Discovering Ethan's Sensory Diet

As I have talked about before, one child diagnosed with autism does not have the same set of challenges as another child. One part of Ethan's specific diagnosis is Sensory Processing Disorder. The way to help Ethan overcome this disorder is to have him participate in Occupational Therapy. During the first several weeks of OT, we investigated Ethan & his senses in order to develop a personal sensory diet. The first systems that the therapist had us look at were Ethan's Proprioceptive & Vestibular Systems. This was my first experience in the field of OT, and it amazed me! And still does.

The proprioceptive system "tells us about our own movement or body position. The receptors are in the muscles, joints, ligaments, tendon, and connective tissue." For Ethan, this is a weak system. He isn't aware of his own body movement & positions....making him appear to be clumsy. He trips over his own feet, walks into walls, falls out of chairs, and bumps into other children which puts him in the "under-responsive" category. Because of this, Ethan needs activities that will tap into this specific system, or sensory input, in order to help him overcome his "clumsiness". So, for 2 weeks, we tried different activities & recorded Ethan's responses. The therapist gave us a list of 71 activities that may or may not work with Ethan...and I tried them all.

Here is what our research discovered - Ethan & his proprioceptive system responded well to...
1. Jumping & bouncing
2. Pushing & pulling heavy objects
3. Weighted items (lap pads, heavy blankets, medicine balls)
4. Crashing into or being squished by couch cushions
5. Playdoh, stretchy tubing, squeezable fidget toys
6. Being pulled by arms &/or legs
7. Sports, gymnastics, wrestling


Meanwhile, at the same time, we were also testing Ethan's Vestibular System. The vestibular system "tells us where we are in space and how the body is moving. It allow us to maintain our balance and elicit protective reactions." This system seems to be very typical...not overly or under responsive. This is a great thing. People who's system is overly responsive usually self-calm themselves by rocking back & forth. People with under responsive systems usually arouse their levels by spinning. These images are what people usually equate with autism. But this is only one part...and not all children with autism demonstrate these characteristics...and Ethan is one who does not. However, we still tested his system by participating in 48 activities. Yep...we did them all!

Here is what we discovered that Ethan responded well to.....
1. Jumping - trampoline, hip-pity hop ball, bed/cushions
2. Crashing & rough-housing
3. Climbing, pulling & pushing heavy things
4. Running
5. Upside Down activities - somersaults, bending over, laying off the couch

The reason these were tested together is because their activities are very similar. And to bring about the most benefit to Ethan, you need to do a Vestibular activities followed by a Proprioceptive activity. When we realized what Ethan enjoyed doing & responded well to, we began doing this about every 4 hours....we called it a "moving activity following by a heavy activity". It reminded me very much of exercising....do your cardio & then your weights.

When we did this, Ethan was able to focus on tasks longer, sit at the dinner table longer, and was much more manageable....for lack of a better word. However, since Ethan has been in OT for awhile now & his vestibular system is average, we don't have to do a moving activity near as much as we used to in the beginning. However, he still needs the weighted input in order to do everyday activities. When he sits at the dinner table, he has a step-stool under his feet, a chair with arms & a weighted stuffed animal (a caterpillar that I stuffed with panty-hose full of rice). Because of these aids providing input to his proprioceptive system, he can now feed himself with utensils, sit at the table longer (although he is still a toddler....he doesn't sit THAT long!), and is starting to talk to us about his day during mealtime.

This just amazes me that a few little changes have added up to such a big difference for Ethan & us. Occupational Therapy is AMAZING! Stay tuned for the tactile system......finger painting anyone???