All children are different, but when you have a child who has a sensory processing disorder, it can make life even more stressful because of the specific things you need to do to make your child happy and comfortable. It’s important to realize that a sensory processing disorder isn’t controllable by your child.
They aren’t just being ornery when they cannot touch, eat, or hear anything. Their brain doesn’t process things the same way that everyone else’s does and thus it can make daily life very hard for them. The guide that follows walks you through a few things you can make your child’s life as enjoyable as it can be when they have a sensory processing disorder.
Purchase Clothing that Feels Good to Them
When your child puts on clothes, there are different aspects of the clothing that may make them feel uncomfortable. Some children are bothered by the way that certain material feels on their skin or the way it sounds when they wear it. It’s best to look for clothing for sensory processing disorder that the child chooses. Taking your child with you to choose the clothing that they’ll wear will make it easier to dress them each day.
Monitor the Types of Toys Your Child Plays With
Children with sensory disorders often love the way that certain things feel when they touch their teeth. They will put very odd and sometimes dangerous things in their mouth simply because they’re so drawn to the way that it feels. It’s important to watch your child closely when they are playing with any toys because wood, foam, and even some plastics could easily end up in your kid’s mouth and cause harm to them.
Create Sensory Bins for Your Child
A great way to help a child with a sensory disorder is to open them up to different sights and textures with sensory bins. You can create multiple bins that your child can enjoy playing with each day. You could create themed bins for different holidays and have different small Manipulatives in each bin for your child to play with.
Allow Your Child to Try Many Different Foods
Sensory disorders affect more than just the child’s aversion to certain materials and sounds, it can also affect their ability to eat certain foods. If they do not like the way that a food feels in their mouth or the way that it smells, they won’t be able to eat it. Forcing them to eat a food that is difficult for them to eat could cause them to be ill and create an eating disorder. It’s best to try to find alternative foods to the foods that your kid can’t eat that allows them to still get the nutrients that they need without creating a mass hysteria at dinnertime.
It’s important to pay close attention to your child if you want to be sure they are as happy and healthy as they can be. There are some children who are very sensitive to sound and need to wear hearing protection from time to time in order to feel comfortable. Some children are very sensitive to light and enjoy wearing sunglasses at all times. It’s important to be accepting of your child’s differences and to help them feel as comfortable with them as you possibly can so that they are able to live a happy and productive life in the future.