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This is a website and resource that I've
created for the clients I work with now and for anyone who is trying to find answers to their questions about Sensory
Processing Disorder. It offers research, strategies, sensory tools and products that combine functions of therapy
for Sensory Processing Disorder or SPD. The older term is Sensory Integration Disorder.
I am an HHP and craniosacral therapist with a multi-dimensional
approach to health and well-being. I create an Individual Strategy for my clients to work with health concerns
that may involve stress and trauma resolution, physical difficulties, and chronic pain. I work with ADD/ADHD,
PTSD, balancing of the nervous systems, and Sensory Processing Disorder or SPD. This website focuses on SPD and
provides possible solutions, sensory tools, and strategies for treatment.
Sensory Bugs is
the name of this he website because some of my kid clients who have SPD and other sensory disorders have said that
they feel "buggy" at times.....we have discussed "bugs in their system" and we have gone on
to talk about caterpillars, butterflies, dragonflies and the ladybugs in my yard as examples of bugs that can be
appreciated as beautiful. As a further result, the sensory tools and products we created and gathered to enhance
the sensory processing disorder work have a "bug" theme, that carries over into activities and research
for children, teens and adults.
Adults or children who have SPD have great trouble making
sense out of the information their brains take in. Determining what to filter out and what to pay attention to
in in the moment is difficult, and their responses to the information may not fit the situation. Those responses
might have to do with concentrating on what someone is saying to them whether it is a task or information being
given by a parent or teacher, or a request by a partner, an employer, or even words of love. The response might
be an action or movement required that can result in a fall or awkward movement when the brain misjudges the physical
adjustment needed. There may also be a response in communication that doesn't seem to make sense or is explosive
or passive when unexpected. The responses may be over sensitive or under responsive as a result. Here are only
a few characteristics listed by the SPD Foundation and me. There are more extensive descriptions on other pages
here on the website.
CHILD - oversensitivity to touch, noise, smell, other people,
clumsy, poor motor skills, easily distracted, fidgety, aggressive, easily overwhelmed, difficulty making friends,
unaware of pain and/or other people, lethargic and slow, tasks uncompleted, difficulty staying focused, frequent
or long temper tantrums or meltdowns, bumping into things, inappropriate comments, lack of compassion.
ADULT (though most characteristics above may apply as well) constantly losing important
items, difficulty staying focused at work or school, always on the go, easily distracted, poor esteem, anxiety,
depression, lack of compassion, afraid of failing at new tasks, clumsy, oversensitive to touch, noise, smells,
leaves tasks uncompleted, moody, up and down, over or under responsive, reactive, tasks incomplete, overwhelmed,
unaware of or overly aware of others' pain,.
Here is a good working
definition from Gwen Wild, OTR,
MOT-her website is: www.sensationalbrain.com
Sensory Processing Disorder
In children and adults with sensory processing issues
(sometimes called Sensory Processing Disorder or
Sensory Integration Dysfunction), the brain has difficulty
making sense of the sensory information and deciding what to focus on and what to filter out, and how to respond
appropriately to the information. This response may be a motor action, such as adjusting your posture so you don't
fall down (clumsiness), or it may be a cognitive response, such as being able to concentrate on your spouse's (or
teacher's) voice even though the kids are being noisy in the same room. People with sensory processing issues
have to expend a lot of extra energy and thought power making sense of their sensory world and trying to formulate
appropriate responses. Therefore they struggle with poor attention, low frustration tolerance, moodiness, anxiety,
and sometimes depression. Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) is an umbrella term that encompasses several different
types of disorders resulting from poor sensory integration.
SPD
and my own work
I am a Craniosacral Therapist
, energy worker, and Holistic Health Practitioner trained in nutrition, herbs, trauma resolution, energy techniques
and I was a college and secondary instructor for over thirty years in ESL, Communications, Art and Theater. Today
I work often with trauma, self-regulation, and balancing the
nervous system. Because of the approach and nature of the energy work, Holistic Health and Craniosacral Therapy,
I look for the health in the system, rather than "treating" a problem. I research the cutting edge information
on behalf of my clients and often I take workshops and training in areas that apply to that research, as in the
case of Sensory Processing Disorder, or SPD, or sensory integration disorder.
A number of clients have come to me with what I recognize
as a sensory disorder or a diagnosis of Sensory Processing Disorder for themselves or for their children and often
have anxiety about what this means. The word "sensory" is clear to most people, but a sensory disorder
or sensory integration disorder is often a new idea to many parents or even therapists, especially in determining
what to do about it. Much of the time difficult behavior of an adult or child leads to the search for answers....and
to many more questions.
As an therapist and HHP, I've been working with sensory processing disorders
combining SPD techniques, craniosacral therapy, and other modalities, including trauma work, hair analysis, and
teaching self-regulation. I use a multilevel plan of action, an Individual
Strategy that involves the whole system. I work often with children
and their parents, but I am seeing more and more adults and adolescents that are autistic and those who were diagnosed
with ADD/ADHD who have found with current research that Sensory Processing Disorder, and Sensory Modulation is
more accurate in describing both their characteristics and ability to be self regulated. Some of the SPD techniques
are very effective with ADD/ADHD, PDD, those who have aspergers syndrome, autism, with PTSD and other anxiety disorders,
especially using the Sensory Diet and self-regulatory exercises.
I also use many of the sensory activities I worked with for over 25 years
with movement, music, Art and Theatre. As a secondary teacher I made it a point to include special needs students
and many physically and emotionally challenged kids who were part of the Special Education program, in my regular
and sheltered Drama and Art classes. It made a difference to those students and they made a contribution to my
Theatre and Art programs, teaching other students a level of tolerance and understanding about autism, ADHD and
other disorders and learning difficulties of fellow students. The students often did very well in the activities
that had them singing, dancing, and making art or doing stagecraft. It is now clear to me that I was working with
students that represented all points on the continuum of Sensory Processing Disorder as described by Carol Stock
Kranowitz, in her excellent updated book The
Out-of-Sync Child,
one
of the best resources on SPD (more are described in my SPD Resources
section).
My clients are the reason that I've created this website-----www.sensoryprocessingbugs.com,
to help them find the research and books available... and my team and I have designed, manufactured, researched
and gathered Sensory Bugs sets to make it easier for parents, occupational therapists and other craniosacral therapists
and teachers to do the work....to balance the system and look for health.
It can be
overwhelming for parents and other family members faced with learning what SPD is, how to work with it, distinguishing
how it relates to ADD/ADHD, autism, and what sensory tools and solutions may best help. This website is a resource
to help people that I work with now and those that I may work with in the future to BEGIN the search for answers
for children, teens and adults who have SPD and other sensory disorders. Sensory
Bugs products and this SPD website are
also a way to help those who may not have a
diagnosis or assessment (or can't get one covered by insurance) but who have discovered through their own research
that it is indeed SPD and/or other sensory disorders that they are dealing with.
It is also true that much of the information and tools that are sensory
can also benefit those who have PTSD and other forms of anxiety and depression, though there is a difference between
these and SPD, and it is important to distinguish that difference in diagnosis because parts of the therapies are
not the same. SPD therapy techniques are effective in many disorders listed here.
Another important fact is that SPD and some of the other
disorders are concerned with more than just calming an overactive system, but may involved an under responsive
system that needs to be actively facilitated with therapy and sensory solutions, and sometimes the balance of BOTH
stimulating and calming are needed. Again, diagnosis is key if it can be obtained, but observation of a parent
or therapist can still make a difference.
I trained with the team of Robert Scaer, MD, trauma author and neurologist
and with Ana do Valle, OTR, SEP, an international OT who works with therapists and patients and travels often to
a world crisis to help children and adults impacted. I combine that and other training and background with my other
modalities mentioned on this page.
The SPD Foundation states:
- "Studies show that as many as
five percent of all children suffer from SPD, yet information and help for those with this disorder is still very
limited. A lack of insurance or school-based diagnostic resources combined with the fact that SPD often looks like
other disorders frequently results in misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment for children and adults."
(www.spdfoundation.net.)
But other sources including Carol Stock Kranowitz, author of The
Out-of-Sync Child, estimate a higher percentage of SPD among
children---she estimates up to 15%, yet most insurance companies are not allowing for coverage of Occupational
Therapy even when an assessment by an OT reveals specific characteristics that are SPD.
So, what is SPD?
In the several books and resources on my SPD Resources page are many descriptions of SPD, and here are a few other definitions and characteristics
to start with:
- "Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) is the inability to process information received through
the senses in order to function smoothly in daily life. SPD is not one specific disorder, as blindness or deafness
is, but rather an umbrella term to cover a variety of neurological disabilities." (Kranowitz, The Out of Sync Child)
Kranowitz
does a good job of reporting the history and current studies in SPD, and she goes on to say:
- "The late A. Jean Ayres. Ph.D, an occupational therapist, was the
first to describe sensory problems as the result of inefficient neurological processing. In the late 1950s and
1060s she developed a theory of sensory integrations and taught other occupational therapists."
Referring to Dr. Lucy Miller's work, Kranowitz restates:
- "SPD happens in the central nervous system, at the "head of which is the brain.
When processing is disorderly, the brain cannot do its most important job of organizing sensory messages. The child (and adult-my note) cannot
respond to sensory information to behave in a meaningful, consistent way, He may also have difficulty using sensory
information to plan and carry our actions that he needs to do. Thus, he may not learn easily."
She makes it clear that it
is important to in determine if a person has SPD, or if that disorder is overlapping with a "look-alike"
such as ADD/ADHD, PDD, autism, aspergers disorder or can involve processing sensory information, learning disabilities
or anxiety based disorders. Accurate diagnosis is very important in order to determine the therapies to be involved.
She goes on to explain that SPD
- "is
on a continuum..at one end of the continuum, some people have mild dysfunction that affects their self-regulation.
At the other end of the continuum, many people with autism have severe sensory processing issues, further complicating
their profound difficulties with learning, communication, and relationships. Along the SI continuum are those with
ADHD, Asperger syndrome and other pervasive developmental delays. We know that SPD intensifies the bigger problems
of children with the disorders, syndromes, and environmental conditions mentioned above. For all these children,
remediation of their sensory issues through occupational therapy has an overall, positive effect."
SPD and the Trauma Connection
There is also a definitive
connection not often mentioned in the literature about Trauma and SPD, suggesting that trauma resolution may be
needed as part of the equation of therapy for SPD and other disorders as well.
Dr. Robert Scaer, MD, neurologist
and author of The Trauma Spectrum was asked recently in an interview about SPD and he said:
- "Sensory Processing disorder is a prime example of kindling in a traumatized child."
Kindling
is a term that refers to cumulative and sometimes ongoing trauma. He goes on to say throughout the interview:
- "In fact, it ties closely to ADD and ADHD. These kids showed exquisite abnormal hypersensitivity
to any kind of stimuli: sound, touch, vision; they were over responsive to almost all sensory stimuli, and there
was a group that was under responsive-where they simply sought sensory stimuli and were very hyper-active, intrusive...it
is a dysregulation both with hyper-sensitivity and hypo-sensitivity to all of the sensations of the body...people
began to realize this correlated with early childhood trauma. Once SPD was experienced in childhood, it becomes
a typical feature of that person's adaptability throughout their life... This is basically a syndrome which is
based on kindling and has this life span effect on a person's perception of their sensory input." (Trauma Wounds, Dissociation and Sensory Processing Disorder -
interview with Robert Scaer MD, Ruth Buczynski, Ph.D)
Some
SPD symptoms
Again,
from Gwen Wild, OTR,
MOT -
www.sensationalbrain.com
Typical
symptoms of Sensory Processing Disorder include the following for children:
  infants who are "really easy" or "really difficult"
- both extremes can indicate sensory issues
delayed development of motor skills and speech
picky eaters or cravings for a limited number of foods
touch avoidance, or touches EVERYTHING always
doesn't like feet off the ground, resists motion activities
seeks intense motion, often "crashes" onto floor or walls on
purpose
walks on toes or with "heavy" footsteps
picky about clothing textures or chooses clothing based on how it "feels"
sensitive to odors in environment, or doesn't seem to notice smells at
all
poor attention span
fussy, irritable, moody, anxious
easily overwhelmed in busy, noisy environments like birthday parties
frequent "melt-downs" that are out of proportion to the situation
hates hair-washing, hair cuts, nail-trimming, bathing
poor
or delayed social skill development
These are
just some of the more common symptoms of Sensory Processing
Disorder for children, with
some recognizable for adults and teens. SPD can be an umbrella term that
encompasses several more specific sensory disorders. If you feel like you or your child may have some of these
symptoms that are interfering with quality of life, education, and more consult with an occupational therapist
or other professional trained in sensory integration disorders.
There
are more details and descriptions on my SPD Sensory
Diet and SPD Therapies page.
In
my own work with SPD, autism, ADD/ADHD, PTSD it is important to know how these disorders manifest in the nervous
systems in the body. I have a multilevel Individual
Strategy with each
client that includes SPD techniques, craniosacral therapy, trauma resolution, specific nutritional analysis using
hair and tissue analysis to supplement and resolve deficiencies and toxic substances that may add to these disorders
discussed. I am in the North San Diego area and can do distance work by phone as well for SPD and other difficulties.
I
can be found here and on:
www.craniosacraltherapies.com
Victoria Behrends - RCST®, M.A., HHP,
MH, credential 1-760-753-1493
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