Meet Abbie: Supporting Confidence and Participation Across the Lifespan

Abbie is an Occupational Therapist who brings a warm, thoughtful and strengths-based approach to supporting people across the lifespan.

With experience working with children, adolescents and adults, Abbie is passionate about helping people build confidence, independence and meaningful participation in everyday life. She enjoys getting to know each person as an individual and working collaboratively with participants, families and support networks to find practical solutions that make a genuine difference.

Supporting People Across the Lifespan

Abbie’s clinical experience spans paediatric and adult Occupational Therapy, giving her the opportunity to support people with a diverse range of needs, goals and circumstances.

Her work with children and adolescents includes supporting sensory processing, emotional regulation, handwriting and functional skill development. When working with neurodivergent individuals, Abbie uses sensory-based and neurodiversity-affirming approaches that recognise each person’s individual strengths, preferences and needs.

Across her adult practice, Abbie has growing clinical interests in assistive technology, minor home modifications, neurological conditions including Parkinson’s disease, and functional capacity building within home and community environments.

Whether supporting a child to participate more confidently at school or helping an adult increase their safety and independence at home, Abbie’s focus remains on understanding what matters to the individual and identifying practical ways to support their participation.

Finding Practical Solutions to Everyday Challenges

One of the things Abbie values most about Occupational Therapy is the opportunity to combine clinical reasoning with creativity.

Rather than looking at a challenge in isolation, she considers the person, their environment, their daily activities and the people around them. This may involve developing strategies, adapting an activity or environment, exploring assistive technology or building the skills and confidence needed to participate more independently.

Abbie works closely with participants, families and support networks throughout this process, recognising that the most effective solutions are those that are realistic, meaningful and able to work within everyday life.

A Moment That Matters

One of Abbie’s memorable clinical experiences involved supporting a young child who had not yet developed the ability to jump, which was affecting her confidence when playing with her peers.

Through targeted work on postural control, careful task analysis, skill practice and parent education, along with practical activities that could be continued at home, the child gradually developed the skills she needed.

Seeing her confidently join her peers on the playground was a powerful reminder of how seemingly small functional gains can have a much greater impact on a person’s confidence, participation and sense of belonging.

It is this connection between everyday skills and meaningful participation that continues to shape Abbie’s approach to Occupational Therapy.

Building Confidence and Independence

For Abbie, successful Occupational Therapy starts with understanding what is important to the person.

Her collaborative and person-centred approach allows her to work alongside participants to identify barriers, recognise strengths and develop achievable strategies towards their goals.

As her practice continues to develop, Abbie has a particular interest in supporting people through assistive technology, functional capacity building and environmental modifications, as well as working with people living with neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease.

Across all areas of her work, the goal remains the same: helping people participate more confidently and independently in the activities and environments that are important to them.

Occupational Therapy Built Around the Individual

Abbie is known for her collaborative style, creativity and strong clinical reasoning. She brings warmth and curiosity to her work and values building relationships where participants and their families feel heard, understood and involved in the therapeutic process.

Her clinical strengths include Paediatrics, Sensory Processing, Emotional Regulation, Handwriting, Neurodiversity-Affirming Practice, Assistive Technology, DVA Services, Functional Capacity Building and Capacity Building Supports.

At Forbes Care, Abbie continues to support children, adolescents and adults to develop skills, overcome barriers and participate more meaningfully in everyday life.

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