Full Circle Development Center

Hi! I know how challenging these waiting lists can be.  I have a neurodivergent son with sensory sensitivities and have finally secured both an OT and play therapist.  I highly recommend both.  For OT: Kristina Fuller from Full Circle OT. For therapy: Maggie Pantoni, LMFT

We have had amazing experiences with both of the following: Elisabeth Meikle at Outdoor Kids (all of their therapists are wonderful and it’s a terrific program but Elisabeth led our son’s group and she is simply magic! I know she is doing private/one-on-one OT now, as well) and Kristina Fuller at Full Circle. We could not have asked for a better one-on-one OT experience.

Try Full Circle OT. We’ve had really good results with our daughter. We are working with Christina Sosa. They tend to have a waiting list but if you can get an appointment it’s easier to switch to a more convenient time once you are in their system. 

You should try OT. My 5-year-old is hypersensitive and we were referred to OT. After a long waiting list, we got a spot at Full Circle. Their intake form was enlightening about categorizing all the things that bother my child. Basically, her body was too overwhelmed by sensory input so it made her act in ways that weren't great. My daughter isn't aggressive; she tends to withdraw, but they are flip sides of the same coin. She has improved dramatically after a year of OT, which is ongoing. I also recommend the book The Out of Synch Child. See if any of that resonates. There may be other things that could be driving your daughter's behavior but OT is a great place to start. 

Hey there! My oldest is neurodivergent and she benefited from Occuptional therapy to help regulate her body and also speech therapy to regulate her mind to match her language. My daughter went to Full Circle Collective to get OT and Speech Therapy, The speech therapist there had a TALK YOGA group too where she grouped kids together of smiliar ages and worked through language and self-regulation  https://www.talkyogaslp.com/ https://www.speechandlanguagewithsupreet.com/

We had a similar issue. I'd suggest exploring pediatric Occupational Therapy to see if that could help with transitions + self-regulation. Full Circle in Oakland is amazing. 

My 4-year-old daughter, with sensory processing disorder, is doing weekly individual OT sessions with Full Circle. They usually have a waiting list but it paid off to get on the list and keep following up. The individual sessions have helped her tremendously. Feel free to message me directly if you want the name of the occupational therapist. 

Hi, I was an OT at Full Circle. We closed the clinic due to Covid, but have created a smaller in home clinic in Oakland. Feel free to reach out to me and I can connect you with the appropriate member of our therapists. Otherwise, best of luck with everything!

Nov 2021 update: Full Circle has re-opened at the same location and can be reached at 510.250.9164 or FCCOT [at] gmail.com (F)CCollectiveOT [at] gmail.com (CCollectiveOT[at]gmail[dot]com)

My son saw Hannah Beggan at Full Circle and we noticed a difference in his mobility within days. Her contact info is 415 710-5798. I believe some of the OT's from Full Circle (including Hannah) are working outdoors.

That all sounds really really hard!  A lot of what you describe is familiar to me, so I'd like to recommend a few resources that have really helped our family:

1. OT: Kristina Fuller at Full Circle in Oakland.  She is simply amazing!  We have been working with her for a year and a half and our son has grown in so many areas and I have learned so much from observing her working with him.

I believe all the OTs at Full Circle do sensory integration OT. 

I know that Holistic Hope Center in Berkeley is also great for this and I have friends with children with SPD who've worked with the therapists there and have had great benefits.

2. Have you considered a speech therapist (SLP)?  They can also help rigid children to become more flexible.

3. Life-changing class offered in Walnut Creek/Lafayette beginning early 2019 (there are also some free webinars available).  My husband took it last year and the binder/book they give you is worth its weight in gold:

https://www.positiveparenthood.org/

4. Books: The Kazdin Method for Parenting the Defiant Child

Self-Reg by Stuart Shanker

Differently Wired by Deborah Reber

4. Positive Discipline classes for you and your husband (or at least read the books)

5. Have you considered ABA to help your son to do less-preferred activities as well as to practice "activities of daily living" such as peeing and eating?

I am wishing you all my best!  It's a hard road but tiny steps forward will lead to transformation!

I'm not sure how useful this is since it's not near you but Full Circle OT in Oakland has done a great job helping my dysgraphic son who also has sensory issues. We worked with Sasha, but there are many good therapists there.

I adopted my daughter when she was 6 years old, so my parenting does not encompass your experience, but I thought I'd weigh in on the value of an occupational therapy evaluation since it's been suggested to you. Occupational therapy addresses more than sensory integration. It assesses reflexes, sensory systems, visual processing, and motor skills to identify deviations from normal development. Subtle deviations in the vestibular and other foundational neural pathways that few other disciplines notice have a lot of significance in the realm of occupational therapy. Your daughter may be unhappy because of what she's experiencing in her body and negativity is her only way to express it. I would rule out any possible physical challenges that might underly her behavior before exploring psychological resources. Rita Montez and her colleagues at Full Circle Development in Oakland are very skilled. They're not going to recommend occupational therapy if their assessments don't reveal a need for it, and may have good ideas for next steps. Our family greatly benefited from their services and people they recommended to us.