What’s your Child’s Sensory Diet?

Our nervous systems govern everything. Mood, hormones, immune system, digestion, blood vessels, muscles, brain signals… literally everything.

That’s why any form of dysregulation can massively affect our kids’ behaviour.

The more we can work with our child’s sensory preferences, the more time they’ll spend in a content, steady state. 

(This goes for any child, not just those with sensory processing disorders whose parents need specific advice from an OT or SPD expert).

A sensory diet is made up of the five senses - taste, smell, touch, hearing, sight - acting as tools to help our kids calm down and stay calm.

There are also two more vital senses: Proprioception, which is a child’s awareness of their own body, and vestibular, which involves movement, balance, and coordination.

The key to designing a sensory diet is watching and experimenting with different ways to regulate in and outside the home.

Start by asking, “When my child is aroused or stressed, what do they typically do? “

Their behaviour under stress might be a clue to the type of sensory input they’re needing

Hitting is an attempt at regulation, to avoid an uncomfortable emotional state. Have them pummel a pillow or wring a towel when they not stressed to satisfy this urge. The same goes for throwing - could you give them ice to smash against a wall or play catch instead? Biting can be satisfied with chewing and crunching on their favourite food textures.

Consider how your child is instinctively using one of the 7 senses above when they become overwhelmed.

And also watch them when they’re in their element. Do they love to:

• Push, pull, land on or press into things?

• Spend ages in water?

• Be massaged or skin to skin?

• Touch kinetic sand, stroke their teddies, wind hair around their fingers?

• Be wrapped up or weighed down?

• Laugh and scream in the loudest voice?

• Be swung, hugged, tickled or hung upside down?

• Listen to music?

• Do mindful activities like reading, painting or puzzles?

• Bounce on a trampoline?

• Climb up everything in sight?

These are all sensory signals of what your child needs to regulate. Perhaps you even remember that as a baby or toddler they used to thumb suck or fall asleep to white noise.

Pop your sensory goggles on and look for the hints everywhere. And it’s no surprise but getting out in nature this summer pretty much ticks all of the boxes above so you can’t go wrong there!