PT recap: Musical Chairs, Move to Independent Toileting

One of the reasons I've been pushing for E to be more independent with maneuvering her sitting position is for her to be able to use a slide. Another is to have her be able to get in/out of a chair during mealtimes at school. And another--the Big One--is for her to be able to use the toilet independently. The fact that there is a hole in the middle of the toilet seat changes EVERYTHING. I know some of you parents of kids like mine know EXACTLY WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!

Anyway--Theresa thought of introducing E to Musical Chairs. It was a GREAT idea! Notice E's positioning when she almost has her feet on the ground when getting off the chair--I think doing bridges every night during our stretching regimen has really helped this motion.



We walked to the bathroom at the therapy center to try to see how E gets on the potty. This one has sidebars; this is the first time she's tried getting on a regular-size toilet seat (and the first time she's had one with sidebars).



We've actually been working on this (when we can--usually we don't have lots of time) since this session. Most of our efforts are for her to try to reach to the toilet paper, tear off some, and wipe herself (there is not much success with any of this yet), then for her to get down from the potty herself (most of the success is here, depending on her confidence) and then pulling her clothes back on (needs heavy assistance for balance at this point, but she gets the idea). The good news is the fundamentals are there, but the toilet size is the big problem. In some shopping malls, they have a "family bathroom"--where there is a miniature potty and sink. She can actually do ALL THAT HERSELF (two times, in two different malls)--it takes a lot of time and contact guarding, but she was SO PROUD of herself (and I was too!)!