It’s a question you hear a lot: “Can children with sensory processing disorder (SPD) live ‘normal’ lives?” First, it’s important to point out that everyone has a different definition of the word ‘normal’. And labeling someone as “abnormal” is dismissive and damaging to that person.

Parents of a child with SI often ask, “Can my child have a happy, healthy life with a sensory processing disorder?” And the answer is YES! Of course, children and adults with sensory processing disorder face unique challenges in their daily lives. In this article, we share some skills and strategies that will help children with SI.

Essential Skills for Children with SI

As you prepare your child for independence and eventual adulthood, the following skills are good to emphasize. You can model, encourage, and teach these skills, which will help your child become more confident and empowered to live their lives with choice. These skills are listed below:

1. Self-regulation and determination

Self-regulation refers to your child's ability to control their behavior, emotions, and energy levels. For children with SI, sensory regulation means controlling how they respond to these different sensory inputs.

The following strategies can help children with SI to self-regulate:

• Role play to practice how your child can best cope in different scenarios.
• Social stories in which you present a story in detail to help your child demonstrate appropriate social responses that he or she may have difficulty understanding.
• Sensory Diet that gives your child sensory feedback through activities such as chew toys, weighted objects or wheelbarrow walking.
• Professional therapy for a tailor-made strategy thanks to an expert.

When children improve their self-regulation skills, it helps build determination and self-confidence. Ultimately, they feel more in control and power over their responses.

Reading Tip: Sensory Toys: What Are They?

2. Functional communication

Emphasizing and encouraging open communication is one of the best things you can do for a child with SI. Overstimulation can make children distracted, stressed, and overwhelmed, which can hinder their ability to communicate freely.

Help your child practice talking about their feelings and feel more supported and prepared. A speech and language pathologist can provide valuable insight and develop a strategy for moving forward.

3. Household and personal care

While personal and household tasks can be particularly demanding for those with sensory issues, there are ways to help your child complete them with confidence.

• Experiment with different soap textures and scents.
• Use a hairbrush with soft bristles and rounded ends.
• Try a scalp massage before brushing your hair to desensitize your hair
• Try to find soft clothes with outside seams that aren't too tight, etc.

The list of daily household and personal care tasks an adult must perform is too long to list here! As long as your child is stimulated with sensory input, it will help build their self-confidence.

Conclusion: SI Kids and a "normal" life

Children with SI may have different routines and strategies that look a little different than people without the same sensitivities. But that certainly does not mean their quality of life is less! Keep challenging your child in fun, creative ways, and their sensory processing will improve and confidence will increase!