Sensory Processing Disorder. It's not very widely known and it's not something that a lot of parents discuss very openly. As the matter of fact, I find that a lot of other SPD parents I've met have been inclined to hide it, fearing that their son or daughter would be judged. To quote the Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation, "Sensory Processing Disorder is a condition that exists when sensory signals don't get organized into appropriate responses." In short, it means that someone with SPD's brain is somewhat confused by different sensory experiences (some more severe than others). People with SPD are sometimes confused with having Autism and this is simply not the case. Symptoms can vary but in our case, it's extreme need for constant and outstanding sensation (which was part of an ADHD diagnosis too, ironically), inability to master large motor skills, inability to process complicated or "overwhelming" situations and much more. Some people blow it off and say it's just a kid being a kid but it's a reality for my 8 year old, son.
When Daniel was younger, he was not a talker. I attributed this to a lot of things and just basically had the theory that he would talk when he was ready. When he finally did begin speaking (only spoke about 8 words until age 2), it seemed very frustrating and almost overwhelming to him. He wanted to form sentences sometimes but he just couldn't seem to put it together. Then there were motor skills activities. Small motor skills were nearly impossible for him to grasp with intense work on it; even something as simple as writing his name was difficult for him. Large motor skills were equally as upsetting for him. What truly tipped me off that there was some reason for concern, though, was an inability to handle anything without a complete meltdown. We're not just talking about a tantrum but completely shutting down, sometimes screaming at the top of his lungs for hours (no matter if I tried to hug him, talk to him...I tried everything) and other times just completely shutting off the world and ignoring everyone until he could calm himself down.
After testing him thoroughly, he was diagnosed with ADHD and SPD. They had a lot of paperwork pre-printed about ADHD but nobody could explain a whole lot about SPD. It was a diagnosis but not truly any help in knowing how to work with him. As I researched more on the topic, and the decision was made to cease ADHD meds after only a couple of months (because of lack of appetite), I began working with him with the help of an occupational therapist friend and the speech therapist assigned to him. The occupational therapist helped me to know how to approach working with him on some of his large motor skills functions and small motor skills functions as well as (my biggest concern) dealing with his "cycling" (inability to slow down his brain thus leading to the meltdowns). It was a big hurdle to climb over and it wasn't without some setbacks, particularly when big changes occurred in his life but we kept pushing through and he had a lot of loved ones surrounding him through the process.
Today, Daniel is an honor roll student. His handwriting is greatly improving (with a lot of work) and his large motor skills are making progress every day. He's getting over his fears of everything that he has struggled with and is finding ways to explore his sensory needs without risking his safety. Most importantly, though, he is learning to cope with things getting overwhelming. Today, we have very limited meltdowns and he knows that he can vocalize if he needs to take a few minutes to "regroup". The screaming tantrums are pretty well over and done with and he's progressing at an amazing pace. No one around him seems to even notice that he's got SPD (or anything else going on). I believe that helps him to progress even more.
I say all of that to say this: Daniel mastered his two wheeler yesterday. He'd gotten down the straight riding but he mastered pushing off to start on his own and doing turns yesterday. He's still getting the balance down and has to stop sometimes and restart but he's got it. He's a two wheel bike rider. This is a HUGE accomplishment for him and it makes me want say, "Haha SPD! He wins!" I'm the proudest mama on the block!
For more information on SPD, you can check out this website:
http://www.spdfoundation.net/about-sensory-processing-disorder.html
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