Sensory Integration
Is Sensory Integration Therapy Beneficial?
Is Sensory Integration Therapy Beneficial?
"Imagine driving a car that isn 't working well. When you step on the gas, the car sometimes lurches forward and sometimes does not respond. When you blow the horn, it sounds blaring. The brakes sometimes slow the car, but not always. The blinkers work occasionally, the steering is erratic, and the speedometer is inaccurate. You are engaged in a constant struggle to keep the car on the road, and it is difficult to concentrate on anything else (Greenspan, 1995)." This is precisely the way an individual with sensory integration disorder feels. Individuals that have sensory integration disorders have a neurological disorder, which results from the brain’s inability to integrate certain information received from the body’s seven sensory systems(Miller & Lane, 2000). The tactile system is the sense of touch, which delivers information to our brain about size, shape, and texture of objects. The auditory system, the sense of hearing, permits us to identify the quality and direction of sounds. Visual system is the sense of sight, deciphers what we see, and guides our movement to ensure safety. Gustatory and olfactory systems permit us to taste and smell foods and objects. The vestibular system is the sense of balance, ensuring the bodies equilibrium. Lastly, the proprioception system gives us the awareness of our body’s position and movement. Sensory integration disorder obstructs the individuals able to attend, participate, and learn in the classroom/school environment or at home on a consistent basis. An individual diagnosed with sensory integration disorder may appear clumsy or troublesome since the individual cannot consciously control their motor skills or attention responses. Individuals may seem slow to learn, passive, or over-aroused, challenging or hyperactive (Lane, Miller & Hanft, 2000). Sensory integration therapy can help improve ‘the way
Is Sensory Integration Therapy Beneficial?
"Imagine driving a car that isn 't working well. When you step on the gas, the car sometimes lurches forward and sometimes does not respond. When you blow the horn, it sounds blaring. The brakes sometimes slow the car, but not always. The blinkers work occasionally, the steering is erratic, and the speedometer is inaccurate. You are engaged in a constant struggle to keep the car on the road, and it is difficult to concentrate on anything else (Greenspan, 1995)." This is precisely the way an individual with sensory integration disorder feels. Individuals that have sensory integration disorders have a neurological disorder, which results from the brain’s inability to integrate certain information received from the body’s seven sensory systems(Miller & Lane, 2000). The tactile system is the sense of touch, which delivers information to our brain about size, shape, and texture of objects. The auditory system, the sense of hearing, permits us to identify the quality and direction of sounds. Visual system is the sense of sight, deciphers what we see, and guides our movement to ensure safety. Gustatory and olfactory systems permit us to taste and smell foods and objects. The vestibular system is the sense of balance, ensuring the bodies equilibrium. Lastly, the proprioception system gives us the awareness of our body’s position and movement. Sensory integration disorder obstructs the individuals able to attend, participate, and learn in the classroom/school environment or at home on a consistent basis. An individual diagnosed with sensory integration disorder may appear clumsy or troublesome since the individual cannot consciously control their motor skills or attention responses. Individuals may seem slow to learn, passive, or over-aroused, challenging or hyperactive (Lane, Miller & Hanft, 2000). Sensory integration therapy can help improve ‘the way
References: Dennison, P.E., & Dennison, G. E. (1994). Brain gym (teacher’s edition). Ventura, CA: Edu-Kinesthetics. Greenspan, S. I. (1995). You’re not the cause, but you can be the solution. The challenging child (pg.4) Hanft, B.E., Miller, L. J., & Lane, S. J. (2000, September).Toward a consensus in terminology in sensory integration theory and practice: Part 3: Observable behaviors: Sensory integration dysfunction 23, 1-3. Retrieved July 1, 2013 from http://www.spdnetwork.org/pdf/TowardConsesus-Part2.pdf Mauer, D.M Miller, L. J., & Lane, S. J. (2000, March). Toward a consensus in terminology in sensory integration theory and practice: Part 1: Taxonomy of neurophysiological processes. Sensory Integration Special Interest Section Quarterly, 23, 1-4. Retrieved July 1, 2013 from http://www.spdnetwork.org/pdf/TowardConsesus- Part1.pdf Williams, M.S., & Shellenberger, S. (1996). How Does Your Engine Run?: A Learners Guide to the Alert Program for Self-Regulation Wright,A. (2010). Sensory integration therapy. Cerebra. Retrieved July 1, 2013 from http://www.cerebra.org.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/Research%20PDF 's/Sensory%20Integration%2 0Therapy.pdf Zimmer, M., & Desch, L. (May, 2012). Sensory integration therapies for children with developmental and behavioral disorder American Academy of Pediatrics, 129, 1186-1189. doi: 10.1542/peds.2012-0876 About SPD Advocacy. Retrieved July 1, 2013, from http://www.sinetwork.org