Michelle Newby PhD

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Michelle Newby PhD I’m an occupational therapist helping parents understand what’s behind their child’s big behaviours - and what they can do to help. Calm starts here.

I’m Michelle Newby PhD, occupational therapist, mentor, educator and researcher - and I help OTs build confidence, skill, and impact when supporting neurodivergent children and their families. With over 25 years of experience and a PhD exploring sensory processing and occupational performance in complex neurodevelopmental conditions, my mission is to bridge the gap between research and real-world practice so you can feel confident that what you do every day truly makes a difference. Each week, I share The OT Learning Hub Newsletter - a free, research-packed email designed to keep you inspired and informed. You’ll receive:
✅ Bite-sized summaries of new research relevant to paediatric and neurodevelopmental OT practice
✅ Practical takeaways you can apply straight away in sessions or parent coaching
✅ Updates on upcoming webinars, eBooks, and mentoring opportunities

If you’re passionate about doing great work and want to stay connected with a community of thoughtful, neurodiversity-affirming OTs - this is for you.

👉 Join here: https://www.michellenewby.com/OTLearningHubLP

and get your first research newsletter this week. Or you can find out more about me here: www.michellenewby.com

Yesterday was PANS/ PANDAS Awareness Day. I intended to post, but after participating in the Clinical Research Symposiu...
09/10/2026

Yesterday was PANS/ PANDAS Awareness Day. I intended to post, but after participating in the Clinical Research Symposium from midnight until 1.30 am Newcastle time, I was simply too sleepy!

Here in Australia, young people with PANS can lose access to government-funded IVIg when they turn 19 because of an age restriction - even when treatment has helped them return to school and regain independence.

Some can successfully wean off IVIg. Others deteriorate when it is withdrawn. Parents across Australia are sharing heartbreaking accounts of young people losing skills and independence after treatment ceased. Some are now housebound.

A birthday does not mean someone has recovered.

I’m working with families from PANS Australia to advocate for continued access when clinically indicated, based on individual need, documented benefit and treatment risks.

Please sign and share Angela Michell’s petition:
https://c.org/2JtYqQZvRR

10/09/2026

Are you the parent of a sensitive child?

Does your child have meltdowns over seemingly small things, like itchy clothing tags or loud noises? Do they refuse to wear certain clothes or have trouble sitting still at meals or school?

I’m Dr Michelle Newby, a pediatric occupational therapist with over 25 years of experience helping families just like yours. To help, I’ve created a free eBook, "The 10 Most Common Sensory Challenges (And How to Help Your Child)," filled with practical tips to make life easier for your child and family.

Click this link www.michellenewby.com/sensoryebookparents to learn more about how you can download it for free. 🎉

Learn simple strategies to help your child feel calm and understood!

Hey everyone, I was lucky enough to get early access to Gripipedia, and I can tell you - it’s brilliant!Cindy from and...
04/09/2026

Hey everyone, I was lucky enough to get early access to Gripipedia, and I can tell you - it’s brilliant!

Cindy from and Jaime from have taken a topic that is often oversimplified and created a resource that's detailed, accessible and immediately useful in practice. It will help you understand how and why children hold their pencils the way they do - and make informed decisions about whether support is needed and, if so, what the best next steps are.

This is one you’ll want on your bookshelf!

Cindy and Jaime are launching Gripipedia with a free live webinar on Friday 2 October at 9:00 am AEST.

Scan the QR code to register.

Whether you’re an occupational therapist, a parent - or both - you can choose the monthly newsletter that’s right for yo...
01/09/2026

Whether you’re an occupational therapist, a parent - or both - you can choose the monthly newsletter that’s right for you.

For OTs: Carefully selected research, critical analysis and clinically useful insights for paediatric occupational therapy and neurodevelopmental practice.

For parents: Practical, evidence-informed strategies to support your child’s regulation, participation and everyday life.

Choose your newsletter:
I’m an OT and a parent - send me both:
www.michellenewby.com/forms/2149708776

I’m an OT - send me the OT newsletter:
www.michellenewby.com/forms/2147949689

I’m a parent (but not an OT) send me the parent newsletter:
www.michellenewby.com/forms/2149618378

This week’s OT Learning Hub newsletter is coming out on Tuesday at 4pm!I’ll be exploring participation-focused goal sett...
16/08/2026

This week’s OT Learning Hub newsletter is coming out on Tuesday at 4pm!

I’ll be exploring participation-focused goal setting and why it can be so difficult to move from goals targeting underlying skills to goals that clearly describe what a child needs or wants to do in everyday life. It’s an area I’m deeply passionate about and something that comes up regularly in my supervision with occupational therapists across Australia.

I’m also sharing an important change coming to the OT Learning Hub newsletter after more than 130 weekly research reviews.

If you'd like to read it, you're very welcome to join the OT Learning Hub. Over 8,000 paediatric OTs receive the newsletter each week.

💌 https://www.michellenewby.com/OTLearningHubLP

12/08/2026

Diving headfirst into interoception…

But there’s a lot more to it than simply noticing body signals.

Join me for Interoception in Practice as we dive into the neuroscience, assessment, clinical reasoning and practical approaches that inform good OT practice.

📅 Live online | 14 August
💻 Replay available for one month

Find out more: www.michellenewby.com/interocpetion

INTEROCEPTION TRAINING – HAPPENING THIS FRIDAY Calling all paediatric occupational therapists!Are you supporting childre...
12/08/2026

INTEROCEPTION TRAINING – HAPPENING THIS FRIDAY

Calling all paediatric occupational therapists!

Are you supporting children with interoception… but they're still not recognising their body cues?

If you've been using body experiments and other interoception strategies but your clients still struggle to identify what's happening in their bodies, you're not alone.

Join me for a full-day, evidence-informed course where we'll explore the latest interoception research and a practical clinical framework to help you better understand and support interoception in clinical practice.

14 August 2026
Live online

Can't join live? The entire workshop will be available on demand after the event, so you can watch whenever it suits your time zone or schedule.

Find out more here: www.michellenewby.com/interoception

A lot of the conversation around interoception focuses on remediation.How do we help a child notice their body signals?H...
11/08/2026

A lot of the conversation around interoception focuses on remediation.

How do we help a child notice their body signals?
How do we build their awareness?
How do we help them recognise and interpret what their body is telling them?

These are important questions.

But I think we need to be talking much more about compensation too.

What do we do when a child doesn’t reliably notice hunger?
When they don’t recognise the need to use the toilet until it’s urgent?
When they don’t notice rising stress or changes in their energy level until they are already overwhelmed?

We can continue to support the development of interoceptive awareness.

But at the same time, we can put supports in place that reduce the need for the child to rely on interoception alone.

Scheduled meals. Toileting routines. External reminders. Visual cues. Wearable technology. Environmental and caregiver supports.

These aren’t lesser interventions. They are legitimate occupational therapy strategies that can support participation now.

For me, good interoception practice isn’t just about knowing how to remediate. It’s about knowing when to remediate, when to compensate, and when we need to do both.

This clinical reasoning is a big part of what we’ll be exploring in Interoception in Practice this Friday, 14 August.

This is my final live delivery of the workshop for 2026.
🔗www.michellenewby.com/interoception

One of the biggest misconceptions about interoception is that therapy should always focus on building awareness.But part...
08/08/2026

One of the biggest misconceptions about interoception is that therapy should always focus on building awareness.

But participation can't always wait.

A child still needs to eat, use the toilet, learn, and engage in everyday life - even while their interoceptive skills are developing.

That's where compensation matters.

Compensation isn't giving up on remediation. It's providing external supports that allow children to participate successfully now, while continuing to build interoceptive awareness over time.

The question isn't compensation or remediation.

It's knowing when each approach is the right one.

This is one part of my Interoception Ladder Clinical Reasoning Framework, and I'll explore it in depth in my Interoception in Practice workshop.

🔗 Register: www.michellenewby.com/interoception

Question: How do you decide when to compensate and when to remediate in your practice?

I've spent today putting the finishing touches on my Interoception in Practice workshop.One thing I've realised while pr...
06/08/2026

I've spent today putting the finishing touches on my Interoception in Practice workshop.

One thing I've realised while preparing is just how much my own thinking has evolved over the past few years.

The workshop certainly covers the neuroscience.

It explores assessment.

It discusses intervention.

But if I'm honest, that's not what I'm most excited about.

I'm looking forward to sharing the Interoception Ladder Clinical Reasoning Framework.

Because I think that's the piece that's been missing.

After years of reading, researching, presenting and applying these ideas clinically, it's exciting to finally bring everything together into one workshop.

If you'd like to join me, registrations are open now.
🔗 www.michellenewby.com/interoception

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PO Box 455, The Junction
Newcastle, NSW
2291

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