Last Updated: July 24, 2026
Occupational therapy is a powerful tool that can help individuals to overcome barriers, achieve independence and find fulfilment in their daily lives. Whether you are a parent seeking support for your child, an older person looking to enhance your quality of life or someone in need of emotional and mental wellbeing support, occupational therapy offers a personalised approach that acknowledges your unique needs.
What is occupational therapy?
Occupational therapists work with people to find innovative ways to help them carry out activities they can’t do due to illness, disability, a long-term condition or ageing. It can help with tasks such as using a computer, eating, taking part in hobbies, doing housework and washing and dressing. If you need tools to help you, an occupational therapist can teach you how to use them.
Occupational therapy encompasses a wide range of conditions and is applicable to people of all ages. From children with developmental delays to adults recovering from strokes or coping with mental health challenges, occupational therapy offers tailored interventions to address unique needs.
How can occupational therapy help you?
An occupational therapist will help you to identify the challenges you have in everyday life and then work with you to find practical solutions to your difficulties. The solutions will help you to be more independent in daily life or to regain independence you may have lost.
- Fine motor skills enhancement: Occupational therapists can help you to improve fine motor skills, allowing you to perform daily tasks such as brushing your teeth, writing or buttoning a shirt independently.
- Pain reduction: Through therapeutic interventions or assistive devices, occupational therapy can alleviate pain caused by conditions like arthritis or repetitive strain injuries.
- Cognitive function improvement: Occupational therapy provides strategies and exercises to enhance cognitive functioning, such as memory, attention and problem-solving skills. This can be particularly valuable for individuals with cognitive impairments or those recovering from brain injuries.
- Emotional and mental support: Occupational therapists work holistically to address emotional and mental wellbeing. Through meaningful engagement in activities, individuals develop coping strategies, build self-esteem and find purpose, enhancing their overall psychological health.
Using tools and technology
There are myriad tools to help with any size of difficulty, so do mention all your challenges to your occupational therapist, no matter how small you may perceive them to be.
Some examples of tools that can help you are:
- A wheelchair, walking frame or walking stick.
- Gadgets for the kitchen, such as knives with large handles, electric can openers or teapot tippers.
- Tools to help with your personal care, such as electric toothbrushes, tap turners, a non-slip mat for the bath or a special comb.
- Something to help with your work, such as a special computer keyboard or mouse, voice-controlled software or chunky pens.
- Devices to help you enjoy your pastimes, such as a gadget that turns the pages of your book or voice-controlled lights.
- Technology to make relaxing easier, such as specialist seating, bed raisers and hoists.
Making changes to your environment
Your home, workplace or another environment in which you spend a lot of time, such as where you study, can be made more suitable for your needs with some adaptations.
Changes can include:
- Adding ramps to the exterior or interior of your home to accommodate a wheelchair.
- Putting grabrails by the bed to help you rise in the morning or by the stairs to help you get up and down the steps.
- Adding visual cues around your home so you can easily identify where your items live.
- Installing a stairlift so you can access the whole of your home.
- Adapting your bathroom with a raised toilet seat, shower seat or walk-in bath.
Activity grading
Activity grading breaks down a task into more manageable chunks. This may mean reading one chapter of a book each evening to complete a reading assignment instead of trying to read the whole book in one go, or it may be breaking down the walk to work with a bus ride for part of the way.
An occupational therapist will also help you to think of ways to make tasks easier, such as setting up your weekly shop to be delivered to your home.
In the workplace
There are many ways occupational therapy can help in the workplace, such as increasing awareness of your condition with your colleagues and employer and finding ways to assist you with completing your work activities. Your workplace can be assessed to ensure it is set up in the best way for you to complete your activities.
How to find an occupational therapist
The first thing to do is see your GP or another healthcare professional working with you if you feel you would benefit from occupational therapy. You will be asked to describe the difficulties you are having. There may be a waiting list, so it’s worth asking how long you may have to wait for a referral.
You may be able to access occupational therapy free of charge from the NHS through your local Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) following an assessment. There may be different criteria depending on your local authority, but all local authorities will establish that you are unable to carry out necessary tasks due to a physical or mental impairment or illness and that being unable to perform these tasks is having a negative impact on your health and wellbeing.
You can also access occupational therapy privately. If you decide to see a private occupational therapist, ensure they are fully qualified and a member of a professional body such as the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT).
Only healthcare professionals registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) are permitted to use the title of ‘occupational therapist’. You can check the HCPC online register here.
You can also search for occupational therapists near you on the Care Choices website.
Help is available, and you may choose to apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant. You can also find more information about getting financial help here.
