Sensory Processing 

Sensory processing refers to how we use the information provided by all of the sensations from within our body and from our environment. All of the information is integrated to give us an understanding of who we are, where we are and what is happening around us. When our senses are integrated correctly, we are able to respond appropriately to the sensation i.e. we take off an itchy woollen jumper or we take a deep breath to smell a flower.

Children with possible sensory processing difficulties may struggle to understand what is happening inside and outside their bodies. They may struggle to communicate how they feel, they may be disorganised in a world they can’t make sense of and need to learn strategies to enable them to cope and function.

Now we will look at each of the sensory systems in a bit more detail, with some things you may see in your child and some strategies that you can try. Your child is unlikely to display all the traits in every section, so it is important just to focus on the difficulties that are most frequent or that give you and your child the most concern.

Our sense of touch (tactile sense) comes from receptors in our skin all over our bodies and within our mouth.

There are two tactile pathways, a protective pathway and a discriminative pathway.

The protective system responds to light or unexpected touch and helps to alert us to potential danger.

The discriminative pathway helps us to interpret what we are touching and where on our body we are in contact, for example, locating an item in your pocket. Information is sent to the brain about the type of touch we are experiencing e.g. Light touch, texture, pain, which assists us to make an appropriate response. If the brain does not process the touch sensation accurately then we may be described as over responsive or under-responsive to touch sensation and this will affect our behaviour.

Be very gentle when introducing challenging activities – keep activities short and follow them with a favourite activity.

Don’t be tempted to progress too quickly – Celebrate small achievements which may take a long time to accomplish, let the child work at their own pace.

Grade, Grade, Grade – Start with very small amounts of tactile materials to avoid over whelming the child. Start with dry textures, progress to wet and then sticky. Stop immediately if the child starts to gag.

Respect their limits and work within their tolerance – They need to trust you and build their confidence with these challenging activities. Let them clean their hands if they ask and encourage them to then carry on.

Bear in mind the environment – try and build a quiet, calm environment so their sensory systems are not being bombarded by noise or activity. Consider lighting, noise, smell, textures and space.

The vestibular system provides us with information regarding head position and movement against gravity.

Our movement receptors are located in our inner ear and send information about our head position and how we are moving. If the brain does not process the movement sensation accurately then we may be described as over responsive or under-responsive to movement sensation and this will affect our behaviour.

If the brain is over responsive, it can become easily overwhelmed by a movement experience causing fear, anxiety and avoidance i.e. hesitates walking downstairs. If under-responsive it may seek out more movement experiences to satisfy the need i.e. moving in their seat.

Working with the vestibular sense is the sense of proprioception, which provides us with an awareness of body position in space without looking at it. Information provided from our muscles, joints and ligaments provides us with an awareness of where our body parts are in relation to each other. This information is given when our body is squashed, stretched or pulled apart during movement.

When this system is working effectively it assists us to know where our body parts are in relation to each other and in relation to the immediate space around us. It also lets us know how to move our body and how much force we need to use to carry out a task.

When proprioception is processed well, an individual’s body position is automatically adjusted and this helps with every aspect of our day e.g. negotiating our way around objects in a room or preventing us from falling out of a chair. Proprioception also allows objects such as pencils, buttons, spoons and combs to be used by the hand with appropriate force; to pick up a drink of water without spilling it or squeezing too hard or too softly.

The proprioceptive system also has another role – it helps us to stay calm so that we can attend and focus.

Auditory processing refers to how the brain recognises and makes sense of sounds. Sounds consist of loudness, pitch, how long it lasts for and where it is coming from. We may need more or less noise in our environment in order to help us focus on a task.

Visual processing refers to how the brain recognises and makes sense of what the eyes are seeing. This is so that we can make an appropriate response to keep ourselves safe or interact appropriately with the environment and other people. Vision is the strongest and most powerful predictor of what is going to happen. Some children find it more difficult to concentrate in situations where there are lots of visual stimuli, and can find too much visual input overwhelming

Sensory processing challenges may lead to difficulties being independent in daily life skills. The following strategies may help in personal tasks.

Dressing

• Use comfortable clothes; consider type of fabric and length of sleeves.
• If the young person cannot tolerate labels, cut them out.
• If the young person cannot tolerate seams, undergarments can be worn to reduce friction.
• Try washing and drying clothes in unscented products.
• Dressing can be done in front of a mirror so as to provide visual cues to assist with sequencing, motor planning and body awareness.
• Be aware of other visual or auditory noises in the room which may be off-putting.

Personal Hygiene

• Use non-perfumed soap
• Be aware of bathroom lighting levels and minimise any noises, e.g. run the bath prior to entering the bathroom
• Use pressure when shampooing or drying with a towel
• Before bath time, do activities that involve proprioception activities as detailed previously.
• Make the transition from undressing and getting into the bath as quickly and smoothly as possible
• If the young person dislikes having their face or body washed, encourage them to wash themselves. Self-initiated touch produces a less defensive reaction
• If the young person is showering, use a hand held shower nozzle. Let the young person control the direction and force of the water
• Use a large towel, and quickly and firmly wrap the young person in it. Avoid exposure of the wet skin to the air as the light touch may trigger a defensive reaction
• Provide deep-touch using a towel to the head, hands and feet to decrease defensiveness. If they will tolerate it, provide a firm massage, using lotion to avoid skin irritation

Hair care

• Seat the young person firmly on your knee and squeeze the young person firmly between your knees (deep pressure)
• Count or have the young person count as you comb, wash, rinse or cut the hair.
• Give definite time limits to the task e.g. let’s count to 10, and then we will stop cutting your hair, provide deep pressure immediately after
• Break the task into small steps and eliminate any unnecessary steps or stages. Practise each step in isolation in a stress-free environment
• Gradually combine these steps and perform the task in the natural environment. Practise without scissors, lifting up sections of hair and tugging very slightly to mimic the feel of cutting

Some non-sensory strategies can also help:

• Where the choice is available, allow the young person to choose a bath or a shower. A larger
• showerhead is often more acceptable to the young person, as it distributes the water more evenly
• Try to incorporate bathing into a play activity e.g. use floating toys and bubbles and/or coloured floating soap
• Visual aids can be used in order to help the young person understand the activity.

• A Sensory Life

• Suppliers of clothing for children that may find it difficult to tolerate certain textures can be found here.
• Suppliers of toys, clothing and a variety of equipment to support individual sensory preferences can be found here.

• ‘Raising a sensory smart child’ – Read more about this resource here. 
• ‘Understanding your Childs sensory signals’

• A child’s view of sensory processing:
• Description of the Proprioceptive (body position) sense and how this can impact on behaviour and learning.
• Description of the vestibular (movement and balance) sense and how this can impact on motor control, attention, behaviour and learning.
• Relevant Social networks:
• Apps to promote self-regulation and individual sensory needs