The cause of your child’s behavior may stem from the sensory systems you may not even know about. Within this blog, we break down all 8 of the sensory systems. We also give you tips for detecting if you or your child struggles with any of these 8 sensory systems.
The Sensory Systems
- Vision – the sense of sight
- Auditory- the sense of hearing
- Gustatory- the sense of taste
- Olfactory- the sense of smell
- Tactile- the sense of touch
- Vestibular – the sense of movement
- Proprioception – the sense of position and force
- Interoception – the sense of awareness of the body
The Less Familiar Systems
Vestibular Sensory System
This system allows the brain to detect where the body is in relation to gravity. It helps the body know where it is in space when moving around. While it is located in the inner ear, it works in junction with the visual system. It helps the body stay upright and balanced when jumping, walking, running, swinging.
Proprioceptive Sensory System
This system allows the brain to understand how to move the muscles and joints for certain movements and positions. It helps the body determine the force and effort necessary to do certain tasks. It helps the body complete movement without needing to look at the body and use the appropriate amount of force for doing everyday tasks.
Interoceptive Sensory System
This system allows the brain to detect and understand the internal sensations within the internal organs of the body. It helps the body determine where and what is going on inside the body such as nauseous, hunger, pain, fatigue, heartbeat, thirst, headache, sore muscles.
Signs Point to Sensory Struggle
We would like to spend some time sharing some signs that help us as therapists detect if someone could benefit from sensory intervention. WIth that being said, this is not an exhaustive list and we do not diagnose anyone. This list is simply to guide you.
Vision
- Complains of bright lights
- Distracted by people moving around the room or busy environments
- Avoids eye contact
- Struggles to find items in a busy environment
Auditory
- Upset by loud noises
- Avoids large gatherings
- Makes noises to self
- Speaks louder than others
Gustatory
- Picky with different tastes or textures
- Gags easily
- Struggles during toothbrushing
- Puts things in mouth frequently
Olfactory
- Notices faint smells
- Smells bother them
- Smells food before eating it
Tactile
- Picky about clothing and seams
- Does not like hair being brushed, baths
- Difficulty keeping hands to themselves
- Always has messy hands or dislikes messy hands
Vestibular
- Afraid of playsets, ladders, climbing
- Gets car sick easily
- Loses balance
- Twirls, jumps, spins instead of walking
- Does not get dizzy when spinning
- In constant motion, difficulty sitting still
Proprioception
- Struggles to figure out new movements
- Holds pencil/ crayon with too little or too much force
- Leans on furniture, walls
- Runs, bumps into things while walking
Interoception
- Difficulty identifying when hungry, tired, hurt, sick
- Gets upset easily without clear explanation
- Require adult to help meet their needs
You can also check out a few of our other blogs about sensory integration…
If you suspect your chlld struggles with sensory integration, contact us for a connection call today.