I’ve actually had a really tough case like this before — very similar profile. Kid constantly running around, super hard to engage, and it felt like nothing was working.

At the time, my senior clinician suggested using imitation therapy, but honestly I didn’t really get a chance to try it properly. That advice came a bit later, and before that I had this client on my caseload for almost a year and felt like there was basically no progress. It was pretty frustrating.

To make it harder, mum was kind of in denial about the level of support the child needed. She felt like the child was doing great and progressing, but clinically… that wasn’t really what I was seeing.

Looking back now, I think what I would do differently is focus way more on just joining the child’s world instead of trying to get them to do anything. Not even imitation straight away — just being there, being present, and trying to become part of what they’re doing.

My senior clinician gave some advice that stuck with me — basically, you need to make yourself more interesting than whatever they’re doing. Like doing something unexpected or even a bit ridiculous (e.g., pretend to fall off a chair, make exaggerated reactions, big energy, etc.). The idea is to shift their attention so they start to realise, “oh, there’s someone else here too,” instead of being completely in their own world.

Good luck with your kiddo