Working with Matrescence OT
Frequently Asked Questions
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The definition of matrescence encompasses the physical, emotion, psychological, spiritual and even political and cultural transition to motherhood. These transitions not only happen the first time one becomes a mother, but every time. Though based in the word “maternal”, matrescence does not refer to a gender, but to an identity. Like the period of adolescence, matrescence is a developmental period of life that comes with huge changes in who someone is as a person and how they live their life.
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Occupational therapy (OT) is a health profession that helps people achieve independence and participation in the occupations (activities) of everyday life. Often you'll find occupational therapists (OTs) at the forefront of illness, injury or developmental milestones. OTs trained in perinatal and maternal health and wellness support people at the forefront of motherhood. Occupational therapy during the prenatal and postpartum period focuses on everyday function when preparing to become and as a mother or parent. What also makes maternal and perinatal health OTs unique is that they work with the mother and baby as a dyad, and center support around the family unit.
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Occupational therapists are required to have at minimum a Masters level education in occupational therapy and hold a professional license in the state(s) they practice. We also maintain our status as registered practitioners and take yearly Continuing Education Units (CEUs) to keep up with our license and certifications. In addition, we have specialized training and education in maternal mental health, child development, pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum care, infant feeding and other topics specific to working with mothers.
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If you are already working with a birth or postpartum doula, you are off to a great start! Doulas help support a mother to prepare for and through the birth process and a postpartum doula may help support a mother and her family with the mother’s infant’s care during the early postpartum period. As occupational therapists, we can compliment this support by providing services to address physical and mental health needs as well as support the development of your child. An OT is a healthcare professional trained to address pain, ergonomics, mental health or child development concerns like infant feeding and milestones during pre-conception, pregnancy, postpartum and beyond.
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If you are already working with a lactation consultant, you are off to a great start! Having a provider who is knowledgeable about breast-feeding and lactation can be essential to a positive breastfeeding experience. IBCLCs (International Board Certified Lactation Consultants) are providers who have undergone extensive training, education and have passed a rigorous certification test. An IBCLC is an ideal professional to be seeing about lactation or breastfeeding if you have concerns about your milk supply, need specialized advice about a medical diagnosis for either baby or lactating/ breastfeeding parent, or want a specialized provider for breastfeeding and lactation. Though we have specialized training and education in lactation and breastfeeding, at this time neither of our occupational therapists are IBCLCs (although we are in the process!). An occupational therapist can work alongside you, your lactation consultant and your baby to address concerns related to breastfeeding such as development, movement, routine, and the day to day application of the advice or care plan given to you by your lactation consultant. We are also able to address some components of lactation and breastfeeding directly such as latch, positioning, bottle-feeding, and physical and mental support for both mom and baby during feeding. If we feel you need more specialized care, we will refer out to one of our trusted IBCLC providers whom we think will be a good match for your situation.
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Pediatric physical therapist who specialize in infants can be an essential part of a care team, especially for our typical client. Physical therapists focus on optimal movement patterns, strength and stability needed for your baby to reach developmental milestones. We often work alongside PTs to address different components of similar goals and see very positive results when working in tandem. Depending on your particular goal, an OT or PT may be more appropriate to see at different times. If we feel your goals or challenges would be better addressed by physical therapy, we will refer out to one of our trusted physical therapists whom we think will be a good match for your situation.
FAQs
The Basics
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OTs who specialize in maternal and perinatal health view motherhood as a developmental milestone and work with families to:
· Increase support by a health professional immediately postpartum and beyond the traditional 6-week visit with their birth provider.
· Address the mother within the context of her family & community to support baby's health, development & well-being.
· Provide education about & access to other maternal health and support providers who can support the mother's health & well-being.
· Reduce the discrepancy between expectations & realities of pregnancy and postpartum providing support and education prenatally and helping to secure plans and systems to increase success of the first weeks of motherhood and beyond.
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As occupational therapists, we are here to help you with challenges and goals around every day life. For mothers, this looks different at different stages.
During the prenatal period, we offer education about physical and mental changes of pregnancy and birth. We focus on ways to improve your well-being and participation in daily activities during pregnancy. We will also work with you to prepare for motherhood (or the addition of a new sibling) by looking at how your environment and social support can support you once baby is here.
Postpartum, we offer individualized support that will meet your and your baby’s needs. We work not only with you as a mom and as an individual, but tailor our treatment based on what you and baby need to do together (we call this a dyad), and how we can help support your family’s routines and well-being. As healthcare providers, we are able to screen for postpartum anxiety and depression, evaluate baby’s development, provide support through milestones, and assess and support you in your own physical, mental health, and wellness.
A few broad areas occupational therapists can help with are: mental and emotional health, mother and infant sleep, physical health and ergonomics, transition to return to work, infant feeding, recovery from c-section or vaginal birth and sensory regulation.
If you are not sure if we can help you, we always offer a free 15 minute consultation.
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During the physical recovery from birth and pregnancy, maternal health occupational therapists can assist in education on newborn care, lactation and breastfeeding support. They can also helps mothers and families manage postpartum mental health challenges, provide pain management strategies and educate families on supporting their infant’s development.
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Your first visit is considered an evaluation. It is expected to take around 90 minutes and will take place in your home or another environment where you feel comfortable. We will go over an intake form and talk to you about your routines with baby. At this visit, we will discuss in detail your goals for our work together and make a plan for accomplishing them. We may give an assessment or screening.
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Yes! In fact, our treatment model is home and community support. We believe that supporting you in your home will have the best outcomes. We will schedule our visits at a time that works for you and your family. We currently service Austin, TX and surrounding areas. However, for certain situations, we do offer Telehealth remotely.
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We are an out-of-network provider. Upon request, we can provide a form called a superbill that you can submit to insurance for out-of-network reimbursement. As an out-of-network provider, you will have our full attention and care without being limited by insurance-based goals and time restraints, as is often the case. We will accept HSA and FSA. We are certified non-network providers with Tricare for both lactation and occupational therapy and may be able to provide support only these benefits.
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It’s easy! Schedule a free 15 minute consultation with us. The consultation call is an important step to our process that allows us to meet and decide together if we can help you. During the call, we will answer any questions or concerns you may have and go from there!
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We see families in their homes if they live within our service area in the greater Austin, TX area including Plugerville, Lakeway, Westlake Hills, Round Rock, Georgetown, Cedar Park, Dripping Springs and Leander. For clients who live outside of our service area, we do charge a small travel fee for in-home visits, and our availability for this is determined on a case by case basis. When you complete your consultation call with us, we will be able to tell you if you are within our service area based on your address. If you live in the state of Texas, we may also be able to provide telehealth services virtually.
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Yes! We love working with our community. We hold group classes and workshops online and in-person in the Austin area on a variety of topics. We also are available as guest speakers. Contact us so we can personalize our content to your situation and clientele.