Category: Parenting

Stop the world – I want to get off! Have you ever spent so much time swimming in the ocean or being on a boat that your body continues to perceive this sensation after you have returned to solid ground?

Imagine that sensation did not stop and you continued to have difficulty perceiving your movement through the environment. Everyday life may seem like a continuous merry go round, spiralling out of control the more you move.

This is a challenge faced by many children who are sensitive to movement or who have difficulty perceiving the movement of their body through the environment and in relation to gravity.

Sensations received through our movement sense (vestibular system) should automatically and unconsciously provide us with a sense of security in terms of our body movements and position in space.

Children who do not accurately perceive this sensation may feel like balloons floating in mid-air. One can only imagine the sense of insecurity and unpredictability that is associated with this. A balloon is unable to predict which way it will be blown by the wind, how far it may go, or if and how it will get back to earth.

A child who is sensitive to movement, frequently:

• Feels anxious when moved or when their feet leave the ground
• Becomes distressed during movement
• Fears heights or avoids jumping down from higher surfaces
• Fears climbing onto moving surfaces such as escalators
• Prefers to be in control of their movement and environment which may be perceived as difficult or bossy behaviour.
• As a result, their interaction and engagement within the environment is limited and this may further hinder the development of their movement sense.

Tips for parents if you suspect that your child may be sensitive to movement sensations:

• It is important to be empathetic towards your child’s sense of insecurity with regard to movement.
• Assist your child to slowly engage in movement activities and not push them more than they are able to tolerate
• Remember that having their feet on the ground is a critical part of them feeling safe and more secure.
• Try to encourage your child to actively participate in movement activities where they can guide and control the speed and direction in which they move.
• Try to start with gentle forwards and backwards movement as this is more calming than rotational movement. Rotational movement can be incorporated as their tolerance for movement improves. Carefully observe your child for signs of dizziness and stop movement as necessary.
• Observe your child closely for signs of discomfort and provide calming sensory input in the form of deep pressure such as a big bear hug to help them feel more secure and organised.

April marks Autism Awareness month. All around the world famous landmarks have been lit up with blue lights – a great way for the world to notice that autism is real, it impacts more people than we can imagine and there is still so much to learn about the condition. Ask any parent, adult, sibling or adolescent living with autism, about what aspect they find most difficult and they will mostly confirm that dealing with the sensory elements of autism is or was their biggest hurdle.

At every moment in our 24-hour day, our senses are inundated with new and old sensory input, which gets filtered appropriately in order for one to function effectively. Many autistic children have great difficulty with processing sensory input from the environment, and added to that they have great difficulty communicating what they don’t like about the sensory input.

• Autistic children are typically sensory sensitive with either low or fluctuating thresholds, meaning that they are hugely affected, (often negatively), by sensory input from their environments. It is just too loud, too bright, too tight or too fast for them. They experience sensory overload on a constant basis and they really battle to cope with this. This video by the Interacting with Autism Project is a fantastic illustration of what somebody with autism must be experiencing when confronted with sensory overload.
• Their withdrawal patterns and poor social skills are not necessarily caused by sensory overload, but augmented by their sensory issues. Children on the Autism spectrum need consistency, routine and structure.
• Unpredictable and sensory overloaded environments (like shops and shopping malls) are very difficult for them to cope with, which typically will cause them to throw tantrums, get aggressive and/or withdraw from such environments.
• Sensory meltdowns occur when there is some form of discordance that happens in one or more of the sensory systems (touch, taste, sound, sight, smell, movement). Low blood sugar levels are also of relevance, as lowered blood sugar levels heighten all the senses.
• Remove the child from the distressing environment and take him to a safer and calmer place.
• Parents should be aware of meltdowns, it happens so quickly and without warning – but try not to over protect them or to shield them from stressful environments.
• Learn to anticipate which sensory system overloads the quickest and be prepared.
• Exposure to new and uncomfortable environments needs to be done in a gentle and calculated way (when the child is calm and regulated) as it helps them learn to anticipate, to adapt to and to manage these environments.

A portable sensory toolkit can be taken with you whenever you are away from home and can include the following items:

• Sunglasses (to decrease the effect of bright light).
• A baseball cap or wide brimmed hat (for decreased visual stimulation).
• An ice cold water bottle with a sport cap for sucking water or an ice cold juice with a straw.
• A chewy snack, like biltong, dried fruit, chewing gum.
• Soundproof headphones for very loud environments.
• A change of clothing (long-sleeved t-shirt to avoid unwanted touch).
• Deep bear hugs – for a calming effect.
• Deep breathing – the universal calmer.

The senses are thus a vital key to coping with autism – it is the window to their souls and interactions. Understand it, use it wisely and learn to look at people and environments form a sensory point of view.