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Hi everyone, I'm Amythest, and welcome to
"Ask an Autistic".

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(Upbeat music) ♪ <i>I want to write a song</i> ♪

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♪ <i>to shine a light, be the change we want
something's right...</i>♪

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♪ <i>We've been waiting in the dark
 for so long</i> ♪

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Today I'm going to be talking about
Sensory Processing Disorder.

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Sensory Processing Disorder is a 
neurological condition in which the brain

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does not interpret sensory input from the
environment correctly.

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A person with Sensory Processing Disorder
may be over or under sensitive to input

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from their environment, such as lights,
colors, noises, music, people talking,

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smells, textures, and tastes.

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Every autistic person will have some kind
of Sensory Integration Issues.

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This is just part of our neurotype
and part of what makes us autistic.

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But, Sensory Processing Disorder, as a
neurological diagnosis can exist

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on its own, in non-autistic children. 


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Sensory Processing Disorder really can
affect and encompass all of the senses.

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Now, human beings actually have more than
five senses, we have something like

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eighteen to twenty-two, depending on who
you ask.

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But, I think that there are the seven
basic senses that are important

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to know about to understand 
Sensory Processing Disorder.

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So you have the basic five, which I think
everybody has heard of.

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That's taste, touch, smell, sight, sound.
Yeah, I think I got that right.

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And then there are two senses that most
people haven't heard of.

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And that is the Proprioceptive Sense and
the Vestibular Sense.

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Proprioceptive Sense is the sense of
where your body is in space.

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It allows for you to know where your limbs
are, how much force you're

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exerting on things.

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And also, where you are spatially in your
environment, and how to interact

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with objects in your environment.

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The Vestibular Sense is the sense that is
all about motion and movement.

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It is a sense that tells you if you are
in motion or standing still.

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If you are up or down, swinging, spinning,
upside down,

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all of that is informed by the
Vestibular Sense.

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So, as I'm sure you can imagine, 
when a person is under or over sensitive

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to any of the sensory input that they may 
receive from their environment,

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their experience is going to be a lot
different than a neuro-typical person's.

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And their life is going to be very 
different because of the things

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that they have to deal with.

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For example, a child who is undersensitive
to proprioceptive input may have trouble

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knowing where his body is in space,
he may have trouble knowing how much

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pressure to exert on things.

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So he may either be too gentle, and be,
you know,

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consistently dropping small objects.

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Or, he may be too rough in play, and be
constantly seeking out really rough

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activities to give him a lot of deep
pressure input on his joints,

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like wrestling, jumping around,
jumping on a trampoline.

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A person with sensory integration issues
who is very sensitive to noise may have

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a lot of trouble with auditory processing
issues when they're in a space where there

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is background noise, like music, or a lot
of people talking, like in a restaurant.

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So while they can hear the person who
is sitting across from them and speaking,

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they may not be able to interpret what the
person is saying.

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They know that they're speaking, their
brain just can't filter out all of the

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auditory information.

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So like I said, sensory processing issues
can encompass and incorporate all of the

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senses.
And everybody who has sensory integration

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issues - autistic or non-autistic - will
have their own set of triggers,

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negative sensory input that causes them
discomfort or pain.

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And many people who have
sensory integration issues, will have

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some sensory input that they actively seek
out and they crave, often because they are

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undersensitive to it.

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So, an autistic person who seeks out 
Vestibular input because they are

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under-sensitive to vestibular input 
may really enjoy activities like

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swinging on a swing, or spinning on a
tire swing, or on a computer chair.

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Something that comes up a lot, and I get
questions about this a lot, comes down to

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Sensory Defensiveness and food.

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Many autistic people have a very limited
diet. And this is both due to

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love of routine and resistance to change,
but also to sensory defensiveness.

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Sadly, children who are struggling with
sensory integration issues may have their

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sensory defensiveness toward a certain 
texture or taste of food, interpreted

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by their parents as just picky eating or
even outward defiance,

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when this isn't the case. When you have
sensory integration issues,

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you know that you're different, and you
wish that you weren't.

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Sensory integration issues and
Sensory Processing Disorder can cause

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a lot of grief in our daily life, because
this world isn't really built for us.

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It is so loud, and so fast, and so bright,
and all the clothes are too tight,

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and everything's too itchy and it can be 
exhausting just trying to get some sleep

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at night with all these sounds all around.

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Sensory integration issues can be
really hard to deal with, and it's

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important to remember that

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if you're having a showdown
with your kid over dinner,

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they're not trying to be defiant to you,
they're not just being a picky eater

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if they have sensory processing issues.

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That is a real neurological condition and
a valid disability.

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And a child with sensory processing issues
doesn't need to be shamed in any situation

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and they don't need to be coerced to do
things that cause them pain.

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Because, really, sensory processing
disorder, when you have a negative sensory

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input as a trigger, it isn't just
uncomfortable or a little annoying.

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It's often very painful, and it is
important to remember that, you know,

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there are some children who are just picky.
But when it comes to children with

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with sensory integration issues, they have
a disability. And so accommodation and

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understanding can go a long way.

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When you have a neurological or
developmental disability, you start off

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with less brain energy, call it,
in the morning than

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neuro-typical people do.

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And then, throughout the day, as a
person with sensory processing issues

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is triggered again and again, that
takes up more and more of their

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brain energy that they would be otherwise
putting towards learning,

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or socializing, communicating
and self-regulating.

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Sensory overload is one of the,
I think, biggest, and most frequent

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causes of autistic meltdown.

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That's why it is so important
to allow any person or child

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with sensory integration issues -
autistic, or not -

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to stim in whatever ways that they need to.

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Because stimming isn't just a
meaningless activity, or

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you know, or a repetitive motion
just because.

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While stimming is often an expression
of self in autistic people,

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in people of all neuro-types with
sensory integration issues

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stimming is <i>the</i> best and most
important way to self-regulate.

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By stimming in whatever way that
feels natural, or comfortable

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to that person, the person with
sensory integration issues

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is able to block out negative input
with good input.

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For example, a person with sensory
integration issues

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may vocally stim to block out
a negative auditory stimulus

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in their environment.
Stimming can also allow

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and enable a person with
sensory processing issues to

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engage in social situations 
and to be out in public longer,

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and more often because they have a way
to deal with all of the anxiety,

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and the pain, and the stress
that comes from negative sensory input.

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So, when it comes to helping your
child, or loved one, or yourself

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deal with sensory integration issues,
stimming is a very important part of that.

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Allowing stimming, even encouraging
stimming,

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and exploring, if you are a person with
sensory integration issues, what stims

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can you do in w-, in certain situations
to help yourself, and to lessen

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the pain, and the mental burden of-
of- dealing with negative sensory input.

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And then of course, because the world
isn't made for us, there are going

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to be times when we have to 
accommodate for ourselves.

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For myself, I always carry with me,
in my bag, or my purse,

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a pair of earplugs, some wet-wipes,
ya know, to deal with any stickiness

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I might accidentally come across.

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Some gum, which provides really good
deep sensory input in your jaw.

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And I, I don't have any sunglasses right 
now, but I know that to combat

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bright sunlight, or the flickering of
fluorescent lights, which is just awful

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a combination of sunglasses, and a
hat with a brim, or just one or the other

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can lessen the pain from bright
or flickering, or bad-colored light

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sources a lot. So I'm currently
looking for a pair of sunglasses

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that feel comfy enough for me to wear,
and that I like the look of.

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But when I find a pair that I do like,
I will definitely include them in my

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little kit of sensory things to help me deal
with negative sensory input.

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The important thing to remember,
is that Sensory Processing Disorder

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and sensory integration issues in 
autistic people

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are a real and valid neurological
condition.

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And that, without accommodation
or understanding, they can really

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inhibit your life, and be super hard
to deal with.

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And in remembering that Sensory
Processing Disorder is a real disability,

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you can also remember that,
with accommodation, you can

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lead a happy and healthy and 
successful life. And that having

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sensory integration issues, or being
autistic, doesn't mean that you can't

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live a rich and fulfilling and joyful life.
It just might

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require some accommodation, a little bit
of foresight, or planning

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and some understanding from
the people around you.

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So, this has been my video on
Sensory Processing Disorder.

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Just a brief overview. (claps)

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If you have questions about this topic
or would like to discuss anything

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I said in this video, feel free to
post in the comments section because

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I would love to foster some discussion out
of this topic, and hear from all of you.

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Do you have Sensory Processing Disorder?

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Do you love somebody who does?

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And if you have a question that you would
like answered via video

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feel free to post your autism-related
question in the comments section below

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or message it to me if you would like it
to be anonymous.

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And if you like this video,
feel free to give it a thumbs-up,

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and subscribe to my channel if you
would like more

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videos about autism, and to see new "Ask
an Autistic" episodes when they come out

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on Thursdays!

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Thanks for watching my video!
(reprise of song from beginning)