What are Independent Living Skills?
Independent living skills are the skills individuals need in order to live life independently. Working on life skills with adolescents/teenagers as an occupational therapist will allow them to gain the independence required to live independently
- Occupational therapists can work on a variety of life skills from birth to death to maximize their independence these can include:
- Meal preparation
- Community mobility
- Health maintenance
- Home management skills
- Shopping
- Care of others/pets
- ADL skills such as dressing, hygiene, eating, feeding, and functional mobility
- Executive functioning
- Leisure exploration
- Sensory processing
- Environmental modification
- Stress management/coping skills
- Time management skills
- Daily activities/routines
- Social interaction skills
Populations:
- Occupational therapists specialize working on independent living skills with neurodevelopmental conditions such as ADHD/autism as well as mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, and compulsive conditions
Assessments:
- To measure what possible skills an individual needs assistance with to gain independence, an occupational therapist can use a variety of tools to understand and gain knowledge about what life skills an individual needs/wants to work on including:
- Interviews: to gain knowledge verbally about what the individual wants to achieve
- Observation: to observe what skills they need to work on
- Questionnaires: to gain information on what skills the individual/parent believes they should work on
- Checklists: to gain information in a checklist formation of what skills the individual/parents believe they should work on
- Standardized assessments: including the Rolling Evaluation of Activities of Life (REAL) which assesses ADL and IADL skills required to live independently
`. 
How can Occupational Therapist Help with Independent Living Skills?
- Life skills groups: In life skills groups, individuals will be with other peers around their age where they will develop essential skills to gain independence and to take care of themselves with minimal parental support. Groups can include, life balance, independent living skills, stress management, time management, organization/planning, coping skills, and psychosocial skills. These groups can take part in the community or therapy clinic
- Individual sessions: These sessions are specific to meet personal needs, but will work on education and training on topics/skills and problem-solving to incorporate strategies into real-life situations to gain independence in the community
- Recommendations for gap year programs: Gap year programs are programs within the community that assist individuals with the extra support they need. This can include a full week of classes for 1 year to work on the skills they need to attend college or transition to a full-time job after high school.
