If your child is on a sensory diet

My DC was just evaluated and i was told there was sensory disorder going on. It been so hard to handle a child with these issues. I feel like a failure at times. I was told i was gettin an OT 2x a week to the house and they were going to give me a sensory diet. If you have had one for your child can you explain what yours was and how long did it take to work. THANKS

Re: If your child is on a sensory diet

anyone?

Re: If your child is on a sensory diet

Check out this link....

http://sensorysmarts.com/sensory_diet_activities.html

It talks a bit about what a sensory diet is and what types of activities are included.

It depends on what type of sensory input they seek or avoid and it is meant to help modulate their system so they can function inbetween "meals" :) Hopefully as the sensory behaviors improve you will be able to provide activities less and less and the child will learn how to appropriately get the input that they need.

Good luck!

Re: If your child is on a sensory diet

We are in the process of putting one together for DS. I will try to post it when we have a better handle on it.

Some of the activities we are looking at for him are
eating crunchy foods
Big bear hugs/squeezes
blowing bubbles
drinking from a straw
jumping on trampoline
riding on belly on scooter
spinning on belly on dizzy disc
wheelbarrow walking
swimming
playing with playdoh
playing in bean/rice bin
wearing weighted vest
wearing pressure vest

We have seen an increase lately in sensory seeking behaviors. Up until now we just tried to incorporate activities where we can, but now it seems like we have to step it up a bit. We have tried a brushing program in the past, but it didn't really work for DS, so we aren't doing that this time.

Re: If your child is on a sensory diet

Sensory diets are all about the individual child. I think first you have to figure out which sensory system needs the most input or is the most 'dysfunctional'. Then you can incorporate different activities that address that system... If your child is getting enough and the right input from these activities the differences in behaviors could be seen fairly quickly.

One example, is brushing. My dd was working with an OT that put brushing into her "diet". My dd has no tactile defensiveness or tactile seeking behaviors. In fact it's one of her most regulated senses. When speaking to an OT who truly has an understanding of sensory processing disorder, he told us to immediately stop brushing her.