Meggin is an awesome parent that I have had the privilege of working with as her daughter Kate was identified as having sensory processing problems at a very young age.

Meggin talks about the symptoms Kate displayed at 1-4 months of age, 6 months, at 1 year and then at 2 years of age when she finally sought help from an occupational therapist.  Her daughter was very easily stressed, she did not like baths, she screamed when she felt a cold breeze, didn’t like many foods, refused to wear socks and spent many hours of the day wanting to be in her crib with the lights out and with soft music playing.

This was her chance to self-calm, which resulted in difficulty with her bonding with her family.  Various doctors said she had Autism at 1 year of age, diagnosed her with Oppositional Defiant Disorder at 1.5 years, and recommended that she put Kate on Zoloft at 2 years of age.  Well, she certainly had behaviors that were undesirable, but they were related to her having sensory defensiveness, which is defined as being hypersensitive to two or more types of sensory stimulation (light touch, sounds, movement, smells, tastes, and/or visual stimulation).

Meggin shares her insight and stories on how it feels to have a child with a condition that is not well recognized or understood in the field of medicine and in the general public.  She was ecstatic that she had someone who believed her when she described Kate’s behaviors and symptoms to her occupational therapist.  It was hard to get some of her family members on board until they all saw Kate getting better. This is a very trying time for a parent that is not well supported at any point in their journey to find help, when they don’t know exactly what they are looking for.

As a parent with a child who thrived with sensory integration therapy and who has taught grade school in the past, Meggin was able to offer a few suggestions for teachers out there looking for insight or ideas, including:

  • allowing a child to sit on a ball at his/her desk to improve attention
  • allowing children to chew gum to help them focus (especially for tests)
  • providing physical activities to motivate these kids, and help them process so they are ready to learn and pay attention

She saw that many schools, teachers and parents did not understand the sensory symptoms and challenges that were present in multiple children in each classroom.  Certainly more research and individual education is needed here.

Her words of wisdom to parents that are going through a hard time right now include:

1. Use your parent intuition! A lot of people did not get this right!

2. Get rid of your internal rules of how to run a household!  Meggin has a large platform swing suspended in her playroom, she lets the kids jump on the furniture and has lots of pillow fights, all of which she did not expect to ever allow in her household.

Children with sensory processing challenges are quite often very bright, they are great kids, and they are very capable.  Help is out there!  Try to find a local therapist who has additional training in sensory processing disorder that makes you feel comfortable and confident. You will be your child’s best advocate.

Thanks for listening!

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