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These are the things I've noticed since he's started the remedy-

He's now more OK with ruffling his hair. The chiropractor adjusted him today and then tickled him on the back of the neck and he actually laughed!

He used to swing, and swing, and swing. Now he moves on to another activity.


He is cleaning up toys instead of leaving them everywhere. He helps pick up.

A wet shirt doesn't drive him crazy to the point of a meltdown if you don't take it off. He's OK waiting for it to dry.

He's making more eye contact, especially when he's in trouble.

He is actually playing with other kids at the playground, not tackling them or poking them in the eye.

He's stopped asking for piggybacks down the stairs and is walking down holding hands instead of crawling down backwards.

He's developing other ways to handle his stress other than hitting, biting, and melting down. To calm himself he sings/hums the Sesame Street theme song. He does it whenever he knows he should calm down before things get out of hand...


There are some good points from the book though:

The child with SPD has an inability to function smoothly, not because he won't, but because he can't.

Children don't grow out of SPD, they grow into it. Treatment consists of occupational therapy, which improves family relationships, because the child learns to respond to sensory challenges with more self-control. Without therapy, the child develops coping mechanisms which aren't always productive, and may invent new ways to avoid everyday experiences.

Meltdowns in a child with SPD are off the scale. This is what was happening on our trip. Kids with SPD and overresponsivity have frequent meltdowns, several times a day, that are intense, emotional, and loud. They last a long time or go too far, beyond other children's responses to the same situation.

The out of sync child can be chronically inconsistent in behavior, which is not under their control- they don't choose to be that way. Don't expect consistency.

Your child isn't lazy, he is expending huge amounts of energy just to get through the day.

Your child isn't a coward, he's brave- it takes bravery to resist change, resist your parents, and resist pleasurable experiences. Parental disapproval is sometimes preferable to engaging in an activity that your child perceives as life threatening or scary.



I don't expect to "fix" my kid, quite the contrary. I want to help him function so that he can learn, grow, and do well in school, and become a productive adult. I don't expect the remedy to "fix" him, but to help him function. I get tired just thinking about all the practitioners we've been to and all of the ones we'll see in the future. But that's the path God put me on and I think (hope) I can help other parents figure it out too.