Sensory Integration Therapy

Sensory Integration Therapy is a research-based intervention designed to assist children with sensory processing difficulties. By incorporating play-oriented and child-driven therapy sessions, along with specialised techniques and sensory equipment such as swings, trapeze, and therapy balls, this therapy aims to help children better cope with sensory input challenges. It can lead to outcomes such as calming an anxious child, improving attention and emotional regulation, enhancing transitions, and developing executive function skills, ultimately enabling children to participate more effectively in daily activities.

Sensory integration is the way our brain receives, organises, interprets, and responds to sensory input to engage with our surroundings. There are several signs that may indicate that a child is struggling with sensory processing/integration. Your child might:

• Show heightened reactivity to sound, touch, or movement.
• Be under-reactive to certain sensations (e.g. not noticing their name being called, being touched, high pain threshold).
• Appear lethargic/disinterested; appear to mostly be in their ‘own world’.
• Have difficulty regulating their own behavioural and emotional responses: increased tantrums, emotional reactiveness, need for control, impulsive behaviours, easily frustrated, or overly compliant.
• Be easily distracted; show poor attention and concentration.
• Have poor sleep patterns.
• Display restricted eating habits or be a picky eater.
• Love movement; seek out intense pressure (e.g. constant spinning, running around, jumping, crashing into objects/people).
• Avoid movement based equipment (e.g. swings, slides).
• Perform tasks with too much force, have big movements, move too fast, and write too lightly or too hard.
• Prefer to play on their own or have difficulty in knowing how to play with other children.
• Have difficulty accepting changes in routine or transitioning between tasks.
• Have difficulty engaging with peers and sustaining friendships.

Sensory Integration Therapy can be beneficial for children of various ages who experience sensory processing difficulties. Therapists tailor the approach to meet the individual needs and developmental stage of each child, ensuring that the therapy is both effective and engaging.