hide-n-(sensory)-seeking

So this was an awesome Pinterest find that I was able to put together in less than 15 minutes! I happened to have all the supplies already which made it all the more awesome! Supplies: 1 Clear storage container (the lid for mine was white, so I simply turned the container upside down.) 1 string of twinkle lights (I used white, but different colors would create cool different effects) A strip of wax paper the length of the container (this makes the surface opaque, which diffuses the light more evenly) White duct tape ( any color would do, I just like the cleaner look of the white.) Use small strips of tape to secure the twinkle lights evenly arranged on the bottom of the container, or in my case to the lid, since that was going to be the bottom of our light box. Leave the length of wire with the plug loose and make sure you have arranged the lights so as to have the plug where you will have ease of access to an outlet. Secure the lid onto the cont...

For the entire month of August, I just didn't let myself think about it beyond the facts. For the last two weeks, I just focused on anything else that took my mind off of it. Over the weekend I was busy getting things ready, so I was too busy to think about it. Tuesday came. Miss V came. It was a good visit, with laughing and smiling, and questions asked and answered, and Kit played with her, and smiled and made us laugh like usual. But it was different, and we felt it. I didn't let myself go there, because I didn't want to break down, not that it would have been the first time in front of her (nor the second, or third, or even fourth probably.)  And then it was time for her to go, and we took some pictures, and all the kids hugged her, and I held Kit on my shoulder on the steps so she could wave goodbye until Miss V is out of sight like she has every week for at least five months. And then we closed the door, and Kit went on with business as usual, beca...

There are certain things that only happen at the point when all the elements come together. Creating an in-house obstacle course was, for us, one of those things. It sounds really easy. And is so awesome, everybody really should try it sometime. And I have been wanting to make a more large scale one for the kids for a long time.  But in order for this to happen, the house has to be decently in order, the kids have to be relatively rested, I have to have a small surplus of energy because my kids are not at all self-sufficient at organizing this kind of thing yet, and vast amounts of coffee have to have already been consumed before we start.  These are great rainy/snowy/step-outside-and-your-boogers-instantly-freeze day activities.  Ours is highly sensory organized, but remember that a lot of kids are not really getting the real amount of sensory input that their bodies really need on a daily basis. My kids just literally fall apart if they don't, while th...

Brain Dominance affects more than handedness. We   tend to think of our dominant side only in terms of right or left handedness. But brain dominance controls a whole lot more than that.  As you probably know, the left side of your brain controls the right side of your body and the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body. Typically, brain dominance not only determines handedness, but also which foot we lead with, which eye we focus with, and much less well known, which ear we listen better with. Kit is  extremely  right dominant. To the point that I several times looked up information on cerebral palsy, though I have been assured she is fine. It's really a matter of communication in her brain itself. Miss V explained to me recently that the left side of the brain is our logic center. It is very linear and pattern based, thus it is  where we process language and math. Whereas the right hemisphere is our emotion center. This...

Reflexes are very important! Have you ever been drifting off to sleep, only to suddenly jerk awake, slightly flailing your arms out, having a sudden, though brief, sensation of falling? That was your Moro reflex at work. Your brain for whatever reason felt that you needed to use it, so even though it's sort of been "dormant" in your system for a long time, it's still available in an emergency. We are all born with reflexes, and as we grow these reflexes become integrated into our nervous system. In a way, they lay dormant until our body has a need for them again. This is normal, and vital to growth and balance of our complex body systems. In some individuals, and very prevalent in those on the Autism spectrum, these reflexes do not properly integrate. They may however change their appearance and how they manifest throughout the body. This leads to a whole host of body systems that are getting mixed and messed up messages. It's not unlike trying to cli...

A brain divided cannot stand. Quite literally, in fact. When connections and synapses in the brain are not communicating well, one can have great difficulty with both simple and complex motor tasks. But it can affect much more than just that. The ability to perform multi-step actions, to interpret information received from the senses, to use more than one sense at once, and one of the most noticeable, the ability to execute speech. One of the most obvious examples of this is when an individual suffers a stroke or brain aneurysm. It is part of what can cause asymmetrical paralysis. And occupational therapy helps to not only retrain the muscles, but also to reteach the brain how to communicate with itself. This is the roll occupational therapy is playing for Kit as well. We are teaching her brain to communicate better with itself, and with her body. While many of her motor skills are actually quite advanced, there are many other areas that connections are lacking or need ...

The last two months have been about as calm as a school of piranhas in a feeding frenzy. Yeah. I won't get into the grisly details about our visit from a stomach bug, or bore you with our loosing battle with allergies and house work. I'll skip right to the major changes. We have finally started therapy. We have had almost weekly visits from an Occupational Therapist who possesses a miraculous understanding of sensory issues and how connected they are to every other body and mind function. She does a lot of teaching me about specific reflexes and sensory integration, and each week gives me new protocols to use on Kit. One of the biggest things I learned? I was right on that her sensory issues are a major cause for many of her challanges, especially where her sleep and speech were concerned. But I would never have been able to address her issues on my own. I am working toward administering the protocols every day, or at least some every day, but real life application of the...

 This is a great video that explains it very well:  

Welcome to Wordy Wednesday!   Today's subject:   OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY     This is really only a brief and general introduction to occupational therapy. This type of therapy is very helpful for individuals with a broad range of diagnoses.   We tend to think of occupational therapy as primarily for adults who have perhaps had a stroke or accident that has resulted in a loss of the use of certain skills. It plays a vital role for certain children however, since this may be where a child learns and strengthens his life skills, which center around play, balance, body awareness, gross and fine motor development.   Most of us take these skills for granted, yet there is a large number of kids who struggle with some of the most basic daily tasks such as putting on or taking off clothes, brushing teeth, holding a pencil, all the way up to climbing or descending stairs, sitting, or tolerating th...