Why does my child have difficulties focusing? A sensory explanation
Focusing difficulty can be due to vestibular and crossing midline challenges.
Vestibular challenges:
Vestibular challenges are those involving the semicircular canals located in the inner ear. This system tells us how our head is positioned and allows us to balance.
When not working well, we tend to be in constant movement, attempting to hit the vestibular threshold we need to feel “just right”. This movement interferes with our ability to focus and complete tasks well.
When functioning well, the vestibular system allows for the focus required for tasks at home and at school. This is in part due to regulation of excessive movement that can distract from the task at hand.
Crossing Midline:
Crossing Midline refers to concepts such as the ability to easily cross arms and legs and eyes over the body’s vertical midline.
When functioning well, it allows for smooth visual tracking without loss of target when moving eyes across the vertical midline. This makes focus much easier for longer periods of time.
The function of these systems can be improved with sensory integration therapies.
For more information about sensory integration and reflex integration, check us out on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557947101668
or on our website: https://www.movingpartstherapy.com/
Difficulties with continence can be due to lack of body awareness.
When we have good body awareness, the interoceptive, vestibular and proprioceptive systems are working well.
The vestibular system provides us with our sense of balance and head position.
The proprioceptive system provides us with a sense of how our body is positioned and a sense of how much pressure we are using.
The interoceptive system provides us with the awareness of internal feelings including, but not limited to
Hunger
Internal temperature-feeling hot or cold
Pain
The feeling of fullness such as when eating or when the bladder is full.
When the systems are not working well, we may over eat, have decreased motivation to eat, be less willing to dress for the weather and have difficulty with continence.
Therapy can help get the right input needed to improve these systems. Often the input needed is the ones that are avoided, so the systems often do not improve on their own.
For more information about sensory integration and reflex integration, check us out on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557947101668
Thanks,
Mary
Moving Parts Therapy LLC
Why does my child have trouble keeping hands to self? A sensory explanation.
Difficulty with keeping hands to self can be due to proprioception challenges.
Proprioception is the sensation in the joints that provides body awareness. Pressure between our joints tells us how much force to use for tasks.
Challenges in the proprioceptive system can lead to a lack of understanding regarding how much pressure is being used when touching others as well as how much pressure is felt when touched by others. This can lead to social difficulties with peers.
Challenges in the proprioceptive system can lead to excessive jumping, crashing, and pushing, hitting, hugging etc. in an effort to increase input to reach the threshold needed to feel “just right”.
When functioning well, the proprioceptive system allows for touching others with appropriate force. There is no excessive need to jump, crash or bump into things or hit people to increase body awareness.
The function of this system can be improved with sensory integration therapies.
Check out our services at movingpartstherapy.com