I want to explain to you why my child is
having such a rough time today…
What you are seeing when you look at my
child is not a child who is "out of control" but
rather a child who is "out of sync." My child
has Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD),
which is the inability of the brain to properly
and/or efficiently process and organize
sensory information. When my child's brain
receives information through any of his
senses - sight, smell, hearing, taste, touch,
vestibular or proprioception -- he doesn't
always know what to do with that information
and can become very disorganized,
overwhelmed, frightened and confused. You
can read more about SPD at
www.spdnetwork.org.
My child has good days and bad days. You
must have run into us on a bad day. I
apologize if we have made you uncomfortable
or if we have been disruptive. My child is
currently involved in many types of
interventions, working on these sensory
issues, so that he can feel normal like you
and so that when we go places, he feels safe
and comfortable in his own body. It is going
to be a long and difficult journey, but in the
meantime, please know that inside him is a
beautiful and magnificent little person
waiting, hoping and trying to emerge!
Think about how difficult my child's SPD was
for you today, then try to imagine how hard it is for him.
The next time you see us
out somewhere, please understand...
having such a rough time today…
What you are seeing when you look at my
child is not a child who is "out of control" but
rather a child who is "out of sync." My child
has Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD),
which is the inability of the brain to properly
and/or efficiently process and organize
sensory information. When my child's brain
receives information through any of his
senses - sight, smell, hearing, taste, touch,
vestibular or proprioception -- he doesn't
always know what to do with that information
and can become very disorganized,
overwhelmed, frightened and confused. You
can read more about SPD at
www.spdnetwork.org.
My child has good days and bad days. You
must have run into us on a bad day. I
apologize if we have made you uncomfortable
or if we have been disruptive. My child is
currently involved in many types of
interventions, working on these sensory
issues, so that he can feel normal like you
and so that when we go places, he feels safe
and comfortable in his own body. It is going
to be a long and difficult journey, but in the
meantime, please know that inside him is a
beautiful and magnificent little person
waiting, hoping and trying to emerge!
Think about how difficult my child's SPD was
for you today, then try to imagine how hard it is for him.
The next time you see us
out somewhere, please understand...
Posts
Love, love, love this post.
ReplyDeleteAs the mother of a child with Sensory Processing Disorder, I know this all too well. It makes me so sad that so many of our kiddos get the reputation for being "spoiled" or "improperly disciplined" when they just don't process things as easily as the rest of us and just living a day in their world would silence even the loudest of critics. It's a difficult thing in and of itself, let alone trying to battle the misconceptions from the public eye about it. So, lady in the bathroom who felt the need to hush my child's sobs at the sound of the hand dryer, and tell your children "see how not to act".... as much as I'd like to throw a punch at you, I will just make a promise to myself to never be so ignorant... for you never know the battles a family is facing or the true reasons for any individual child's behavior or parent's choices. We as mothers should be called to support, not judge.
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