OT update

I took G for his OT appointment today. I did feel better as I left the appointment today. She really worked with him today. She put him on a big exercise ball and he hated it. She put him in a swing and he hated it. She has a little vegetable brush, that she brushes his entire body with, and he loves it, so she gave me one to bring home. She also laid him on his tummy, and rolled a ball applying pressure all over his body and he loved it. Still though I wasn't convinced that this wasn't something just all kids would like. Then we started in on the foods, he didn't do so good with them, he wouldn't eat them and got really mad that he was strapped in the chair. After trying to get him to eat for a little while and him getting really mad, she laid him on the floor again and did the ball again, and he immediately calmed down. It was amazing. I asked her if she thought he had SPD, or if he was just stubborn, she said all the signs point to a true SPD, but we can control it, and we will. She gave me an evaluation that she had done after our first and second meeting I will not write the whole thing out, but instead just the assessment/prognosis:
G demonstrates sensory processing dysfunction. For most children sensory processing develops in the course of ordinary childhood activities. For G, the process of taking in sensory stimulation and organizing and interpreting the stimulation is disordered, resulting in problems learning, development, and behavior. Problems with feeding are due to defensiveness. Oral defensiveness is often associated with early experience of the child, negative stimulation such as G's significant history of reflux, as well as significant history of allergies which can also cause gastrointestinal issues and can result in learning aversive responses associated with food intake. G is also observed to have difficulty with overall organization which not only affects his ability to have normal responses to oral stimulation, but also affects his responses to visual, auditory, vestibular, and proprioceptive stimulation. It is felt that G seeks oral stimulation because he does not get this from his normal feeding. He is hypersensitive to food textures as a result of not getting stimulation from foods in the mouth. He has possibly learned negative responses to food that is felt to stem from initial and continuing problems with reflux. Although G can learn to be more accepting of textures in mouth to de-sensitise, it is felt that he will possibly continue to reject foods as long as he has continued negative response (reflux from food). Also with the amount of ongoing reflux noted, it is of concern that there is possible aggravation/inflammation occurring physically. I feel that he will make gains with occupational therapy to help him learn to process sensory stimulation from his environment, however I feel further medical intervention may be necessary for ongoing reflux issues. The prognosis is good for the following goals if complies with OT recommendations and is consistent with OT attendance and home exercise program.
Short Term Goals (3 months)
1. Parents to be independent in a home exercise program.
2. G will protrude his tongue to taste a variety of food textures to desensitize him to food.
3. G will tolerate basic oral motor exercises and oral desensitising objects (Nuk brush, vibrating infant toothbrush, etc.) on face, and in oral cavity.
4. Touch a variety if food textures with fingertips without aversion to de-sensitise G to food.
Long term goals(6 months) G will
1. Tolerate a variety of food textures within oral cavity for at least 5 seconds without spitting out.
2. Try 2-4 new foods per therapy session.
3. Demonstrate overall improved sensory processing evidenced by therapist's observation during therapy sessions and parental report on Sensory Processing questionnaire.
4. Self-feed at least 2 bites of meal using a spoon.

Additional observations:
G demonstrates increased sensory seeking behaviors. He was observed to have decreased focus to activities. He also had decreased tolerance to tactile stimulation, such as wanting hands to be wiped when they became messy. He had decreased tolerance to tactile stimulation, such as wanting hands wiped when they became messy. He had decreased tolerance to a brush and to rice play. When out of the chair he was constantly climbing for proprioceptive input, as was as observed to scoot his head on the floor which mom states occurs often at home.

So i guess i just need to come out of denial that he does have SPD. Now I just want to fix it. Well that is my update for today. Till next time remember to hug and kiss your family and tell them you love them, today is gone and tomorrow may never come.........................

Manic Monday

I know I didn't keep up on updates the past few days. Sorry.
Saturday it was snowing here, so we just hung out most of the day. Trying to get the girls to clean their room, well they didn't. I swear I don't know how they can make such a mess.
Sunday we had a cookie booth for Girl Scouts at Goody's. I had three girls there counting H, and they did well. They sold 66 boxes of cookies in 2 hours. Not bad. While I was gone Curious George and G were home with daddy. Curious George of course got into things, like cereal that she poored all over the food and then ran over with G's little ride on car. She also was apparently trying to get into some candy, and she must have fallen and scratched and bruised under her eye. It looks as though she was in a fight.
G is doing ok, although his fit throwing seems to be getting much worse. He will put his hands on his head and just cry, or he will gently lay himself on the floor an throw a fit. I don't know what to do with him. i feel bad because I know he desperately wants to tell me something and he just lacks the skills to do so. i know it must be frustrating. Poor little guy. He will have his second Ot appointment on Wed. so we will see how that goes.
Tonight I had to do something that I am really torn about. I applied for a job. I miss working, but oh how I do not want to give up the time with my kids. Taking a part time job is not really an option for us, we are really at the end. We need the money, with 4 kids 2 houses and only one income it is really a struggle. I don't know what to do. It is sad. I am hoping that maybe I can work while H is at school, and then I can pick all three of them up, and at least spend some time with them. I know that ALOT of moms work, my mom did. But after staying home for 6 years, I just don't know how to give it up. Please pray for me that it will all work out. I need it now. This is the time when I would have leaned on my grandma, and times like this it is so hard not to have her. I have had a really hard time lately. I have tried to keep the feelings inside, but I just miss her so.
On that note I will end for tonight. I have some pictures of the kids, but I will post them tomorrow. Till next time remember to hug and kiss your family and tell them you love them, today is gone and tomorrow may never come................................

Sensory Processing disorder

Ok so here is the update on G, sorry I didn't get a full update yesterday. We had girl scouts today and I had to get everything ready. There are many forms of this disorder, and we will continue to test G to see the extent of it. But for him, he craves touch. They gave me a website and I am reading through the site to figure out just what is going on with him. you can check out the site.
http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com . But he seems to be hypersensitive. He doesn't like loud noise, he frequently feels things out with is head instead of using his hands. He will scoot across the floor using his head. The OT took his socks and shoes off and put him in a tot filled with dry rice and beans and a few tiny toys, he was not happy about having his feet in this. She then showed him a little toy that he was very interested in, and then buried it in the rice. He wouldn't get it out. He wouldn't touch the rice. He doesn't like to have dirty hands. IT really makes him mad. The food thing follows in line with all of this. They call this orally defensive. There is a list of foods on that website, although I haven't looked at them yet. I am getting to it. But this defiantly explains alot of his behaviors. SO pray for us that the OT can help him out with this. I will be up for a while reading about this.
Curious George struck again today. This is the second time that she has done this. I was cleaning the kitchen, and I left the Green Works cleaner on the counter, so L took it and sprayed G with it. Now she had done this last week while dad was here, and I explained to her that this could really hurt him, but yet she did it again today. Poor little guy. She sprayed him in the face. I don't know how it didn't get in his eyes and burn like crazy. He was crying and he was very upset. Of course I would be too if I had been sprayed in the face with cleaner. Then tonight when I was putting them to bed. I went into G's room to lay him down and when I came into the girls room, L was hiding something, she had taken some pez candy into the bed with her and although she had just brushed her teeth she was eating this candy. As soon as I walked into the room she hid it under the covers. She is a sneaky little 3 year old. I told her she was just like curious George and she said I am not a monkey mommy. LOL Silly little girl.
Well I guess that is all for tonight. Till next time remember to hug and kiss your family and tell them you them, today is gone and tomorrow may never come..........

Update from appointment today.

As it turns out G knows how to eat(I suspected that), but he is an over sensitive kids. He craves sensory interaction. SO now we will call the GI dr. and see if the issue is his reflux. We will go back to the OT on the 12th for a follow up where she will help us find sensory foods for G to eat. That will be a great help I hope.