I hate Sensory Disorders!!!

I just have to say that well therapy seems to be going well, and I am oh so thankful to finally have a diagnoses for my oldest and most troubling son, I HATE SENSORY INTEGRATION DISORDER! The last week or two has been rough. And with the weather turning colder, my options for appropriate therapeutic activities are dwindling. I have found that things like a long walk with Jacob pushing a stroller work well to calm him, but if it is cold Mr. Sensory will be flipping out the entire walk because it is cold outside.

Nothing calms him down and gets him focused like some intense swinging. You should see the kid when walks out of therapy. I wish I could bottle it and keep that boy all week long. We don't have a swing set and aren't sure that getting one would help... would he go out to swing in the cold? And a normal swing is no good. He likes to spin and twist (think tire swing). We could maybe mount a swing to the ceiling, but then he would likely destroy some walls or something because he is such a maniac.

I did fill an old pillow sized stuffed Bob the Builder with marbles for weight. He has been sleeping with that on top of him the last few nights, and he seems better rested in the morning (and he is sleeping later). At first Jacob was very resistant to the idea of a weighted blanket, but I figured out that the one at therapy is just too heavy for him (it's 20 pounds) and he is interested in a lighter one.

One other really great thing that I have found is that he loves to scrub walls and appliances. Any kind of scrubbing or cleaning is good proprioceptive input for him. One of the books I read specifically mentioned a spray bottle, and Jacob will use a half bottle of Windex in a day, but he happily goes around and cleans (sort of) off all the dirt that he put all over my walls. And after a wall or two, he is more calm but it isn't as lasting as some of the other activities. I think I will teach him to scrub the bathroom floor with a scrub brush next...