About 6-8 weeks ago, one of Sarah's friends gave her a monkey back pack. It's not so much a back pack as one of those things with the leash attached for when you are at the mall and you want to keep track of your child. We haven't use it as that, but Sarah wears the back pack ALL. THE. TIME. Wendy had noticed that and made a suggestion of the possibility that Sarah has Sensory Processing Disorder (or SPD). Her thoughts were that the backpack was helping her feel organized and secure.
My initial thought was of frustration at one more diagnosis. One more thing to research. One more thing to look at therapies for. A feeling of deflation came over me. Because I need to know absolutely everything I can about Sarah, I quickly Googled the term to find loads of information about SPD. A lot of what I read appeared to be true in her case.
The past couple weekends at church, I have kept Sarah with us rather than to her class. I noticed that when the worship team began to play, she quickly needed to be held and would hold me quite tight with her head on my shoulder. Another instance that I thought of, was at a birthday party that was held at an indoor type playground. There were quite a few kids (mostly boys) who were running around and being very loud. Nothing was wrong with that, they were just having preschool fun. I saw that when the noise escalated, Sarah would wander to a climbing structure and either just sit on it or would just play alone. It was as though she was retreating into herself to tune out the noise. I also have seen that when the setting at Sunday School gets busy with a lot of kids running around and being loud, she tends to retreat and play alone. I'm thankful that she is aware of how to deal with her over-stimulation by retreating rather than having a meltdown.
Other things I've noticed are her choices in food. She has a very bland diet. She eats a lot of grains, pastas, cereals and breads. She loves apples, bananas, grapes and pears. She also likes cheese, *pink* milk and peanut butter. She can't eat meat, vegetables or other strong flavored foods.
The third sense that I've noticed is ultra sensitive is her sense of touch. She would love to wear fleece sleepers all day if I allowed. She doesn't care for jeans or anything with a snugger waist. I am beginning to wonder if her wanting to sleep with us is to satisfy that desire to be touched in addition to being a habit.
Her eyes are very small and very sensitive to sunlight as well. We are actually going to see an ophthalmologist in April for a follow up. The last appointment 6 months ago didn't show anything of serious concern so I'm not too worried about this upcoming visit. I think I'll have to teach her to wear sunglasses outside this summer though.
Now, she hasn't been officially diagnosed with SPD but I can see how it could be. I was kind of down on the weekend as I continued to process this new information and potential {new} diagnosis. My sister came over on Tuesday and we had a wonderful visit. She encouraged me to keep doing what I am and to try not to let this get me down. I am the best mom for Sarah and no one will love her more than her daddy and I do. We will love, support and advocate for her as long as we need to.
I am continuing to work at placing all of my concerns and fears into God's hands and let Him do His will. Some days are easier than others but I'm trying.
I hope you have a great weekend. Make sure you spend time with those you love and give your children a great big hug. They are all so special and need to feel important to you!
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