1yr old daughter, some concern

by Caitlin
(PA)

I've been working as a support therapist for children with special needs that require behavior management treatment, so I may be a little paranoid. However my 15 month old daughter has behaviors that remind me of some of the kids I've worked with (I'm a stay at home mom now, and don't have my old contacts for advice).

My daughter demonstrates almost all of the signs for Signs Of Vestibular Dysfunction:Hyposensitivity To Movement (Under-Responsive) and/or She actually gets mad if we are rough housing, then stop. At night time she has to be held, almost in passive restraint to fall asleep. She often throws her head side to side when falling asleep and is not discomforted when she is purposely gently hitting (not banging) her head on the wall or headboard.

A typical day includes jumping on furniture and throwing pillows, dragging blankets, pushing or pulling a stroller of chairs around. Everything seems normal, and not normal at the same time. She has never slept well, and the pediatrician has always said I should let her cry it out. We tried a couple times but that's really the only time you hear her cry like she really means it, and threw up several times. I now hold her until she falls asleep. Even for naps, she doesn't just fall asleep, it is a constant battle. It's like she doesn't know how to wind down at all.

Her problem behavior that is really starting to bother me is the throwing herself on the floor. She likes to dive right down like a penguin. And when she gets frustrated she bites (but only me).

Her behaviors that have me concerned including the diving onto the floor like a penguin, the walking around without looking (she constantly looks like she's going to walk right into the corner of the wall, then barely misses), and now she is starting to bite herself or me when she gets frustrated.

Otherwise she is very normal. She has exceedingly developed social and play skills, and her cognitive ability is high. She has awesome receptive language. If you tell her to do or get something or to follow, she is great. She babbles and has a small verbal vocabulary along with a a handful of ASL.

I just want to know if I should have her evaluated for a sensory processing disorder or not. It does not run in my or my husbands family.