About

Occupational Therapy

During Occupational Therapy sessions we spend time playing, experiencing nature, building relationships, dancing, writing/coloring, and exploring areas of interest in order to facilitate development of age-appropriate skills. Using a variety of assessment tools, we work alongside families to create a plan of care that encompasses the skills and goals that are most important to the client and will facilitate participation in daily life.

Your child may benefit from occupational therapy if:

You are concerned about your child’s development.
You feel your child struggles to complete coordinated movements.
You notice behavior concerns that impact engagement in daily or family life.
Your child struggles to complete age appropriate self-care skills.
Your child responds to his sensory environment in a way that hinders his involvement in relationships or activities.
You have concerns about fine motor or gross motor development.
You find yourself frustrated with teaching your child new skills.
Your child has had difficulty learning to write, cut, or complete school readiness skills.

We specialize in treating:

Fine Motor Skill Development
Gross Motor Skill Development
Visual-Motor and Visual-Perceptual Skills
Sensory Processing and Integration Skills
Ocular Motor skills
Self-care skills
Self-Regulation
Social skills

Common strategies and programs used during our treatments:

Nature-Based Treatment Techniques
The Interoception Program – Kelly Mahler, MS, OTR/L
DIR/Floortime Model of treatment
The Zones of Regulation
Sensational Brain and BrainWorks – Sensory Information
Handwriting without Tears
Rapid Prompting Method
Sensory Integrative Techniques
Play-Based treatment approaches
Biomechanical treatment techniques
Supportive Systems – visuals, PECs, basic sign language
Art, Music, and Fine Arts Techniques
Low Toxin Strategies for Living and Eating
Family Education and Home programming

RACHEL GERMANOVICH

With my whole heart, I believe in the importance of living an authentic life – authentic to who we are, what we believe, and what we want to accomplish. I believe this is possible for all people, with all levels of abilities, at all ages. It is for this reason that I was drawn to the field of occupational therapy.

I received a Bachelor of Science degree with a Minor in Business from the University of Illinois, and then received my Masters of Science in Occupational Therapy from Midwestern University. I have been a licensed Occupational Therapist in the state of Illinois for 9 years, and have spent 7 of those years working in pediatric occupational therapy in a variety of settings – schools, clinic, home-based, and nature-based. I have received additional training in sensory processing disorders/treatment, DIY/Floortime model, ocular motor disorders and vision therapy, as well as trainings related to specific diagnoses including developmental delays, neurological disorders, and Autism Spectrum Disorder.

I advocate for an integrative, team-based treatment approach and strongly encourage family involvement in treatment and home programming. For this reason, I offer treatment in the physical locations in which daily occupation occurs – home, school, community, nature.

Throughout my OT schooling and career I have been blessed to work with incredible families and individuals of all ages that have conquered their goals and engaged fully in their desired occupations.

I believe that while progressing toward a goal is important, engagement in occupation right now is equally as important to our personhood. It is my joy to meet clients where they are at and work together to facilitate an inclusive environment that encourages growth, development, and occupational engagement.

Along with being an occupational therapist, my favorite personal roles include wife, blessed mama to two children and three fur babies, daughter/sister, homemaker, artist, musician, nature-lover, and blossoming gardener. I value an active lifestyle, natural foods, thought-provoking reading, as well as personal and professional development.

I have a passion for watching others engage in daily occupations that allow them to live authentically, at every age. I whole heartedly believe this is possible for everyone. I believe in the healing power of occupation and I believe in each of you.

I look forward to meeting you!

About

KELLI MARTIN

Until I was 10 years old if you had asked me what I was going to do when I grew up I would have told you, “I’m going to be a teacher”. When I turned 10 my mother who had been extremely ill for several months started receiving occupational therapy. I spent many hours watching her therapists and assisting in her sessions. I truly felt OT was the one discipline that was focused on helping my mom relearn the things that a mother would need to do. From that point on I was sure I was going to be a part of the Occupational Therapy profession when I grew up. I later realized OT is a “teaching” profession so one could say I got to still do the dream job of my 5 year old self!

I love that OT focuses so much on the “whole person”. It is impossible in my mind to only treat one specific thing that a person may be dealing with as every part of our body, mind, and soul are connected. OT gives me and others in this profession permission to look at so many different factors that make up the human experience. The other wonderful thing about OT is it is extremely versatile, functional, and practical. We are able to use environments and things that people interact with everyday as they fulfill the occupations that are meaningful to them.

I graduated from Parkland College with an Associate in Applied Science and hold NBCOT certification and Illinois licensure as a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant. I am certified as a CPR/First Aid trainer and also as an instructor of QBS Safety Care. I have worked in a variety of settings including home health, outpatient services, long term care, inpatient rehab, and an alternative school setting. For the past 20 years I have worked for a non-profit community agency supporting children and adults with developmental disabilities. I have extensive training and experience in using a team approach, person centered planning, sensory techniques, adaptive equipment, functional skill building, dementia care, and behavior management.

What I find most rewarding in my work is getting to see people make gains towards independence. I also love watching people discover what they truly want and learn how to speak up for themselves. I am a believer in teaching self advocacy for all people and I am passionate about ensuring the rights of people with disabilities are not unnecessarily restricted.

When I am not working I am just a local girl that enjoys reading, community theater, singing, taking walks, bike riding, visiting antique shops and traveling, especially to places with an ocean view!

I look forward to meeting you and working with you 1:1 or in a group session!

Testimonials

“We have a seven-year-old son with ASD, and have learned a lot over these years about a lot of things including what we value in therapeutic care. Our son has worked with many different therapists and specialists over these years, but I can count on one hand the number of therapists who have made a positive lasting impact on our son and our family. Rachel is one of those few. She is intuitive, flexible, caring, creative, and willing to meet the child where they are, connect with them, and then create attainable goals that challenge but do not discourage the child or the family. She is skilled at understanding sensory regulation and knows how to help a child become/stay regulated so they are available for learning. She has a vision for the child, but is also able to discern needs and perhaps limitations on any given day and is able to patiently set boundaries and work through any challenging behaviors that may occur. I trust her with my son on his best and on his worst days. It feels good to know I have someone I can truly trust my son to.

We were hesitant to try in-home therapy because our son generally tends to work better in a clinical setting for therapy. However, having Rachel in our home to work with him on a regular basis has been rewarding. Our home has become a therapeutic space where he works well. He is making such clear progress in part because we are very much a part of the goal setting process, we are kept in the loop, and are taught how to continue working with him on our own. We are grateful to have Rachel in our lives.”

OT Client

Home

“Our daughter (5 years old) has been receiving Occupational Therapy services via tele-therapy since April 2020 and we have been elated with how well they are going. Rachel does an amazing job at incorporating fun and engaging activities that both challenge and entertain our daughter. Many of the activities have been ones that we can implement throughout the week to continue working on necessary skills. And preparing for the sessions is really easy! Rachel emails us before each session with a list of everyday items that we have around the house. We have seen our daughter make huge gains in her fine motor skills these past several months and we know part of that is due to her time with Ms. Rachel. We are so thankful that we have her as part of our daughter’s team. =)”

OT Client

Telehealth

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