Akiko Tachi

Aki is a compassionate occupational therapist who supports children and families through a strengths-based and neuro-affirming approach. Her pathway into occupational therapy has been shaped by personal experiences, including growing up with neurodivergent family members and witnessing firsthand the positive impact of early intervention.

Aki’s journey to becoming an occupational therapist was not a linear one. She initially studied law before both her niece and nephew began attending occupational therapy at Kids Matters!

Observing the meaningful changes therapy created in her family members’ daily lives, and the positive impact this had on her family as whole, was a turning point. This experience inspired Aki to change career paths and enrol in an occupational therapy degree, with a particular interest in early childhood intervention and family-centred care.

Aki is committed to supporting children to participate meaningfully in everyday life across home, school, and community settings, while creating a therapeutic space where children feel safe, understood, and capable.

Aki has experience supporting children with a wide range of developmental, neurodivergent, and neurological differences, including those affecting movement, learning, sensory processing, vision, and emotional regulation. Her approach focuses on understanding each child’s strengths and supporting meaningful participation in everyday life.

• DIR/Floortime-informed practice
• Sensory-based and emotional regulation strategies
• Executive functioning interventions
• Family-centred and holistic approaches

Aki takes a safe, affirming, and strengths-based approach to therapy. She values working collaboratively with families, educators, and other professionals to support meaningful and achievable goals. Her practice is informed by evidence-based frameworks while remaining flexible, playful, and responsive to each child’s interests and ways of engaging. Aki believes that differences are not deficits, and that children thrive when supported with the right tools, strategies, and environments.

Aki grew up in Perth, Western Australia, as the middle child of four siblings. During her first year of life, she lived in Japan, where her family had relocated for her father’s work. Wanting their children to grow up bilingual, Aki’s parents later enrolled her and her siblings in a Japanese immersion primary school in Perth, where all learning was delivered entirely in Japanese.

For Aki, who only knew how to say about three words in Japanese at the time, being thrust into a non-English-speaking classroom from an early age presented significant communication challenges and social barriers. However, it also fostered her appreciation for children’s adaptability and capacity to grow and thrive in unfamiliar environments. This experience shaped her respect for cultural diversity, different communication styles, and flexible approaches to learning – values that continue to inform her therapeutic practice.

Being neurodivergent herself and growing up with family members with autism has strongly influenced Aki’s inclusive, respectful, and neuro-affirming approach to occupational therapy.

• Spending time at the beach
• Her dogs
• Reading
• Puzzles

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, you or the therapist may find that you are not a good fit. If your therapist feels that he or she is not best suited to you, he/she will discuss this with you and recommend a more appropriate therapist.

If you feel that your therapist is not a good fit, simply discuss this with our admin team who will find a more suitable therapist.