clothes for each family member after doing laundry? Try some of these solutions to help ease the task of doing laundry: 1. Assign each family member a color and buy 1 laundry basket per family member in their designated color. Assign each…
Read More“We’re Going to Make This Place Your Home”- A post on Music Therapy
The morning after my father suddenly passed away, my mother found his iPod. There were three songs on there that we had never heard before. The lyrics to them related so well to the shocking loss, that it felt as if my dad was talking to us. I’ve always known music is used therapeutically for…
Read MoreIncorporating Laughter Therapy into Treatment
As an occupational therapist I am always trying to find innovative treatment strategies to incorporate into OT sessions. Many years ago I was introduced to the concept of “Laughter Therapy” when I worked at an inpatient neuro-care center and was inspired at this years BIAMI’s conference by something one of the guest speakers…
Read MorePlateau… A Dirty Little Word!
Today at the Brain Injury Association of Michigan’s State conference in Lansing, I was extremely inspired by many of the speakers. One in particular spoke to me in a way that really made me think about the word PLATEAU. She called it a “Dirty Little Word.” I couldn’t agree more. It was all I could…
Read MoreYou are not alone
Who am I now? Searching for Pieces of My Former Self After a Traumatic Brain Injury By, Meg Scaling/OTRL Life Skills Community Rehabilitation & Associates, LLC You are not alone. I hear the same stories of sadness over and over again as I work with individuals who have suffered a traumatic brain injury. Stories of individuals…
Read More“I am overwhelmed with grocery shopping, it takes too long and I can’t find what I need. It takes me 4 hours to shop!”
Do you have difficulty with grocery shopping? Try this solution: Low tech: Create aisle specific grocery list for the most frequent store where you shop. For example, if you shop at Kroger and Target the most, go to those stores and make a specific list of what the you buy there. Then, take the list…
Read More“If I am driving and something happens like a flat tire, I panic and don’t know what to do.”
Do you want to be more independent in the community, but you are worried that you won’t know what to do in an emergency? Low Tech: It is helpful to have a emergency protocol book located in your car. This book should include protocol worksheets giving step by step guidelines to follow in case of…
Read More“Takes too long to shower because I forget what I have washed”
Do you have difficulty with tasks like showering? Try this solution: Create a waterproof magnetic laminate board in shower and create a list of your shower routine. Have someone help you and list your exact washing routine step by step. Type, laminate, and put this in the shower. Use a magnet and move it down…
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