• What are executive functioning skills? How do I know if I am having issues with executive functioning? 

  • Executive functioning skills are higher level cognitive skills that allow you to attend to tasks, shift from one task to another, organize items, initiate tasks, sequence steps, control your emotions, store and retrieve information from memory, and manipulate multiple things at a time within your brain. If you are struggling in any of these areas, you may be experiencing difficulty with executive functioning. Common complaints include: difficulty recalling names, items to get at the grocery store, focusing on school or work related tasks, bouncing from one task to another, initiating home/school/work to do items, completing a multiple step project, and managing emotions. 

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• What is cognition and how does therapy help with cognition?​​

  • According to the American Occupational Therapy Association "AOTA" website, "Cognition refers to information-processing functions, including attention, memory, and executive functions (i.e., planning, problem solving, self- monitoring, self-awareness). Functional cognition is the interaction of cognitive skills and self-care, and community living skills. It refers to the thinking and processing skills needed to accomplish complex everyday activities such as household and financial management, medication management, volunteer activities, driving, and work. Occupational therapy practitioners focus their interventions on the relationship between the client’s cognitive skills, functional performance, and environmental context to enhance the daily life experience of individuals with cognitive impairment." -The Role of Occupational Therapy in Adult Cognitive Disorders - AOTA*

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