On Monday we went to the doctor
for my daughter’s two year old check up. She had fun in the waiting room
messing around with her brother and walked like a big girl back to the room
when a nurse came and got us. The second that the nurse tried to take her temperature
everything changed. My child who was happy and calm, hyper-flexed her body (her
body became straight and tight) and started screaming. There was nothing I could
do to calm her down. From there on, it only got worse when the doctor then came in
and tried to listen to her heart, check her ears, weigh her, and get her
measurements. It got so bad that my daughter started hyperventilating. The
doctor backed away and gave us some space. In twenty minutes, my daughter did calm down.
The doctor came in and asked me some questions about my daughter’s behavior. I
talked to her about how my daughter does not like to be touched, she avoids
contact with other people and children, she will take off her clothes because
they are ouchy, she avoids certain textures, there are times when she avoids
being picked up/hugged/cuddled (even with mom and dad), she hates water/ cloths
on her face, and brushing her teeth is a struggle.
The doctor then talked to me
about Tactile Defensiveness (TD). Tactile Defensiveness is when a child has a negative
response to tactile stimuli that others think is non painful. Children that have
Tactile Defensiveness can be aggressive, cling, run away, or freeze. My child
will scream and get stiff or cling. Sometimes she will freeze and be silent.
The doctor said that since my daughter was hyper- responsive and hyper-sensitive,
she wanted to see her again and possibly refer us for more testing to make sure
she only has Sensory Processing Disorder. For now, she said to talk to our
Occupational Therapist for ideas of things to do at home. Here are some ideas I
got after talking to our Occupational Therapist:
1.
Sensory
Bins- each bin has a different textures such as rice, beans, spaghetti, sand,
shaving cream (I have a detailed list of
bins on my blog that I have done in the past)
2.
Facial
massages with hand and critter vibe prior to washing hair (with water)or face
(with towel)
3.
Brushing-
with firm/ deep pressure- straight down deep pushes on the arms, back, and legs
(I have a detailed explanation of this on my blog)
4.
Compressions
5.
Do
not approach child from behind and ask to touch child or give a prompt that you
are about to touch child- “Can Mommy hold you?”
6.
Minimize
time in line or have child stand in the back of a line
7.
Try weighted blanket/ vest or compression vest
(my child HATES this)
8.
During
bath time encourage child to use a cloth or sponge. If this is too much, put a
fun sponge in the tub for play.
9.
Heavy
work activities- pushing/ pulling activities (such as pushing laundry basket), jump
on trampoline, swing, rock on rocking horse, or carry heavy backpack
10.
Encourage
child to pay with their food and make meal time fun
As parents, we want a quick fix when
we see our children struggling. I know after our appointment, I want to “fix it”.
The reality is that there is no quick fix, but there still is hope. Things will
get better. It just takes time. Showing up to therapy and working on these
things at home can help your child progress a little faster. Right now, it can
feel a little discouraging, but I can’t wait to look back at our six month
appointment with our doctor and see how far we have come!
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