3 year old hypersensitive to touch

by XP
(Henderson, NV)

Hi, since my son was a baby he always had some hypersensitive to get messy with food, paint, clay or any kind of sticky stuff. He never avoid people holding him, he is very social and as soon as he see kids playing around he will be there with no problem at all, no problem with people touching him, sometimes he will wipe off kisses but not all the time. Also, he is sensitive to loud sounds, he would hear an ambulance, a motorcycle or a police siren inside the house with many other noises going on, he speaks very well and had no pronunciation problem, my sister is a Speech Language Pathologist but we haven't seen her since he was 1 1/2 years old, she said that I was the problem because I never let him play with food or with pudding, jello, etc when he was an infant.




Now, I'm trying to get him to get messy but is really hard, I bought an easel and tried very many times to play with him but as soon as he gets a little bit of paint on him he'll run for a wipe to clean up.

Please help me, I need to help him, even though when he eats a PB&Jelly sandwich and her fingers get a little sticky he'll be with his hands up and open complaining big time, "Mom clean my hands please", I always say "finish, and when you are done you can wash your hands and you'll be clean again" but he insists until he gets a wipe and wipe his hands off, after that he would ask me to give


him the sandwich in his mouth so he would not touch it. He'll feel a little broken nail ans ask me to cut it, he is OK with me cutting his nails no problem at all, No sensitivity to clothing or socks, jackets, long pants, etc. A little sensitive to lotion or sunblock, he doesn't like it but he gets it without crying, he just feels uncomfortable with it, he can't "relax" when I'm putting it.

We sometimes play with shaving foam in the bath tub, he'll get it on his hands but right away he puts his hands on the water to clean them, he did OK this summer at the beach we were there 3 times and he was playing but not a lot with the sand, he would be with his hands in an upright position "not being relaxed", I hope you can understand me.

Please I don't want my son to be "delicate" please I need some help, maybe it was all my fault and I feel really bad for it. He will start preschool for the first time by the end of this month, I'm hoping that it will help him, he is very very social and in the need of other kids, I'm a stay at home mom and I don't have many friends here, my husband and I moved from Peru 9 years ago and worked very hard until my son was born and I decided to stay at home with him. I know I'm a very protective mom, I hope you can give me some advice on how to handle this so we can help him.

Thank you very much.

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Apr 01, 2012
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starstarstarstarstar 		my son
by: Anonymous

heya ladies ...i not sure if my son has this or not but think i should get him seen ..as i get really frustrated not noing what to do ...my son is 3 and and for the last 2 years if he gets the slightes bit of a drop of water on his clothes he tantrums until u change him ..and also in the last month he has started to wash his hands constantly ...he will wash them then we dry them then straight away even thou he has not touch anything he says they are sticky again ..so i have to go through this another 4-5 times in a row until he says there ok ...then bout half hour after we have to go through it again ...constant frustration for us both ...help please i dont no what to do xx
Aug 16, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		hypersensitive
by: Anonymous

Its definitely NOT your fault.

My son sounds exactly like your son. He has ALWAYS hated messy hands or touching things that he doesn't like the feel, sand, grass, wooden puzzles, ... since he was 9 months old. Definitely not MY fault at such a young age. So please don't think you did anything to cause this.

A lot of his sensitivities have changed now on their own, but he still likes his hands clean. I think there is a fine line between SI and personal quirks. Our OT said she hates mushy food like oatmeal but because that doesn't interfere with her daily life then its fine to dislike certain things.

Its okay if your son likes his hands clean. Not many people when they get older keep their hands dirty while eating something that drips on them.

Maybe try some play-doh to start, or something that doesn't really 'stick' to his hands and move on from there.
Aug 14, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		I hear you!
by: kim

Ok, well your son sounds alot like mine.
He's been getting Occupational therapy (OT), since he was a little over 2, and hes gotten a little bit better with things, but he still has alot of issues.

The only way we can truly help them is with a good sensory diet that you can get from a good OT.
Is your little guy getting OT??
If not, then you MUST get him OT.

Watch your son when you are home all day together and time, how often he is seeking sensory input.
My son needs it about every 20 mins, sometimes more and some times less.

In my home i have a trampoline, therapy balls, a tent filled to the brim with stuffed animals and pillows and blankets. He LOVES to bury himself under these. A fidget seat for his chair, a weighted animal lap pad. They go everywhere with us, and i tell you it DEFINITELY makes a difference. Its not 100 percent, but its ALOT better, LOL

But the point of telling you all that is this.
I watched and timed him for how often he would go and get input from these things around the house.You have to make available in his area of the house, a sensory room basically. That's when i figured this out. It was about 20 mins.
So in order for our children to stay on task at school,or out in public, they need to have sensory input given to them or allow them to get it, in whatever way works best for that particular child and however often they need it. Otherwise if they dont get that, they world is basically out of order, and they dont give the right responses to situation, They CANT.

They cant give the right response, if they cant receive it properly to begin with.
And that's why people that don't understand SPD, think the child just has bad behavior. Its not their fault or the parents fault.

You just have to make your self knowledgeable by reading and talking to everyone!
Keep the faith, one day it will just click for you and you will be amazed!
God bless....

ABSOLUTELY read "Sensational Kids" by Lucy Miller and "The Out-of-Sync Child" by Carol Kranowitz.

Good luck, hang in there!!

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