Welcome to this week’s Blogging Through the Alphabet! I am Blogging through the Alphabet with Ben and Me and many other bloggers who are offering a wide variety of topics. I am sharing a new topic related to Sensory Processing Disorder each week as we blog through the alphabet.
K is for Kids
There are some common misconceptions about Sensory Processing Disorder – only kids have it and that some children that have it are “just being kids.”
SPD isn’t a Childhood Disorder
There are many reasons Sensory Processing Disorder is so easily dismissed. One of the main reasons is that people believe it is just a childhood disorder and children “outgrow” it. If that is the case, can it really be a disorder or are those children just taking longer for their sensory system to mature? See, it provides quite a confusion, doesn’t it?
Well, countless adults (including myself) have SPD. We definitely didn’t outgrow it, and it affects our life in some way every day. Will you see adults having a meltdown and crying when they are having sensory overload? Some actually may, but most of us have learned how to cope and develop strategies to disconnect or whatever we need to do in that moment. It’s harder to find help as an adult, though, as adults with SPD are greatly misunderstood. We may be misdiagnosed with ADD, OCD, personality disorders, and more, when in reality, we have SPD and have probably been trying to cope with it all our lives because it wasn’t recognized like it is today. There is still a long way to go.
They’re “just being kids”
SPD kids can be sensory seekers, which is often viewed as hyperactivity. Because many children (boys in particular) just naturally have more energy, it is assumed that it’s “typical” behavior for kids. There is a difference, though, between children who are naturally hyperactive versus children that are needing sensory input. Because of this, though, it is misunderstood that they’re “just boys” or “just kids” and don’t otherwise have a challenge.
As parents, we have to be advocates for our children. Sometimes we have to just let it go in one ear and out the other and stay confident that we are doing everything we can to support and help our children. As an adult with SPD I know what it’s like to not get that support, and I believe that makes it easier for me to not doubt due to naysayers or those that just don’t know better. I truly believe people have good intentions, but we know our children best. God chose us to parent them. We have to remember that.
ABC Blogging
Don’t forget to check out the other bloggers as well who have linked up to Blogging through the Alphabet! I’m too late to link up (again! *Sigh*), but I guarantee you don’t want to miss it! There are a wide variety of topics! Learn more by clicking on the button below!
I have this. On my first birthday I wouldn’t even touch my cake. I used to let my hands crack to the point of bleeding because I hated putting lotion on them. Even last night, my husband was watching TV and I was trying to ignore it (it doesn’t normally bother me) but I had to turn it off. I couldn’t handle the noise.
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I can relate. I have such a hard time with background noise.
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