Meet Lindsey Biel, Occupational Therapist
Clinical OT Practice
Lindsey is an occupational therapist with over 25 years of experience working with babies, children, teens, and adults in New York City. She started her career with a degree in English/Journalism, working as a writer for many years. Feeling unfulfilled, she earned a coveted full scholarship to New York University’s Occupational Therapy program, getting her Master’s degree in 1999. She worked in the NYC Public Schools and the NY State Early Intervention program before starting her private practice where she evaluates and works with clients ages 6 months to 60 years.
Lindsey takes an individualized, sensory-informed approach, combining her training in programs including Therapeutic Listening, Astronaut Training, DIR/Floortime, Neuro-Developmental Treatment, Sensory Integration, Brain Gym, Myofascial Release, Integrative Nutrition, Visual Processing Development, Handwriting Without Tears and more. Commitment to her clients’ self-advocacy and self-actualization always guides her work.
What Clients and Families are Saying
“I have always appreciated the time and expertise Lindsey shared with my daughter and our family. Without it would have been like driving down a dark road with no headlights.” — J.B.
“Aside from being a brilliant practitioner, it is her love of what she does and commitment to seeing kids flourish that make my kids love her and work so hard. I’m incredibly grateful for how much she has helped my kids.” — J.L.
“Meeting Lindsey changed the direction of my son’s life from the minute we met her. My son was diagnosed with PDD at the age of 18 months and we were so lost… She helped us out dramatically with a plan of attack. My son is now a thriving student and great athlete with mild sensory challenges, and to this day Lindsey would never turn me down if we needed help.” — C.D.
“Lindsey is the most skilled clinician in assessing children and adult with sensory and other challenges I have had the pleasure of working with. Her holistic, practical and approachable style gives you confidence in her expertise and a clear understanding of her assessment and recommendations. I trust her implicitly and have collaborated with her professionally as well as had her work with my own children.” — Kate Whyte, JD, LCSW
“Lindsey is a remarkable human being that helped to change the life of my daughter. She … connected to the whole child as a person, helping us to see her as who she could truly become. Her positive attitude will help you have a deeper appreciation of your child and give you tools to help them and you!!” — M.M.
“Before meeting Lindsey, I struggled with sensory overwhelm in crowds with loud noises and from smells…. Lindsey took the time to get to know me, to really listen and show compassion. Together, we were able to figure out what my sensory needs are. Lindsey was so thoughtful in coming up with strategies, solutions, and tools for helping me. Because of her creative thinking and openness, she was able to meet my specific and unique needs.” — Emily Leduc Gagné
Interested in working with Lindsey? Contact Lindsey@sensorysmarts.com to discuss your needs.
Speaking Engagements
Lindsey has taught parents, teachers, therapists and others at conferences, workshops, webinars and podcasts including the Yale Child Study Center, Kennedy Child Study Center, Bank Street College of Education, NYC Department of Education, Adapt Community Network, Guggenheim Museum, NPR, Fox Health, Voice of America, Sensory Integration Education UK, and the Gateway School of Mumbai. See previous speaking engagements.
Lindsey is now booking in-person workshops and webinars on:
- Positive, Strength-Based Strategies for Sensitive Kids: A Sensory Smart™ Approach
- Building Graphomotor and Fine Motor Skills
- Maximizing Vision and Visual Processing Skills
- Sensory Smart™ Strategies for Real-Life Challenges
- Sensory Smart™ Strategies for School Success
- Sensory Smart™ Sleep Strategies that Work
- Sensory Smart™ Strategies for Sound Sensitivity
- Managing Stress and Preventing Burnout
- Trauma-Informed Strategies for Adoptive/Foster Families and Profesionals
- Potty Training for Kids with Sensory Differences
- Sensory Friendly Art Works! Fostering Creativity and Sensorimotor Skills
Please contact Lindsey@sensorysmarts.com to discuss your training needs.
What Attendees are Saying
Sensory Smart Strategies for Real-Life Challenges
- “Lindsey is a great presenter. Her pace and modeling were terrific. I gained a lot of new ideas and will be sharing so much of what I heard with parents. I work as an autism consultant and support four different districts. Her at-home supports and ideas … were extremely helpful.”
- “I thought it was amazing. I learned a lot in a short amount of time.”
- “She provided practical tools I can use immediately.”
- “Expert speaker with thorough knowledge of the topic.”
- “Sensory strategies were excellent.”
- “She was phenomenal and made things easy to understand.”
Building Fine Motor and Graphomotor Skills
- “This was the best webinar I have heard. The specific tips were extremely helpful. I enjoyed the different activity ideas.”
- “This was really excellent and functional! The speaker was wonderful, and I loved how she gave explanations that were easy to understand as well as practical, concrete suggestions.”
- “Excellent research and practical input. Very valuable to myself as an educator.”
Positive, Strength-Based Strategies for Sensitive Kids: A Sensory Smart™ Approach
- “She is such an engaging speaker!”
- “Sensory strategies were excellent.”
- “Expert speaker and thorough knowledge of the topic.”
- “Very knowledgeable presenter!”
- “Very informative. The speaker’s voice was easy to listen to.”
Strategies for Managing Stress and Preventing Burnout
“Thank you so much for such a highly engaging, therapeutically grounded webinar. You are a wonderful role model of living with the stresses of life in such an authentic way while still impacting powerful transformational messages.”
— Rosalind Gray Rogers, Chair-Board of Sensory Integration Education
Books and Publications
- Co-author of the award-winning, best-selling Raising a Sensory Smart Child, with a foreword by Temple Grandin. Translated into Spanish, Turkish, Chinese, Croatian, and Serbian.
- Author, Sensory Processing Challenges: Effective Clinical Work with Kids & Teens. Translated into Polish and Turkish.
- Author, Surviving Sound Sensitivity: A Five-Step Plan
- Co-Author, Guggenheim For All Toolkit
- Contributor, Optimizing Learning Outcomes, edited by Dr. William Steele
- Contributor, Good Night, Sleep Tight by Kim West Lindsey has been featured in the New York Times, Parents magazine, The Atlantic, ADDitude, Autism Advocate, Forbes, Working Mother and elsewhere. See Lindsey’s articles and media.
Advisory Boards
Lindsey has served on advisory boards including Guggenheim For All educational/accessbility committee, Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt Museum’s Accessiblity Committee, Gateway School of Mumbai, Museum of the Moving Image Marvels of Media program, Invictus Bakery, and the MeetingHouse Afterschool Program NYC.
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