Playdough for Sensory Play

Playdough is one of my favorite and most basic sensory toys. It's cheap and easy to make and it can stimulate multiple senses at the same time. Depending on the recipe you use, a child can engage the sense of smell, taste, touch, and feel. They can work their fine motor skills by rolling, tearing, squashing or stretching the dough to creating objects.

Playdough is a wonderful resource that we make use of before and after handwriting lessons.

First of all, I use Handwriting Without Tears for Caibry's handwriting work (see my sidebar for the link. This is a great program that works well for us, but sometimes his hand needs to warm up before handling the pencil. A few squeezes now and then seem to be all it takes.

If he completes his work well then I reward him with a little more creative playdough time.

One of my favorite play dough resources is SparkleBox. They provide playdough mats that are free for you to download and laminate. The mats are hard to describe. Check it out though. I'm sure you'll find them great educational support that guide children to use playdough to add, subtract, form letters, support storytelling adventures and simply create.

Here are some basic recipes I've come across and tried with success:

Rubbery Playdough

2 c. baking soda

1 1/2 c. water

1 c. cornstarch

Mix with a fork until smooth. Boil over medium heat until thick. Spoon onto wax paper to cool.

Alum Playdough

2 c. flour

1 c. salt

2 tbs alum

1 c. water

2 tbs oil

liquid food coloring

Mix liquid ingredients into dry ingredients and stir. Squeeze and knead the dough. Add more flour if it seems sticky. Store in the fridge.

Just Like the Real Thing

1 c. flour

1 c. water

1 tbs oil

1 tbs powdered alum

1/2 c. salt

2 tbs vanilla

food coloring

Mix all dry ingredients. Add water and oil. Cover over medium heat, stirring constantly until reaching the consistency of mashed potatoes. Remove from heat and add vanilla and food coloring. Divide into balls and work in color by kneading the dough.

My Favorite Scented Doughs:

Gingerbread Playdough

5 1/2 c. flour

2 c. salt

8 tsp cream of tartar

3/4 c. oil

4 c. water

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp allspice

Mix together, cover over medium low heat and stir until lumps disappear. Knead dough on a floured surface until it reaches the desired consistency. Add a few drops of red and green food coloring to get a brown color.

Kool-Aid Playdough

2 1/2 -3c. flour

2 c. boiling water

1 pkg. any flavor Kool-aid

3 Tbsp alum

Mix ingredients. Knead on a floured surface. Add more flour if needed.

Jello Playdough

1 c. flour

1/2 c. salt

1c. water

1 Tbsp oil

2 tsp cream of tartar

1 (3-1/2 0z.) pkg. unsweetened jello

Mix ingredients and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mashed potato consistency. Let cool. Knead on floured surface. Do not store until completely cooled.

Peppermint Playdough

2 c. water

2 c. flour

1 c. salt

4 tsp cream of tartar

4 Tbsp oil

4 Tbsp peppermint extract

red food coloring

red glitter

Mix together. Cook over medium- low and stir until lumps disappear. Knead dough. Add the glitter while kneading.

Lemon Playdough

2 c. water

2 c. flour

1 c. salt

4 tsp cream of tartar

4 Tbsp oil

4 Tbsp lemon extract

yellow food coloring

gold glitter.

Mix together. Cook over medium-low heat. Stir until lumps disappear. Knead and add glitter while kneading.

Textured Playdough:

Oatmeal playdough

1 c. flour

2 c. oatmeal

1 c. water

Gradually add water to flour and oatmeal. Knead until mixed. The texture is what makes this dough unique. You could also add small amounts of cornmeal or coffee grounds to enhance the texture experience.

Edible Playdough:

Peanut Butter/ Graham Cracker Playdough

Equal parts Peanut Butter, Marshmallow cream and graham crackers

Crunch graham crackers into crumbs. Mix peanut butter and marshmallow cream. Roll in crumbs.

Peanut Butter Playdough

1 (18 oz.) jar creamy peanut butter

6 Tbsp honey

3/4 c. non-fat dry milk

Mix together. Add more dry milk until it's the right consistency. Knead with fingers.

Girl Scout Peanut Butter Playdough

1 c. peanut butter

1/2 c. honey

2 c. powdered sugar

Mix using your hands. It should feel soft and pliable.

Smooth Peanut Butter Playdough

2 c. smooth peanut butter

2 c. rolled oats

2 c. dried milk

2/3 c. honey

Combine and mix.

Cream Cheese Playdough

8 oz. pkg cream cheese

1/2 c. non-fat dry milk

1 Tbsp honey

crackers or bread slices (for eating dough)

Combine ingredients and mold on wax paper. Decorate with edible objects or place on crackers for a healthy and fun snack. I do not recommend storing this playdough.

Frosting Playdough

1 can frosting (any flavor)

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 c. creamy peanut butter

Mix ingredients to desired consistency. Store in the refrigerator in an air tight container.

Chocolate Playdough

8 oz. semisweet chocolate

1/4 c. + 1 Tbsp light corn syrup

Melt chocolate in a double boiler. Stir chocolate until smooth, then add corn syrup. Stir until combined. Refrigerate until firm. Knead.

*Unless otherwise specified, store all playdough in an air tight container. I usually store my non-edible doughs in ziplock snackbags. I fill several of them. Each bag is the perfect amount for one child to use. I only give one bag/ child that way if the dough is too messy to save I still have more stored. I always place these ziplock bags inside of a medium sized air tight crafting box.

Many of kids that struggle with sensory issues have opted to avoid gluten. That makes playdough a little more challenging. This blogger explains ways to adapt playdough to make it gluten-free and provides her recipe for doing so. Another gluten-free option can be found here. She uses cream of tarter in place of the more expensive gluten free flour. Here is a link to a great post about scented playdoughs. I love the cute containers she uses to store her playdough.

I'm attaching a MckLinky to this post. If you have any great recipes for playdough or creative ideas for using playdough this is your opportunity to share them. Please blog about your recipe linking back to my blog. Then visit this post again and leave your direct link to the relevant playdough themed post. This is my first MckLinky so please be patient with me. Have fun!

Life Post-Therapy

We took Caibry to Therapy regularly until December 2008. His term was up and since we were planning a move that month, his OT released him. She said that she saw enough progress in Caibry that we didn't need to continue OT in our new town.
She was probably right.
Maybe it was the changes of moving away from friends, or the absence of family members that had lived with us briefly, or the lack of a regulating influence that his OT had become, but he began to struggle again. Around the time of our move we also suffered a failed adoption. We had been told by DHS that we would have an 8 month old boy in our care by Christmas. We had all bonded with him and Caibry couldn't wait to finally have a brother. Then they informed me that n unknown relative had found out about it and DHS had decided to place him there instead. Caibry was heartbroken.

It's now December 2009. We still see occasional scary behavior like attempting to run away when he can't cope with something. I've called the police twice to help me find him, only for neighbors to discover him laying down in their tall grass with his hands across his chest and his eyes shut. There is also still occasional violence toward his sister, but it's much less frequent. Today the self-talk is our biggest challenge. Caibry says that he hates himself almost daily. We have started him in counseling for his self-esteem issues.

He is in Kindergarten and showing himself to be very smart. He is doing first grade math, but still struggles a lot with writing. Handwriting without tears has been a God send. I also do a lot of copy work where he traces my writing on the HWT paper. He's not the easiest student, but I am thankful that I have the ability to teach him at home.

I am the person who best controls his temper and guides him toward more regulated behavior. He has really taught me patience. We've developed our own methods for reaching him and he usually responds well to my attempts to help him regulate.

Caibry is still a work in progress, but aren't we all? He can be exhausting and emotional and sometimes more than I think I can handle. I wouldn't trade him for anything though. I needed him in my life and God has him in it for a reason. If you have an SPD kid then you understand. We see the promise and potential. We see what could be and we hug, spin and blow the silly stuff away.

Therepy Diary Entry 25

April 15th, 2008

We are still on the Mozart CD. Caibry is winy a lot. He has seemed very lazy this week. All he wants to do it watch TV and I have to make him play. When he's outside he's aimless and looks for excuses to come back inside.
His self care is improving. He has gotten himself dressed and wiped himself after the potty.
He has also begun to use his special knew fork and spoon to feed himself.
I can spot a bad day when he starts making trains.
Sunday he was very crabby and I tried to give him chewy candy (advised in The Out of Sync Child). It didn't really have any effect. His mood was still bad.
I could tell that he was getting frustrated with himself and feeling like he couldn't do things he felt he should be able to do. He just needed a success.
I gave him paint and a plain wood picture frame and gave him the job of painting it black. He was so proud.
Art, paint, messy gooey stuff like moon sand and foam clay are great for him.
This week he asked to ride a swing and smiled pleasantly once on it. This a a major accomplishment that no one seems to understand. I, however, am glowing with pride.

Therapy Diary Entry 23

Okay . . .I'm bad at the whole keeping track of this in writing. It's been almost a month since I wrote anything. One reason is the business of life. The second reason is that there was so much improvement that I didn't really know what to write.
We loved what we saw while he was using CD 2. It sounded like really bad elevator music to me, but it was like life came back to him.
He has been doing a lot of breathing exercises using straws, also twirling robots and heavy carrying. The OT recommended that we work on tug of war activities that require pulling and grasping. We are seeing some motor skills issues now as well as behavioral issues since he began CD 3 (Mozart).
He is not doing well tolerating this CD and is very anxious for the end of listening times.

Therapy Diary Entry 22

March 25th, 2008

12:30- OT appointment. Finally a new CD! We were told to go back to 30 min. sessions twice daily.

Whenever we switch the time limits for listening or adjust the Cd's I see changes. sometimes they are positive and sometimes not.

I've seen Cd's that make him more tired, some that make him emotional, some that make him cuddly and sweet, and some that just ware us both out to get him to listen to.

All in all, I think the Cd's eased him through the physical adjustments he encountered through therapy and allowed him to mentally prepare for the tasks he was asked to do.

Therapy Diary Entry 21

March 24th, 2008

Sadie is sick, Nevie has an ear infection, and Chloe is just plain crabby. Caibry is so loud today! It took all day to get him to get dressed. He barely ate anything. He skipped breakfast so we saved it for lunch. He barely took a bite and said he was done. He did have 3 glasses of milk though.
At dinner he ate french fries and a hamburger, but it took a lot of patience to watch him achieve this.
Today he has driven me crazy by fighting with Nevie. She's not much better with her constant tattling. It gets on my nerves.

12:45- first listening
No problems.

He was very messy today and has left trails of mess everywhere he goes.
He bit Nevie's toe until it bled and she kicked hi in the nose to get away. The result was a bloody nose. That caused total panic in him. Blood completely freaks him out and he kicked into his "I'm dying" mode. His screams were so loud I was sure the neighbors must have thought I was killing him.
I was so tired. I was desperate a bubble bath and some "me" time.
Caibry went to bed at 8:30. Hallelujah!

Therapy Diary Entry 20

March 23, 2008

We had to get up early today. There was an Easter breakfast at church. I had to get Caibry out of bed twice. He was not happy!
I got him dressed twice too. Once I left the room he took off his clothes and started getting back in pajamas. It was irritating, but I hate morning too and for 2 cents I would have gone back to bed with him.
He was crabby, but we did eventually make it to breakfast. We were only 15 minutes late.
He didn't like anything they served except strawberries. He said the muffins were "too crumbly", the eggs were "too wet" and the juice was "too sour". I gave up!
Caibry ran off twice at church and was very emotional.
Chloe was sick and I had to take her to the Emergency Room. Caibry kept running outside to play on his scooter even though I said no. He got very mad when I brought him in. He screamed "I hate you!" Today has just been too much for me. I'm tired. I went to my room to cry. Such a happy Easter.

Therapy Diary Entry 19

March 22nd, 2008
Listening Session:
Caibry listened while playing on his scooters.

Today has been all about trains. He makes trains by using every toy he owns and lining them up in long train-like lines. Sometimes he even adds pillows if he runs out of toys to make the train as long as he envisioned. The trains go all through my house and if you trip on them or knock anything askew he totally explodes. I hate trains!
I have O.C.D and the mess drives me crazy!

Therapy Diary Entry 18

March 21st, 2008
Today my cousin went back to Michigan.
The kids were all given scooters from a couple at church. They played outside for hours!
The first time Caibry got to the end of the driveway he panicked and started yelling"help!". He didn't understand how to stop.
Once he got the hang of it, he liked the scooter.

Listening Session:
Caibry ate lunch while listening. Daddy lost track of time and Caibry got about ten minutes extra listening time. He didn't seem to notice.

Caibry was a pretty average 4 year old today.

Therapy Diary Entry 17

March 20th, 2008
The girl's sleep over left me exhausted. The kids played in Caibry's room and watched movies.
If I'm fair I won't rate his behavior today. My tolerance is low and I honestly don't know what's him and what's me.
I have a migraine and my patience is fried.
Nevie wasn't feeling well and Caibry was pretty gentle with her.
He listened to his CD at lunch. He definitely needs a distraction in order to use the headphones. He starts wanting them off after about 5 minutes.
Caibry tried sucking applesauce through a straw today (bug gut shakes we called them). He liked it. He also liked playing with clay to make a frog sculpture to go with our school unit on frogs.
Daddy came home from work frustrated and has no patience with anybody. Caibry started getting whiny and emotional. I can't blame him.

Therapy Diary Entry 16

March 19, 2008
Caibry peed his pull-up and wanted a new one. He did not want to get dressed today, but I made him. I told him that pull-ups were only for bedtime.
We built a cardboard fort house in his room for him yesterday and he's having fun hiding in it. He pretended it was on fire ad he was a fireman. He's enjoying independent play today. He put on his Mickey Mouse costume and refused to take it off even though he's almost outgrown it. He sat at the table and played with Beauty and the Beast figurines. He was pretty engaged and even talked for them.
We went to the park today. Caibry didn't want to play on any of the equipment, but had fun pushing Sadie in the swing.
He went to bed pretty well and slept hard. The youth girls were over on a scavenger hunt and he slept through their squealing teenage excitement.
Caibry's listening session was a fight today.

Therapy Diary Entry 15

March 18, 2008
Today was a very hard day for Caibry. He was already awake when I got up. He was sitting at the kitchen table with a banana. When he saw me he started throwing a fit. He was mad that Nevie had a toy at the table. It's against family rules to bring toys to the table and he was very upset at her. Nevie never touched the toy and it wasn't bothering anyone else, but the simple presence of the toy angered him.
I told him that it wasn't bothering anyone, that she was eating good and he needed to too. He started screaming at her and destroyed his banana in a fit. He mutilated it into pieces and threw it all over the kitchen floor! When I told him to clean it up, he ground it in with his heel and said NO! Then he peed down his leg, smiling smugly while urine dripped onto the floor.
Daddy gave him a shower while I cleaned up. We were both really gritting our teeth.
As I put away the mop I realized the dogs had been left out in the rain. They realized it too and let the dogs in. Muddy dog prints went all over the kitchen floor!
I was all too happy to abandon the chaos and grocery shop.
The afternoon got a little better, but not much.
Listening sessions today were awful after only 5 minutes!

Therapy Diary Entry 14

March 17, 2008
Today I was trying to do school with Chloe and I could see tat Caibry was getting bored. I gave him and Nevie water color and paper and they had fun painting together. They played nice together most of the day.
Caibry wet his pull up and hasn't eaten much today. He has led play with Nevie and not been a bully at all.
He did butt heads with Daddy a few times during listening sessions. He's been very sassy and talked back a lot to Daddy, who was trying very hard to give it no attention.
Caibry made "trains" a lot today, but cleaned up without much fight.

The OT is sick, so tomorrow's appointment is cancelled. She called and told us to reduce CD times to one 15 minute session/ day. Thank God!

Therapy Diary Entry 13

March 16th, 2008
CD listening is becoming a battle. He has to really be distracted in order to tolerate it.
Caibry was good at church today though. He minded his teachers and was wonderful through evening service. He also seemed to smile a lot today.

My only complaint today is one of embarrassment. My cousin, Shayla, watched him for a while so I could run to the store. He made her wipe him after going poo. He refuses to wipe himself. All my other kids had no problem doing it at his age so I know it isn't a skill thing. He is just so lazy when it comes to self care and hygiene. Yuck! Poor Shayla.

Therapy Diary Entry 12

March 15th, 2008
First Listening Session:
Caibry ate breakfast while listening. No problems. This morning he wet his pull up before he changed, but woke up dry today.
He's being really good today. You wouldn't even know he had any issues-- just normal kid behavior.

Second Listening Session:
Caibry ate lunch while listening. He wanted to be done early because it was "bugging" him. He had only completed 15 minutes. We made hi wait through one more song. This was a good way for him to measure the time.

12:30-
The church is offering a "Mom's day out" today so I dropped Caibry and Chloe off. Shayla and I got little alone time and that was pretty cool. Caibry was happy to go to the church because his friend Hailey was going to be there. He couldn't wait to play.

8:00-
Picking up the kids.
We had fun and it looked like the kids did too. Pastor Shawn said he was really good. He was very tired when we picked them up, but still wanted to tell me a story before going to bed. He even used sound effects for his storytelling. I got a kiss on the cheek for bedtime. It was a good day. I'm proud of him for giving me at least one day off without incident.

Update (the following Wednesday):
Apparently the Mom's Day Out wasn't as perfect as they'd led me to believe. At church one of the helpers from tat day told me that Caibry had a meltdown that took a while for them to calm. I guess they were playing a game of dodge ball and it hit him and terrified him. Poor kid. He started crying so hard that they had to stop the game and take Chloe and Caibry to another room (he wouldn't leave without big sister). The helper was a bit annoyed about it and sort of mocked Caibry while she told the story.
Honestly people! Dodge ball is never a good idea for a child with sensory issues! I'm amazed that he even gave the game a chance.

Therapy Diary Entry 11

March 14th, 2008
Grandma is coming back from Michigan today and bringing cousin Shayla (15) with her. The kids are all very excited.

1st Listening Session:
Went good!

2nd Listening Session:
No problems either. We only did 20 minutes because he was acting irritated and I wanted to be the one in control of taking the headphones off.

The kids helped me make bread and Caibry liked doing the egg wash and getting messy. We also measured our legs with frog counters and Caibry loves this!
The kids got anxious around the time the plane would be landing so I sent them outside to clean up garbage out of the front yard. We played Mother May I, Tag, and Red Light/Green Light.

Caibry cleaned his room up without help and has had exceptional eye contact today!

He really loves to be outside for short periods of time.

Therapy Diary Entry 10

March 13, 2008
I'm emotional today. My favorite uncle died four years ago today. I'm keeping myself busy today so I don't think too much.
The kids are playing together in Caibry's room.

Second session-
Late today. I lost track of time.
Caibry laid on my bed with a sucker and listened to his cd.
The girl's wouldn't leave him alone so I let him lock the door. He had a hard time unlocking it and paniced when he couldn't do it on the first try.
Putting him behind a locked door was not my brightest move.
Later, we played a game by blowing toilet paper rolls across the floor with a straw. Caibry enjoyed this.

P.M.-
Stan took the kid's to the park. Caibry was awesome! He played on the swings and the wide slide (both used to terrify him).
Honestly, with the way I'm feeling, Caibry has been awesome today!

Therapy Diary Entry 9

March 12th, 2008
First session-
It went okay. He had breakfast wile listening, but didn't eat much. Daddy had to go to work early today and it threw off Caibry's day. I apparently do things "in the wrong order".
Today will be rough. He's getting rough with Nevie and slammed her on the floor and hit her head- "just because."
He has been a bully.

Second session-
The headphones where "bugging" him. He yelled at me "Why do I have to do this all day?"
He tried to take off the headphones a few times.
His bedroom is trashed and so is every other room he's been in! I'm overwhelmed!!

My breaking point-
I called his OT for advice. She said he could be bored and suggested that I give him a job.
I sent him outside to brush the dogs, but they wouldn't be still so I stopped it before he got frustrated and asked him to give them some exercises instead.
He threw the ball for them and they fetched. He had fun.

6:30- Church
Church was awesome! His class talked about textures in creation! He loved touching things and coloring on sandpaper.

Therapy Diary Entry 8

March 11,2008
A.M.-
Very trying morning! Caibry is emotional and aggressive. He's thrown a lot of fits. He beats up his inflatable bed to calm down. It actually helped until I left the room. He wanted to be watched, but got irritated with us being there. It was a very confusing and dramatic morning.
He's been weird today. He wants to play with his sisters, but only if they do what he tells them to do. He gets angry when they have an idea about how to play. He's very bossy today.

12:30- OT Appointment

Therapy Diary Entry 7

March 10th, 2008
Early A.M-
Caibry was wet. He wet the bed bad! Even his pillows were wet! :(
He had a bath.

Breakfast- First session
Caibry ate well. is eating (speed and quantity) are improving.
There were some squabbles here and there with the girls, but nothing too bad.
He kept begging to watch TV today. Could he be feeling over-stimulated?
It seems like he wants to be lazy today.
I made him a fort and he laid in it by himself for a while. He invited Nevie in and they played together okay until he was done.
He seems to like people around only on his terms, when he feels like it.

Second session-
I tried, but he keeps pulling off his head phones and hitting the stop button on the CD player. I gave up after about 10-15 minutes of fighting with him about it.

P.M-
Caibry is emotional. He's up and down. Bath time was traumatic during hair washing. There was LOTS of screaming! I can't believe the neighbors haven't called the police he was so loud!
Bedtime went smooth.

Therepy Diary Entry 6

March 9th, 2008
A.M-First listening during breakfast
No problems occurred during his listening session.
There was a missions banquet at church today and he actually tasted unfamiliar foods!

After noon- Second session
Still no problems.

6:30- Church
Caibry was the best behaved he's EVER been! :)
He took his shoes off somewhere, but doesn't remember where or when he took them off. That was frustrating! We made him come home in socks.
The shoes are still M.I.A.

Therapy Diary Entry 5

March 8th, 2008
8:20-8:50- First listening time
Caibry woke up wet today. He peed his bed.
He ate breakfast while listening to his CD and did fine with it.
He is being very loud today, but his behavior is okay.
He's a little crabby and whiny, but I think that's more of an age-thing.

P.M
We went to town. By the time we came home it was too late to do his last session.

Therapy Diary Entry 4

March 7th, 2008
8:30- Daddy started the first session early.
Caibry's session was ending as I was waking up. He had a pretty good morning. We had a play date today. I had eight children total! Caibry interacted very well and shared nicely.
He has initiated play and clean up today! :)

12:00- Second session
Second listening time went well too. Caibry was stringing frog beads for a while, but I think it was overload. He sensed it I think because he said "let's clean up. This is too hard!"
Nevie is pushing his buttons today. I'm very proud of how he's responded to her. He's been patient.
This was a pretty good day.

Therapy Diary Entry 3

March 6th, 2008
9 a.m- First session of the day with headphones
Caibry only completed 20/30 minutes of this session. Even that was a struggle. He wanted Chloe with him, but was very bossy and mean to her.
She didn't want to play with him as a result and he began to cry BIG tars.
I gave Caibry a sucker thinking it might help. He marched straight to Nevie and said "Na na na na na na" and teased her with his sucker.
Today he is pulling his ears and flicking them a lot.
Caibry slept in today and his pull up was wet when he got dressed. He didn't even seem to notice.
He has been punished a few times today.
He punched Nevie in the chest, bit her, kicked her, threw toys and ripped Chloe's Hannah Montana poster just to be mean. I'm scared to do the second session.

12:30- Second session
This session went better. Afterwards he was very emotional. He didn't eat much at all today, but was thirsty a lot. His emotions have rotated between aggressive and sad.

7:00
Caibry was very emotional tonight! We tried putting him to bed early. I cuddled him a while, but he was very upset.

Therapy Diary Entry 2

March 5th, 2008
9 a.m.- First listening period of the day
My oldest daughter, Chloe, went into Caibry's room with him and they played very well together. Nevie (2nd youngest) was very upset that she was left out of the room. Caibry was pretty aggressive toward her. He had a MAJOR meltdown when I took his headphones off. He screamed "Why do people always take my stuff?! I hate you!" He began throwing wooden toys at us.
He hid under a blow up bed on the floor until he could calm down. He was whining a lot and speaking very negative to himself.
Caibry was very mean to Nevie today.

11:00- Nevie's escape
My Mom came and took Nevie out to give her a break from her brother.

12:30- Second session with headphones.
Caibry marched around the living room in circles for the entire length of the session. He seemed happy, but I was so dizzy I wanted to puke. ;)

6:30-Church
Caibry only acted up once during church. His teacher hugged him and swung him around. He became angry and yelled at her when she stopped spinning him.
*Spinning was clearly one of his sensory diet needs today.

Therapy Diary Entry 1

March 4, 2008
12:30- Appointment with OT
Caibry talked about the "bean box" and the "rainbow room" the whole drive, but when we arrived he chose to go in the swing room instead.
He spent almost his entire session in the swing room. That is, until he saw her marble works maze. Before he knew it his time was up.
Caibry was upset as we left Miss Teresa's office because he didn't have time to "climb the colors".

1:30- Shopping
After leaving the OT office we drove to Target to purchase a CD player for him to use with his new headphones. In Target his mood became more dramatic and he ran away from us in the aisles, screaming at us the whole time.
Eventually, we did the reverse psychology trick and threatened to leave without him. He returned to us grudgingly.

4:30- First experience using headphones for audio therapy.
Caibry Listened to his CD while playing in his room.

7:00- Meeting at church.
Caibry ran off 2 times. He stubbed his toe in the nursery and they had to come and get me because he was wailing "I'm gonna die!" and scaring the other children. He hopped on one foot and refused to walk for 30 minutes! He moaned the entire time!
The rest of the night he was extremely whiny and his voice was babyish.
Overall, this was actually a good day (for him).

The Benefit of a Diagnosis

This is my son, Caibry, two years ago after being diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder. That diagnoses was the answer we needed.



We could see the struggles he was facing. They were obvious, but we had no concept of how to ease his frustration or meet his needs. Melt downs were on going and became more and more dangerous as he fought to make sense of a world he couldn't feel like you and me.



He began trying to pull off body parts. At one point he caused blood to drip down the side of his head from trying to tear off his ears. They were sticking out and bugging him. It was if he was immune to the pain he was inflicting on himself and on our family as a whole as we helplessly watched him self destruct.



Doctors were no help. They said I didn't discipline right or show him enough love. Whatever the case was they made it clear that it was something I was doing wrong as a parent.



I couldn't loose my son though. With comments like "I wish I was dead" flying out of his mouth I believed I was in a fierce battle for the life and sanity of my child.



His environment was too much for him. He refused to eat certain foods, hated tags in clothing and the seams of his socks. The playground was torture for his easily overwhelmed senses. Noises distracted him and his temper would flare.



Two years ago I was a desperate Mommy with no clear answers and very little hope.



I fought hard for testing of his ears, his educational screening, and anything else that would force a medical professional to see what I saw. Eventually, someone did.



His diagnoses was our first step in the right direction.



Within months of starting Occupational therapy we were already seeing great progress and unlocking the personality of our son that was hiding behind anger and frustration.



Caibry isn't in therapy anymore. Unless you force him to eat something too chewy for his taste or upset his environment in some drastic way he has every appearance of a typical child.



At this blog I'm going to share some of our experiences past and present. I'll share ideas for coping and teaching, list books that are helpful, and post great S.P.D related links.



If you are a member of The Homeschool Lounge I am now moderating a group there by the same name ( You, Me and S.P.D). If you are a homeschool mom with a child who has Sensory Processing Disorder please swing by and join our group for extra fun and support.