More Mayhem and it’s Name

A large part of my daily mayhem consists of being home all day with a little one who is very high energy, cannot/does not entertain himself at all, can’t stand for me to leave the room, gets into everything, falls off/runs into things, frequently has bumps, bruises and boo boo’s and is overall just extra cranky. Yeah, good times. Well, I’ve recently discovered that my cute little one actually has SPD/Sensory Processing Disorder (also known as Sensory Integration Dysfunction) so there really is something behind his behavior. And here all this time I just thought he was a little snotbucket. It’s fortunate to have caught it early, to get treatment (Occupational Therapy) and hopefully things will improve. It was a true “Aha!” moment as I learned that kids who have sensory issues behave in just the way my little darling does. SPD is difficulty handling information that comes in through the senses—not just hearing, sight, smell, taste and touch, but also the proprioceptive and vestibular senses, (yeah, like I knew what that meant!) which apparently tell us where our arms and legs are in relation to the rest of us and how our body is oriented toward gravity. Additionally, he's also not getting his needs met for tactile input. Someone with sensory issues can be either over-sensitive or under-sensitive, my child is in the latter category. OT will get him lifting, pushing, pulling, and working until he gradually becomes more alert to the feel of his body and its surroundings. Thank heavens he starts this much needed therapy this week. In the meantime, we are working on his communication skills and have actually heard some new words out of him lately. We are also working on signing with him and he’s already picked up a few signs! I must admit I am really enjoying learning this with him! So, we are very busy around here with all this learning, therapy and new ways of doing things. It’s pretty challenging and time consuming but all very necessary under the circumstances. I am hopeful now that I know why my child has been so difficult thus far, along with knowing there is actually something that can be done about it that things will improve for him.