The OT Mentor

14/01/2026

Oh, how interesting! 🧐 something to digest both intellectually and add to the shopping list to try orally!

Sharing the paper: Pickle juice – and other pungent foods – as a grounding strategy for managing episodes of dissociative shutdown.

Thankyou to Julie, Kasia and Pascal for your collaboration!
This paper introduces the Homeostatic Sensory-Reset Hypothesis

Abstract

Dissociative shutdown states occur when the individual encounters inescapable stress or trauma – or memories of inescapable stress or trauma. In the therapeutic space – occupational therapy, psychotherapy, or family therapy – working with shutdown states poses a clinical challenge. The individual’s loss of full awareness of what they are doing, or their loss of capacity to feel their body, to think, or to move or act, can bring the therapeutic process to a halt. Over the last half-century, body-oriented therapists working with the felt sense of the body, therapists working with patients presenting with complex trauma, and therapists working with patients with functional/dissociative seizures have introduced the use of grounding strategies to help patients maintain their connection with the body, self, close others, and the environment. This article explores the use of pickle juice (and other pungent foods) as a useful grounding strategy for managing dissociative shutdown states. Clinical examples are provided via vignettes. Also provided are a hypothesis and neurobiological model – the homeostatic sensory-reset hypothesis – as to why pickle juice and other pungent foods, which activate special sensory receptors in the gastrointestinal tract called transient receptor potential channels, help to disrupt and alleviate dissociation shutdown states.

O’Sullivan, J., Fitzgibbon, C., Carrive, P., & Kozlowska, K. (2026). Pickle juice – and other pungent foods – as a grounding strategy for managing episodes of dissociative shutdown. Human Systems: Therapy, Culture and Attachments, 0(0).

Link in comments

31/12/2025

Happy New Year! 🌟

A fresh year brings new beginnings, new goals, and new opportunities to grow. For families, it can be a time to reset routines, try new activities, and nurture healthy habits together. For us as paediatric OTs, it’s also a chance to look forward with curiosity and creativity as we continue supporting children to thrive.

Here’s to 2025 being a year of joy, progress, and connection.

31/12/2025

As the year comes to a close, New Year’s Eve gives us a moment to pause and reflect. For many families, it’s a time to celebrate together – whether that’s staying up for fireworks, sharing a meal, or creating your own traditions with the children.

For us as paediatric OTs, reflection is just as important as celebration. Looking back helps us see the progress, the little wins, and the moments of growth that made the year meaningful. Here’s to carrying that energy into a bright new year ahead. 🌟

30/12/2025

Yes, 🙌. We've always 'known' this but great to have this in a study.

Often children with P/P acute onset fixate on mom. I have said the illness stimulates the amygdala brain which is the most basic instinctual part of brain where survival and suckling, startle response comes from.

BELOW is a much better explanation!

Copied from the Farmacyreal.

Children often save their most intense emotions for their mothers because they see her as the ultimate “safe base” to release stress and be their unfiltered self, trusting her co-regulation (calming presence) to soothe their nervous system after holding it together elsewhere. Their nervous system literally attunes to the mother’s, and showing big emotions is a sign of deep trust, not defiance, indicating they feel secure enough to “fall apart”.

▶️Why this happens (The Science):
📑Safety & Trust: A child’s nervous system recognizes the mother (or primary caregiver) as the person they can fully trust to handle their big feelings without judgment or threat, allowing them to drop their guard.
📑Co-regulation: Mothers help calm a child’s distressed nervous system through mirroring (heartbeat, breath) and soothing. This teaches the child self-regulation.
📑Mirroring the Nervous System: A child’s internal state (heart rate, stress hormones) mirrors the parent’s. A mother’s calm presence is medicine; her anxiety can become the child’s “normal”.
📑The “Safe Field Effect”: When a child sees their mother, their brain gets a signal they’re safe to release pent-up emotions from school or other situations.

▶️What it looks like
📑“Saving the Worst for Last”: They might behave perfectly at school but have meltdowns at home because the tension has to go somewhere.
📑Not Misbehavior, but Release: The tantrum isn’t defiance; it’s the child letting go of stress in the one place they feel secure enough to do so.

▶️How to respond
📑Regulate Yourself First: Your calm is their medicine. Take deep breaths to signal safety.
📑Validate & Connect: Say, “You held a lot in today. It’s okay to let it out now”.
📑Offer Presence, Not Logic: Their logical brain is offline. Offer connection, gentle touch, and calm, not lectures.

Studies also show that when children don’t have this secure attachment to lean on, it negatively rewires the child’s brain.
Read more here:

https://www.news-medical.net/news/20250612/Unpredictable-caregiving-rewires-the-braine28099s-threat-response.aspx?fbclid=IwY2xjawO_rapleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR7NUyVIc2cRz7hjb5SwbWgOjKztLXKssPwfYCOiG5kDRp1A2RGdVCpAN9lS-Q_aem_Uc0UuLyrlKf60WuPN5Furw

25/12/2025

Boxing Day often comes as a welcome pause after the excitement of Christmas. It’s a chance to slow down, recharge, and spend time with family in a different rhythm – whether that’s enjoying the outdoors, playing with new toys, or simply resting.

In our work as paediatric OTs, we know how important these quieter moments are for children and families. Connection, play, and downtime can be just as valuable as the big events. 💙

24/12/2025

✨ From our practice to your family, we wish you a joyful and peaceful Christmas.

For many of the families we work with, this season is a chance to slow down, create traditions, and make memories together. It’s also a reminder of the power of community – something we value deeply in our work and in the Kids OT Pod.

May your Christmas be filled with laughter, kindness, and connection. 💙

02/12/2025

🌍 Today is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities – a day to acknowledge the rights, strengths, and contributions of people with disabilities across the world.

In paediatric occupational therapy, we see every day how children’s abilities shine when they are supported with the right tools, environments, and encouragement. Disability does not define potential. Every child has the right to participate fully, to belong, and to thrive. 💙

Let’s keep working together for a more inclusive world.

19/11/2025

🌟 Today we celebrate World Children’s Day – a day to re-centre children’s rights, voices, and futures.

As paediatric OTs, we are privileged to walk alongside children as they grow, explore, and find their independence. Every child deserves the chance to play, learn, and thrive in a world built with them in mind.

Let’s keep working together to create environments where children feel safe, supported, and free to be themselves. 💙

12/11/2025

🌍💛 Today is World Kindness Day – a reminder that the smallest actions can create the biggest ripples.

In paediatric OT, we see daily how kindness builds trust, helps children feel safe, and empowers families to keep going even when things feel hard.

Whether it’s offering encouragement, celebrating small wins, or simply listening – kindness is never wasted.

✨ What act of kindness can you share today?

11/11/2025

Today is Allied Health Assistants Day – a chance to celebrate the incredible contribution AHAs make to healthcare.

In paediatric OT, our AHAs play such a vital role in supporting children to reach their goals. Their energy, patience, and dedication allow us to do so much more as a team. We are so grateful for their work and the difference they make every day!

10/11/2025

Today on Remembrance Day, we pause to honour the service and sacrifice of those who have served, and those who continue to serve, for our country.

At 11am, we observe a minute’s silence to reflect on their courage and commitment.

Lest we forget. 🌹

31/10/2025

Happy Occupational Therapy Week! 🎉

This week we celebrate the incredible breadth of our profession — from supporting children to thrive at school and home, to empowering adults to rebuild independence, to helping communities create inclusive environments.

OT is about so much more than activities — it’s about participation, belonging, and living life to the fullest. Here’s to all the OTs making a difference every day!