Hartley Steiner www.hartleysboys.com Recently I have seen a rise in the number of articles, Facebook posts, and even tweets claiming to define Sensory Processing Disorder. This should be good news, and it is — mostly. But, some of it is misinformation. Although I am thankful anyone wants to help spread awareness, it frustrates me personally that these people could very well be doing more harm than good. I have dedicated a large portion of my life to spreading awareness that will hopefully benefit kids like mine — all over our country and arguably the world. I would really like to see good, solid, accurate information. Wouldn’t you? It is with that goal in mind — to educate and help — I am taking a stab at answering the increasingly popular question, “What is Sensory Processing Disorder?” My answer, and this article, is specifically geared towards helping parents with SPD kids…
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Hartley Steiner www.hartleysboys.com I hate eating with my kids. Really, I do. Our meal times usually push me to the edge of sanity. And with Thanksgiving just weeks away, I am reminded that I will be eating with my kids in a formal setting with other people. Perhaps the turkey is less nervous than I am. Why? It isn’t for the reasons you may think. I have long ago gotten past the worries about what food my kids will eat, or whether they can stay seated at the table, or their inability to be hungry at meal time, preferring to graze all day. What I haven’t gotten over is their utter lack of table manners. Yes, table manners. I hear you — you think I shouldn’t worry about table manners, that perhaps I have bigger fish to fry. But bad table manners is a pet peeve I just can’t let…
Hartley Steiner www.hartleysboys.com For the purpose of this post, I am going to list sensory seeking and sensory avoidant behaviors, to paint a more accurate picture of what sensory-based behaviors look like. You can consider these ‘symptoms’ or a ‘checklist’ but my real goal in posting them is to help parents and caregivers recognize the sensory challenges in the children in their life. In addition, I hope to paint a more specific picture of the kinds of behaviors Sensory Seekers exhibit. Sensory Seekers I completely ignored the first person who suggested Gabriel had Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). Technically, I even made fun of her. How stupid was she to suggest my son had sensory issues? My kid wasn’t one of those who covered his ears at every little noise, nope, not my kid. My kid was fine with loud noises, loved water, mud, hot salsa and was not afraid of…