sensory processing disorder

khary does lots of little things that just constantly grate on the nerves of his mama and daddy. in talking with some other mamas of, er, spirited, children, i got to thinking that he has sensory issues. lo and behold, i look at some checklists & suffice it to say mama and daddy need to be more understanding! it's changed my perspective and expectations & we're getting along much better this past week. i've been providing him with acceptable outlets for all that sensory stimulation he was already seeking out in sometimes-less-than-appropriate ways. we have a referral to children's mercy's occupational health clinic for an assessment; i think i'm going to call later this week and hound them about getting an appointment. khalil's diagnostic tests are wednesday morning, so scheduling availability may depend on what they show and what the follow-up needs to be for him.

and the areas into which khary's behaviors fell are tactile hyposensitivity/sensory seeking and proprioceptive dysfunction. to satisfy the former, he's constantly playing in dirt, eating it, putting other things in his mouth, touching anything and everything and bouncing off the walls. and the latter is perfectly characterized by his constant state of crashes and bruises and general inability to know where he is in space (which is the definition of proprioceptive dysfunction). i know these can by "typical" of 3yo boys, but his tendencies are extreme and really do get in the way of his functioning at times in many settings. hopefully we can get some therapies and strategies in place before it gets too cold to play outside all the time!