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My Simple Wild

a motherhood & simple living blog

December 15, 2017 / kids

Our New Calming Sensory Strategy

This product was given to me in exchange for my honest opinion. All opinions are my own. 
This post contains affiliate links. You can read my full disclaimer here. 

Something I don’t write about often is my son’s sensory needs. He is a sensory seeker (or I like to call him my little adrenaline junkie) so he can become very under (and over) stimulated quickly. He has SPD (sensory processing disorder )and we have found a new calming sensory strategy I wanted to share.

Liam needs to have multiple exercise breaks throughout the day to concentrate and over the years we have learned what works for our son and what doesn’t. Liam was in multiple therapies two-three times a week for about two years. The one we struggled with the most was his OT (occupational therapy) because we just did not know how to prevent certain behaviors in public. We struggled HARD for a long time.

I will never forget when Liam’s pediatrician threw out the word “autism” at my son’s one year well check-up. I was very uneducated about autism back then, and I immediately panicked and couldn’t even remember what the rest of the conversation looked like after that. Liam was “on the spectrum” because he was so young still that they could not diagnose anything yet.

A very happy cotton-candy-covered Liam

My son would beat his head against the floor or a wall violently when he was upset, making it just an awful thing to witness as first time parents having no clue what to do. He would hit and bite and was becoming more and more aggressive each day.

After a few therapists that just did not work well for our family, we found one that literally changed our lives. She will forever be appreciated and loved by us and even though Liam has “graduated” from therapy for quite some time now, we still try to keep in contact. She gave us the tools to prevent and deal with his aggression and bursts of emotions in public.

With the help of OT and speech (a huge part of it was that he was quite delayed with speech and could not communicate what was bothering him) we have come SUCH a long way!

We can go to the store, and most days, get in and out without screaming kicking and throwing food out of the cart. (The bright lights totally freaked Liam out and all the colors and noises was just too much for him) We can go to the zoo and travel and go to restaurants. These are things that we just thought we were never going to be able to really do without pulling our hair out. We never had given up though, we kept at it and kept going out with him. But it was HARD.

I have spent many moments in the past few years just crying in my car in the Target parking lot. It was hard for me not to take it personally when my sweet little toddler would randomly head butt me and give me a bloody nose! And then laugh and giggle about it.

 

calming sensory strategy

 

Just to note: I am NO expert. I know what worked for my son and what didn’t. I know what his particular sensory issues were/are but I am not a professional! 

Every month that passes, we have to do less and less. As he gets older and is able to deal with more each day, things are getting easier. He is in preschool three days a week for a few hours! He is doing WONDERFULLY. For a long time we were told Liam would have to attend a special school to tend to his sensory needs.

His sensory diet is lighter than it ever has been and I am so proud of him and how far he has come.

But that doesn’t mean we still don’t have the occasional “moments” as I like to call them. It can be hard still sometimes to tell if it is sensory or just behavior, as often they go hand in hand with Liam. Little cues can sometimes help me. If he is begging for food even though he just ate, it usually means he just needs to be chewing on something. (He use to overeat so much that his stomach was bulging and hard and had stomach pain daily). When he was younger he had [amazon_textlink asin=’B06Y6H5M8X’ text=’chewy necklaces ‘ template=’ProductLink’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’0a321a27-e123-11e7-9d31-b75be6d69b25′]that helped A LOT. Now that he is older he gets that same sensory input from chewing gum.

If Liam is literally climbing all over everything (the kitchen counters, the couch, swinging from whatever he can) I know he needs either 1. to just run around outside to burn up some energy and get that proprioceptive input he needs. Pushing a heavy toy cart around the yard always works….or 2. joint compressions on his arms and legs with calming music or even me just “shushing” him can soothe him still. Sometimes he likes using the [amazon_textlink asin=’B0041MWDMG’ text=’therapeutic brush’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’ec3f0fc9-e123-11e7-b513-1f2db325a1f2′] but usually the joint compressions are enough to literally make him melt in your arms and he is about to fall asleep. Sometimes he just does not want either and will run away screaming. So something new we have added to our daily sensory diet is this stuffed[amazon_textlink asin=’B0744FS9VZ’ text=’ toy duck’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’8d1fa12e-e121-11e7-a177-31bfde600b69′].

This stuffed animal is special because it has a small pouch filled with natural clay beads, lavender, and chamomile. You can take this pouch out of the back of the duck and heat it up in the microwave for 30 seconds or pop it into the freezer to chill it. My son LOVES when his “Snuggles” is heated. He will squeeze his little duck or I will put it on his chest while doing joint compressions or body squeezes and he completely mellows out.

calming sensory strategy

The calming lavender and chamomile (two essential oils that are miracle workers for my little guy) really helps calm him down. We have started using the plush toy for when he is upset too. If he is hurt or is having a hard time falling asleep or wakes up in the middle of the night from a bad dream… I just pop that insert into the microwave, put the insert back in his duck and it really helps soothe him!

I think this is just a genius idea and I recommend this toy to really anyone. Sensory issues or not, this duck (or[amazon_textlink asin=’B07449RZF2′ text=’ bunny’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’328ccd78-e124-11e7-ac8d-73703f871a4a’]) can be a sanity saver. My only negative about the toy is that it may not hold up too long with my son. The material is quite thin. He is super rough with his toys and I am worried about him ripping it open. We’ll see how long it lasts!

I wish I had this when Liam was younger too! He had a really hard time falling asleep at night so I had used an old sock filled with rice and heated that up and let it lay right next to him. (It would kind of trick him to think that there was a warm body next to him). This duck is much cuter and I love that this has the lavender.

[amazon_link asins=’B0744FS9VZ’ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’894ef7d3-e126-11e7-b3e4-e1379fb51c88′][amazon_link asins=’B07449RZF2′ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’d25f1c9c-e1b8-11e7-bf0a-6350005ab2ec’]

Some of our go-to calming sensory activites:

  1. Calm down jars ( I just fill empty water bottles with water, glue, glitter and small toys)
  2. A calm down area (my son loves his teepee) with big pillows to crash in to
  3. [amazon_textlink asin=’B0773PWR9N’ text=’Weighted blanket’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’f39e773f-e1b8-11e7-a316-ff71b1048375′]
  4. chewy necklaces
  5. [amazon_textlink asin=’B01BLYNWIU’ text=’therapy putty’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’Newmommasurvival’ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’05678846-e1b9-11e7-8160-7b4c5d62389f’] (great for getting that proprioceptive input with their hands)
  6. Headphone with calming music
  7. Joint compressions
  8. Finger painting ( great tactile activity)

If you are wanting to learn more about SPD or are wondering if maybe your own child has sensory issues, there are some really great resources out there! I would recommend firstly just talking to your child’s pediatrician and then going from there.

Here are some great websites with more info on SPD:

spdstar.org

childmind.org

understood.org

Thank you for reading !

If you like this post, check out Flying with a Preschooler where I share a few tips about about traveling with a child that has SPD

Have a beautiful day !

New Momma Survival

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Comments

  1. happyhomeschoolmum says

    December 15, 2017 at 6:43 pm

    I love these ideas. I have some sensory sensitive kids and these are wonderful ideas and this looks like a great product.

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      December 15, 2017 at 8:30 pm

      thank you !!! I hope I helped !

      Reply
  2. april j says

    December 15, 2017 at 8:24 pm

    Thank you for sharing, my daughter has sensory issues and a chewy necklace was a huge help for her.

    Reply
  3. The Unfiltered Momma says

    December 15, 2017 at 9:44 pm

    I am so glad you found stuff that works for y’all! What a great resource this is

    Reply
  4. Erica says

    December 15, 2017 at 9:53 pm

    This info is so helpful! Thank you so much for sharing mama! ❤️

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      December 15, 2017 at 11:40 pm

      Thank you for reading !

      Reply
  5. Escape Writers says

    December 16, 2017 at 9:28 am

    Why did you wrote I am not expert??? You are, you are doing a GREAT job. You just put all your thoughts so honestly.Love to Liam.

    Reply
  6. Kim says

    December 19, 2017 at 2:58 am

    I’m so glad you’ve been able to find some things that are working for you!

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      December 19, 2017 at 3:21 pm

      Thank you Kim !

      Reply
  7. Tamara says

    December 19, 2017 at 7:19 am

    Wow, I’ve never heard of a stuffed toy that you can put essential oils into. This is brilliant! My son doesn’t have sensory issues but I think any child would only benefit of some lavender scent at bedtime. I put some into our humidifier but this is another way to do it.

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      December 19, 2017 at 3:22 pm

      Yes, exactly ! I know – it’s genius !

      Reply
  8. alunderfullife says

    December 19, 2017 at 8:57 am

    What a great read! The scents in your little mans snuggle are always such calming scents for adults, I’m sure he loves them! I love how this toy can be brought anywhere you go as well. Thanks for sharing so many tips!

    Reply
  9. Ashley Solberg says

    December 20, 2017 at 3:30 am

    I am so so so glad you found something that works so well. That is such a valuable asset for making his life much easier.

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      December 20, 2017 at 6:09 pm

      Thank you !! ❤️

      Reply
  10. Tifanee says

    December 20, 2017 at 5:31 pm

    Ah, I NEED one of these, for me and my kids! These look amazing, thanks for sharing mama.

    Reply
  11. mobtruths says

    December 21, 2017 at 3:24 am

    This is such a helpful and reassuring post. I have an ADHD son, and some of these same calming-down techniques are key. Thank you for sharing, for being honest and putting it out there, and for also acknowledging that what works for some kids won’t work for others. Great post.

    Reply
  12. Claire says

    December 21, 2017 at 5:15 am

    At what age did you start seeing the specialists? My almost 2 year old is somewhat similar and I worry about him a lot and find it so stressful to take him anywhere!

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      December 21, 2017 at 5:11 pm

      He was about 1 1/2 when we took him to get evaluated

      Reply
  13. Author Laura Aranda says

    January 17, 2018 at 5:00 pm

    Thank you so much. My four year old son is so full of Energy and this will help so much at calming him at bedtime.

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      January 17, 2018 at 5:10 pm

      Yay ! I’m so glad !!❤️

      Reply
  14. cakestokale says

    January 17, 2018 at 10:03 pm

    Love this! My boys have spd also, my oldest LOVES to smell things. This looks like it would be perfect for him. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      January 17, 2018 at 10:19 pm

      Glad I could help !!

      Reply
  15. The Cinnamon Mom says

    January 18, 2018 at 12:02 am

    Those stuffed animals are such a great idea! I’m so glad that you were able to find so many strategies that work for your little guy and are seeing so much success as he grows older!

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      January 18, 2018 at 2:07 pm

      Thank you so much ! ❤️❤️

      Reply
  16. karriefrost says

    January 18, 2018 at 3:44 pm

    What a wonderful snuggly stuffie! I am glad that it is helping him (and you). I agree that this would be a toy that any child would love. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      January 18, 2018 at 3:50 pm

      Thank you for reading! It’s been a lifesaver post Christmas too ! He was so overstimulated after Christmas

      Reply
  17. Aseky Bonnaire says

    January 19, 2018 at 5:12 am

    I love all of these!! But I’m really loving the calming sensory activities. My son can throw some major tempers and I feel like thrbcalming sensory activities that you recommended could really help him!

    Reply
    • Aseky Bonnaire says

      January 19, 2018 at 5:13 am

      The calming**

      Reply
    • Natalie Aubele says

      January 19, 2018 at 3:10 pm

      Thank you ! Give them a try ! I hope they help! 💕

      Reply

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Welcome! I’m Natalie. I am a western mountain mama who just recently relocated to the coast! Here I share all things motherhood, homemaking, homeschooling, and slow living. I hope you follow along as we share this next chapter of our lives. I am so glad you are here! Grab a cup of coffee and stay awhile

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