Fragile World
On The Spectrum
Tools for Helping Your Child Feel
“Safe, Accepted, & Competent”
Calming the Nervous System
This course will discuss the following points.
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Describes stress, meltdowns & shutdowns.
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Identifies common stressors
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Identifies possible accommodations compensations to reduce stress.
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Good tool to summarise areas of vulnerabilities for teachers , friends and relatives.
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Good tool for designing comprehensive treatment plans.
Basic Premise Of This Course.
Every child strives to feel “Safe, Accepted, and Competent”
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Safe and secure
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Physically, emotionally, socially.
Tools For Helping Your Child Feel
“Safe, Accepted, & Competent”
Choosing & Using The Tools
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Not all tools will be needed for everyone.
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Pick tools that may benefit your child.
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Work on one tool at a time, not moving on until the tool/skill is established.
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Sometimes it is better to start with the easiest tools to implement, to build confidence, rather then tackling more difficult ones.
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Often best to set aside a couple of time periods (10-15 minutes) a day to practice the tool. Was learned, generalize into daily routine.
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Do not overwhelm yourself with trying too much at one time. It is better to work slow, and instill the learning.
Helping your child feel Safe
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Organise Nervous System
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Reduce Sensory Overload
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Reduce confusion
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Clear Boundaries
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Respect comfort zones
Tools for Helping your Child Feel Safe
Tool 1 Meet nutritional needs
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Tool 2 Treat medical/psychiatric needs
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Tool 3 Reducing sensory overload
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Tool 4 Calming meltdowns
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Tool 5 Sensory diet
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Tool 6 Physical activity
Calm and Organize The Nervous System
Tune the engine to maximize learning
It all starts with our nervous system
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Nervous system has problems processing the world around it.
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Problems integrating sensory stimulation and processing information.
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Nervous system constantly “on guard” and running on “high alert.
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Normal daily activities tax and drain the nervous system.
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Weakens immune system, puts system on “overload.”
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Most find ways to calm and organize the nervous system for development to occur.
If our nervous system is anxious and disorganized, we cannot learn.
Weak & Fragile Nervous System
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Sensory Processing Problems
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Auto-Immune Problems
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Nutritional Deficiencies
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Metal Toxicity Side Effects of Medication
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Unstable Sleep Patterns
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Information Processing Problems
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Gastro-Intestinal Disorders
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Neurological Complications
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Poor Emotional Regulation
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Co-Existing Psychiatric Disorders
Anxious Nervous System
Common Vulnerabilities
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NutritionalDeficiencies
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Digestive Problems
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Autoimmunity
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Metal Toxicity
General State of Anxiety, Irritability & Rigidity
Effects how I learn….relate……behave!
Nervous System on “High Alert!”
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Fragile nervous system is already anxious and on guard.
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Weakened nervous system is less effective in handling daily demands.
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Common daily demands add more stress chemicals to already fragile nervous system.
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Accumulation of stress chemicals breakdown already fragile judgment and reasoning abilities.
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Minor irritations may result in meltdowns.
Help Me Feel Calm and Organized
Tool 1
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Nutrition
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Vitamins
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Supplements
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Chelating
Tune up the engine to maximize performance
Tool 3
Reducing Sensory Overload
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Problems integrating/processing multi-senses.
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Fragmented or distorted sensations.
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Sensory defensiveness (hyper-sensitive).
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Hypo-sensitive senses.
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Modulating stimulation (arousal)
When the senses are not integrating effectively, it
effects all areas of living.
Sensory Defensiveness
Hyper-Sensitivity to:
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Touch
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Sounds
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Light
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Smells
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Taste
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Movement
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Oversensitive to one or more senses.
Nervous system is on “high alert”; on guard.
Child is usually overwhelmed and anxious.
Motivated to escape or avoid the stimulation.
May set off fight or flight response (meltdowns).
Normal Daily Demands Become Stressful
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Humming of lights are distracting.
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Kids breathing is annoying.
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People laughing, talking too loud!
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The kid next to me is too close!
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Seat is too hard!
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Clothes are irritating!
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Teacher’s words are too fast and confusing!
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I can’t listen and write at the same time!
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The sound of the bell is horrifying!
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Bright light gives me a headache.
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Smell of materials is awful!
Related Behaviors
Sensory Overload
(anxiety, irritability & Insecurity)
Meltdowns: Tantrums, aggression, self abuse, property disruption.
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Shutdown: Withdraw, unresponsive.
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Self Stimulation (stimming)
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Ritualistic, Compulsive Behaviour
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Defiant, Oppositional Behaviour
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Disorganised, Hyperactive Behaviour
Know Your Child’s Nervous System
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What calms the child.
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What alerts the child.
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What are their sensitivities Smells, noise, light, touch, movement.
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What overwhelms the child.
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What are his sensory preferences.
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What interaction style is he drawn too, what does he avoid.
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What teaching/learning style works best for him.
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How much and for how long?
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What helps the child feel safe, accepted and competent?
Reducing Sensory Overload
Identify the sensory sensitivities
What overwhelms your child.
Modify environment to reduce sensory overload.
Can you tone down or eliminate the stimulation?
Change source and intensity of light.
Turn down or mask noise.
Avoid wearing strong perfume/colognes.
Avoid unexpected touch and undesirable clothing.
Allow child to control the stimulation
Provide ways to filter (buffer) stimulation
Ear phones, ear plugs, etc.
Sun glasses, rimmed hats, etc
Teach coping skills to deal with overload
Fidget toys, self-regulating techniques.
Breaks from situations
Teach the child what his sensitivities are, how they effect
him, and how to accommodate for them.
Desensitize sensitivity to the specific stimulation
Wilbarger Protocol
Gradual Exposure Therapy
Modifications & Adaptations
Modifications
Turn down volume
Eliminate unwanted noise
Avoid crowded/noisy events
Adaptations
Headphones
Earplugs
MP3 Player
Sensory Breaks
Periodic breaks to rebound; reduce stress. Breaks every 60-90 minutes to regroup; energize.
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Periodic breaks from daily routine to rebound.
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Either to a quiet area, or a place where they can get proprioception (recess, physical activity, music, etc.).
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Stress chemicals accumulate throughout the day. Need to provide breaks to reduce stress load.
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Sensory breaks can help reduce over-arousal, and help alert under-aroused.
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In school, can be a break to leave classroom to get drink of water, go to resource area, run an errand for teacher, or time to engage in calming activity.
Meltdowns and Shutdowns
If stress chemicals increase gradually, shut down is likely; if chemicals build quickly, meltdown may occur.
The stress chemicals reach boiling point,
coping skills collapse, and child acts out to
escape/avoid situation and reduce anxiety.
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Hitting, kicking, pushing, throwing,
slamming, biting self, head banging, etc.
all provide proprioceptive stimulation,
which releases stress chemicals.
Tool 4
Calming Melt Downs
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Remove demands and lower stimulation.
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Slow down and lower your voice.
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If possible remove child to “safe area”.
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Stay supportive “Its ok, you are safe.”
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If receptive, calm with deep pressure, or rhythmic patterns.
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If not, back off and allow child to rebound. Give child space to rebound.
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Rebounding will be gradual. Immediately following tantrum child is still vulnerable to meltdown.
Calming Tools
Slow down, lower demands, lower voice.
Favourite Tricks:
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Hand hugs: Pulsating squeezes to palm of hand, with deep pressure stroking of fingers.
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Hand hug, forearm rub, wrist compression: While one hand provides pulsating squeezes to the palm of hand, use other hand to provide deep pressure rubs to forearm. Add wrist compressions while doing this.
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Deep pressure thigh stroking: When child is sitting in a chair, provide rhythmic deep pressure stroking to thighs.
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Shoulder/arms deep pressure stroking: With one hand on each shoulder, provide firm pressure and slowly move hands down each arm in rhythmic fashion.
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Pillow press and neutral warmth.
Tool 5
Sensory Diets
Keeping your nervous system
calm, alert, and organized
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Schedule of sensory activities aimed at keeping child’s nervous system calm and alert (optimum arousal level).
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Providing calming activities when child is over-aroused.
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Providing alerting activities when child is under-aroused.
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As child becomes older, they learn to read their own arousal level, and provide self-regulating stimulation as needed.
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May also include environmental modifications to regulate stimulation, and short “sensory breaks” from setting.
General Calming Activities
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Deep pressure massage
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Sitting on bean bags, large body pillow.
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Sandwiching, pillow press.
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Lap pads
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Deep pressure or weighted vest.
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Bear hugs, neutral warmth.
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Slow rocking
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Physical relaxation exercises.
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Lotion rubs
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Soft lighting
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Soft, slow music.
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Joint compressions
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Stretching
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Chew gum
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Sucking
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Fidget toys
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Calm, rhythmic movement patterns.
General Alerting Activities
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Brisk rubbing.
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Tickling.
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Chewing gum, chewy food.
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Any push/pull, run, skip, jump, heavy lifting.
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Fast, irregular movement (swing, trampoline, therapy ball).
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Kick, bounce, throw a ball.
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Strong tastes and odour (peppermint, perfumes).
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Bright lighting.
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Loud, fast music
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Cold water play.
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Fidget toys.
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Drinking carbonated drinks.
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Sitting on T-stool or air cushion.
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Physical exercise.
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Dancing
General Sensory Effects
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Deep pressure tends to calm the nervous system.
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Proprioception (resistance to muscles and joints) tends to organize the nervous system. Can be used to calm and alert.
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Vestibular; slow movement tends to calm, fast tends to alert.
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Slow, soft, rhythmic stimulation tends to calm. Fast, intense, irregular stimulation tends to alert.
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Many children with autism have strong sensory sensitivities, with wide individual variations.