Sensory Integration Education

Emma Snowdon presented at the 2018 Autumn conference about how she incorporates an SI approach into her practice. Emma believes that SI is an important approach for OT’s, SLT’s and PT’s so that we can be more effective, efficient and holistic. 

SN: Tell us about yourself and your career background

Emma: I am a paediatric physiotherapist and an advanced SI practitioner. I have three beautiful teenage daughters and two fur babies called Jessles and Oreo! I trained to be a physiotherapist at Coventry University and I qualified in 2002 after first completing a degree in Medical Sciences and Biochemistry at Leeds University. Until 2017, I worked as part of a small community team and had a very varied role including working in a special school, running various clinics, doing home and school visits etc. In 2016, I started working independently, and in 2017 I finally left the NHS. I never thought I would leave the NHS however, I eventually became very frustrated by the restrictions and limitations of what I was allowed to do. I now work solely as an independent practitioner and although I still do some ‘traditional’ physiotherapy work and some more classic SI work, most of the work I do is for ‘support after adoption’ agencies. I am really interested in the effects of developmental trauma on neuro-development and how this impacts upon the sensory systems. My work now is extremely varied and I absolutely love what I do. For example, in addition to assessment and therapy, I am currently working with some local services to help develop their therapeutic parenting courses to include the sensory piece and I am also working alongside some clinical psychologists looking at how we can work jointly to more effectively support the families we both currently work with separately.

SN: Why as a physiotherapist did you become interested in undertaking SI training?

Emma: In my NHS role, and in particular, assessing for DCD, I was meeting more and more children and their families who I was struggling to understand. These children were having difficulties with attention, motor skills, were struggling to sit still, often literally trying to climb the walls in the clinic room. I was finding parents were being passed from pillar to post without support and were often feeling that they were being blamed as the reason for their child’s difficulties. I generally felt unequipped to help these families and I was seeing more and more of them. I therefore set out to gain a greater understanding of dyspraxia and what might be going on for these children. In 2010, I attended the SI Education Introduction to SI and I was blown away! I came away with two main things in my head; 

1. Anyone and everyone who works with children needs to know about this, and 2. I wanted to know more. I decided that I wanted to start the modular pathway. At that point I didn't know how relevant to my role as a physiotherapist it would be, and if I would perhaps do just the first module, however I knew I wanted to learn more. The more I learnt the more I realised how fundamental SI is to all therapists and therefore with a lot of effort, hard work and the help of an overdraft, credit cards and the ‘bank of Dad!’ I ended up qualifying as an Advanced SI Practitioner in 2016. Since then, I have completed quite a bit of training around sensory attachment including SAI level one, the just right state course and attachment training.

SN: How has becoming an SI practitioner changed your practice?

Emma: Being SI trained has drastically changed my practice. In many ways I feel that I am so far removed from how I worked as a non-SI physiotherapist I have often questioned what I am now! However, when I was asked to present at the SI Education Conference about using SI from a physiotherapist’s perspective, it gave me the opportunity to really reflect on this and I came to the conclusion that fundamentally, what SI training has given me is a greater understanding and more knowledge. It is therefore only a natural progression that my practice would change to reflect this. My focus now is much more a bottom-up approach looking at the sensory systems rather than a top-down approach. I also feel that I focus more on regulation and arousal levels and my approach is much more child-led than directive. I feel that because of this I usually get so much more out of the child and when I am using the right approach we can get to our end goal much faster.

SN: What are your particular areas of PT-SI interest?

Emma: As mentioned already, I am fascinated by the effects of trauma on brain development and how this significantly impacts upon children’s ability to cope with stress throughout their lives. As a physiotherapist I am particularly interested in how trauma often affects the ‘body senses’ and the impact therefore upon body awareness, spatial perception, grading of movement, coordination etc. I also have a particular interest in the link between joint hypermobility and decreased proprioception and how so many children who have dyspraxia also have hypermobility as a comorbidity. 

SN: What are your future study plans (e.g. research modules completing MSc)

Emma: I have recently returned to Ulster University to hopefully complete my Master's in SI. I have just completed the "Research Evidence in Health Sciences" module and will start the "Research Project Preparation" module in January 2019. I am really looking forward to doing my research project but I have so many ideas on what I’d like to look at, I might find it hard to decide! I am also hoping to complete my Sensory Attachment Intervention level one accreditation soon.

SN: What message or advice would you give to other physios about SI? 

Emma: Completing the SI modular pathway has been the best thing I have ever done with regards to my career. I honestly believe that SI is fundamental to all therapists whether we are OT, SALT or PT. I am passionate about getting more physiotherapists on board, so if anyone is thinking about doing their training, I would whole heartedly encourage you to do so. For the first time ever, I feel that I am in a position to say I absolutely love what I do for a job and I feel so privileged to be able to say that and mean it! Yes, I have deviated from a more ‘traditional role’ but I bring with me all of my core physiotherapy skills and have added to them to allow me to be a much more holistic practitioner, working in an area that I am passionate about.