Sensory

Sensory Integration
Integration
 SI-How it works
• We are bombarded with sensory information all the time in our daily
lives.

• Countless bits of sensory information enter our brain at every

moment, not only from our ears, eyes, nose but from every part of
our bodies.

• Normally this occurs without us knowing that it is happening

• The brain is programmed to organise or integrate this information

and make it meaningful to us, a bit like a traffic cop directing
traffic

• When the sensory information is processed correctly, it allows us to

respond automatically and comfortably to sensory information and to
efficiently cope in our everyday life. All the senses work together to
help us function efficiently
 What is SI ?
Sensory integration is about how our brain receives and processes
sensory information so that we can do the things we need to do in
our everyday life.

Sensory Processing Difficulty is a condition in which the brain has

trouble receiving and responding to information that comes in
through the senses.

Sensory Integration Therapy (SIT) is a sensory-motor treatment

SIT is designed to restore effective neurological processing by

enhancing the sensory systems
SENSORY SYSTEMS
 SI & AUTISM
o There is a difficulty in processing sensory information.

o Sensory information is distorted by the Brain – it is a distortion

NOT a loss of a sense.

o Many of us are able to filter out external stimuli and process key
aspects of information that we receive from the sensory
environment – often our young people with sensory integration
differences struggle to do this.

o If one or several of our senses is lost (sight, hearing etc.) our

other senses seem to develop to compensate and set a balance –
this is not always the case with sensory integration.

o Young people can be hyper and hypo sensitive and can be both at
the same time. Responses can be inconsistent and vary on a daily
basis and even from minute to minute.
 Sensory - How it feels ??
• Try to imagine what it will be like to:

o Listen to a radio station that has not been tuned- auditory

o Sit on a one legged stool
o Sit at a table that wobbles
o Wear shoes that are too small
o Eat a meal of sardines and ground coffee
o Sitting in a garbage truck - olfactory
 Sensory sensitivity
• Hypersensitivity/Over reaction

allows too much of the sensory message into the brain.

• Hyposensitivity/under reaction

sluggish sensory system, allows too little of the sensory message to

the brain.
 Sensory Defensive-
Hypersensitivity
• When someone is defensive, it means that a
particular sensation is noxious or uncomfortable
to them.
They resort to avoidance behaviour. A child may
refuse to touch something gooey or may
become upset when entering a place that is too
noisy or where the lights are too bright.
 Sensory Seeking-
hyposensitivity
• An individual who is seeking sensory
stimulation may be under-sensitive to
stimuli to a degree
or may, for some reason, crave more of a
particular sensation. An example is the
child who sucks and chews on his shirt
color. There are some who need to touch
everything.
 tactile defensiveness or over-
sensitivity to touch
• In general, begin by encouraging play in dry, non-messy media
rather then in gooey or sticky textures. If the child
still won't touch anything, have him/her use containers to scoop
and pour the materials.

• when touching the tactile-defensive child, always approach from

the front (no surprises) and use a firm touch, never a
light touch.

• for the least offensive sensory play, try dry, clean media: use both
hands to locate small toys hidden in a bucket filled
with bird seed, sand, beans, pasta, rice, etc. Practice pouring from
one container to another.
• Try Desensitisation Program
 Tactile Seeeking
• Interestingly, most of the same sensory activities that help
a child tolerate touching or being touched, also help the
child who is a "sensory-seeker" (has to touch everything).

• Encourage discriminating among various textures and

states: feel and describe objects that are soft vs hard,
smooth vs rough, wet vs dry vs slimy, cold vs warm, small vs
large, round vs cornered vs curvy, degrees of vibration, etc.
 Contd

• child can brush his/her own arms and legs with a soft hair
brush, surgical brush or corn silk brush, then progress to
letting you brush him or her.

• child, or you, can rub lotion onto arms, legs, hands, feet, etc.
• deep pressure, weighted garments, blanket or weighted lap
toys
Strategies to reduce sensitivity to light
or help with visual distractions
• change the lighting in the home environment: lamp lighting
is less visually stressful than overhead lighting, keep
lights dimmed

• at school or in other buildings, wear lightly tinted

sunglasses or dark if necessary or a baseball cap outdoors

• to reduce visual distractions, create a barrier such as

a cardboard study carD when reading and writing

• reduce clutter and a "busy" room appearance,certain wall paint

colors help in reducing visual stress, LIGHT BLUE AND GREEN
 Contd ..
• school worksheets should include as much white
space as possible; if necessary have information
printed on more pages to increase white space

• reduce the amount of color used on written

materials or run through a copier for a black and
white version
 Strategies to increase visual
attentiveness
• play in a darkened room chasing the flash light

• play catch with slow moving objects: balloons, scarves,

cotton

• pencil/paper mazes, hidden pictures, find the

difference picture puzzles

• fill a shoe box with lots a small items: locate specific

items within this box

• play "guess what I see" games: describe an item in the

room by its color, size, shape, what it's used for, etc.
 Visual Contd..
• school writing paper: use dark lines (run through
copier to
make darker if needed) for writing on, high light
writing lines in yellow

• worksheets should be of high contrast, lots of

white space and
clear of spots, smudges, etc.

• when coloring, teach child to trace around the lines

of the design first and then color it in
 Strategies to reduce sensitivity to
sound
•
offer noise reducing headphones or earplugs: For school,
use for assemblies. restaurants, Birthday parties, etc.

• in the classroom, place child away from sources of

noise and commotion such as the door, air conditioner, sink,
bathroom, etc.

• play a relaxation cd or a cd of nature sounds, "white" noise

or soothing music

• prepare child for noisy situations ahead of time.

Often times, knowing when something is going to happen helps the
child to mentally get ready for it.

• Opt for a desensitization program

 Strategies to increase
attentiveness to sound
• get the child's attention before speaking, speak slowly and clearly

• give one instruction at a time in simple language

• pair instructions with gestures or visual demonstrations whenever

possible

• allow extra time for the child to process the information and
respond

• place child away from sources of noise such as the doorway,

air conditioner, sink, bathroom, etc.
 Taste and Oral Sensitivity

• Sensitivities involving the mouth go beyond just

the sense of taste; Food texture is an important
influence. In general, there are two types of oral
sensitivities:
• Hypersensitive (overly reactive) and
• hypo sensitive (under reactive).
 Reduce oral
hypersensitivity
• Prepare the face and mouth for eating before a meal:
Stroke child's face firmly with your fingers (or have child do this to himself initially):
• Massage firmly from the jaws to the corners of the mouth, from the ears along the
cheeks to the mouth and around the mouth.
• Use a soft cloth or the back of a vibrating tooth brush in a
similar manner
• Hold a vibrating toy or toothbrush around, or in, the mouth
• Chew on rubber tubing, fish tank or refrigerator tubing for
several minutes before eating
•
 Contd ..
• Play mouth games: whistles, harmonica, toy horn,
blow bubbles or blow on windmills
• Blow through a straw to race cotton balls, ping
pong balls, corks, etc.
• In general, introduce new tastes and textures
gradually-- only one new experience within a given
time period.
 Hyposensitive or orally seeking
• child often craves certain mouth sensations and may even
explore the environment by licking inedible objects.
He/she may have a strong desire for a particular taste
sensation (sweet, salty, bitter, sour), flavor (spicy, minty,
cinnamon, banana, vanilla, etc.) or texture (crunchy, mushy,
icy, slushy). He/she may have difficulty controlling bite
size and may overstuff his/her mouth. Reminders to chew
completely before swallowing may be needed. When not
eating, the orally seeking child may often have something in
their mouth or are chewing on their clothing,
pencil erasers, toys, etc.
 Activities
• Blow bubbles in milk/juice with a straw

• Suck drinks through a thin straw or squiggly straws

• Drink thick shakes, applesauce, pudding, etc. through a

straw

• Sip liquids through a sports bottle

• Eat chewy foods (gummy bears, gum, bagels, calamari) and

crunchy foods (Dutch pretzels, carrots, celery, crackers
 Activities Contd
• Substitute inappropriate mouthing with one of
the following:

• Chew on surgical tubing, fish tank or refrigerator

tubing

• Wear "Chewelry" or rubber tubing as a necklace

• Wake up the mouth by using some of the "Prepare

the face and mouth" techniques listed above
 Therapy
• Some vestibular activities include:
– Teaching children to spin
– Rolling in a barrel
– Sitting or bouncing on an exercise ball
– Swinging on a hammock
– Scooter board relay races
– Walking on a balance beam
– Stair climbing
 Proprioceptive System

• Processes information based in

muscles and joints
• Some deficits include:
– difficulty with motor skills
– lack of coordination
– difficulty holding a writing utensil
– falls or walks into objects often
 Activities
• Some proprioceptive activities
include:
– Tug-of-war
– Backpack hiking
– Jumping over obstacles
– Crab walking relay races
– Crawling under a parachute
 outcomes from SI
therapy include:
– Ability to concentrate
– Ability to organize
– Increase in self-esteem
– Increase in self-control
– Increase in self-confidence
– Improvement in academic learning ability
– Capacity for abstract thought and reasoning
– Specialization of each side of the body and the
brain