Sensory Issues

Oral/ Taste Sensitivity

  Gagging, or a strong reaction to certain foods, refusal to eat certain types of food, crying during meal time, vomiting, biting fingers or other objects, unusual taste preference, and delayed eating milestones are all signs of oral sensitivity. Here are a few useful products that can be helpful in aiding the individual with this delay. 
. Chewy tubes, necklaces, and teethers are all great product to purchase you can find some of these products by clicking the links below.

Links.  Amazon , Autism Resource, Autism Products

I have found that using plastic straws helped with my adult son, as the chew tubes tend to look a bit more for children, and my son was not ok with that.

. Introduce new foods delicately by first putting food next to their plate, do this for about 1 week.

. Week number two put food on their plate, but they do not have to eat it, do this for 1 week.

. Have your child hold or touch the food and see what response you get you want them to be comfortable with the food so gauge how long you need to do this it could take a few weeks be patient.

. If your child gets comfortable then you can move into introducing it to their mouth. Now here is where it can get a bit stressful sometimes your child may scream, gag, spit, or shake their head continuously. This is ok but only do this portion for minutes at a time you don't want to over stress them as this can last all day.

. Eventually the goal is to get them to put the food in their mouth and at least taste it. If you never get to that point don't be discouraged pushing your child a bit is a good strategy to help them get used to new introductions. As you continue these strategies you are helping them cope with change and that is always beneficial. 

Chewing gum

My son is 21 and uses chewing gum a lot of times to help with his oral sensitivity. He does chew his fingers most times so we are always reminding him about his straws and gum. Get sugarfree gum especially if they chew it often the last thing you want is to deal with is dental issues.

Noise Sensitivity

Auditory sensitivity can be detected if child/adult cover their ears, scream, running away from loud noises, rocking or shaking of hands, or (stimming).

. Noise cancelling headphones, soothing sound machines, Cd's, Mp3 players, and aromatherapy are all very helpful in calming your child/adult down.

 Links: Headphones, Sound Machine, Another Sound Maker, Mp3
Sound

Weighted Blanket

These come in various weights please look at the charts on the manufacturer's websites not all blankets are made alike. The weight of the blanket is very important according to your child's weight.

Tactile 

Noticeable cursors for tactile overload are, disliking the feel of certain fabrics, does not like socks with seams or the seam being crooked, clothing with holes, avoidance of messy textures such as paint, shave cream, mud, sauces etc, dislikes hugs and kisses, challenge with getting haircuts, washing and brushing hair, and hugging or touch. Children/adults with tactile sensitivity have a difficult time being barefoot. Hot or cold weather can be very disrupting to their day as it can actually hurt their skin. Having to touch their ears, head or face has the same effect as weather to the skin.

. Weighted blankets, heavy work such as swimming, digging, rock climbing, resistance band exercise, trampoline,can all help with overload as it helps get all their anxietyout. Keeping socks all the same brand color and fabric help not to overload them. Keep hair short to avoid brushing or buy low noise clippers if you are going to cut it one recommendation is letting them know well in advance that a haircut is coming so they can prepare themselves which will prevent outburst.

Hair washing

In previous post I mentioned using a shower head ring that are typically used for infants and toddlers. This has been a life saver for us, as I mentioned before my son is 21 and he uses these for himself this helps him not get water on his face which is a big trigger for him. Just remember to put it away when you have company to prevent embarrassment. 

Links: Target, Walmart, Amazon

Visual/Light Sensitivity

Autistic individuals can display discomfort by making faces or sounds when something is visually upsetting. They may also start stimming, closing or covering of eyes, they may have light avoidance, headaches or migraines, have discomfort with artificial or fluorescent light, dislikes strobe lights or light's that move or change color quickly. They may also get triggered by other peoples voices, or high pitch voices. 

. Replace lighting with indirect natural lighting, maintaining dim lighting in their room, wear visor or hat, use blackout curtains or shades, and reduce visual clutter.

Links: Light Sensitivity

Our autistic children's world is so different than our own but by being better educated and understanding we can help them to enjoy their environment just a bit more. And That's the "Heart Of The Matter"