We are hoping our OT will develop one for T when she teaches us Wilbarger brushing.
For now, we follow T's lead on what she wants. My boy (NT or ADHD?) is a sensory seeker and needs BIIIIIG, TIGHT, almost-rib-popping bear hugs every day ... and they DO seem to help his behavior.
Now, T has started asking for "Big hugs," too. But she is in a "blossoming" or outgoing phase right now, so it may be more a reflection of that, than her NEEDING them. She acts more outgoing/affectionate, after a hug, however.
We did it.Pillow "squishing" is a favorite ...[/QUOTE]
How funny! I thought I made that up for my son. I had no idea it was something that people incorporate into sensory diets.
It's interesting how some of the therapies we do with our children come to us instinctually.
Thanks in advance!
Mysh
Yep!
The good:
trampoline has improved his balance, tolerance has been built and he now loves the swing after "pushing" through it a little at a time (he would cry and get anxious before-now requests it), LOVES to be squished, tickled and hugged. I make him walk lots of stairs and this has improved his knee-bending (which was an issue)
the neutral:
we tried brushing and joint compressions and not sure they did much of anything for him.
the bad:
He still has the need to mouth objects and I dont know how or when this will end.
He will still humm instead of try to make "real"/useful sounds
I did exercises and joint compressions with Andrew for about a year and a half. Now I do them as needed.
He absolutely did NOT react well to brushing. He refused to be massaged as an infant, but last year he started letting me massage his legs and arms, and sometimes chest and belly, briefly after a bath.
Pillow "squishing" is a favorite and dh and Andrew have pillow fights quite a bit.
Andrew is in bare feet whenever possible.
He loves to be tickled.
I basically tried one thing at a time and stuck to what worked, even if I made it up myself!
Thanks so much everyone for the responses.....Lachlans main issues seem to be in vestibular processing, oral sensory processing and his behavioral outcomes for the sensory processing.
The OT showed me a new technique here particularly used in oral sensitivity (when I say new, it's probably new to us in Australia - we seem to be so far behind you guys).
Lachlan is not keen on the brushing so far, but it's only my first day at it so hopefully things will improve in that aspect.
Stay tuned!! & thanks again.
Mysh
We have one! We do brushing, deep pressure, trampoline, the swing that wraps around his body, fine motor things. He hated the brushing and swing at first, but doesn't mind it now! He LOVES the deep pressure!! I find it really helps to calm him for a few minutes and regulate a bit!
Good luck!
We incorporated sensory in our ABA therapy the following:
playdough, shaving cream table, rice and beans bin, water bin, pit balls and play pool, parachute, rolling her up like a burrito and swinging her, bouncing on a giant ball, bounce house, teether swing, music and dancing, singing joint songs...these were things she just loved to do~she had more noise issues and food~resolving nicely:)
We did. My son is very hyper, it helped a lot. We do not do it rigidly now due to school, but it still helps. Swinging and joint compressions and deep pressure massage calm him down. Jumping on the trampoline hype him up. Long walks calm him down as well. We found the sensory diet very helpful.
Concernedpa.
What is Wilbarger brushing Bump so this is close to the other postings about sample sensory diets out there.Thanks Anamcara - sounds most interesting !!!KajoliT
Here is a link that will explain a little about Wilbarger:
http://www.pbbkids.com/the_wilbarger_brushing_protocol.htm
We use a sensory diet with Mr. B. He loves the pillow-squishing, being wrapped up tightly in blankets and hugged, the trampoline, swing, etc. Anything REALLY deep-pressure is something that seems to help him. Wilbarger he could either take or leave - lately it's something he finds highly irritating, and so we use deep massage instead.
He gets a massage after bath and before bed, along with some aromotherapy to help calm things.
The two best activities for vestibular input are swinging and spinning.
Swinging - Try different types of swings like a standard swing, hammock swing, platform swing, bolster swing, tire swing.... Have your son try different movements like back & forth, side to side, and untwisting. Have him lay on his tummy. Make sure he stops swinging periodically to allow him to integrate the sensations from his inner ear. Also, make sure he's having a good time and isn't getting over stimulated.
Spinning - Try an office chair, a hammock, a Sit 'n Spin, or a lazy Susan. Again, have him stop every so often to allow his body to process the input, and make sure he's having fun.
My youngest son loves to swing. However, you never know if it's going to calm him down or reve him up. With any sensory activity, you just never know how it's going to affect him. He's an unpredictable little man!
We did the brushing. Started at age 2. I was new to OT and thought the whole thing incredibly odd but kept an open mind and did it because I was told to and wanted to feel like I was doing something. I'll never forget the day when C was almost 4 and he was on the verge of a meltdown (arms rigid at his sides, fists clenched, face red, ready to explode) and he suddenly turned to me and said "brush please mommy?" I ran and got the brush and he pulled up his shirt, laid across my lap and let me brush him. No meltdown.
I don't really use the brush any more, but if we're somewhere and he gets agitated I do scratch his back and it helps calm him.
We have a giant rainbow playset in the back yard with various kinds of swings plus a slide. We bought it when the boys were 1 and use it even in the winter. We also have a large trampoline with an enclosure in the yard. We've used body sox and therapy balls in the house.
We have and it has calmed her down We did the brushing and joint compressions. He didn't care for the brushing too much, but loved the joint compressions. We now do joint compressions, muscle stretches and exercises in combo with therapeutic listening. He used to be pretty defensive about the playdoh, rice and bean containers and shaving cream, but can tolerate it now. He loves, loves, loves the vestibular stuff. Jumping bouncing on therapy ball, swinging in the backyard, ball pit/jumpolene--I'm sure there is more that I can't think of right now. They did the vestibular activities at the begining of school each day and saw much greater awareness. He tends to zone out a lot and it was a great wake up and he attended much better. They had a trampolene in the classroom just for him.Brushing sometimes helps T, but I feel her sleep quality is more of a factor.
I also think her best sensory activity is JUMPING. But our MD talked DH out of a trampoline ... dammit. I am thinking of buying a mini-tramp, before winter! Winter was THE WORST for her!
We have had great success - so glad we did it now. Thanks everyone for your input.We had great success with it too, started it age 2.5 and we still do a lot of it. Actually this has been one of the greatest successes of all the things we have done and the response huge. I am planning on buying a small trampolene for inside the house. They love the one at OT. They have a bouncy castle but its too big for inside and I would like them to be able to use it in the house.I tried to find this link but couldn't. Can anyone help???Here is a link for sensory diet.
http://www.sensorysmarts.com/diet.html
Thank you very much!!!yw!!!!