Lady Di

I have a son that was born in 2009 @ 25 weeks. He had an 85 day stay in the hospital. When he was around 6 or 7 months old he was diagnosed with Sensory Tactile defensiveness. He was dx through Summit DD where he attends school for the disabled. The therapist there had stated that he was the worst case that they had ever seen, because they would have to come in 1 by 1, and they had to remain in the kitchen out of his sight for approx. 20-30 min. Since then he received OT, massages, but he still deals with alot of the characteristics, of SPD & autism. It wasn't until recently that I started to research this, and found out the seriousness of this disorder, because the therapist that he sees said that he would be okay with OT. I had no idea that he probably should be seeing a neurologist as well. He's unable to to get a haircut, we have trouble when it is time to wash his hair, dentist's & dr. appt. are very very overwhelming for him & myself.




But my biggest concerns are that he has involuntary head banging while he sleeps at night. He is still asleep & every night he will find the wall or head board & bang his head. The therapists are saying not to worry, that this is normal. I have been going through this head banging for over a year know & it has not gotten better. He has to sleep in a high chair & he finds a way to bang his head in that. It seems as if they are just blowing me off. All there reply is, just remember that he has determination, look @ how much he's been through. Can someone please help me. give me some advice.



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Sep 14, 2011
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by: Lady Di

This is Lady Di. The 2 comments posted on Sept. 14,2011 where in response to Anonymous & demomom.
Sep 14, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		Response to head banging
by: demomom

Thanks for your response. His only head banging is done when he's sleep & not awake. He was born @ 25wks. and had IV's in his head, he also weighed 757 grams @ birth. He was dx w/SPD @ around 6mos. I have recently been researching this disorder & found that he should have been seeing a neurologist & rec'v OT , which OT he has has been rec'v this, since birth. It wasn't until I started reading this that I was aware of the extent of the disorder. I had also been ?ing these things for over a year. Only response is that it's probably self soothing. I also read that SPD should not be dx w/out ruling out autism.
Sep 14, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		Reply in involuntary head banging
by: Anonymous

Thank you. His head banging could not be behavior, because the head banging only occurs during his sleeping. He is totally sleep when this occurs, and the only response that I got from the therapist @ school is that he is self-soothing. The therapist also never referred me to a neurologist to have an evaluation done, nor did they request that he have a sleep study, MRI, or CAT scan. As I read up on this disorder it stated that he should be seen on a regular bases @ neuro and req. OT, which he has been doing from birth.

He was born prematurely @ 25 weeks exactly. He also had IV's in his head as well. He had an 85 day stay in the hospital, discharged with O2 & apnea monitor, which I had to pass him meds every 3hrs around the clock for 6mos. straight with no help available to me. He was also a BPD patient. It also stated in the research that I had been doing that children born under 1000 grams are @ a very high risk for sensory processing & autism, CP,etc....My son only weighed 757 grams @ birth. It also stated in research that kids w/SPD should not be dx w/SPD until autism is ruled out. None of this info was provided to me sooner, so that I could have had an eval done on him. He also suffered hearing loss due to excessive amt.of O2. How early can they detect a child w/autism or SPD?
Sep 13, 2011
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by: Anonymous

Hi,
I have a son with autism he's 12 now. He was not a head banger but I have friends who's sons are. I think you need to rule out medical issues, teeth pain, or seizures. I always look into the medical first then see about the rest. My son til this day does not like the dentist at all. I started him young at the hairdressers and consistently found a great hairdresser, patient and willing to help. He is now able to go anywhere and get a haircut! persevere! Also, think of his head banging as a behavior, trying to seek your attention, you give him attention so he does it again and again. or he gets a reaction that he likes... what is the antecedent? behavior? and then consequence? ABC. You should have a behavioral consultant to help you out. IS he fast asleep when he is head banging? or is when you put him to bed? perhaps he has anxiety about going to bed.

One day I gave my son a shower after years of baths and he would not get in the shower. when he took the bath all the water was with him and he'd quickly get out of the bath in time for the water to go down the drain. But when i saw he was would not take a shower I understood. He was afraid he too was going to go down the drain. I bought a shower mat and solved the problem and now he take showers without the mat. My son would never want to try new shoes on...so i bought some brought them home and left them out of the box near his shoes and a few days later would try them on. I attribute this to not liking transitions.

Good luck,

J.
Sep 13, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		You are not alone!
by: demomom

http://sleepeducation.blogspot.com/2009/02/my-child-bangs-his-head-in-bed-as-he.html

Check out this website. I have not been through what you are going through, but I wanted you to know that your child is not alone... Nor are you! My son bangs his head when he is angry or frustrated. He is SPD, ADD Inattentive Type, and GAD. God love 'em :)

My response to every question is Google the hell out of it! My 2nd response is don't take no for an answer. You are your son's only advocate. He needs you to fight for him... fight to find whatever is out there that will make him more comfortable in the body he was blessed with. There is help. You just have to be persistent.

I hope that someone else has more helpful info for you, but I just wanted to give you some support.

Melissa

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