[leatherette]

My daughter (4.5) has FAS and was exposed to a lot of cocaine and nicotine in utero. She has average to a little above average intelligence (as measured so far), and her speech and motor development are within normal limits.

However, I think she has sensory integration issues. She has extreme sensitivity, extreme reactions, and major issues with transitions. If we are going to go somewhere she hasn't been before, she asks, "Will it be noisy? Will it be crowded?" And I am dreading the nice weather because she flips out if she sees a bug flying around. She is very particular about food textures, etc.

So, do any others here have experience with this? She is getting a full FAS eval/workup soon, but I would like to know as much as possible about others' experiences.

Thanks,
L.

[Kelly Rae]

Hi, we have 4 adopted kids, several have FAE and all have sensory integration disfunction to some degree. Your daughter sounds like my kids. I would get her diagnosed through the school district ASAP early intervention is sooo important and will be a huge help to you.

[tiredmom77]

My dd is three and has sensory processing disorder. She was exposed to pot and amphetimines in the first trimester and possibly alcohol.

My daughter is really more of a sensory seeker than avoider, however, she does get overwhlemed by somethings. She can't handle baths very well, and cries when we are driving on high bridges. She covers her ears at "loud" noises. LOTS of oral issues- Alot of focus and attention issues.

I would suggest getting a private OT eval done. I would NOT suggest ECI, but that may just be my bias- I have found that they are not well educated on sensory issues.

DD has been in private OT for 6 months now and she is like a new child. We still struggle, but wow, she has improved SO much.

Good luck!

[atouchofheaven]

have any of you found that the sensory issues either come out as they get older or get worse as they get older?

[rottymom]

Does anyone have more information about this? OP child sounds very similiar to mine. She will freak out at little things, such as sock crooked, or tag on her shirt rubbing her. She also will scream when the wind blows or sun is bright. She recently cries when she sees bugs outside. I can't explain all her behaviors but I read an article once in Time Magazine about sensory disorder and they described some of these things. We are working with a therapist right now on her behaviors but not finding the tiggers...he thinks she might be bipolar.

[Sun8]

It sounds very much like tactile defensiveness... the socks, tags, wind etc.. it is a sensory integration problem and can easily be caused by fas or any type of brain injury. a tag on her shirt,wind,sock wrinkle can feel to her like how we feel when we have cut our fingernail too short. Do a search on the net to learn about it (neurologically) and you will also find many ways to help her re-organise her sensory system so it makes sense. A sensory integration therapist (ot) would be wonderful if you have one near you. Also watch for textures she avoids in her mouth and hot/cold on skin or in mouth/food as that may too be not registering correctly. many si therapists use a hand held vibrator to slowly get the skin to desensitise ( remap) sort of but if you try this put it on low, let her feel it with her hand to get used to it ( dont put directly on her arm, chest, head etc) see if she will with prompting move it up to arm from hand. the more you can get her to choose and accept putting it on her body in different places, the better... good luck

[leatherette]

I am a special ed teacher and I work with an OT/PT, and she knows a lot about sensory integration, but a child cannot be identified for services solely because of sensory integration in the school district. She would have to have fine and/or gross motor delays, which she does not have.

I had her evaluated by an OT at Group Health, which offers a level of services comparable to the school district. I got, "Well, sensory integration is still new, and there are no scientific studies to back it up yet..." and some handouts on what I could do at home for this non-existent disorder.

So private may be the way to go.....there is a very highly regarded OT in our area, but it is $140 an hour! But it may be worth it to get an eval and some suggestions/sensory diet.

As far as sensory issues getting worse or better with age.....my daughter had so many other health issues as a baby/toddler (asthma, eczema, allergies, GERD) that she lived in a sling on mama, her own little sensory deprivation chamber. She screamed in the car as a baby and was resistant to feeding, but that could have been due to the GERD. I think that also, as a child grows, kids with differences stand out more from their peers and their differences become harder to explain away ("She needs a nap, she's hungry, etc.")

My daughter was interested in a picture of someone on a trapeze, and I said we could go to the circus and see people on the trapeze. She looked excited, then very worried, and asked, "Will there be clapping?" I am going to get some noise reduction headphones for her and see if that helps her with shows/festivals.

Thanks for all of the replies. She is actually going outside, after two weeks of freaking out about the possibility of bugs, so things are looking up.

[Barksum]

My oldest Ds (now 9) was extremely tactilely defensive at age 2. I'm assuming this was due to fetal alcohol, but he was also seriously neglected so that could have had a big impact as well. He has gotten better with time. He still tends to be sensitive to touch and 'over reacts' to being touched firmly, or jostled, or pushed, or...well, you know how kids are! LOL

He also tantrummed with diligence over transitions, bugs, noise, etc. This has all gotten to be less of an issue and he has been working hard to not react to what might happen and to be less anxious, etc.

We worked with an OT and also used the book 'The Out of Sync Child Has Fun', by Carol Kranowitz.

[_LeighAnn_]

This thread has been a real eye opener for me. My Jessica falls right in there with alot of the children I've read about. She was adopted as a newborn, but we know she was exposed to nicotine, drugs early in the pregnancy, and possibly alcohol too. I've been suspecting sensory issues, but she's not the typical case. Loud noises and bugs don't bother her. If anything she enjoys these things. She also loves the feeling of different textures in her hands. She loves to play with her food, paint with her food on the windows, things like that. I let the kids play with bubbles...Brayden blows bubbles, Jessica pours it on her legs and arms and rubs it in. However, she does complain about tags in her clothes, and she doesn't like frilly things with tulle on them. I bought her a ballarina tutu for her birthday, and she won't even touch it.

DH and I have discussed it, and we plan to take her to see a doctor. My mother has a good friend who is a counselor/social worker, and although she doesn't see young children, she gave us the name of someone she highly recommended. We're going to start there and see what comes of it.

[kizibits]

Sensory integration disorder (SID) can go either way--hypersensitive kids are what most here are discribing, but hyposensitivity--where they can't get enough stimulation--is just as common, especially among children who have come from an orphanage environment. A child may also be hypersensitive in some things and hyposensitive in others. My daughter, adopted at 1 year, is mostly hyposensitive, but does have hypersensitivity to anything to do with her hair. We can't put barrettes, hair bands, or anything like that in her hair. She also is extremely sensitive to temperature--especially when it comes to food. On the other hand, she has almost no pain sensation, craves loud music (multiple songs going on all at the same time), and spicy, strong tastes.

My daughter also has a definitive diagnosis of FAS and SID is generally associated with that.

The trick to dealing with SID is to figure out what the triggers are and come up with a sensory diet that mitigates them. An OT who specializes in SID can help you there. Once you have the sensory diet laid out for you, you MUST stick to it if you want your child to be able to regulate their system. For example, my daughter needs to jump at certain times of the day. It can be on a trampoline or just on the floor--that part doesn't matter. But she has to jump! If we don't stop and let her jump she turns into monster. I'm not kidding! Jumping is one of the ways she refocuses herself.

Many neuropsychologists recommend trying omega 3 supplements. We found a gummy fish version that Livi actually likes. In most cases SID can be linked to trauma to the parietal lobe of the brain. The omega 3 is believed to help improve brain function and help the brain rewire itself--finding a way to circumvent the traumatized pathways to allow more "normal" processing of sensory input. We've been on the omega 3 supplements for about 3 months and they say it takes 3 to 6 months before you can start seeing measurable results.

We're also trying a new treatment--Mountain Dew. Livi's symptoms mimic that of ADHD and stimulants such as Mountain Dew are supposed to have a calming effect on them. It works similarly to ritalin and other stimulant medications, but without all the nasty side effects. We just started it yesterday, so I have no report on it yet, either.