Massaging Action Teether Review/Giveaway

Ok everyone this is my first review/giveaway here on the SPD Life. Thanks to the generosity of One Step Ahead I received a Massaging Action Teether to do a review and giveaway on. The Massaging Action Teether is not only for infants, it is great for children with SPD too! It vibrates when the child bites or chews on it and helps give your child oral input. And of course it's also really good for those teething babies.

Now I know that you all have children with SPD issues but for those of you whose child(ren) have issues with oral gratification (i.e. over stuffing their mouths with food, chewing on non-edible objects, etc.) this is a wonderful product to try. Little Miss mouths everything! Her therapists have told me that getting her a vibrating toothbrush or teether would be good to help give her input so that she won't over fill her mouth while eating and it would curb her chewing on toys and such. One Step Ahead has even partnered up with the National Lekotek Center —the leading not-for-profit authority on play for children with disabilities—to offer a different kind of toy selection. Click here to view their toys and ratings.

When we got this Massaging Action Teether in the mail I cleaned it up and gave it to Little Miss and I sat down to see what she would do with it and waited for her reaction to the vibrations. SHE.LOVED.IT! She walked around with it between her teeth for a long time, just enjoying the vibrations. She has been chewing on it everyday since we received it. This is something safe for her to chew on. No toxic chemicals and no small pieces to break off that she could choke on. Plus it's soft, multi-textured and the sealed internal battery lasts 8 hours! At only $7.95 they're a great buy but this is your chance to win one for free. One Step Ahead is going to give one of you lucky readers one of these! Here's how you can enter to win:

Mandatory Entry:

~ Go over to One Step Ahead and come back and tell me in a comment your favorite product. (3 entries)

Extra Entries:

~ Blog about this review/giveaway with links back to this post and One Step Ahead.
(5 entries)

~ Follow us on Twitter
(3 entries)

~ Fave us on Technorati
(3 entries)

~ Follow the SPD Life
(3 entries)

~ Grab our button
(1 entry)

~ Tweet about this review/giveaway
(unlimited entries)

* We are trying to get more followers to join us here. If you know anyone that has a child with SPD or sensory issues please send them here to join in on the review/giveaway or just the blog. Or if you belong to any mom boards, sites or forums please do a post letting them know where to find us. Doing this (after verified) will give you 5 more entry points!

*Each time you do one of the above leave a comment for each entry. For example if you blog about this giveaway do this: "Blogged about this review/giveaway. Here's my link: (Your URL TO the post) #1" Then come back and do the same thing 4 more times in separate comments. If you tweet about this review/giveaway then leave the tweet URL in the comment.

You have the chance to do 12 + entries. You don't have to do all of them though. Do the first one or all of them if you want! First Mandatory Entry must be done first to enter the rest of the entry requests.

Contest will end on April 30th and winner will be picked using the Random.com generator and announced on April 6th. Good luck!

Any comments that do not follow the rules listed above will not be entered into the contest to win. So please make sure to follow the rules. Thanks!

*Check back because I will be doing more giveaways and reviews on products that benefit children with sensory issues and more!

Nothing Feels Right

My son Zach has issues with clothing. Tags, seams, stray threads, these things all bother him immensely. I understand to a point because I have issues with tags and seams as well. His sensory issues in this department far surpass mine though. Tagless t-shirts are the best thing since sliced bread in our house. Some still have the tag on the side that bothers us, but it's not as bad as having it on your neck. Now if the sock manufacturers would just get the memo and make their seams thinner across the toes, we'd be all set.

Here's how we've minimized the clothing sensory issues in our house. Besides tagless t-shirts, we went through a phase when Zach first started school all day where he had to get dressed the night before. He would put on his clothes for the next day before going to bed and sleep in them. For whatever reason they felt OK at night, but to put the exact same outfit on in the morning was a battle. He would literally try on every piece of clothing he had and deem that it "didn't feel right." This also allowed him to sleep in longer since we didn't have to spend 30-45 minutes each morning getting him dressed. He woke up ready to go eat breakfast.

For socks, once I find a brand Zach deems worthy, I don't stray. Another thing we do is turn them inside out to put the bulk of the seam on the outside. For shoes, we've found that regular ol' shoes with laces give the best fit. Of course any time you can find the softest material, you're better of. I try to stick to 100% cotton when I can.

Do you have any tricks for your kids who have clothing issues?

The Beginning Of Our Journey

I know I posted an introduction of who I am, but let me tell you how we began our journey into the world of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD).

As a first time mom, I just thought I had a REALLY needy baby. Zach wanted to be held ALL the time. I had to carry him around in a carrier to get anything done during the day. Even basic needs like brushing my teeth. After the first couple months this wasn't really possible for me because he was too heavy for me to do this with because of my own health issues. Zach wanted almost constant attention. As a couple, my husband and I hit that one day where he came home from work and asked the question, "What did you do all day?" It was a bit of a sore spot with both of us. When Zach was 4 months old I had my wisdom teeth out, and my husband saw what I did all day. I was then he truly understood after almost 4 solid days of basically being a single dad, since I was down and out from the wisdom teeth procedure, that Zach just did not let you get anything done.

Enter the toddler years. Zach was a very physical baby. He learned how to climb before he could even walk. Talking was still in caveman grunts and points. He was in a home daycare setting at this point because I had to go back to work. This is when we really noticed how physical he was. He pushed, shoved, bit, hit, you name it. Whatever it took to get his own way. The pediatrician said it was just a phase and he'd outgrow it as his language skills developed. I had my doubts. I just had a feeling he was different.

During the preschool years we had the same issues. Also at this point we had to factor in environment. We had just relocated to a new area, I was back to being a SAHM, and my husband was deployed. Zach had been a Daddy's boy since birth, so this was especially hard on him. It was at this point I FINALLY was able to get a referral to a child psychologist. Our family doctor finally agreed with me that this was more than just a passing phase.

This is where we start attending group therapy, which will be my next post. The point of this post is to tell you our story and also to tell you parents to trust your instincts. I knew around 15-18 months old Zach was different than other kids even though he was my first. It took us until he was 3 1/2 to finally get a referral to the specialist we needed.

Amanda Introduction/ODD

Hi, I'm Amanda. I'm a 29yo SAHM of two boys. I'm happy to be here. I'll be relating life with a child who has Oppositional Defiant Disorder. At least that's my son's official diagnosis. He has many traits of other behavioral disorders, but not enough to change his diagnosis at this point. Life with an ODD child can be very challenging at times. It takes over a huge chunk of family life. Part of the trick to the balance is that you have to not let the child know they're controlling what is happening with the family, but yet their disorder does control much of the way you parent and run your household. Very catch 22.

I knew around the time my son was 18 months old something was different about him. He was still communicating in cave man grunts mostly, and was pretty aggressive when he didn't get his own way. His pediatrician insisted that as long as he was communicating that it was just a phase and the physical things would subside as my son developed his language skills. She was wrong. Finally, at age 3 1/2 I got a doctor to see that it was not a phase, and to refer us to a psychologist. Here we are 4 years later, and it's still a struggle at times. I think the hardest part is that my son is older, but acts so immature for his age. We expect him to act 7, but do to a lack of impulse control, he acts more like his 2yo brother.

I'm happy that Stefanie brought me on to talk about ODD and my son's other issues so that if nothing else I can let other parents going through the same thing know that they're not alone. I also look forward to learning while I'm here. While not formally diagnosed, my son also has sensory issues.

THERAPY THURSDAY QUESTION:

My 5 yr old son has SPD, and he has come a long way. However, when he has a sensory melt down, it's big! This past weekend was beautiful weather here in sunny San Diego, but he could not handle the heat or the brightness. And then when we put him in the shade he was bothered by the grass and fear of ants. I plan on putting many things in place to help him, but I am eager to hear any tips I can as the warm months approach. Any meltdown he's had this year in Kindergarten has occurred on a hot day, so he is highly sensitive to it. Any feedback is greatly appreciated!!!

ANSWER:

We know that sensory "issues" show themselves differently in each persons life. We also know that people handle and accept them in different ways. The best way to deal with "sensory issues" in children is to teach the child ways to handle the issues or allow them to figure out ways to make themselves feel comfortable during an uncomfortable sensory "moment". For example, "Caden hates sunshine so he chooses to sit on the porch and sell lemonade to his family while they work in the yard". As caregivers we must look at each child's reaction or behavior to the annoying sensory overstimulization uniquely. We must help the child resolve the issue before putting them in an uncomfortable situation that will cause a "meltdown". Remember, encouraging a person with high sensory needs to be in the sun or even the shade could be like making you you sit on fire ants. People affected by sensory issues senses are doubled or tripled from a typical seeking person. A child who doesn't like outside could be having difficulty with the heat on their skin and could be feeling the heat 2-3 times the magnitude of typical seeking people and could actually be feeling burnt in the shade. A child's reaction to outside could also be just plain behavioral and not wanting to be outside because they'd rather be inside playing video gamesm could be sensory or could be a childhood fear. A parent/child need to figure out what it is. Sensory integration can not always be the "blame" or the "answer".

Talking to your child and coming up with a plan is helpful. Leading them into a conversation such as, "When I am outside it makes me feel______________. If the ____________didn't bother me so much, I would love to __________________outside". Work on a goal to get your child doing something they love outside for 30 seconds and work your way up to longer periods of time. Work on communication if your child is verbal and give them ideas to solve their own problems.

1. Where a favorite visor or hat the child decorates or one of a favorite fairy or ballteam.

2. Have the child pick out sunglasses and wear them.

3. Make a social story book to help child understand ways to solve their issues with choices as to what an alternative can be.

4. Try to prevent discomfort by not forcing a child to be outside in the sun if they can not tolerate it.

5. Figure out what it is that is truly bothersome in the environment; ie: sun, bugs, etc..

6. Find alternative activities for a child who is upset outdoors; sell lemonade to the family, sweep a porch, wash windows inside and watch the family, play with side walk chalk. Water the lawn, wash a favorite bike, plant flowers in pots in garage while family works. Get the idea... now every one post 2 ideas and we will all be shocked what we come up with.

7. Have a special chair and let your child be the "foreman" for the day, giving jobs to the family with a clipboard and pad of paper.

8. Make a beach and have the child under an umbrella in the yard spraying themselves or hot family members with spray bottle of watcher.

Massaging Action Teether Giveaway EXTENDED!!!

Since there has not been many entries for the Massaging Action Teether the rep for One Step Ahead and I have decided to extend this giveaway! Yes, that's right! So make sure to enter and pass along the info to anyone that might be interested! Giveaway will end on April 30th!

And make sure to check back! I am going to be doing more giveaways and reviews on toys and children's products that will help kids with SPD and other disorders! Follow us and pass us along!

Therapy Thursday (Question/Answer)

Here it is, our first Therapy Thursday question. Shireen, our Speech Therapist, has answered your question. I hope this helps. If anyone has another question please email me at: bloggymommy3@yahoo.com

Question: I have a SPD question for you. My 7yo son is constantly playing with the baby toys. He always has. Tonight he was playing with this toy https://www.tinylove.com/toy.aspx?toyId=25 and I asked him why he liked it so much. He said he likes the gears that turn, the squeaky ball, the levers that go back and forth, the ball that spins, and the music. Is this a sensory thing? Are there more age appropriate things for him to play with that will meet those sensory needs? I'm pretty sure he's got a strong tactile sense. We have lots of clothing issues with him, and he has to constantly touch EVERYTHING. I'd get him some other toys geared at babies and toddlers, but with him being 7, and he's pretty rough on toys, I'd hate for him to break them. I guess what I'm asking is how can I constructively channel this need for touch and to play with the baby toys. We don't have many of the baby toys left as my youngest is now 2 and is on to bigger and better things.
Sincerely,
SPD Follower

Answer: You are right that that toy is not very age appropriate for him, but there are plenty of other toys that are. Some suggestions I have include Gearation or Gears Building Set, Light n' Chaser, Visual Tracking Ball Tower or other marble run, and the Light Up DNA ball or Window Ball. All of these toys can be found at www.beyondplay.com I have no affiliation with this company. I just think they have some great sensory toys. There are also things at home to give him more tactile input like playing with water, sand, playdoh and shaving cream. Hopefully this gives you some ideas of some more age appropriate toys for your son. A book I can recommend with many more ideas is "The Out of Sync Child Has Fun", by Carol Kranowitz. Thanks for your question and let me know if this helps!
Sincerely,
Shireen (Speech Therapist)