Episode 317: The Body Is Connected From Head To Toe with Candace Logans MS, OTR/L, CNDT, CPFT™

Hi and welcome to episode 317 of the Untethered Podcast. Today I'm excited to introduce you to Candace Logans. She is a dedicated occupational Therapist with over 11 years of experience in her field. She has spent the majority of her career serving the adult population with more than nine years in home health. But in recent years, her passion has shifted to pediatrics. She now co owns and operates It's All Fun Therapy, a pediatric home health company based in Columbia, S.C. alongside her physical therapy partner for the past two and a half years, Candice has been specializing in feeding therapy and has found a true calling in supporting children with feeding neurological disorders. Her mission is simple but powerful to help her clients and their families gain independence in the areas that matter most. I can't wait for you to hear more from Candice and the incredible work she's doing. Let's jump in. Welcome to the Untethered Podcast. I am your host, Holly Balkan. I'm a certified myofunctional therapist, feeding specialist, podcaster, business owner and mentor. This podcast is all about getting your questions answered and collaborating with colleagues to bring you the most up to date information in the orofacial myofunctional therapy, airway, tethered oral tissue and pediatric feeding therapy space. If you're new here, I challenge you to keep an open mind and join my mission to spread this message far and wide. If you've been around since June 2019, thanks for being a loyal listener. As we jump into today's episode, remember to listen with correct oral rest. Posture, tongue up, lips closed, teeth apart, breathe through your nose. Let's get started. Quick Disclaimer all information, content and material of this podcast are the opinions of the speakers and is for the informational purpose only and not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis and or medical treatment of a qualified health care provider. Candace, welcome to the podcast.

Hi, how are you?

I am so excited to have you on. I know that it's just been a very celebratory week with finishing the CPFT and everything and we'll get to that. But before we do, will you just tell everybody like they heard your intro, your bio, but tell everybody a little bit about you and you know, your background and maybe just even how you got into like OT and or feeding.

Okay, so like you said, I'm Candace Logan. I am an occupational therapist and I've been going at this for over 10 years now. But it's so crazy. I grew up, of course I want to be a pediatrician. You know, when You're a kid. Everybody wants to be a doctor. And I have an older sister who's an OB gyn, so I think it was kind of like following behind her but not doing the exact same thing. So I've never been to public school. I've always been to magnet school. So we ended up going to high school, where you were able to leave for a certain amount of time and go to the hospital and learn how to do vitals, learn how to do those early nursing skills. So then it went into, I want to be a nurse. I want to be a nurse. I'm going to school and be a nurse. So I went to University of South Carolina, Aiken and Fine, got into the nursing program. Fine. I pledged. I'm fine. And then I failed two classes in my second semester. And I could have, you know, like, appealed it, but I was just like, no, it's no need. I didn't do what I needed to do to keep up. So I was down, and my mama was like, look up. Occupational therapy. I was like, what is that? I looked it up because all I knew about was physical therapy, which is how a lot of people physical or speech, you know. And so I looked it up. I started doing observation hours. I was like, oh, yeah, I like this.

So.

So I switched my major, grinded out. I graduated, got into OT school at Florida A and M, grinded out, graduated, moved back home to Augusta, Georgia, studied for my test. And of course, I'm just like, oh, I'm gonna take it. I'm gonna take it. Just scared. I'm gonna take it. And my sister was like, book the test, Candice. So I booked it. I passed. And I was like, whew, thank you, Jesus. You know, like, I'm done with that. And so my first job was at an acute rehab hospital here in Columbia, South Carolina, called Health South. At the time, the best job a new OT could ever have, because you have the doctors, you have the nurses, you have the CNAs, you have speech, you have OT, PT, outpatient. Everything was housed in one place. So you had a lot of people to look at, a lot of people to help you learn, build your skills, and did that for two years. I went into Home Health Adults, and it just. It just went from there from Home Health adults to mixing it with starting my own business with my business partner Shanae, with Home Health Kids. And then I just fully went over to Home Health Kids, and now I'm here doing feeding therapy with kids.

I love that. It's so funny, as you were talking about, like, your story in college and everything. I don't know if people know this. I've talked about it randomly on a podcast, maybe, I don't know, sometime in the past five years. But I started as a business major undergrad, and I got, like, a C on a test. Meanwhile, I was like, I know 13 of the 15 questions I got wrong. Two weeks after the test, I was like, what's going on? So I felt. And I'm like. And everyone who was like, using my notes that didn't attend class because I was attending class, like, they were getting A's, I got a C. I was like, okay, I'm frustrated. I got tested. They were like, you. They put me on Ritalin. And then everything kind of, like, started to improve. But at that point, I was also like, I'm gonna have a business one day, but I don't need these classes. Like. Like, no, I need to figure out what I want to do. And so I had this little, like, shift. I looked at psychology. I actually went into education, and my dad, like, he was like, there is no way you're going to sustain your current lifestyle on a teacher salary. Which, like, the joke was on me, because then I became an SLP and went to work in the schools for three years, so on a teacher salary. And I was like, oh, all right. Never had such an appreciation for teachers as I did when I was working in a closet attached to their classroom, because that was my office, you know? Anyways, so, yeah, it came full circle for me, too, in a. In a very interesting way. But it's very cool to hear about, like, your trajectory into, like, the OT world. And, you know, it's. I think a lot of us, because I had the same reaction as you, and you were like, what is ot? I was like, what is speech pathology? Like, I had no idea what that was in college.

And.

And I volunteered for this clinic on the weekends that they did at our rec center, where they had children who were autistic. And they were just. It was just sort of like an opportunity for them to come and have some interaction and fun games and, you know, And I was working with this one little boy, and I just connected with him, and he wouldn't really look at or connect with others. And the parents were like, we don't know how you're doing this. And I was like, it's just intuitive. I don't know. Like, I just feel like, you know, maybe we're alike in more ways than I realize. I don't know. And so it was really cool, because I just got really very interested, like, in early language and children, you know, autistic children, and it would. Children with delays and just all this stuff. And so then I realized my aunt was a speech pathologist and not doing feeding, but that was literally her life. And she was always, like, the nice aunt who was like, sticks and stones will break your bones, but words can also hurt you. Like, oh, okay. You know, it was, like, one of those things where I'm just like, oh, that's what auntie me does. So I ended up volunteering, like, through a program she was doing, and I just was like. I just fell in love with.

I was like.

I knew. Always knew I wanted to work with kids in some capacity. So those outpatients in the hospital, like, while there were a lot of people, you know, you could plug into, even as a grad student, like, that was not my favorite because it was all adults. And I was like, I just want to work with kids.

Yeah. And then, you know, at that time, I didn't know what area that I liked the most, but. And you're paired with a physical therapy partner. So we were both new grads, and so we were learning together and building, you know, our team and how we like to work with our patients. And then we ended up being a team who had stroke patients all the time. So if we had, like, a caseload of eight, six of the eight had strokes. Wow. And it just from mild to severe. And so that's when, while I was there, I was able to get certified in neurodevelopmental treatment. I had to go down to Florida for two weeks, and I got that certification. So my love from neuro came from there. And then I didn't want to do well starting out. I really wanted to be in the nicu, like, while I was in grad school, I wanted to be with those babies. And I was like, how did I get with adults? But I think just being a new grad and you're like, I just want my first OT job. So it's kind of crazy. And I loved adults, and I love the interaction, and I love that they'll say whatever is on their mind. And I've always been a therapist to be, like, for real. Well, why. Why did that happen? You know, like, I'm. I'm kind of boosting them up for them to say a little bit more. But we enjoyed each other. We enjoyed each other. So for me to go from adults to pediatrics, when that's where I wanted to be from the beginning, But I was like, no, I love my adults. I'm gonna stay with my adults. It's just crazy how you just, you never know where your career is going to take you.

Yeah.

If, especially if it's a passion like you, you never know. I didn't think I was going to be feeding with peas. I used to tell my clients, hey, I can do the motor part, I can get that food, get that to the mouth. But once it's in the mouth, I can't help you. I don't know what's going on in 2025. Here I am. I know what's going on.

I love that for you. Yeah. And it's so different too when you think about the adult population versus the pediatric population. I also wanted to start in with like the infant and toddler program. I wanted to be in the homes. And they were like, nope, you didn't have that experience in grad school. So they put me with like 3 to 5 year olds in a public school setting where I was split between two schools and I was the only one in the county who actually only worked with, with preschool age kiddos because I refused. I was like, I don't want anything older than five. Like, do not put me with kindergarten on up. I want preschool if you're not giving me infants and toddlers. And so they did and they were like, that's not something we usually do. Usually it's like you have 0.8 or like four days a week you are with, you know, the gen ed or you know, the K. Then you got one day a week or half a day point one where you're with like the preschoolers. And I was like, no, no, give it all to me. I want it all.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

And then I eventually went to invincin toddlers in my third year and then I quit when my contract was up. I was like, I am out of here. I am done. I'm done, done, done. And then I missed them. I found it again working with peds and you know, and at that point too, it was funny because in the beginning I was like, I want to do feeding. And they were like, we don't do that in the schools. And then someone went on maternity leave and I got a medically complex, like a class of medically complex kids, 12 kids with all with 24 hour nursing care pouring feeds down their throat. And I was like, I don't know what to do with this. I just know this is not safe. Like, holy cow. And so that threw me in after they had Told me we don't do that here. I then received that like weeks later. So that was, that was definitely a like full throttle, like deep dive into peed feeding from the get go. Good times. So anyways, okay, so you did. So how long have you been like working with pediatrics in the feeding realm?

Like two years is not been long at all. So I was very intimidated to take the course. Yeah. And I remember asking you when we did like the introduction call to see if this was a right fit for me. And I was like, I'm an ot. I don't, I don't know what a speech therapist knows. Like I'm new to this. So I had a client, a set of twins that from the time I was there to do fine motor and sensory. They had went through three feeding therapists and they still was not eating. It's just like a switch just went off and they woke up, there were two and they started eating. But the sensory piece of it tactile all of that. I fixed that. I had fixed all of that. So I went at that time. I wish I would have known more to keep it going, but I didn't and I stayed in my lane. So then I went to another kid and mom was like, she's having a hard time brushing teeth. I was like, well let me look in his mouth. Restrictions everywhere. And I was like, okay, let me give you this information. You go to him and let him evaluate and do what all is needed. Because he was a local, he's a local periodontist who specializes in tots. And so he was like, okay, we're going to do it. We're going to do the releases. At that time, my kiddo was getting PT ot, chiropractic care. Like he had the whole shebang. So he gave mom a handout of the exercises. I watched the videos and I was like, oh, I definitely can, I can do this. I can help you guys with the stretches. And that's when I saw your post about the free screening for Feed the Peds. Took that and I was like, oh, okay. And then I took the 12 week course like right behind it of Feed the Peas. And I was like, I can do this. And so that kid was my. Was my kid that I was. Every time I learned something, I was coming to him twice a week just doing what I've learned. And then you rolled out, then you was rolling out some other courses before the actual certification. And I was taking those. The kitchen strategy. And was it the framework? I can't remember which one it Was, Yeah.

So I think you did the flexible framework one and the kitchen strategies. Yeah.

So I was like, okay, I can do this. It was just, like, more motivation to be like, candace, you're learning. You're implementing. It's making something sense. It's not. It's not a world that's totally new because the body works from head to toe. Like, everything is connected. And then I did tots with Autumn, and. And then you came out with yours. And I was like. I was talking to my husband. I was like, babe, I don't know. I can't go into this. The price tag is high. I can't go into this messing up. Like, this is serious. This is eight months. I have two kids, a business, a husband, extracurricular activities. Like, yes.

Life. Life.

Life. Talked to my business partner about it. She was like, just do it. I was like, I don't know. Then I had the conversation with you. I talked to my husband after that. He was like, well, it sounds like you already made your mind up. And I was like, well, I guess I'm doing it.

It sounds like my husband and I. My husband's like, I don't even know why you're asking me, because when you've decided you' you're gonna do it anyways. He's like, yeah. I'm like, well, I'm asking you because, like, we're married and we're a partnership, and I wanna. I want to be part of the conversation. He's like, but, you know, you made your mind up. I'm like, okay, but at least we talked about it.

Right? Right. Like, we're talking through this. Like. Like, let me know that I'm not crazy or putting too much on my plate.

Yeah, but you did it. You did it.

I did it. It's this done well.

And it's. It's interesting you say that too, because I think that was a concern for some. Like, hey, I've got young children I work with, work full time. I'm, you know, I've got a marriage to attend to. Like, I've got other things I'm already, you know, committed to. Like, how is this going to fit into my life? And it was interesting because I actually had an OT email me, who was the mom of a past patient, and she's taken Feed the peas now. She's now an O. She's an ot. I don't. I think she was back in school for ot, like, after or during. Like, while I was working with her daughter, and she had said, okay, I want to do this, but I don't think, like, I can handle this, like, right now. Like, I want to do a future cohort. She's like, but am I right in my thinking? She like, broke it all down. She took everything, crunched out the numbers, and she was like, so it's basically about like three hours per week because it's over eight months. And that includes like the calls, plus if you have like the, you know, the 82 hours of additional coursework and da, da, da, da. And I was like, yeah, I mean, like, her math was, was pretty on par. And I'm like, it's actually similar to feed the peas, which was roughly about 3 hours per week. However, this is much. This is longer, right? That's 12 weeks, three months. This is eight months. So obviously it goes on longer. And some weeks, you' going to have one or two calls, right? In some weeks, you know, and so it's like you get to kind of figure out, especially with the coursework, how you can balance that into your schedule and watch it as you go and all that. And so, you know, I was like, it has to be something that is going to be. It's going to be functional, right? We were like, we want something that's going to actually make y' all walk away feeling like, holy cow, that was worth my time and investment. Like, I feel like I can go out and mentor other people in a very different way than before. I feel like I can help my patients. Like, yeah, none of us know everything. Like, we never our will. We're a human. Right? But on that same token, it's. It was like. But also while we're doing that and this is going to be a little rigorous, like, we have to also realize that everyone coming into this, there are our same SLPs and OTS who are in feed the Peas. And even their people were concerned about the time commitment. And so that was a big thing on the back of our mind where I was like, no fluff. We only want the meat and potatoes. Like, how do we accomplish that? What are going to be the most functional things to get y' all the knowledge and also have this like, almost like hands on experience, even though it's virtual. Like, that was our. And like the mentorship, that was our big goal, y'.

All. You guys did amazing. Thank you. I appreciate the fact that it was kind of like a one stop shop. I didn't have to go to take a bottle or breastfeeding course. I didn't have to go take a separate tots course. I didn't have to take a course on swallow studies. Like, a lot of things that goes into feed the peas or feeding or pediatric feeding difficulties, it was touched on. So even if it was new, like the swallow studying stuff, for me, that was new, but I feel like I have a good foundation of understanding and I can educate my clients. And it's so crazy. I had a client who went in for a G tube, and I was watching the course, prepping her every step of the way while in the hospital, and I just felt like, so accomplished because she didn't go in not knowing anything. She went in with some type of foundation, and she loves TikTok. So I was like, research TikTok. See what other families are saying, see what other, you know, videos are being posted so you actually will know something so you won't be freaked out when.

You go, yeah, yeah, no, I got, like, chills when you said that because I'm like, when I started, when I created Feed the Peds, like, my whole idea behind that was like, I want to get kids off pediatric feeding wait lists. These kids should not be sitting on wait lists because, one, there's not enough SLPs and OTs trained in how to do pediatric feeding. Two, these kids can't wait. Like, I mean, no. Like, we never want any child to wait on a wait list for anything. But, like, this is like, you know, what are the two things we need to live? We need to be able to breathe and we need to be able to eat. And if we can't, there's gonna be some medical intervention, right? So to have these kids sitting on waitlist, it, like, really just broke my heart. And I was like, I can't do it alone, but if I can help pull. And it's not just me, right? It's like, I can pull a team of educators together that can help educate other SLPs and OTS and just like, stop all this gatekeeping in this space. Like, can we please get everybody the information they need so they can actually get out there and help their patients? Like, that was, you know, and. And yes, it's a big time commitment and it's a big financial investment and, you know, on the back end of things for us, too. So it was sort of like, all right, we all. We gotta be all in, like, on the back end. On the front end. Yeah, yeah. So for you, right? So you decided to do the cpft, the Certified Pediatric Feeding Therapist. That's a mouthful. Certification cpft. What were, like, some of the benefits for you now? Now that you're on the other side of it.

The biggest benefit was, like I said, the one stop shop. But I would honestly say that what stuck out to me the most was this whole time when I was thinking that a kid had sensory aversions, and the mentors was like, wait, it could be, but it could be lack thereof with motor movement, and it's an awareness piece. And I was like, wait a minute, what are you saying? And so I think it was Shasha and Beth potentially who were going back and forth on that class that night, you know, just telling us everything. And so then I was like, it makes sense. Then when I saw it in my clients, I was like, oh. And so I had a one and a half year old. She was so inconsistent. One day would be a good session. I have her two times a week. One day would be a good session at the table. The next day would just be full, straight meltdowns, just not being consistent with trying anything, even if it was a texture she preferred. So I laid. She was falling out, and I laid her on my lap. She freaked. And I was like, mom, how is diaper changing time? And she was like, ah, it's iffy. Because, you know, sometimes parents don't know the little things that can change the whole situation and dynamic and treatment session for us as a therapist. So I said, okay, let's take a stop on the feeding. We're gonna work her sensory system for two weeks straight. Two days a week. I was working her system for an hour. Mom was like, she's been calmer. She's been doing better with her gross motor pt, going up the steps, running. Like, overall, she's just gotten stronger. And one day we were at the soccer field because her older sister's playing on the same team as my daughter. Sat right there and ate a whole hash brown. First time, no problems.

Oh, I love that.

I wish I would have gotten all this, but it's okay. Like, when you learn it and you implement it, it's a different feeling from just keeping it, like, in your back pocket, you know? Yeah. It's like, hey, I could. I could do this. We can make this work. We can do this, Candace. So, yeah, well.

And I love, like, you kind of speak a little bit to the SLP and OT side of things, right? It's sort of like SLPs come in with maybe more oral motor, less sensory. And you guys come in with like, the sensory processing and integration and all this. And we're kind of like, you know, like, teach us something new. And so that's where I was like, we've got to have SLPs and OTs in feed the peds, right? Like, as an edge from an education standpoint, I was like, that obviously has to carry over into the certification. And I didn't place people in groups based on if you were an SLP or ot. I actually place people in groups based on, like, who is. Like, what is the caseload you're working with? What is your goal at the end of this? And who do I think will be best matched for you as a mentor, but also the group of colleagues that you're going to be paired with, because I want y' all to have similarities so that you guys can talk cases together. And so, you know, that's where it was like. I think there's such just this beautiful marriage between, like, sensory and motor, when we all kind of actually come together, because, you know, you can't actually tease them apart and separate them in the body, even though we teach it in silos and sometimes talk about it that way. So I just think it's such a beautiful marriage because I think it came up quite a bit with some of the ots being that I'm an slp. They were like, you know, on some of those calls way back in. What was it, June, August, I don't know. Whenever they were like a blur, right? I'm like, whatever. It was last summer, they were kind of like, is this going to be good for me as an ot? Like, do I have a seat at this table? Is this the right place? And I was like, what are y' all talking about? Yes, of course you do.

I honestly felt that way. And just talking to everybody, I was like, I do fit in. We all fit in.

Like, we need each other.

Yes, yes. Like, from the more experience to the ones who wasn't. But it wasn't always. Whoever had the most experience was always on top and knew everything. Because it was topics where the most experience was learning from the ones who were brand new to it, but they were just more familiar with that area. Like, I remember, I think it was Shayla who talked about the presentation on Low Tone. And it was really magnificent for her. And she watched it numerous of times just because it was a huge curve for her. But I felt right at home. I was like, yep, Beth, Yep. I know about that girl. Yeah. Like, so, you know, it was. It was great. I enjoyed was a time commitment. And it was nights where my girls was like, mom, while I'm presenting, and I'm like, I'm sorry, guys. Go to bed. You know, it worked out. It worked out. The time went by fast. And the fact that we get to hold onto the presentations and we can run them back and listen to them as. As we need to. That's heaven. Yeah, yeah.

I mean, listen, like, I'm. Now everyone will call me neurod. Neurodivergent. Like my ADHD brain. I'm the kind of person where I'm like, I like to see it and hear it, like, in my own way. And so. But I also feel like the one downfall for me is when I go to in person courses and I walk away. I have notes on the paper and I have like, ideas of what to do with three kids. And then I'm like, okay, now what? Or oh, she said something about. And I'm going back to my notes and I'm looking and I'm like, I didn't take good notes on that. Or I don't know what this means now that I'm like, out of the context of the course. And so when I created Feed the Pizza, I was like, I want people to have ongoing access. Like, yes, we know that things change. Yes. Ashton makes us re register and Aota, we have to re register our courses every five years, which we should anyways. Like, things get updated. But on that same token, it's like, if you can still have that to go back to and reference, even knowing at this point that the first time we taught it, that course is now five years old. People still go back. They still tell us, like, we go back to that initial course. And I will watch this because I had a patient with X, Y, Z going on and this was so helpful. And so it was like a big decision for us where we were like, all right, I don't know. I mean, I want to say yes, but I'm like, I don't know what the. What the future will hold for the cpft, but I know for at least your cohort and this current one that's starting, like, y' all are going to get lifetime access to everything. Right?

Right.

Once we get it, we go. Like, we have to go through the whole accreditation process. I don't know if they'll have, like, certain rules or logistics. I don't think it'll impact, but I'm like, I can't. I have to be careful. What I promise, because I don't want to, you know, go back on my word. But I'm like, we're definitely going to make sure you all have access to that because like you said, it's just like, on that same way, if I could just go back and watch that one thing or search this thing, like, it just would be so efficient for me and so helpful in helping this patient today and that patient next week. And so, yeah, so that was pretty important for me to like, make sure that you guys had that, like, ongoing access.

Thank you.

Welcome. You're welcome. So, okay, so other than, like, juggling mom life and, you know, running a business and, you know, not like, you had too many things going on, were there any, like, other, like, major highs or lows or anything that sticks out in your mind, like, while you were going through the process?

A low. So I thought that I was a pretty good documentation person. When I got my first written assignment back, and they were like, oh, redo. You did not get the 80, girl. I was like, what? What did I do wrong? You know? And I thought it was like, oh, I got a template. Oh, just fill it in. Fill it in. And I was just like, I didn't know to ask that. You really want to know all of that? Are you serious? And so it kind of brought. Not kind of. It brought out my perfectionist characteristic. And I was like, this is why I don't want to go back to school. Yes, I hear you stress because. And I wasn't an A student. Like, now I worked my butt off, and I got excellent grades, but I worked for it. And so I guess in my mind, since I'm settled in my career, maybe I felt like I got comfortable and didn't feel like the amount of work I put in in college, I needed to put in in my whole adult life for a certification. But, yeah, I was like, oh, this. My husband was like, I'm. I can't wait till you be done. I can't wait till you are done.

He looked like, this thing you needed to do, like, and now here you are.

Huh? This is too much. I was like, why did I fail? O told us, don't look at it as a fail, but I didn't pass, so it's fail.

Well, I will tell you that most people had to resubmit, especially, like, the first time around. That was very common. And I will tell you also, based on how people perform. Perform. In my other certification, y' all did really, really well on your first round. So even though we asked for resubmissions. Yeah. And here's the thing. Right? When you're doing the certification, it falls on us to make sure that, like, you're demonstrating all these, like, competencies, Right? So it'. We do Go back to that kind of grad school mentality where it's like, I gotta, I gotta show my work, I gotta show my reasoning. I gotta connect all the dots and like, show them how I got to this conclusion, or this is why we're working on this, or, you know, whatever. Whereas, like, when you're out in the real world, you can kind of fall back on that. Like, nobody actually is going to read a 20 page report. I can probably get away with doing a very, you know, my short templated eval with my, my treatment plan attached and call it a day and move on it.

Yeah. Yes.

Yeah. And that's, that's the whole thing. That's where we're like, when you get into the real world, it's very different, right, than when going through certification or grad school and everything. But again, it's just, it's like we gotta get those competencies, you know, to make sure. And you all did at the end of the day. And we know it was work and we are so proud of you. And you guys should be proud of yourselves because it was, it was like kind of going back a few years for some of us, more than a few. And yeah, I hear you. I don't want to go back to school either.

In another low. Oh my God. Like, I, I didn't freak out because I didn't have time to freak out. So for the final presentation, I thought I had a different date. Oh, no. And one of my groupmates texted me and was like, the schedule says you go tonight. I was like, no, I don't. That's what I texted her. I was like, no, I don't. She was like, my schedule says that. I said, send me a screenshot because I had just pulled into the garage and getting ready to come in the house to do homework with the kids. And so she sent it and I was like, I go tonight. And so I sent the email to Taylor. I was like, taylor, I didn't finish it. I'm so sorry. This is not like me. And then I text my business partner and she was like, like, send the kids over. And I was like, okay, do I get in a car, drive over, come back? That takes about 30, 45 minutes because it was 5 o' clock traffic. Or do I call the babysitter and see how fast she can get here? Because my husband was leaving to go to work and he was like, how did you do that? I'm like, look, not right.

Life happens. Right?

Life happens. And I can't address the comment right now. So I was just like, I don't know. So I told the kids, I said, go play, Just don't kill yourself, and sat at the table and I just started working. And I was working, I was working. And the crazy thing is that morning I saw the kid that I did the presentation on and I asked the other questions that I did not ask at the evaluation. So I had all the information. I just had to put.

The universe was like, it's fresh in your mind. We know you forgot, but we're going to push you to get this in anyways.

Send you up, right, girl? And so I'm typing it up, typing it up. And so I emailed Taylor back. I was like, hey, never mind. Because she was like, okay, I'll see if you can go at another date. At the end, let me let Shasha know who was my mentor. And I was like, hey, I got it. I'm done. I can present. So the babysitter came, she had the kids, they were screaming because they didn't want her to put them in the bed. So I literally had 10 minutes. Thankfully, the other person went first, I went second. So I was able to make sure they were in the bed, they were asleep, they were good. And I presented. I think the oldest did get up while I was presenting. And I was like, hey, guys, I'm sorry. Go to bed. And I finished. And I was just like, look at the growth. Because before I would have freaked out. Yeah, that's that perfectionist characteristic coming out again. But I was like, I got this you present. You can do it. And I passed on the 1st.

I get it, though. I resonate so much with so much of what you're talking about too, with the kids, where it's just like, my husband's traveling right now. I was on a call last night at 8 o'. Clock. My mom put the kids to bed, but they're like, again, what do you mean you're not putting us to bed? They just want me. It doesn't matter who's here or not here. They just want me. No one else is allowed to do it. No one else.

No.

Yeah, everyone else can travel, but not me.

Yeah, bath time, but dad can't do homework in bedtime. He can feed them, but it's like, I guess dad is boring with reading books and I. I don't know.

So, yeah, so funny. It's like that in my house, too. They're like, no, Papa doesn't do that. You do that. You do this, he does that. He wakes us up in the Morning and you feed us breakfast. And I'm just like, I know you guys got these ideas in your head, but, like, sometimes we have to work. So you made it work. So I, I mean, that's very impressive too, because I know in my brain, even if I felt confident in the material, to have to sit down and get it into the slides and ready to present in a crammed time like that, while trying to find childcare, get my kids, like, fed and, like, you know, ready for that child care even to arrive. Like, that's impressive.

Candace, I don't know how I, you know, and. And I always say I don't know how I did it, but I remember asking an old coworker because she. I wasn't. I didn' have kids at the time. I was newly married, and I knew we were getting ready to start having kids. And she had three boys, and she's like, petite, short. Like, me too. And I was just like, how do you do it? And her answer to me was, I don't think about it. So when people ask me, how did you do it? I didn't think about it. Right.

You're kind of like, I'm in my mode right now. Like, I just know I got to get done. And I got. And sometimes, you know, it's interesting when you can get it done in a short window, and that's a little bit stressful versus, like, weeks of thinking about it. Like, right now, I'm creating a course for one of my businesses, and it's not medical, it's business related. But I'm over here. I have an outline, but I keep letting every other thing, other task get in the way. And I was supposed to have it done and recorded in two days from now. And my team and my other business was like, oh, it's fine. You can get us to a week after. I was like, no, you can't do that to me because you're not. I'm not gonna get to it till next week now. So it's just like, when you have the time, it's just like. And then it's just like weighing heavy on your mind. It's like taking up that energy. So, yeah, and I, at one point, too, I was. Because I was that, like, very type A personality, like, crossing all my T's, dotting all my eyes. Everything had to be perfect.

Why has to look under the line like, yes.

But then I had kids and a business, and I was like, better done than perfect.

My business partner be like, like, who are you? I don't know you anymore because like, is the, you have to, you have to change.

There's only so many hours in the day.

Yeah. Yes.

Yeah, yeah. Oh, my goodness. Okay, so a couple more questions for you. So now that you are now post certification, how does it feel and like, what are.

Amazing, amazing, amazing. I, I feel like I have enough tools in the toolbox and a good solid foundation to continue. So I'm at the point now where I am going to change some things as far as my role in the business to where I can bring in some other people to do, to go over my assistance and so I can strictly do feed, feeding. And I'm gonna start off within the home and like possibly an office space because I still like the, like, you get to see the dynamics in the, in the interactions with mom, dad, brother, siblings and stuff like that. And yeah, I think I'm just gonna weed out a fine motor. I may keep like one or two, but even with feeding, you're still gonna have that fine motor, gross motor those things into play and just go strictly to feeding. Like, I'm, I'm excited. I'm nervous, nervous because that's the type A, but I'm, I'm excited.

That is so exciting. I love that because I know, like, I remember we were talking about it sometime last summer. I remember you saying something like you just kind of felt like you were like thrown into feeding. Right. It was like it wasn't really a natural progression. And it was just like, ah. Because you mentioned today, like, you just felt like you were getting these kids who just really were not having success with other therapists or maybe they weren't addressing feeding appropriately, you know. And so, yeah, it's so cool to see like how far you've come.

Was thrown into it because I was like, I don't, I don't know what to do. I don't know what to tell you. I can call this person, see if they can help you. I, and I personally don't know of any other OTs that are heavy into feeding here in Colombia. They may be like how I was doing, just dealing with the sensory aspect of it, but not the actual sensory and motor. Once it's in the mouth. Yeah. So I'm excited to be within the select few.

Yeah.

And the certification backing me up because, you know, some parents look for those letters, they don't care about anything else. They care about those letters. So at least I can say the experience, the knowledge, I have resources if I need help personally is coming with the letter.

So I love That I love that. Well, I'm so excited for you. Is there anything else, like, either that you want to share with us either about. I mean, I want you to tell everybody before we wrap up about, like, where they can find you in your private practice, but anything else, like, about the certification or feed the peas or your feeding journey that we didn't cover that you want to highlight?

I will say, if you're new to feeding, it's good to get into the certification now versus wait, because I wanted to wait until I had more experience. You don't have to wait because it all makes sense. The body is connected from head to toe, and as you go through the modules, you will say, hey, I remember this from the tots. When you're watching, is it a feeding disorder or is it something different? Like, everything is connected and it all makes sense. And the modules, they just build. They bill, they build. They build. You can pull. So I would definitely say for somebody who is new to it, don't wait. Just do it. It's. And it's a big investment, and you will have years to get it back financially. 1. But that knowledge, you'll have, the knowledge, the experience is going to build as you see your clients. And it's an amazing course. Like, I never seen anything like this put out, ever. You and the team did a really, really good job. You guys, like, it's just amazing. Like, I don't even know. Thank you. It's just amazing. You guys did what you intended to do.

Yeah, we were very proud of ourselves, too. I was talking to Taylor last night, and we were like, we did it. Like, we actually did it. And. And it went so smooth, too. I think it's. That's definitely thanks to you all and the mentors. And. And here's the thing. We were very open in the beginning and saying, like, if there are certain things that y' all feel are missing, like, you please tell us, because our goal is to create this curriculum inside that's comprehensive, and obviously there's more that can be added for sure, which we are developing some other things that you guys will get as bon, but, you know, yay. But on that same token, it's like, sometimes there's just other resources that are needed or there's just things that come up that nobody can really figure out, like, ahead of the time, ahead of the game. But as we go through this together, it's like, oh, hey, do you guys have a resource on this? Or, hey, do you think, you know, you could create something on that? And so that was one of the things. I know we were very open and flexible, but again, at the end of the day, we were like, we, We. I remember when we sent out, like, we sent out two surveys. One was like, hey, here are some of the topics we're thinking about. Can you add some topics that you guys want to learn more about? And then we sent out all the topics and had everybody, like, put them in order of importance to them. And from all, like, the feed the Pete's Grads. And so when we got that back, girl, like, kind of like, some of it wasn't surprising, and some of it was we're like, oh, okay. Interesting that, like, this is the number one course that everybody wants.

And then number one.

Oh, my gosh, I'd have to pull it up. I do feel like it was either. So it was either NICU or a breast and bottle. Maybe not nicu, but breast and bottle. And I think NICU maybe was further down, and we thought it would be higher up because everyone says they want to work in the NICU or they want, like, information on NICU babies. And so it something like that where we were like, oh, okay, like a little surprise, but got it. But yeah, we just then created the courses, like, in that order of importance to you all.

And resting bottle, that was a really good. Because just knowing the flow rates and the different types of bottles went to go from narrow to wide neck. Who would have known that if you're not actually, you know, doing it? And I was familiar about the floor rate, flow rates, because my daughter was in the nicu, my oldest one, and a speech therapist gave me the handout, and it was so crazy. I was rummaging through stuff trying to find the handout, but when I saw the chorus and I was going through it, I was like, oh, let me make sure I pin this. Pin this, you know, so I can be able to educate my clients on those rates. When you're picking those cute bottles. Yeah, stay away from cute. Let's go with functional.

Yes, exactly. Exactly. I was just talking to one of the CPFT grads, I think, last week about where she was, like, who knew there were so many different bottles and different flow rates? I'm like, yeah. And even, like, a level one across bottles is not the same. And you got to test it out to see, you know, how your baby reacts to it. Is it a slower one? Is it a faster one? And, you know, then there's also kids who sometimes never move off of a preemie nipple, or sometimes they go up to one but never move past one. And you know, it's like these whole age marketing things that they do with bottles and just like a breast and you know, change to this level nipple at this age. And like, no, all of that is bad information. Yeah, but who would have known, right? Because it's like we've and feel like a lot of us have had kids. Not all of us have had babies in the NICU or had this information. Even SLPs and OTS who were doing feeding but haven't worked with infants, a lot of us don't have that information. So it was interesting too because I remember there were some people who were like, I don't really want the NICU course. Like, that's not something that really interests me. And then several people came back and they were like, holy moly. Like that information is so foundational. Everybody needs this if you're working with children, period. Because you're going to get a kid who was in the NICU once and like this is just foundational information. And we're like, yes, yes. We're like. And that is why we were just like, yeah, we hear you, but take the course anyways.

You guys knew. You guys knew. Exactly. And we're just like, oh, here's the light bulb now. Right.

Method to our madness. But yeah. Oh, thank you so much, Candace. So this has been awesome. Thank you for sharing your experience and all the fun things. I'm excited to see all that happens in your practice and you know, as you move more into feeding and everything. So tell everybody. How do they contact you? Instagram website. Like what's the best way to get a hold of you?

So the best. Well outside of a telephone number, the best way is we have an Instagram page. It's all fun therapy. The website is the same. It's all fun therapy.com email info at it's all fun therapy. And yeah, that's how you find me. Or you can just say Candace Logan's. I'm sure there's not a lot. Just Google me and something will pop up.

Right? Yeah, right. And you said you're in Columbia, South Carolina, right?

Yeah. Yes, ma'. Am.

Amazing. Well, we will link your website and your Instagram and everything under the show so everybody can easily find you. But this has been amazing. Thank you so much for joining me and congrats on your cpft. Thanks for listening to this podcast. If you found value in this episode and want to hear more of these Myotots, airway and feet related episodes, be sure to leave a review on Apple Podcasts and share this episode on your social media platforms. You can access free resources and all I offer@hallebulcan.com or pop over to Hollybulcan on Instagram to get all the latest updates.