Creating a Sensory Diet - Intro

Disclaimer - First and formost - I am just a mom trying out ideas on how to best help my child, and sharing what I am learning with others.  What I share should NEVER be taken as any form of medical advice.  Remember that Chase's sensory needs are going to be different from your child's.  What works to calm him down, get him through the day might not be what your child needs. 

I've been wanting to create a sensory diet for Chase since I first discovered he had SPD.  I started pouring through books, talking to the OT at school, made an appointment for OT over the summer - as of yet we don't really have one set up.  One of my biggest trials in life happens to be patience.  I'm not very patient, and I find that Heavenly Father has often given me opportunities to improve.  I believe this is one of those instances!!!

I find myself a bit anxious as the first day of Kindergarten looms ahead of me.  Chase it truly excited - and when I talk to him about school I make sure to stay positive - but inside I am a quivering mess. 
I'm going to share something with you all.  It isn't any big secret if you know me, especially since I share it with most people anyways.  I suffer from anxiety.  This sometimes causes me to worry about things that I have no control over.  It reminds me a lot of my son - hmmmm, wonder if Mommy has anything to do with some of his anxiety (probably).   

I admit right now that I am stressed out about how Chase is going to do in a classroom of 25+ students.  I worry that he will fall between the cracks.  I stress that he will be a lonely child like his father and mother were as children (we were both introverts - not necessarily by choice).  

In the last couple of days I have had my mother, one of my best friends, and Chase's case manager tell me that everything is going to be fine.  

Mom - 
"Remember how you struggled with learning to read?  Look at you now, you have your Masters Degree in reading!"  
"Your brother struggled with similar behavior issues and look at him now - he is a successful nurse (he has his BS in nursing - and works with critical care patients).

My Friend - When I told her his school case manager (different from the state's case manager) was a lady I worked with in the high school four years ago she said "See, no worries".  Shen then gave me some great advice about being relaxed about school starting and how to approach his teacher (which I will share with on a different post all together).  

His Case Manager from the state - "You never know - HE JUST MIGHT SURPRISE YOU!"

With that in mind - it is still important to have ideas in place to make his transition to Kindergarten easier for him (okay, AND for Mommy!).  This is why I am setting up a sensory diet!!!!I have found some great sites that give suggestions - and I have decided to note our "Sensational Journey" into the school year.  The first step is to work out a schedule, find activities that give proper sensory input, and experiment.  Hop on board as we begin the first leg of our trip!

I came across a great article on Ehow.com  How To Create A Sensory Diet.  One of the first things the article reminded me is that although Chase struggles most in proprioceptive and vestibular input there are days when his other senses are affected as well!  Not only that, but one day an activity will work like a miracle and I think to myself, "Cool, I can do that every time he starts bouncing on the walls."  The next day I try it and it makes him bounce off the walls even more, or he has a meltdown.  SIGH!!!!

There is an answer:  Just as in any diet if you eat the same thing every day you get bored, and start to become resistant.  Case in point:

I'm the one in the front row with the blue checked dress

When I lived in Brazil as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints I ate rice and beans and some sort of meat (normally chicken) at every lunch date we had.  After my first month in Ceara, Brazil we had a special luncheon at the Mission President's House.  The Mission President is the one in charge of our spiritual, emotional, and physical well being while we are out in the field for the year and a half to two years we are away from our families.  My companion (we are always paired with another missionary or two -  2 Cor. 13:1 In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.) told me that the meal at the Mission Home would be the best food our entire mission.  I was utterly excited!  I don't remember what I imagined what the meal would be like, but my mouth salivated.  I was so tired of rice and beans, I was ready for something delicious.

I quivered in anticipation as the first dish was placed on the table: RICE.  My heart sank to the pit of my stomach as the second dish was placed on the table: BEANS.  I began to sob - yes, literally SOB when the third dish was placed on the table: SOME SORT OF MEAT (I think it was chicken!).  I don't think I stopped crying for about an hour.  My Mission President and his wife were at a loss because they couldn't understand what I was saying.  They were from Sao Paulo Brazil and although they spoke pretty good English they couldn't quite understand the garbled words coming from this weeping young woman.  My companion happened to be an American, and she attempted to talk to me - but I was too much in shock.  The thought hit me that I had another year and a half of rice and beans for every, and I mean EVERY meal.  SIGH! The good news, not every meal was rice and beans.  There was pasta every once in a while (no spaghetti sauce, just pasta with oil - maybe some cilantro if we were lucky), and some of the best beet and potato salad you can imagine!  By the time I went home I had lost quite a few pounds, and I did gain a love of rice and beans (although NOT every day).

The moral to this story - it is important to find a variety of activities that can both stimulate and calm down the senses to best help Chase.  Not only that, but it is imperative that we get an idea of what happens during a typical day - so that we can prepare and implement some of the activities.

Our first assignment:
Chase Starts Kindergarten in 2 and a half weeks.  He has had a bit of an unstructured summer, which has been interesting and often frustrating.  It has been hard to juggle five different people  let me tell you.  The next couple of weeks we begin to create a bit more structure to prepare him for what he will be facing in the classroom.  I will contact the school and find out what time to expect the school bus, when class starts, when he will eat lunch, when his special classes (gym, library, art, music) will be, when will he be pulled out for Speech, OT, etc.  I will set up our day to kind of mimic these activities - which will be fun for Chase and Emma - they love to "play" school.  The weekends have pretty much been the same for 5 years - so that will continue to be the same.

By noting what his daily schedule is we can then begin to put the pieces together as to what causes meltdown, curb some of the excess energy, help him focus, and everything else his little body needs.

In This Series

Creating A Sensory Diet - Intro
Creating a Daily Schedule
We Have a Schedule, Now What?
Finding The Trouble Zones