sensory issues

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My 9year old boy is hyper can br aggressive cant sleep wets the bed alot loves sour or salty foods as poor fine motor skills poor short memory flexable fingers doesnt feel pain as meltdowns i had gbs while pregnant but no antibiotics he was born on his due date but only weighed 5lb13 he has had broncolitis 4times hospitilized 3 times with it writes letters/numbers backwards had poor writting skills but his above in his age for reading n maths low concentration levels can anybody help could it be a reaction to certain foods ect he as been tested for adhd n that was negative thanks

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9 Replies

  • Posted

    Hi. So sorry to hear about your son. It can be so challenging, not just the physical side but mentally for you as a mum. I would certainly consider a full medical assessment by a qualified doctor. Looking for kidney infection, dyspraxia and dyslexia amongst other possibilities. Aspergers may be mentioned but not always a diagnosis. Compile a detailed family history as well. Once a full assessment has been completed it won't 'cure' your son but at least it will be a start and a way forward. Support from your sons school would help. Observations in writing for example. Food/drink diary. Times and items consumed. Daily routine incl bedtime etc. It will take time to put all this together but as a supportive mum that you are the time will be well spent. Good luck. Hope this helped. Stay strong your son is fortunate to have a mum that cares enough to ask. 😉
    • Posted

      Thank you for your reply it is hard seeing him so upset n angry he isnt at school at the mo as i took him out due to school treating him like n animal for 3month i had to go and sit with him every break n dinner in a tiny room as they wouldnt let him out and everyday they had me sat in class with him they was always phoning me for little things and pinned him ip against the wall twice by his head everyone who knows him outside of school cant believe the school would need to restrain him as his behaviour at home isnt as bad hes hyper n all that but isnt as aggressive as when hes at school they didnt do anything ot or the educational phycolagist advised them to do also the main aggressive problems started in yr4 yr1 they picked up on his hyper active n low concentration and his writting but we didnt have any big problems untill end of year 3 at that time he had a lump in his armpit and a different rash for about 4 weeks then his behaviour at school became worse in yr4 he was suspendid 3times and got to the point were he was crying he worried over everything and was constantly saying he was rubbish and no one liked him everyone hated him and he wanted to kill himself which was really upsetting his teachers told him he had no friends but he had alot since taking him out of school hes not as upset an he doesnt say anything bad about himself he is a really loving caring boy sorry for rambling just trying to help him and trying to find out all the different things it could be
    • Posted

      Hi just a thought. Have you had your sons hearing checked? Some behavioural issues can be as simple as he cant hear what's going on and vents his frustration in angry out bursts. Avoiding loud areas can help. Or simple ear defenders (headphones) in situations which could be a flash point. Even supermarkets can overwhelm the sensors. I'm not saying that he is on the Autustic spectrum but if you were able to access a one day course by the charity supporting this condition they gave some great coping tools for everyday life. To see the world from their perspective. I've done it and it helped greatly even though my son was never diagnosed. It helps to remove stimulants that for you and me seem perfectly natural even mundane.

      As far as school. I thought I was on their speed dial. Playground, hallways can all ignite the situation. If returning. Ask if your son can change classrooms before the bell sounds (avoid the chaotic hallway). Break time. Suggest a quiet walk and one to one with a teacher or a task in the library. Anything to calm the senses. Finally. Do you own or have access to a pet. Dogs or even better a horse. The calming affect given off by these animals is priceless. There are charities out there that offer therapy with horses. Well worth the research. Works wonders. All to do with the breathing and calming. And non judgemental. All too technical for me. But IT WORKS.

    • Posted

      Thank you for your reply the ot sent a report to school and I went to a one day course and a teacher from the school was invited but they didn't go ot and educational phycologist suggested a laptop for work a weighted jacket headphones/defenders wobble cushion angle bored pencil grip ect and school said he couldn't have them because it wasn't fair on the other children since I have pulled him out of school and the ot and phycologist complained to the school they have bent over backwards now for other children
    • Posted

      I can see that you are really trying so very hard but obstacles are constantly being put in your way. So very frustrating. Go over the schools heads and approach the educational authorities that the school is answerable to. They are legally obliged to offer the resources needed. Inconvenient for some but don't give up, you've come so far already. It disheartens me to read that a suggestion was to put your dearly loved son in residential care until he is better. As we seem to both know there possibly isn't 'get better' scenario. Just finding a way through life which enhances everyone's mental and physical wellbeing.. A safe loving nurturing environment. The best place is in his own home where you can both 'learn' together with the right support network around you. Keep going. You may not have medical certificates and qualifications like others around but you are by far the most qualified person to care for your son. Ps if you can handle public attention first try your government representative for your area. Then the media. Schools dislike bad publicity especially if you can find other schools that have accommodated children with similar needs in another district!! Your OT may have the right contacts. Keep going. 😉
    • Posted

      Yes, press the school to follow the OTs suggestions! I was going to suggest a weighted vest, lap pad or blanket...but I thought it was a long shot. Now I see the OT recommended it and it's worth trying. He can't regulate himself as others can, so you're not trying to get more than anyone else, you're only trying to get what this child/student needs. They really should provide that. (All of it!)  He does need an understanding teacher, too - and you may have to go out of your district to really help him.

      HUGS to you, Mom! Stay strong!!

       

  • Posted

    He needs to be in a special school where he will get the help he needs, usually a live-in facility until he gets better.
  • Posted

    You have some great advice here already! I can see you love your dear son, Zasperella, and want to help him return to school...HUGS to you both!

    I'm in the U.S. and we have laws here that are likely to be different from where you live. I've had ups and downs with my school district over the years for both of my boys, who are now much better & I've learned lots, but not sure how this translates to another country...Here's my attempt to be helpful:

    You wrote this as Sensory Issues & yes, he seems like a classic sensory "seeker" which is manifesting in some behaviour issues at school and some benign things like sour foods. At age 9, children should be able to attend long enough to learn and your son sounds bright so there's a breakdown somewhere and only a doctor can really pinpoint this for you. Can you see a Developmental Paediatrician?  That's probably going to be the best route, although a Paediatric Neurologist would probably help, too. 

    I say that my second son is like an onion, he has layers (like Shrek) - the more doctors we took him to, the more diagnoses we found...which is bad but it's also good!! His medical journey has helped his behavior greatly, though he's not perfect. In his case, it was a combination of visual issues, Coeliac Disease and very mild Cerebral Palsy, not even found until he was six. He has neurological, fine motor and muscle tone issues plus ADHD, eczema, nut allergies and I even wonder if there's more... The one thing for which he was tested and not found to have is auditory processing problems. No official diagnosis, but I feel comfortable saying he has dysgraphia, which your son may have, too.

    The reason I give his history is to see if any of that resonates with you, as my son is 8 and sounds a little like your son. When he started public Kindergarten, I was insistant that he have accommodations for the issues we knew about and it took time but his teacher was a huge support and he got them. As the other diagnoses rolled in, we added them to his 504 Plan. (It's what you can use to receive support in school here if you don't have a diagnosed learning disorder and it's part of the Americans with Disabilities Act, so it's to make a level playing field for children with medical conditions that can affect any part of school)

    Now an Occupational Therapist works with him on fine motor skills like writing and tying his shoes, plus his sensory issues (he's more of an avoider than a seeker). His vision issues, which are Amblyopia & Strabismus, got better with corrective surgery and vision therapy (the latter is somewhat unorthodox and insurance pays very little so it was thousands of dollars for us but in the end it helped with his reading). He does not have dyslexia but like your son is a strong reader now, however is spelling is poor and now the school is helping with that. He had behavior plan/modifications in place, but doesn't seem to need them now and the teacher knows all about his "quirks" so she can factor them in when she teaches. He sits near her desk, he's not too close to friends, she cut back his weekly word study writing exercises for a while, but built it back up so it wasn't overwhelming him...etc. And she knows now not to tap his shoulder to redirect him - he apparently JUMPED at the contact (drs. can't even feel his abdomen at check ups , he's soooo sensitive to light touches, cold hands, surprise touch, etc.)!  And, yes, in preschool if the teachers tried to move him to a "time out" it would become physical with him flailing and fighting against being touched, not the actual punishment. 

    Don't change your son's diet just yet. You want to see if he has any condition, including food-related (we took wheat out of my son's diet for months, then found it didn't help his eczema so added it back only to find his Coeliac Disease a year later and he would never have known if it weren't for the "regular" diet)  Recording a food diary can show some insight for now, but don't eliminate foods yet. 

    Good Luck!!  Please keep us posted - and hang in there! Especially with him home from school this has to be SO HARD on you both!  (Are you getting home instruction from the school in your house? He's probably very capable of learning under the RIGHT conditions)

     

    • Posted

      Thank you for your reply sorry for the late reply at home he works better it isn't perfect he still finds it hard to concentrate all the time and gets frustrated and fidgets climbs ect but I can tell when he's going to lose control and can not all the time but sometimes calm him back down one of his teachers said he could tell when he was feeling overwhelmed as his eyes would glaze over and his legs n arms would start to fidget and he would rock on his seat before totally losing it we are still working on finding the right ways to keep him calm he doesn't sleep but we find when he's had more sleep he is more hyper and when he's tired he's not and he's not aggressive when he's tired the school was rubbish I tried everything and they didnt believe in sensory processing disorder we had the of and educational phycologist and his mental health docter tell the school that they weren't doing their job proper by not getting my son the help and equipment that he needed I no its going to be a long road but am ready and willing to do anything to help my son

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