Understanding Psychomotor Therapy

Psychomotor Therapy is a technique that aims to develop good coordination of movements and balance, improving a child’s motor skills: gross motor skills and fine motor skills. It also helps children to write better and improve their writing’s legibility.

Importance of Successful Movement and Balance Skills:

Successful movement and balance skills are crucial for a child’s psychomotor development. Children who have weak psychomotor skills may have low self-confidence as adults. Therefore, early treatment is essential for better results in the future.

Assessment and Treatment:

A psychomotor therapist assesses difficulties in the development of motor competencies and provides treatment where necessary. Psychomotor therapy is advisable when the child or young person has difficulty in developing movement and sensory skills, as well as interacting with others. The therapist provides a personalized treatment plan to address the child’s specific needs and improve their psychomotor skills.

Examples of these difficulties can include:

1. Problems with motor coordination, eg balance, clumsiness.
2. Difficulties with controlling the tonicity of muscles (tonus), eg tension.
3. Difficulties with fine motor abilities, eg when using scissors, doing woodwork, crafts, building.
4. Spatial and time perception difficulty.
5. Problems with handwriting, eg pencil grasp, placing too little or too much pressure on the pen/pencil, handwriting movements and processes that are not automatic to the child, uncertainty in the formation of letters, difficulty learning how to write.
6. If the interrelationships between perception, thinking, feeling and acting are not balanced, impaired psychomotor skill development can include:
7. Difficulties in communications
8. Behavioral problems (restlessness, aggression, impulsive, opposition …)
9. Attentiveness disorder

Link: https://www.nawfalclinics.com/specialties/psychomotor-therapy/