Collaboratively supporting recovery, health and participation in meaningful life activities
CHD’s Institute for Dynamic Living (IDL) encompasses a broad array of services offered by leaders in the field of mental health and occupational therapy that includes evaluation, therapy, consultation, training, and research activities. Individual and group services are offered to help clients develop the skills necessary to foster independence and the ability to learn and engage more fully in meaningful roles, routines, and activities. Weekday, evening, and weekend hours are offered to meet the needs of busy schedules.
How do we differ from others?
In the simplest terms, this special program is integrative. Licensed to provide both rehabilitation and behavioral health outpatient services, the IDL’s multidisciplinary staff help individuals and families identify and create specialized programming to reach their specific needs and goals. The IDL offers a full range of integrated occupational therapy (OT) and/or behavioral health services for children age 3 and up, including adolescents, adults, seniors, and caregivers. Services are individualized, strength-based, holistic, and person-centered.
The IDL’s staff is trained to work with individuals with a variety of needs and goals. For instance, those with developmental, cognitive, sensory processing, trauma, attachment, learning, or other behavioral health-related difficulties may be impacted in ways that make day-to-day living more difficult. Some of these areas of difficulty may include one or several of the following:
• Functioning in school, at work, or at home
• Developing and maintaining relationships
• Regulating/controlling emotions and/or behaviors
• Feeling overwhelmed by stress or anxiety
• Struggling with balance, motor coordination, and/or motor control
• Feeling highly sensitive to different kinds of stimulation or busy environments
• Coping during transitions
• Remembering things and/or staying focused on tasks
• Challenges with mental health symptoms
The primary goal of the IDL is to help clients and families by offering a host of services that are collaborative and support recovery, independence, health, and wellness.
Dr. Tina Champagne, the IDL’s program director, reports, “I recently had a parent tell me that she was unable to continue receiving services at a local clinic. They told her that her child needed to be able to ‘behave’ before they could help him. This mother stated that she was, ‘relieved to finally find a place that would offer the support needed to help her son engage in services.’ A different adult client recently stated that, ‘No one else ever understood my experience of being completely over-stimulated by my environment. I have answers now and the support I need to do something about it.’ ”