What is emotional regulation?
Emotional regulation is the ability to monitor, evaluate and modify emotional reactions. This involves:
- Recognising emotions (ability to identify feelings when/as they are occurring)
- Understanding emotions (the causes and consequences of emotions)
- Expressing emotions (how to communicate feelings in appropriate ways)
- Managing emotions (strategies used to maintain emotional balance).
The role of Occupational Therapy
For many children, regulating emotions can be challenging. Occupational therapists can play an important role in supporting children and their families to develop awareness and skills for navigating their emotions effectively.
The occupational therapist analyses and considers a range of areas specific to your child to support an understanding of their sensory system. This includes:
- Sensory processing and environmental modifications
- Emotional awareness and expression
- Trialling strategies for coping and self-regulation techniques
- Environmental modifications
- Social skills for promoting self-regulation in social settings
Why seek support from an Occupational Therapist for Emotional Regulation?
The benefits of occupational therapy for support, with emotional regulation allows children and their families to be supported with experiencing:
- Improved self-esteem – to have tools for managing emotions and promote confidence and self-worth.
- Enhanced social interactions – if we can better regulate our emotions this can lead to healthier peer and adult relationships.
- Emotional regulation stability which may support concentration for learning.
- Skills to establish and recognise interoceptive awareness (internal body sensations).
- Building greater independence to manage one’s own emotions, an overall life skill
By identifying sensory preferences, teaching coping strategies, and modifying environments, occupational therapists can help children develop the skills to support managing their emotions effectively. This holistic approach may assist with promoting emotional well-being but also enhances overall development, enabling children to thrive in all areas of their lives. If you believe your child could benefit from occupational therapy for emotional regulation, consider reaching out to a qualified occupational therapist.