Something to take into consideration by: Anonymous
You may want to make sure your child is SPD or ADHD or is there a neuropathy that is not being taken into consideration. Generally if a child in not responding to ADHD medication....you are not looking at ADHD but SPD or another neurological disorder. Also, find out what specifically is your child's sensory deficits and focus on tx'ing according to the hierarchy. If you are starting in the middle and the foundation is not established you are "spinning your wheels".
If your child is biting his tongue for stimulus, talk with your OT about IV tubing to chew on, fruit chewies, vibration in the mouth or at the TMJ on the outside, spicy or cold food items etc. (TMJ has the largest number of proproception receptors in the body) There is so much that goes into tx of ADHD and/or SPD and/or Autism that you need to make sure your therapist has the correct dx and tx approach. Tx approaches work if it is done for the right reason and according to protocol.
Hi does your son does really have ADHD cause from what ive heard they dont Dx ADHD till they go to school correct me if im wrong, i think that his attention and all that is from SPD . My 2 yr old daughter also has SPD and currently w/ OT we just start 1st wk of jan and i really really think that theres a lot of improvement since the OT her attention span is getting longer, putting lotion, putting hats in the head and cutting nails is a lot better. What her therapist did is do a lot of activity in balancing the hip and strengh stomach muscle, they also did a lot of playing all kinds of textures (eg shaving cream, playdoh, sand, whipping cream and etc).
The therapist also teach me the brushing method its Wilbarger Protocol, if you havent done that you might have to ask your OT. And you can also have activity at home that might help, theres a pretty good book called The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun by Carol Stock Kranowitz. Its a very good book for activities for Spd kiddos.
Being a mom of child that has Spd is kinda a little bit of challenge, we just have to have a lot of patience. Good luck to you.
Feb 03, 2010 Rating
SPD by: Anonymous
Many symptoms of SPD and ADHD overlap. My daughter had a lot of the same things happening with her. Please be sure to see an OT who truly understand SPD. There is treatment and often you will see the "ADHD" symptoms disappear once the SPD is treated. Many OTs that I saw said they understood the SPD but there are few who really can treat it. Do some research and find an OT who specializes in SPD.... it will make a world of difference for your child and your family. It is difficult but you can get through it. I never thought I would make it through my child's SPD but we did! It took a lot of time and energy but as a family and with the help of our OT we were able to get to a point where my daughter's symptoms almost disappeared. With a sensory diet we are able to manage all of the behaviors! Hang in there!
by Carol Stock Kranowitz. Its a very good book for activities for Spd kiddos. 
