Sensory Integration

Sensory integration refers to the processing, integration, and organisation of sensory information from the body and the environment

I other words, it refers to how we experience, interpret and react to (or ignore) information coming from our senses. Sensory integration is important in all the things that we need to do on a daily basis, such as our activities of daily living, moving around, socialising, playing, learning and working.

Sensory integration, or sensory processing, is an automatic neurological process that occurs throughout our life. Sensory integration develops naturally during ordinary childhood activities, however, for some people, it does not develop as efficiently as it could and can affect activities of daily living, academic achievement, behaviour or social participation

Sensory information is received from our senses, which include

1. Vision

2. Auditory

3. Tactile

4. Gustatory

5. Olfactory

6. Proprioception

7. Vestibular

8. Interoception

Sensory integration challenges or difficulties may result in difficulty responding appropriately to various sensory inputs, and this in turn, may interfere with learning and behaviour

A “sensory diet” is one strategy used to manage sensory processing dysfunction. is a tailored plan of physical activities and accommodations designed to meet a child’s sensory needs.

A sensory diet consists of a range of activities that target the different sensory systems and must be specifically tailored to the child’s needs

The sensory diet is modified over time to meet the individual child’s needs as their sensory processing changes or the environmental demands shift. Thus a “sensory diet” consists of sensory activities that help children to feel calm and organized, which then helps them to obtain an optimal state for learning, attention and behaving appropriately

It is important to remember that the sensory diet activities that may suit one child, may not necessarily work for another which is why a sensory diet must be developed in conjunction with parents and therapists. The frequency, intensity and duration of input varies for each child

Also, not all strategies work all the time. The efficiency depends upon the child’s sensory processing on the day or at that moment, the environment and the demands on the child.

Through the use of a sensory diet, children learns to self-regulate (their energy level, behaviour, emotion and attention) and skills such as concentrating, sharing and taking turns begin to improve. This helps a child to begin to manage tasks or situations by themselves

For sensory diet recommendations to be effective, it is important to incorporate them into play and daily life, preferably making them part of every day