Ok, so I know I have an unfair advantage on this one, since I was a sensory integration OT prior to having a child.  But, I assure you, everything I am writing about in this post happened over time, and changed as my son grew older.  Even if you are just starting this sensory journey, making even the smallest changes and taking even the smallest steps can make a HUGE difference for your child and the nervous system.

From the moment my son was born I implemented a sensory enriched program for him, not because he was showing any signs of dysregulation, I simply knew it was the best thing to do for brain development.  A sensory enriched life is the foundation for brain development for ALL children.  Of course I was constantly watching for signs of sensory difficulty or challenges with a magnified pair of sensory goggles!  Our day included deep pressure touch, various forms of vestibular input, tactile exploration, tons of tummy time, outside time, and every single thing we did I had sensory in mind.  It wasn't until he was around age two did I notice his processing was different.  He was a sensory seeker and had brain power and intelligence processing at an incredible speed.  He NEEDED constant sensory input in order to regulate and I saw that.  He was counting to 1000 by age three, and if you stopped him in the process, you knew you were in for trouble.  He would count the tiles on the floor wherever we were at, and always needed an oral sensory tool.  He was constantly on the move and the minute he walked and talked, he never stopped. He also craved and needed TONS of proprioception...and still does today.  Did I think something was wrong?  Of course not!  This was simply DILLON!  I embraced it and implemented sensory strategies and tools along the way!  Dillon just turned 14, and he is the most amazing person I know.  He is kind and compassionate, brilliant, athletic, social (in his own way), determined, motivated, witty, loves his mama, and I could go on and on.  Here is Dillon today at age 14....still needing all sorts of sensory strategies and tools, but perfect exactly as he is, and I love him more than anything in the world.  

Soooooo, I say all this to first of all let you know that a sensory home program and sensory tools are a part of our life and not just in the clinic as an OT!  Having a sensory filled life is truly the key to progress, consistency, and follow through.  When you make your home sensory friendly and provide the necessary sensory tools and equipment, your child will learn to be independent in seeking out what their nervous system needs.  Sometimes they will need swinging, sometimes they will need a sensory retreat and proprioception, sometimes the urge to jump or hang.  The sensory needs will change throughout life...but there are a few essentials that can be an investment all through childhood.  Here is my list of the essentials....

• An indoor swing, preferrably one for calming input like a hammock or cuddle swing and then one for more active alerting input such as a trapeze or disc swing
• A sensory retreat (pillow cave, squish box, or a cozy dark place just for the kiddo)
• Hippity hop ball (they come in all sizes)
• BOSU ball
• Therapy ball, to be used for various sensory activities as well as a replacement for a chair
• Proprioceptive tools such as weighted balls, body sock, weighted blanket, weight set

Have you ever noticed how sensory kiddos don't ever just do anything so-so?  Have you noticed how when they love something, they REALLY love it?  Or when they do not like something...they REALLY don't like it?  I think this is one of the most interesting and intriguing parts of learning about a child with SPD.  It can really help you understand a child from a sensory perspective.  Embrace this!  Don't let it frustrate you or cause you stress...if your child needs to line up all of their stuffed animals along the edge of the bed at bedtime that is JUST FINE!  Believe it or not, this is going to help them fall asleep and you are helping the nervous system.   And if your sensory kiddo does not like the feeling of metal and it applies to every aspect of life, including holding on to handrails...respect it.  If your child wants to wear a hat absolutely everywhere...respect it and embrace it!

Why do sensory kiddos do this?  I have found it is usually for one of two sensory reasons... 
1. It is a sensory anchor for them, which is regulating and calming for the nervous system.  
2. It is a sensory strategy to help protect and cope with a type of sensory input which is overwhelming and uncomfortable for them.  

Let's take a look at my lil buddy Sweetie...his nervous system is over-responsive across the board and he is extremely sensitive to auditory, vestibular, and tactile input.  He also struggles with oral aversion, social interaction and self-regulation. Here is a little background on Sweetie from his adoring and amazing mama...

"Sweetie never leaves home without a hat..we keep extras in the car just in case we need a replacement hat. He also wears one at home and has a basket of hats and just goes and grabs what he wants. He likes them tightly fitting and low to his eyes. I think besides comforting him it helps him block people out and it makes avoiding eye contact very easy. His hat helps block out everyone and everything. He doesn't like loud noises and lots of people or movement going on like birthday parties, family gatherings, and he doesn't like visitors at home. He likes tight fitting clothes, socks, and rain boots. He even wants to sleep with his slippers on that are too small. He sleeps with several pillows, his weighted blanket must be below his knees and covering his feet and then 2 blankets on top of that. Bedtime is serious business.....he has even slept in his beanie hats!  But, hey whatever works!"

As you can see Sweetie NEEDS his hats...he needs them for various sensory reasons as noted above.  As an OT I believe he needs his hats for both reasons I mentioned above... for comfort and a sensory anchor, as well as to help cope with the outside world and ever changing, unpredictable surroundings.  Most people take this for granted...but for a child with SPD the world is a scary and unpredictable place full of sensory input that is overwhelming, often painful to the nervous system, and down right uncomfortable.  

And as I always say...."Respect a child's sensory differences, it will change how you respond".

I don't think body socks are given enough credit.  Maybe they are not fancy enough, maybe not technical enough...or maybe because people really don't know what they are or what they are for!  I am here to help with that!  I always used body socks in my clinic, they were a huge hit.  And my son has always had one since he was young. He outgrew his, so I recently ordered a new one from Skweezrs Custom Lycra.  I couldn't be happier and neither could my son!  VERY reasonably priced compared to the big therapy companies and you can choose your color, design, size, etc!  The sock arrived quickly and is excellent in quality and workmanship. These pictures are of him in our sensory room being very creative with his trapeze swinging!

Benefits of a body sock!

• Excellent proprioception which is calming, soothing, and regulating for the nervous system
• Promotes body awareness and body in space
• Serves as a portable sensory retreat
• A great place to be in times of sensory overload
• Soothing form of compression and deep pressure touch for the tactile system
• So versatile and fun for children of all ages!
• Great self-regulation tool
• Promotes motor planning and gross motor development
• The child can do just about anything in them...snuggle up, roll and jump, do tricks, dance, etc!

For some reason our society has decided that if their child walks at 8-9 months then their child is destined to be the next professional athlete and even possibly the next genius on the block.  Who came up with this idea anyway????

CRAWLING is an absolutely critical link to brain and body development.  It facilitate sensory integration as well as gross motor, fine motor, and visual motor development. And at a much higher skill level, crawling facilitates reading and math skills. There is indeed a sensorimotor and brain development purpose as to why crawling is one of the main developmental milestones.  If it were not..then why did we all not come right out of the womb walking and running?

Sensory Components and Benefits of Crawling:

• Works on prone extension which is one of the two most important movement patterns for sensory integration
• Activates the brain stem which promotes self-regulation
• Works on shoulder stability which is critical for fine motor and visual motor skills
• Works on hand separation which is essential for fine motor development
• Works on balance, core strength, and lower body proximal stability
• Facilitates upper and lower body weight shifting
• Promotes bilateral integration 
• Facilitates body awareness and motor planning
• Provides proprioception input which is calming and organizing for the brain
• Promotes weight bearing on the joints which facilitates motor development and body awareness, and normalized muscle tone

Possible Sensory Explanations Why a Child May Like to Crawl

• It may be calming and regulating for the brain
• It may help prevent sensory overload for their nervous system
• It changes the sensory environment (less visual input, less social interaction, less auditory input)
• It may be a sensory anchor: the proprioceptive input to the joints as well as the visual component may be soothing and calming
• It may be easier for the body in regards to balance and lower body weight shifting needed for walking
• It is a much safer and comfortable type of mobility for a child with gravitational insecurity or vestibular defensiveness

Possible Sensory Explanations Why a Child May NOT Like to Crawl

• Lack of core strength and/or shoulder stability
• Difficulty with motor planning
• Lack of body awareness and bilateral integration
• Tactile defensiveness and avoidance of textures to hands and legs
• Vestibular defensiveness and poor balance

So What is the Moral of the Story????
                              ...Crawl, Crawl, and Crawl Some More!

HOME:
If your child did not crawl, do it now! And if your child did crawl, super duper...but keep doing it!  Crawling can be a great addition to any sensory home program!  Crawling races, crawling games and obstacle courses, balloon volleyball in the crawling position, crawl from room to room, crawl out in the grass, and make it fun!  

CLASSROOM:
Crawling in the classroom is an excellent transition tool for the entire class!  Crawling races down the hall or crawling relay races out on the school lawn!  Balloon volleyball with everyone on all fours in a big circle is even more fun with a group!  

I wish I could remember who gave me permission to grieve my boys' diagnoses. We talk so often about how we help our kids, or how to fix them, that we forget the very basic concept that we as parents go through a grieving process when our child is diagnosed with some sort of disease or disorder. We all have in our minds the picture of the perfect child and perfect life for him. We are conditioned to believe that there is a perfect child, we only have to be the perfect parent. So we start on this little road to perfection, and hit a few speed bumps. Maybe our child does things a little differently, or a little "off". And as we notice the differences, we seek answers of family, friends, and medical professionals. We seek validation and acceptance. And after a while, we finally get a diagnosis. Maybe it is or maybe it isn't what we wanted to hear, maybe it gives us answers and hope that we can "fix" our child.

 But then we have to grieve the "loss" of the idea of the perfect child, or the loss of our perception of "normal". We have to go through all those stages of grief - denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. And sometimes we have to ask for permission from ourselves and our loved ones to go through the process. We have to understand that not everyone in our child’s life is going to grieve the same or in the same time frame.

 We have to go through the entire process to reach acceptance. Acceptance of our child to be who he is going to be, and acceptance of ourselves to be the parent our child needs. Without this basic human process, we can't accept the situation, or accept the differences in the paths our child will take. It was only when someone pointed this out to me that I was able to accept what our lives would be with two different kids. Worried about the health of one, knowing that he would have to be very conscious of what he ate, of understanding that if the knife from the peanut butter jar went in the jelly, the whole jar of jelly was contaminated and unusable. Knowing that part of his education and life was teaching him how to read labels and use an epi-pen.  And accepting that the other child could have difficulties in school, and being accepted by peers and society. I learned to accept him for his many talents, and focusing on those, and quietly dealing with the other stuff. I had to learn to accept both my boys' differences and celebrate that as well.

 Have we had rough days? Sure. One child or the other would struggle with his differences, and I learned that the laundry and dishes can wait another day, that cereal is ok for dinner, that another cup of coffee can bring a lot of tolerance. Without the permission to go through that process, I would have struggled for a lot longer, and missed a lot of successes and just plain goofy times.  I love my boys, even on the toughest of days, they have taught me so much about myself, and what it really means to be a mom. 

~Thank you Barb Harper for this beautiful post and for being an amazing sensory mama.~

                                                Sensory Benefits of a Ball Chair!

• Activates and maintains the vestibular system in “alert mode” the entire time the child is sitting on the ball, therefore improving attention to task and ready state for the brain to learn
• Facilitates good posture and core strength
• Helps to get the wiggles out for those children who tend to move often while in their seat
• Excellent tool for sensory seekers
• Since the child is receiving vestibular and proprioceptive input while using the ball chair, self regulation can improve and decrease moments of sensory overload throughout the day
• The ball chair can also be used as a therapy ball for laying in prone over the ball or laying on back…both excellent sensory activities to incorporate throughout the school day.                                                                                                                                                               Ball Chair Instructions and Helpful Tips
• Balls with feet are the best, since it keeps them from rolling away from the desk when not in use which are available online 
• A hippity hop ball can also be used as the chair
• You can buy basic exercise balls with sand in them which keeps them from rolling around and they are only about $10 each
• Be sure the balls are the right size for the children, feet should be flat on the floor, and hips and knees at 90 degree angles…and be sure the height of the desk/table in no higher or lower than 1 inch from the bent elbows
• Be sure to establish rules for use of the ball
• Encourage slight bouncing as desired, since this keeps the vestibular system firing…which helps attention to task as well as visual motor skills
•  Let the children choose how long they use the ball, perhaps all day or maybe for just a few minutes