Sensory Regulation Disorder

[nickel]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this - MODS feel free to move it.

Has anyone heard of this before? My nephew has been diagnosed with it and we were told that although he is not autistic it's on the spectrum of autism? I could google it but wanted real experiences before I start to wade through all the info.

[christy]

Do remember Matilda's panic attacks over sirens? Loud noises did it for her. She looses the plot. Do you know about my cotton wool aversion? Thats a sensory issue as well.

This is what made the Triple P social worker want to get Matilda tested for ASD (Aspergers) or whether or not she would be on the Autistic spectrum.

Its a "symptom" of Austism/ASD. So its something that is common amongst them. And you thought the two were similar!!!

We are having Matilda's sensory stuff tested in July.

[barbie-up]

We saw a paed. OT who thinks my son has that - it can be related to some or all of the senses. Alex freaks out at birds, the vaccum, hairdryer, people singing etc. He has a very high pain tolerance, things that make me wince don't bother him at all. He also cannot handle some fabrics against his skin.

There is a tonne of informtion on the web.

The OT talked about Alex being 'on the spectrum' but didn't say autism.

[monnie]

Sensory Regulation Disorder isn't on the Autism Spectrum, but like Christy said, lots of kids with Autism have sensory regulation difficulties.

It's also very possible for kids to have sensory regulation difficulties without having Autism.

Here's some stuff on sensory integration/sensory regulation difficulties that I have posted before...

From what I understand, sensory issues are seen in kids (and adults) when they are either under sensitive or over sensitive to different types of sensory stimuli...which then results in problems for them...

So it can be like the kid who doesn't 'sense' pressure accurately...so they can be too rough, without realising it...they throw the ball too hard...push into people without meaning to...

It can be the kid who doesn't sense "tactile" information accurately...so they may be overly sensitive to fabrics that are too wooly or too stiff...they like to have their socks always pulled up...they can't bear the feeling of a tag at the back of their t-shirt...or they can't bear a certain type of touch (they often prefer deep pressure touch to gentle caressing)...

The kid who has sensory overload with sounds...so things like vacuum cleaners or planes or sudden noises are very distressing for them...

Kids who don't know 'where their body is in space'...so if they close their eyes, they can't really 'sense' where their arms/legs are...so these kids are often very fidgety and restless, trying to get 'sensory feedback' from their wriggles and squirms...

Kids who are overly sensitive to textures in their mouth...so they struggle with certain textures (e.g. lumpy foods)...

It's often hard to pinpoint what is going on (that's why an assessment is really important)...these kids often look like they are being 'naughty' or misbehaving...but really they are struggling from sensory overload or sensory understimulation...they also look like they are not paying attention...but sometimes it's because they are paying so much attention to their sensory stuff (because it's overloading their little bodies), that they can't pay attention to other stuff...

It's certainly seen in diagnoses such as autism or aspergers...but can also be a disorder just on it's own...a bit like a child might have a speech problem...

Occupational Therapists are usually the professionals that deal with sensory issues with kids...but not all of them...they often need to have specialised training...alot of the therapy they do with kids is providing them with a 'sensory diet', helping them to 'desensitise' them to sensory information...but also helping parents to recognise the 'signs'...

Hope that makes sense...

[tan32]

I think my son suffers from a form of this, we took him to a spec when he was around 10 months old.
He does not like people to touch him, he is very fussy about socks and shoes and will take them on an off so many times. He is old enough now to put them on the way he likes them.
He would throw his arms right back if someone went to touch his hands, he didnt like the feel of certain surfaces when he crawled.

He is now 4 yrs old and we still have cetain things that set him off.
The childcare cetnre he went to were great and they made him a sensory box, so he could get used to different textures. His main problem was around touch, although he does not like loud noises and will tell us that it gives him a headache.
He is a happy 4yr old boy who is very bright, he just likes to be touched on his terms and does not like to be crowded around, he is getting better now. At least he enjoys his bath now, i swear people must have thought we were hurting him as he hated the feel of water on his skin.

We were told he had hyper sensitivity and that we could work on this. Im not sure if it is along the same lines as what you are reffering too.

[nickel]

It was his kindy that picked it up and told my S-I-L to get him assessed, thank goodness.
He's 5 and going to school next year so it's awesome that he won't get labelled "the naughty kid" or thought to be dumb because apparently he's not, it's just his other issues.

It's a weird thing huh? my mum is being really good, but sometimes I think she wonders if it's all just a bit ... "alternative"