Guest guest Posted July 30, 2006 Report Share Posted July 30, 2006 Thank you so much for the explanation of the vest. It makes a lot of sense to me now. It is interesting that you mention the closet because my son LOVES to hang out in the closets around the house. He also loves to play independently in his room. Have you seen any difference in your daughter wearing the neoprene vest? -Kristeen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 30, 2006 Report Share Posted July 30, 2006 Thank you so much for the explanation of the vest. It makes a lot of sense to me now. It is interesting that you mention the closet because my son LOVES to hang out in the closets around the house. He also loves to play independently in his room. Have you seen any difference in your daughter wearing the neoprene vest? -Kristeen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 31, 2006 Report Share Posted July 31, 2006 My daughter has sensory integration issues (more sensory seeking than avoiding) and her therapists tried a Benik vest in therapy sessions. My daughter also has problems with motor planning and body awareness. Some notice that when you remove the Benik vest that the child is a little disoriented for a little while. They decided instead to use a SPIO suit (Stabilizing Pressure Input Orthosis). It is a lycra type material (similar to the bodybag. The suit is two pieces and she wears it all day long. (I don't put it on for her two mornings at nursery school and she doesn't wear it to Sunday School.) The suit is very tight and gives a constant deep pressure. At first I didn't notice any changes but now (2 weeks into using suit) I see changes in behaviors, focusing, etc. My daughter is 28 months old and in play group her distractibility was much greater than her younger peers. Not any more thanks to the suit. Yes she still gets distracted easily as does any other toddler but now her level of focus is more appropriate for her age. Other sensory things we do.... The " taco " maneuver described by Tammy (we call it getting squished), joint compression, brushing, lots of horse play and messy play. One good thing about a SPIO suit vs. a Benik is that a SPIO can be worn under their clothes and be easily hidden. With summer upon us I put the SPIO on Grace and put a little skirt over it with a tank top. Makes it look like she's just come from a dance class and it keeps the questions to a minimum when we're out. At least three times a week I hear some little old lady saying something about her cute dance outfit. I just smile and keep on going. Kris On Jul 30, 2006, at 4:54 PM, Tammy Aubrey wrote: > I'll give your question a shot: If the Benik vest is a neoprene > vest that's tight fitting and secured with velcro, then it's the > same vest our OT uses. My daughter has Apraxia, Ataxia, Dyspraxia, > etc... The purpose for the vest is to provide warm, deep > compression/pressure, which gives the child awareness of their body > in space. It was confusing to me, too, but my OT explained that my > daughter cannot associate her body in space. The degree of this > disassociation depends on her environment, anxiety, etc... To > understand what it is like to not be able to associate your body in > space, she likened it to walking down into your basement with the > lights off to get an object you know is in the furthest corner of > the basement. You can't really see where you are going, but you > know where you are going because it's your house and you've done it > many times. The problem is that you stumble over the box on the > floor, you bump up against the sofa because you couldn't remember > exactly where it was at. Having said all that, the Benik vest is > the equivalent to turning on the lights. Hope that was > understandable. My daughter was diagnosed with Ataxia at age 2.5, > but we were only told that it was an imbalance. Through research, I > still never found any explaination of 'imbalance', so we continued > to think of it as like having an inner ear problem that made her > imbalanced. It's not like that at all. Two other products that I > have seen work wonders is the bodybag and the ankle weights. My > therapist taught me how to give my daughter " ashton taco's " , which > stands for my daughter's name 'ashton' and a taco, in which i wrap > her in a bean bag real tight and rock her back and forth. It's very > soothing and it gives them the deep pressure that allows them to > know where their body is. One more piece of advice is to clear out > their closet, place a couple of pillows inside and hang a flashlight > inside and let them know this is their own space. When your child > is having difficulty focusing, tell them it's time for their 'own > space' and have them hang out in their space for a few minutes. > Don't lock the door in any way. Children with this disorder will > gravitate to tight, possibly dark spaces, which also gives them > their association in space. I wouldn't have believed it, if I > hadn't seen it for myself in therapy. Just some options. > > > > > > My 2 year-old son Braden was given a Benik vest to try for a week > from his > > OT. I guess it is supposed to give him more body awareness, > though his OT > > didn't explain it very well. Does anyone have this for their > child? I am not > > quite sure how it is really supposed to help him. He has some > slight sensory > > issues (doesn't like textured food or touch sand) and either has > apraxia or a > > phonological processing issue. > > > > -Kristeen > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 31, 2006 Report Share Posted July 31, 2006 My daughter has sensory integration issues (more sensory seeking than avoiding) and her therapists tried a Benik vest in therapy sessions. My daughter also has problems with motor planning and body awareness. Some notice that when you remove the Benik vest that the child is a little disoriented for a little while. They decided instead to use a SPIO suit (Stabilizing Pressure Input Orthosis). It is a lycra type material (similar to the bodybag. The suit is two pieces and she wears it all day long. (I don't put it on for her two mornings at nursery school and she doesn't wear it to Sunday School.) The suit is very tight and gives a constant deep pressure. At first I didn't notice any changes but now (2 weeks into using suit) I see changes in behaviors, focusing, etc. My daughter is 28 months old and in play group her distractibility was much greater than her younger peers. Not any more thanks to the suit. Yes she still gets distracted easily as does any other toddler but now her level of focus is more appropriate for her age. Other sensory things we do.... The " taco " maneuver described by Tammy (we call it getting squished), joint compression, brushing, lots of horse play and messy play. One good thing about a SPIO suit vs. a Benik is that a SPIO can be worn under their clothes and be easily hidden. With summer upon us I put the SPIO on Grace and put a little skirt over it with a tank top. Makes it look like she's just come from a dance class and it keeps the questions to a minimum when we're out. At least three times a week I hear some little old lady saying something about her cute dance outfit. I just smile and keep on going. Kris On Jul 30, 2006, at 4:54 PM, Tammy Aubrey wrote: > I'll give your question a shot: If the Benik vest is a neoprene > vest that's tight fitting and secured with velcro, then it's the > same vest our OT uses. My daughter has Apraxia, Ataxia, Dyspraxia, > etc... The purpose for the vest is to provide warm, deep > compression/pressure, which gives the child awareness of their body > in space. It was confusing to me, too, but my OT explained that my > daughter cannot associate her body in space. The degree of this > disassociation depends on her environment, anxiety, etc... To > understand what it is like to not be able to associate your body in > space, she likened it to walking down into your basement with the > lights off to get an object you know is in the furthest corner of > the basement. You can't really see where you are going, but you > know where you are going because it's your house and you've done it > many times. The problem is that you stumble over the box on the > floor, you bump up against the sofa because you couldn't remember > exactly where it was at. Having said all that, the Benik vest is > the equivalent to turning on the lights. Hope that was > understandable. My daughter was diagnosed with Ataxia at age 2.5, > but we were only told that it was an imbalance. Through research, I > still never found any explaination of 'imbalance', so we continued > to think of it as like having an inner ear problem that made her > imbalanced. It's not like that at all. Two other products that I > have seen work wonders is the bodybag and the ankle weights. My > therapist taught me how to give my daughter " ashton taco's " , which > stands for my daughter's name 'ashton' and a taco, in which i wrap > her in a bean bag real tight and rock her back and forth. It's very > soothing and it gives them the deep pressure that allows them to > know where their body is. One more piece of advice is to clear out > their closet, place a couple of pillows inside and hang a flashlight > inside and let them know this is their own space. When your child > is having difficulty focusing, tell them it's time for their 'own > space' and have them hang out in their space for a few minutes. > Don't lock the door in any way. Children with this disorder will > gravitate to tight, possibly dark spaces, which also gives them > their association in space. I wouldn't have believed it, if I > hadn't seen it for myself in therapy. Just some options. > > > > > > My 2 year-old son Braden was given a Benik vest to try for a week > from his > > OT. I guess it is supposed to give him more body awareness, > though his OT > > didn't explain it very well. Does anyone have this for their > child? I am not > > quite sure how it is really supposed to help him. He has some > slight sensory > > issues (doesn't like textured food or touch sand) and either has > apraxia or a > > phonological processing issue. > > > > -Kristeen > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 2, 2006 Report Share Posted August 2, 2006 , Thanks for the book recommendation. I have heard of the Out of Sync child, but wasn't sure if it would be relevant for a 2 year old. I am halfway through The Late Talker and will definitely read that one next. The OT loaned the neoprene vest to my son to try. I couldn't believe how much more my child paid attention in ST while wearing it. I haven't been putting it on him much, just because of the 100 degree weather that we are having. I will try the tight pajamas too. -Kristeen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 2, 2006 Report Share Posted August 2, 2006 I looked up the SPIO suit and it looks so much more comfortable than a Benik vest. I am going to ask my son's OT tomorrow about it. -Kristeen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 2, 2006 Report Share Posted August 2, 2006 , Thanks for the book recommendation. I have heard of the Out of Sync child, but wasn't sure if it would be relevant for a 2 year old. I am halfway through The Late Talker and will definitely read that one next. The OT loaned the neoprene vest to my son to try. I couldn't believe how much more my child paid attention in ST while wearing it. I haven't been putting it on him much, just because of the 100 degree weather that we are having. I will try the tight pajamas too. -Kristeen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 2, 2006 Report Share Posted August 2, 2006 I looked up the SPIO suit and it looks so much more comfortable than a Benik vest. I am going to ask my son's OT tomorrow about it. -Kristeen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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