Does your little one hate loud noises and gets upset in busy places? Or maybe they can’t sit still and constantly fidget? Perhaps they only eat one type of food all the time?
Find out what sensory processing is and how to help your child if they have a sensory processing disorder.
In this post, I will tell you what sensory processing and sensory processing disorder are, the signs and symptoms and types of it and how you can help your child.
What is sensory processing?
Sensory processing is how we react or respond to what our senses notice and experience (called processing).
It happens to everyone all the time, all day long.
How we see, hear, smell, taste, feel, and touch might differ from someone else’s experience.
Sensations might come from the external environment- from outside of our bodies (noise in a busy place, smelly food, etc.) or from the internal environment- from within our bodies -telling us how we feel (being uncomfortable in a chair, wearing clothes that are too tight, etc.).
We might ignore these sensations, or they might affect us and cause discomfort.
On the other hand, sensory experiences might give us pleasure or help calm us down.
A person might like hugs because they feel nice and help them calm down.
Patterns of sensory processing are created by the relationship between how the nervous system operates and the strategies used to self-regulate.
If sensory information is not processed smoothly, there might be issues with sensory processing, which will result in problems and cause your child to be distracted, upset, uncomfortable, or confused.
Types of sensory processing:
Sensory seeking – obtaining pleasure from sensations in everyday life (for example noticing strong smells, a need to touch everything, or creating sounds with your mouth for the auditory experience). This happens when a person creates a sensory experience for themselves.
Sensory avoiding– withdrawing from a situation where the sensory experience is unpleasant and causing discomfort. A person may have a low threshold or tolerance for specific incidents and feel overwhelmed (for example, they might be bothered by loud noise or avoid eating certain foods).
Sensory sensitivity– quickly detecting and reacting to, rather than withdrawing from, situations where the sensory input is causing distress (for example, covering their ears when hearing a loud noise). When triggered, a child might react with a meltdown, screaming, or aggression.
Low registration– failing to notice what other people notice quickly (a child needs to be touched to get their attention despite calling their name).
Most people will have moderate responses to what their senses experience.
When these responses are extreme, sensory processing will start interfering with daily life and become a sensory processing disorder.
What is a Sensory Processing Disorder?
Sensory processing disorder is a condition that makes someone experience greater sensitivity to how smoothly sensory information is processed.
It is currently not recognized as a separate diagnosis, at least in the UK. It might be a part of ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder), ADHD, or developmental and learning disabilities, or it may stand on its own. However, people with these disabilities commonly have more intense and distinctive sensory processing patterns than others.
Symptoms of sensory processing disorder
Here are the symptoms or examples of sensory processing disorder organized by senses. Your child might be highly and overly sensitive or have low sensitivity to a particular experience. You have to try and become a detective and notice repeating patterns and reactions to sensory experiences.
Hearing
High sensitivity:
- they might dislike loud noises or experience average volume as very loud
- they might be easily startled
- they may talk loudly
- they might get anxious before the expected loud noise (an alarm, for example, or a bell in school)
Low sensitivity:
- They might enjoy loud noises and always try to raise the volume when watching TV or listening to music
Vision
High sensitivity:
- they might dislike bright light and prefer a dark environment
- they might get distracted by visual information
Low sensitivity:
- they might like bright light, reflective light, spinning or flashing light
- it might take more visual information for them to react
Taste
High sensitivity:
- they might dislike strong tastes and only like bland food, usually the same food
- they might taste objects (for example, clothes)
- they might like it if the food’s temperature is always the same or like the food always very hot or very cold
- they gag if they try new food or even look at it or think about it
Low sensitivity:
- they might eat non-food items
- they might have lots of hard and crunchy food in their diet
- they might crave strong tastes
Smell
High sensitivity:
- they might like to smell objects or people
- they might overreact to new smells
Low sensitivity:
- they might be under-reacting to new smells
Touch
High sensitivity:
- they might dislike or really like messy play (slime, paint, shaving foam, mud)
- they might only like certain textures of clothing
- they might avoid touch, they might love or hate hugs
- they might react aggressively to touch
- they might be sensitive to temperature and pain
Low sensitivity:
- they might sometimes be too close to others
- they might be heavy-handed
- they might need a firm touch to be able to react
- they might over-grip objects
- it might be difficult for them to react to temperature or pain
Movement
High sensitivity:
- they might hate spinning or jumping or quickly become dizzy or will not get dizzy at all when spinning
- they might try to avoid having their feet on the ground
- they might dislike, avoid or get upset in busy places full of movement
Low sensitivity:
- they might be fast but not necessarily well-coordinated
- they might take risks
- they might choose to always run rather than walking
- they might constantly be fidgeting or tapping
- they might always be on the go and find it challenging to sit still
Body awareness
High sensitivity:
- they might try to avoid or exit crowded spaces
- they might try to create their own boundaries, deciding where to stand or go (for example, in the school line)
- they might not like it if others are too close
Low sensitivity:
- they might bump into others often or trip over things or people
- they might choose to stand too close to others
- they might need to look at their feet when going down the stairs
- they might choose to stay in tight spaces or the corners of the room
What can you do to help?
What to do about sensory processing issues will depend on what type of sense it involves if your child is over-sensitive or perhaps tries to look for more input and how much it interferes with your child’s daily life and those around them.
I found these four strategies helpful, and you may want to use them too. They are “avoid, minimize, calm down, and exit”.
Avoid:
If you know your child’s patterns and triggers, you may want to try to avoid the situation that might cause distress if possible. For example, if your child dislikes loud noises and busy places, you may want to choose not to make him go to a busy shopping centre.
Minimize:
You may want to try to minimize the impact the sensory input will have on your child. For example, you may remove labels and clothes tags if your child is sensitive to them.
Calm down:
You may use calming techniques or objects if your child is already in distress. It might be by having a cup of water, exercising, or deep breathing. I write about calming strategies in this post.
Exit:
If you are in a situation where your child is uncomfortable and over or under-stimulated, you may leave, if possible, rather than putting them through a stressful experience.
Specific advice for specific issues
Below you will find more ideas, tools, and advice for specific sensory processing issues. You can use these activities or tools to stimulate or calm your child:
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- Using Fidget toys to help with fidgeting. For more on fidget toys, gadgets, and tools for Sensory Processing issues, check out my post here.
- Using Gym balls And Weighted Blankets for those seeking constant body awareness or touch. I write about weighted blankets here.
- Using ear plugs/ ear defenders for the little ones who dislike loud noises. I write more about them here.
- Aromatherapy- some essential oils stimulate and alert, and others might be used to calm down. I personally use this lavender oil for me, my children, the house and even the dog.
- Drinking through a straw, vibrating toothbrushes, blowing bubbles, chewing gum, drinking from sport-top bottles for those seeking oral sensations.
- Giving your child a massage to calm them down or if they like and look for the touch.
- Using non-perfumed soap for the little ones sensitive to smells
- Giving them a choice between a bath or shower if they don’t like bathtime
- Using snug undergarments for those who like to feel something close to their skin
- Swimming- for those seeking movement or contact with water, also great for calming down
- Dressing up in front of a mirror -so they have more control over it
- Chewelery – they are special chewy toys that are safe for children that like to put things in their mouths or chew things, you can read about them here
- Using a little step to rest their feet when they are on the toilet, for those who do not like feet off the ground
- Going to a Park, soft play or jumping on a trampoline to distract them and focus them and their energy on something else, but not at peak times if they are sensitive to crowds/ noises/ people
- Carrying a backpack for that extra body awareness through the feeling on the shoulders
- Playing with water to calm down or for those who like the sense of water or wet play
- Petting a dog might be a great sensory experience for some children. Read here why you should get a dog for your Autistic child
What else can you do?
You can also do so much by staying calm as a parent, carer or teacher. If you are relaxed, your child will calm down faster.
Remember also to avoid stimulation that is not necessary and may overload them. Keep things simple. Try and minimize the clutter in your home and your child’s space.
You may want to find a space or a corner where they can always go and calm down.
Another good idea is using timetables and visuals to let your child know what to expect and reduce their anxiety about unexpected experiences.
I hope you find my advice helpful, and let me know in the comments if you have any questions!
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