Tilby Blanch
BCST Practitioner, BHlthSc, Masters OccTherapy.
We sat down with one of our #trakkers, Tilby Blanch from Connected Craniosacral to learn a little more about how she and the clinic use Theratrak. Plus, we got to learn some cool new things about Craniosacral Therapy too!
- Laura Simmons
Hey Tilby, can you share a little about you and what you do?
Sure. I’ve been working as an occupational therapist for 5 years in paediatric private practice. In this role I enjoy supporting children and their families to connect, strengthen their relationships, and learn tools to manage in their daily lives. Through my work, I’ve learnt so much about the body, the nervous system, emotions, human bonding, relationships, and connection. I arrived at the need to better understand the underlying causes of an individual's presenting behaviour or concerns. Working as an OT, I had a strong passion to further understand these root causes and how they impact people in their lives.
This led me to undertake further study in craniosacral therapy. Through my study and practice with craniosacral therapy, I have gained many skills and a wider understanding of how to work with the nervous system - which influences our thoughts, actions, emotions, and regulation.
I’ve recently started my own business where I can use my knowledge in both occupational therapy and craniosacral therapy - both of which have their unique skills and complement each other so well. I am excited to see where this new adventure takes me.
What are some of the benefits of Craniosacral Therapy?
Craniosacral Therapy can benefit people of all ages. It involves gentle and light touch at the head, shoulders, hips, knees, and feet, to support balance within the central nervous system in the body and it helps regulate the Vagus nerve. Many people with a range of conditions find Craniosacral Therapy to be supportive, as it increases their ability to become aware of their body, their internal sensations and interoception, and their mind-body connection.
Craniosacral Therapy supports the central nervous system to regain balance through the therapist's ability to activate the Parasympathetic branch of the nervous system (our rest/digest/relaxation state) and to reduce over-activation of the Sympathetic branch of the nervous system (which drives the fight/flight response). Overall, this helps us to 'shift gears' between being highly active and alert, moving our body around and being highly engaged in an activity, to being able to slow our breathing and heart rate, to become more regulated and to be relaxed in a calm state - this is where our body repairs itself, and hence why we also need quality sleep!
There's so much more I could say about Craniosacral Therapy, but the very essence is working with the client where they are 'right now', in this moment, so there are elements of mindful awareness, meditation, and regulation of the entire body, whilst helping them to integrate the mind and body through their nervous system.
Why is it important for your clients to continue with practice at home?
I have centred my practice around giving clients of all ages, including children and their families, the tools to feel empowered in managing their everyday needs, the needs of their child/children, and in learning simple and effective strategies to support their self-care, self-regulation and emotional wellbeing. This is where Theratrak has been so beneficial for my clients to recall strategies and exercises from our sessions and integrate them into their daily life. Continuing practice of exercises and activities at home is extremely beneficial in building long-term skills, which allows clients to become more independent and empowered in their lives.
Tell us about why you started using Theratrak?
I began using Theratrak because I wanted an easy to access platform that could empower clients to take ownership and responsibility of their therapy outcomes. Using the Theratrak app allows me to develop the client's program after our session, and provide instructions to carry over the skills we focus on in our sessions. At the beginning of my career, I noticed that the therapy model can facilitate clients to rely on therapists’ providing the interventions solely during therapy sessions. However, I'm a firm believer that nearly all intervention occurs between sessions - in daily life, practicing skills in real-life situations, and building on skills in daily life between therapy sessions. A 45-minute appointment, every week, is less than 2% of the whole week! So if clients can continue their exercises/therapy tasks between sessions by accessing these on Theratrak, it not only empowers them, but will likely impact positively on their short and long term goals.
What are some of the unique activities you're creating in Theratrak?
I've been using Theratrak to create a range of activities for children/families accessing OT services, as well as clients who are working with me for Craniosacral Therapy. Some of the activities I’ve created include neurodevelopment movements to support primitive reflex integration. I've also created activities that clients can do to build their body awareness skills and to regulate their nervous system, in between our therapy sessions. Examples of these include body-based movement, and nervous system exercises to support the Vagus nerve and parasympathetic nervous system supporting self-regulation.
Tell us how the customisability of Theratrak has supported your practice.
Using Theratrak has saved me a great deal of time, simply because I can access my pre-created activities and send these through to the clients who are working on these goals and areas in therapy.
In the past, I used to spend hours creating individualised PDF docs and emailing out to clients, because I wanted to give them the tools and resources to best support them. However, this method was time-intensive for me, and required time for clients and families to print out or sift through their emails to stay on track.
Using Theratrak gives clients an easy-access portal to their home program, wherever they are. Clients also find it helpful when I have included the photo/video of the activity so they can recall directly the exercise easily - This function has been very useful!
How have your clients responded to the shift to digital home programs?
Clients are enjoying the ability to access their program anywhere they go. It's really convenient and the tracking system is available for clients who are motivated to check off their exercises and update me with how they’re going. It also means they don't need to print out so many exercise sheets to stick on the fridge or bedroom door!
What's a part of your practice you'd love to go digital?
Launching the option for Telehealth services has been one part of my practice that I've recently turned digital, however, I'd love to provide online courses and have these available on digital platforms in the future too!
