Overstimulation question, Need help please!! - sorry, long.

[Guest guest]

_5pirainos@..._ (mailto:5pirainos@...) writes:

There are just times when it demand that we are part of a large group (i.e.

Holiday season, etc.) We are currently exploring medication options. Any

other ideas???

Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Please share any experience you may

have. I can't wait to read your posts!

Thanks

===========================================

I have some issues with Evan in crowds, especially if there is going to be

any clapping or loud singing. I have seriously thought about trying to get

some hearing aids made by our audiologist (the rubbery type that is molded that

fit into the ear canal and the hearing aid part goes over the back of the

ear) to fit his ears and just not putting the hearing aid part on it, just to

use them when I know we are going to be around noise. They should not bother

him too much because they would fit HIS ear canals. I'll let the list know

if I can get her to make them for us and how it works if she does it.

Terry

Mom to Evan, 9, DS, Autism, and to Kohl, 3, NDA

[Guest guest]

Hi! I'm new to the group. Thanks for taking the time to read

this.

I really would love your ideas. We're at the end of our rope!!

Looking for new directions!!

I am exploring a behavior we have with our daughter and I was hoping

I

could find some " Mommy/Daddy Wisdom " from this group. My daughter

is

9 and she has a very severe sensitivity to sound. She not only has

the painful response to sudden loud and unusual sounds but she also

becomes overstimulated by large quantities of noise (i.e. crowds,

school playgrounds, the mall, birthday parties, etc.)

Her behaviors include bruxism, tongue suckeling (to mask the noise,

I

believe), verbal apraxia as well as other motor dyspraxias - it

seems

like the more stimulated she becomes, the less able she is to motor

plan. She chews on her thumbs. She stims using crayola

paintbrushes. I can tell how bad it is by how many she has in her

hand. She like to paint the surface of her hand and her face. She

also demonstrates greater " stuffing " of food in her mouth. Orally

she

is hyposensitive. She frequently obstructs her airway when it gets

this bad requiring the himlich. As the behaviors increase she

becomes

a bit aggressive - invading personal boundaries, seeking deep

pressure

(rushing you with a surprise full body bear hug, etc.) When

overstimulated we experience pottie accidents and bowel management

issues. She otherwise is independent with toileting needs day and

night. We also depend on Melatonin for sleep issues which increase

during these periods when she is overstimulated.

To sum her up, it is like she becomes intoxicated (or my word -

drunk)

on noise. She ends up with a pretty bad hangover lasting from a day

to several weeks which impacts her participation in school

activities

as well as therapies. The best treatment right now is to provide

her

with " quiet time " or " down time " to recover her skills and

baseline.

OT and SI is so valuable at this time! To prevent the problem we

not

only avoid the environments which are intoxicating to her but we

also

incorporate the use of a walkman to mask out noises when we can

anticipate the noise exposure (i.e. shopping at the mall).

We have made some progress while attempting to desensitize by

exposing

her to natural environments. She can tolerate the stables for

therapeutic horse back riding (during the week only- there are fewer

riders at that time.) She can attend swimming at grandma's house

with

just a few people. She can have a playdate with one friend if it is

monitored and remains relatively calm. She can make early morning

grocery shopping trips with me (very short ones), while we practice

social skills and math skills. We do best when the stores are empty.

Any amount of auditory stimulation and she begins to climb " the

behavior ladder " .

Our unsuccessful attempts at exposing her to environments include

Special Olympics - bowling - bad idea! - this is when we were just

learning of her sensitivity, Special Olympics Gymnastics - didn't

work

because we were in a gymnasium and the sounds were too much for her,

challenger league soccer - yelling / noise - couldn't manage it.

And

of course school. This is impossible for her. She revs herself up

and is just one big overstimulated behavior kid. All she learns is

how the staff manage her behaviors. No learing moments present and

lots of symptoms and fall out in the home environment.

We presently home school and she/we can manage the resulting

behaviors

by not exposing her to the stimulus amd helping her regulate her

system. We would like to enjoy life however and we are searching

for

some new approaches to allow her to do so. There are just times

when

it demand that we are part of a large group (i.e. Holiday season,

etc.) We are currently exploring medication options. Any other

ideas???

Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Please share any experience

you may have. I can't wait to read your posts!

Thanks

[Guest guest]

: Have you ever had her evaluated by a Sensory OT? Tori has several

sensory issues and is now on a Sensory Diet.

Liz-Mom to Tori 5 y.o. DS/ASD/OCD/NLD

Overstimulation question, Need help please!! - sorry,

long.

> Hi! I'm new to the group. Thanks for taking the time to read

> this.

> I really would love your ideas. We're at the end of our rope!!

> Looking for new directions!!

>

> I am exploring a behavior we have with our daughter and I was hoping

> I

> could find some " Mommy/Daddy Wisdom " from this group. My daughter

> is

> 9 and she has a very severe sensitivity to sound. She not only has

> the painful response to sudden loud and unusual sounds but she also

> becomes overstimulated by large quantities of noise (i.e. crowds,

> school playgrounds, the mall, birthday parties, etc.)

> Her behaviors include bruxism, tongue suckeling (to mask the noise,

> I

> believe), verbal apraxia as well as other motor dyspraxias - it

> seems

> like the more stimulated she becomes, the less able she is to motor

> plan. She chews on her thumbs. She stims using crayola

> paintbrushes. I can tell how bad it is by how many she has in her

> hand. She like to paint the surface of her hand and her face. She

> also demonstrates greater " stuffing " of food in her mouth. Orally

> she

> is hyposensitive. She frequently obstructs her airway when it gets

> this bad requiring the himlich. As the behaviors increase she

> becomes

> a bit aggressive - invading personal boundaries, seeking deep

> pressure

> (rushing you with a surprise full body bear hug, etc.) When

> overstimulated we experience pottie accidents and bowel management

> issues. She otherwise is independent with toileting needs day and

> night. We also depend on Melatonin for sleep issues which increase

> during these periods when she is overstimulated.

>

> To sum her up, it is like she becomes intoxicated (or my word -

> drunk)

> on noise. She ends up with a pretty bad hangover lasting from a day

> to several weeks which impacts her participation in school

> activities

> as well as therapies. The best treatment right now is to provide

> her

> with " quiet time " or " down time " to recover her skills and

> baseline.

> OT and SI is so valuable at this time! To prevent the problem we

> not

> only avoid the environments which are intoxicating to her but we

> also

> incorporate the use of a walkman to mask out noises when we can

> anticipate the noise exposure (i.e. shopping at the mall).

>

> We have made some progress while attempting to desensitize by

> exposing

> her to natural environments. She can tolerate the stables for

> therapeutic horse back riding (during the week only- there are fewer

> riders at that time.) She can attend swimming at grandma's house

> with

> just a few people. She can have a playdate with one friend if it is

> monitored and remains relatively calm. She can make early morning

> grocery shopping trips with me (very short ones), while we practice

> social skills and math skills. We do best when the stores are empty.

>

> Any amount of auditory stimulation and she begins to climb " the

> behavior ladder " .

>

> Our unsuccessful attempts at exposing her to environments include

> Special Olympics - bowling - bad idea! - this is when we were just

> learning of her sensitivity, Special Olympics Gymnastics - didn't

> work

> because we were in a gymnasium and the sounds were too much for her,

> challenger league soccer - yelling / noise - couldn't manage it.

> And

> of course school. This is impossible for her. She revs herself up

> and is just one big overstimulated behavior kid. All she learns is

> how the staff manage her behaviors. No learing moments present and

> lots of symptoms and fall out in the home environment.

>

> We presently home school and she/we can manage the resulting

> behaviors

> by not exposing her to the stimulus amd helping her regulate her

> system. We would like to enjoy life however and we are searching

> for

> some new approaches to allow her to do so. There are just times

> when

> it demand that we are part of a large group (i.e. Holiday season,

> etc.) We are currently exploring medication options. Any other

> ideas???

>

> Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Please share any experience

> you may have. I can't wait to read your posts!

>

> Thanks

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

> --------------------------------------------------

> Checkout our homepage for information, bookmarks, and photos

> of our kids. Share favorite bookmarks, ideas, and other information by

> including them. Don't forget, messages are a permanent record of the

> archives for our list. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/

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>

[Guest guest]

also has sensory issues, we do have a trampoline in the backyard, and a

tree swing. We also brush him every 2 hours with joint compressions/ he

uses a weighted vest however not on, we put it in his backpack only way he would

tolerate it. It has helped so much we can take anywhere !

[Guest guest]

Hi,

Perfect reading material from this SCHAFER AUTISM

REPORT:

The Hug Machine for Autism

http://www.click2houston.com/health/4805792/detail.html

Temple Grandin is an adult with autism who has written two books about

her life. In her books, she described her severe anxiety and how her

discovery of deep pressure ultimately helped her reduce the anxiety's

debilitating effects. During her childhood years, Temple would crave

deep pressure. She would crawl under sofa cushions or wrap herself in

blankets to provide pressure. She said she could not obtain

the 'right' amount of pressure from people because they either gave

her too much deep pressure or too little.

As a teenager, Temple observed cattle being branded in a squeeze chute

at a relative's farm and noticed that they immediately calmed down

after pressure was administered. Temple reasoned that the deep

pressure from the chute led to an overall calming effect and thought

it might be able to settle her " over-stimulated nerves, " so she

invented a device known as the hug machine. A series of clinical

trials were conducted at a day school at the Reese Hospital &

Medical Center in Chicago to evaluate students'use of the hug

machine.

Researchers wanted to know if students would actually make use

of this equipment on a consistent basis. Students who used the

lateral pressure equipment showed a significant improvement in

behavior and the ability to perform school-related activities.

For More Information, Contact: Kelli Sullivan, Department of

Occupational Therapy, The Children's Center, 5430 West Glenn Drive,

Glendale, AZ 85301

http://www.thechildrenscenteraz.org

.. . .

SUBSCRIBE to SAR: http://www.sarnet.org or mailto:subs@...

[Guest guest]

Re: Overstimulation question, Need help please!! - sorry,

long.

also has sensory issues, we do have a trampoline in the backyard, and a

tree swing. We also brush him every 2 hours with joint compressions/ he

uses a weighted vest however not on, we put it in his backpack only way he

would

tolerate it. It has helped so much we can take anywhere !

[Guest guest]

Re: Overstimulation question, Need help please!! - sorry,

long.

also has sensory issues, we do have a trampoline in the backyard, and a

tree swing. We also brush him every 2 hours with joint compressions/ he

uses a weighted vest however not on, we put it in his backpack only way he

would

tolerate it. It has helped so much we can take anywhere !

[Guest guest]

Sorry if you all got blank emails. My computer is crazy!

Ikea has a great swing that I am hoping to get for Jake. It is similar to the

therapy swings (like a bag) made out of canvas and it is under $50.00. Last

time I was at Ikea they were out of it. I hope to get it for him for a

Christmas present. He likes to be in things. We have a First Steps toy box and

he takes everything out and climbs in and shuts the door. He can't suffocate

and he loves being inside it. At his preschool, they had made a big wooden box

and covered it with carpet. Then they filled it with different things. This

is another thing on my wish list. He would totally be in it all the time.

Holly

Re: Overstimulation question, Need help please!! - sorry,

long.

also has sensory issues, we do have a trampoline in the backyard, and a

tree swing. We also brush him every 2 hours with joint compressions/ he

uses a weighted vest however not on, we put it in his backpack only way he

would

tolerate it. It has helped so much we can take anywhere !

[Guest guest]

Isaiah has some of the same issues. He has a very difficult time dealing with

the combination of crowds, darkness or flickering lights, and especially loud

noises. The noises is probably his biggest problem. We found that if we reduce

the noise, (with shooting ear muffs) he has a much easier tome dealing with the

other things. Before we got him the ear muffs, he'd run to his room and close

the door whenever I'd vacuum. Now whenever he sees that I'm going to vacuum, he

puts on his ear muffs and asks to vacuum. We use to fight him to get him to go

into the church building. We have loud music and sometimes they dim the lights,

so that was a big problem for him. For about the past month, since we started

using the ear muffs, he's actually walked right.

Along with the ear muffs we decided to go ahead and try putting him on some

medication. He's been on a low dose of Prozac for about 3 weeks. I don't know

if it's too soon to actually see a difference. There's one thing I did notice

yesterday morning when I dropped him off at school. I don't know what they were

doing, but it seemed like they were trying out different types of bell sounds.

Isaiah had already gone out to his playground when the sounds started. I could

see that he was starting to get upset, but it wasn't like his usual reaction.

He didn't freak out, cover his ears and start running. He saw a friend of ours,

(who was watching her son on the playground) he went to her and said to her,

" scared, go home " . Luckily the sounds stopped after about 2 minutes. She

brought him over to me and he said the same thing. I explained that it was all

done and that it would be okay. Instead of insisting on going home, he walked

over to his 1:1 and went to his class. Of course I

went home and got his ear muffs for him just in case. I was very proud of him!

He also had a sensory evaluation done at the end of last year. The OT at school

is great. She's set up a sensory room where he can go if he needs to spin,

swing or squeeze. He's also supposed to get a weighted vest and they might go

back to brushing and joint compressions.

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