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Tuesday, July 08, 2014

How far does the apple fall from the tree? July #SensoryHop

Do you have a sensory kiddo? My son with autism has some special sensory needs, but I know my other son and daughter also have their own sensory needs. And where does that come from? I'd say I know that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. 


It came up (again) recently. I don't like a lot of noise. Can I put that out there? If it's a group of women and we all talk at once, that doesn't bother me. But put that TV on and leave it turned on for hours and you'll find me with a raging headache (and a raging attitude to go with it). I lament to my children and husband all the time, "Why do you have to keep the volume at 14...it should NEVER be above a 12." They laugh at me because truthfully...they would prefer a 16-18 on the TV but they know my eyes would bug out of my head and it would spin in circles.

Same thing happens with the radio in the car. Why don't people just leave my radio alone? Everyone should know that the proper setting is volume 6 in city, volume 8 on the highway. And yet, they start sneaking it up a notch at a time until we're at a 10 or 12...and my head is spinning and I'm popping aspirin like there's no tomorrow. 

I can't explain it to you. I wish I could. We've always noticed with Nathan's noise issues that if he is a part of the noise, it can be ear splitting loud and won't bother him. But rattle a paper while he's studying and he might bite your head off. When he wants it quiet, it better be totally silent. And if we're in a group of women where everyone is talking at once, he can't take it. Happened once at a Dave & Busters. We were at a party and there were conversations at several tables in the party room. He couldn't handle the noise and begged to go wander around the games in the game room...where the physical sound was several times louder. Eventually, we figured out that a lot of this is because you don't have to pay attention to any of the gameroom noise while conversations should be followed. 

I find it interesting that Nathan and my noise sensitivities are different from each other. I prefer lots of conversation noise and not general noise. Nathan prefers general noise and less conversation. 

What kind of sensory quirks are found in your home? 








4 comments:

Full Spectrum Mama said...

Coolest Mommy,
Nice post, I write...quietly ;)
But seriously, have you seen that book, Far From the Tree by Andrew Solomon? I keep trying to make my way through it but, like you, I feel my children are Not so far from the tree -- and one was adopted?!
Love,
FSM

toastersareflying said...

Nikky and I share a lot of sensory similarities. Like how I insist on having a heavy blanket on me at night. Nikky won't sleep without a blanket either, although he doesn't insist on weight like I do. I also have some of the same tics that he does.

Merri Lewis said...

I totally get the part about making noise being ok but having noise made in your presence isn't. My son is the same as yours. I really think that a lot of it has to do with predictability. He knows when he's making noise and can control it how he wants. When someone else does, it startles him and sounds all the alarms in his body to danger.

Jessica said...

CoolestMommy,
I also belong to the "I need the TV volume set under 12" club. It's always a shocker when I drive my husband's car and he hasn't adjusted his radio. How can he handle it?

And yes, my little apple doesn't fall far from this tree either. We both have a love of memorizing movie scripts and heavy blankets to sleep under at night. It's always interesting to see aspects of ourselves reflected in our kiddos!

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