Sensory Integration: Sensory

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2012年9月18日星期二

Design Psychology: How Our Sensory Responses to Aromas Create Happy Homes

Our sense of smell elicits strong emotional reactions and triggers powerful memories, whether we're consciously aware of it or not.

Scents and Feelings

Our olfactory system sends a chemical message about the scents around us through the limbic part of our brain, which is the oldest part of our brain. In seconds, that message is telegraphed to our central nervous system, which, in turn, controls how our body functions and how we feel about those smells.

Scents also influence the temperature we feel emotionally. For instance, a grass matting floor covering has a pleasant scent, and makes us feel cooler, while the aroma of fresh baked bread creates a warm feeling of being loved. Marine scents, such as salty sea air, refresh us, while spice and wood scents bring warm thoughts.

The Evolution of Aromatherapy

The ancient civilizations of Arabia, Babylon, China, Egypt, Greece, India, and Rome all used the aromas of scented plants, flowers, and woods to heal and protect. Religious and spiritual ceremonies have used aromas to arouse mankind's deeply spiritual nature from the dawn of time. Today, the science of aromatherapy, which is a holistic healing practice, uses essential oils and herbs, to treat stress-related illnesses, muscular, circulatory, respiratory, and digestive ailments, and even skin problems.

The Effects of Scent on Emotions

Essential oils influence our emotions within seconds of inhalation. For instance, clary sage stimulates the thalamus to release a hormone called encephalon, a neurochemical that creates a sense of euphoria and provides pain relief. Lavender and chamomile fuel the release of serotonin, which has a calming effect on fear, stress, aggravation, or insomnia.

Scents activate the deep part of the brain, where memories are stored. You can recreate pleasant memories and share them with your family and friends through the use of smells. For instance, my mother often baked a cake just before we kids arrived home from school. Now that I've grown up, we don't eat as much cake in our home, but sharing a vanilla scent with my children often prompts them to share stories about their grandmother.

Smells are a powerful link with the memories of our past. My mother used to tell me stories of her grandmother, whose home smelled like baked cinnamon rolls in the morning and exotic, tangy spices in the evening.

The sense of smell, a potent tool in Interior Design Psychology, brings a feeling of harmony and serenity to any room in a home. Embrace the scents you love and those that conjure pleasant memories, and make the use of scent an integral part of your overall design plan.

Jeanette Fisher, Design Psychology Professor, is the author of Joy to the Home eNewsletter. Discover innovative Interior Design Psychology and makeover your home to support happiness, productivity, and well-being. For Design Psychology information, see http://www.designpsych.com/ For more information about ?Joy to the Home,? see http://www.joytothehome.com/

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Getting to Know Your Baby - How She Learned From Every Sensory Experience

As each week goes by, your baby will appear less floppy, less curled up, and more alert. She is now interested in the world and is learning from every sensory experience.

Reflexes and posture - At this stage reflexes still govern your baby's movements, although over the next few weeks they will become more integrated and most of the more primitive ones will disappear. Your will notice that she still has her fencing (ATNR) reflex - when her head is turned to one side, she extends her arm on the same side. She will start to catch a glimpse of her hand in this position, but because her arms swipe around so much, she will not be able to remain focused on it for long. Her arms and legs move a lot at this stage, especially the arms, swiping wildly through the air. This makes her feel disconcerted and you can help her to feel more composed by cupping your hands behind her shoulder blades and providing some pressure to bring her hands towards the midline of her body. During this period you will notice that she clasps her hands much less. Occasionally she will open them. She will not start reaching for objects yet, but will stare intently at them, almost reaching out with her eyes.

During this period your baby needs opportunities to work her back and neck muscles, as she becomes less flexed. If you place her on her tummy she will start to lift her head up from the surface and when held in a sitting position she may hold her head upright for a little while. When you pull your baby into a sitting position from lying on her back, she will start to hold her head in line with her body. By six weeks your baby will have uncurled a lot, have straighter hips and knees, and will be able to hold her head up for a few minutes.

Visual development - Your baby is working hard at developing her eye muscles. The muscles inside her eyes are responsible for her focus and clearness of vision. She will be practicing her focus at different distances. She loves mobiles with contrasting colours because they help her to maintain focus and work those muscles. The muscles surrounding her eyes are responsible for coordinating eye movements. This is essential if she wants to watch a moving object. Your baby enjoys patterns of any kind. She will watch people if they are in her line of vision and even turn her head towards them if she hears a sound.

Social awareness - Your baby recognizes your face and will stare intently at your facial features. If you stick out your tongue, she may copy you. If you smile, she will try desperately to copy it. Eventually the big milestone that makes all the hard work seem worthwhile will happen around the six-week mark: your baby will start smiling. Some babies start smiling with intention (not just for gas bubbles) even earlier than six weeks. Your baby loves language and responds to your voice. When you speak to her she will hold your gaze for longer and may even try to talk by making little throaty noises.

Regulation - At this stage your baby can just about maintain her body temperature and heart rate. She cannot regulate her sleep/wake cycles or state (calm-alert/active-alert, and so on) yet and that is why she fusses just before she falls asleep. One of your baby's key tasks at this age is to learn to remain calm when exposed to stimulation.

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2012年9月17日星期一

Spectacular Content Presentation Tips - Sensory and Emotional Communication

How Sensory and Emotional Communication Engages Your Audience

While you never want to ignore the analytical aspects of communication, you must realize the value of the sensory and emotional aspects of communication. The authoritativeness and competence with which you command an audience is influenced powerfully by these facets of communication.

Sensory Communication

Sensory communication is one of the most powerful tools to grab an audience's attention. It allows the presenter to engage the audience and add dimension, variety, and interest to the content. This tool not only engages the audience, but it also dramatically improves the audience's recall of the content. This is a very important factor.

Emotional Communication

Most presenters are aware of the fact that you need to build a rapport with your audience. This is not a secret. However, this is done most quickly through emotional communication. The way the audience members feel will seriously influence what they think of the presentation and their final decisions. Whether or not the listeners are moved to action is dependent upon how the presentation, and more importantly the presenter, made them feel.

Everything passes through an emotional filter. How you made people feel about yourself and the topic you presented will affect how they process the information you provided. Emotions drive the perception the audience takes away from the presentation. Emotional thinking influences the end results dramatically.

Your goals as a presenter should be:

Earn the audience's trust
Build a rapport with the audience
Demonstrate professionalism

It is not uncommon for presenters to be judged solely on their ability to connect with the audience on an emotional level. The intensity of the emotions that are elicited has great bearing on the attention you receive from the audience and their level of recall and their likelihood to take action.

How to Move Your Audience toward Action

The best way to move your audience to action is to involve them emotionally in the presentation. The conviction and passion that you convey will affect the emotional connection you make with your audience. There are some powerful tools you can use to elicit emotional connections with your listeners, such as:

Music
Images or pictures
Stories

These are all wonderful tools that you should make use of whenever possible.

When you balance your sensory and emotional communication with your analytical information, you have the ingredients for a powerful presentation. The sensory and emotional aspects allow you to get the audience's attention and connect with them so that the analytical information can be received, processed and retained.

Never neglect the emotional and sensory aspects of a presentation as this is where you earn trust and build rapport with your audience. A presentation that ignores these features tends to be dry, dull, and uninteresting. It will not be well received, thus the information will rarely make it to processing. Keep the personal aspects of the communication process fully integrated and you will have a successful and memorable presentation.

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Sensory Loss in Older Adults - Vision - Behavioral Approaches For Caregivers

As we age, our sensory systems gradually lose their sharpness. Because our brain requires a minimal amount of input to remain alert and functioning, sensory loss for older adults puts them at risk for sensory deprivation. Severe sensory impairments, such as in vision or hearing, may result in behavior similar to dementia and psychosis, such as increased disorientation and confusion. Added restrictions, such as confinement to bed or a Geri-chair, increases this risk. With nothing to show the passage of time, or changes in the environment, the sensory deprived person may resort to repetitive problem behaviors (calling out, chanting, rhythmic pounding/rocking) as an attempt to reduce the sense of deprivation and to create internal stimulation/sensations.

This article is the first in a series of three articles that discuss the prominent sensory changes that accompany aging, and considers the necessary behavioral adjustments or accommodations that should be made by professional, paraprofessional, and family caregivers who interact with older adults. Though the medical conditions are not reviewed in depth, the purpose of this article is to introduce many of the behavioral health insights, principles, and approaches that should influence our caregiving roles. This article addresses age-related visual changes.

CHANGES IN VISION THAT ACCOMPANY AGING

A. The changes in vision that accompany aging include:

1. A loss of elasticity of the lens; this means the person is no longer able to focus or accommodate to changes in lighting conditions. (Starting in our 40's, glasses are needed to see fine print). It also means the older person cannot adjust to sudden changes in lighting, resulting in an uneasiness when leaving a bright room to enter a dark hallway, or finding seats in the dark in recreation rooms, or theater. Going in the reverse direction can be equally difficult: from a dark room to a bright area.

2. Decreased pupil size; the light reaching the retina is reduced, requiring more light to see. This results in the need for lighting 3x to 4x what younger people need to see clearly

3. A loss of transparency; with age, there is a yellowing of the lens in the eyes, making color discrimination more difficult, especially blue and green. Warmer colors, such as reds and yellows are perceived best, explaining why bright colors are preferred.

4. More susceptibility to glare, and longer time is needed to recover from the effects of glare;

5. Eye diseases and disorders, such as cataracts causing a clouding of the lens; glaucoma, resulting from increased pressure of fluids in the eye, damaging the optic nerve and impairing vision. Glaucoma, the number one cause of blindness in U.S., in advanced stages results in yellow halos around images. Macular degeneration may occur, where vision is distorted, and images appear different sizes or different shapes, and are missing a central element. Visual disorders may be secondary to stroke, in which the eye can see the image but the brain cannot interpret the images. Diabetes may result in disrupted blood flow to the retina, causing diabetic retinopathy and a loss of vision, and blindness, in extreme cases.

B. What are the effects of visual loss on the older adult?

1. An increased dependency on others;

2. A sharply reduced quality of life (changes in activities in daily living and instrumental activities of daily living, reduced connection with outside world);

3. And, a fearfulness and reduced tendency to venture outside.

C. What are the effects of vision changes on demented elderly?

1. With the losses in visual acuity, other problems in cognitive functioning are heightened, such as difficulty processing unfamiliar faces and settings;

2. Because the person with dementia already has difficulty learning new behaviors, he or she is less able to learn new habits to compensate for the visual losses (e.g., learning to use visual aids to identify articles of clothing or other possessions;

3. There is likely to be an increased disorientation and confusion, as the search for structure and external cues is strained.

PRINCIPLES FOR CAREGIVERS

The following principles apply to caregiving approaches with older adults who have diminished sensory function. Increased sensitivity and insight to the needs of these individuals improves their quality of life and improves our effectiveness:

1. Observe the behavior of the person, and look for cues and signs of pain or discomfort;

2. Help the person work through the emotional impact of the sensory changes, allowing expression, acceptance, and support of the grief and sadness accompanying these losses;

3. Do not try to fix the unpleasantness; acceptance and support goes a longer way toward healing than a quick fix or a patronizing attitude;

4. Reduce excess disability by maximizing whatever functioning is still left, such as proper eyeglass prescriptions, or functioning hearing aids;

5. Consider assistive devices (phone amplifiers, large text books, headphones, and the Braille Institute for a variety of useful visual aids).

Approaches for impairments in vision:

1. Address the person before you touch him or her, identify yourself, let him or her know when you are leaving, speak normally, and do not shout;

2. Describe his or her surroundings to help orient and familiarize the person to the environment, tell him or her location of belongings, and if things have been moved;

3. Use as much contrast as possible, e.g., red objects on white background is better than black on a gray background, or blue on green background, (consider switch plates on walls, toothbrushes, combs);

4. Avoid moving quickly from a bright room to a darkened room, or v.v. Make sure the visually-impaired person takes the time for the pupils to adapt to the changes in lighting;

5. Introduce yourself every time you come into contact with the person, and explain what you are going to do because there are no visual cues;

6. Help to identify others in their environment with colored clothing, name tags with large print, etc.

7. Clean eyeglasses regularly, provide adequate lighting, and avoid glare;

8. Provide night lights, and arrange furnishings in the environment for safety and ease of mobility.

Even with normal aging, functioning of our five senses is not like it was when we were younger adults. This article offers caregivers who work with visually-impaired older adults some insights into the special needs and adjustments that will turn unpleasant, frustrating situations into more caring, helpful, and sensitive interactions. By integrating these behavioral approaches in the delivery of the health care with older adults, we can favorably impact the management of these conditions.

Joseph M. Casciani, PhD, is a geropsychologist who has devoted his professional career to working with older adults and their caregivers. His company, Concept Healthcare, http://www.cohealth.org, offers online resources to integrate behavioral health approaches in the health care of older adults.

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2012年9月16日星期日

Stopping Your Child's Bedwetting Using a Sensory Device

You Are Not Alone

Bed wetting has long been one of those taboo subjects that people prefer not to speak about. Some parents feel that if their child is still bed wetting at age four or five or beyond, that they have in some way failed in their parenting.

Conversely, some children are embarrassed or ashamed about their bed wetting and feel like they are the only ones in the world that it has happened to. This can cause further problems, including reduced self esteem or social isolation as children seek to distance themselves from other children for fear of being teased.

Sadly, these are common feelings for both parents and children and indeed could not be further from the truth. If you are one of those parents who worries that you haven't done enough or you are simply not getting through to your child, then here is one fact about bedwetting to help you realise that you are not alone in this challenging journey - there are currently 5-6 million children world-wide who wet their beds several times if not every night of the week.

Reasons for Bed Wetting

By its very nature, bed wetting is frustrating and upsetting for both parent and child. Usually occurring in the middle of the night, emotions become heightened and crankiness and tears are the order of the day.

When it first occurs, some parents will write off an episode or two as just simply an accident. But when bed wetting starts to occur on a more regular basis, parents sometimes jump to the immediate conclusion that their child is being lazy or trying to control the parent.

In fact, it is highly unlikely that it is neither of these, as the last thing most children want is to wake up in the middle of the night in a cold wet bed.

While there is no single cause for bedwetting, studies relating to chromosomes 8, 12 and 13 indicate that in fact, bed wetting is likely to be inherited from one or more of the parents.

This in fact can be quite a useful thing to know, because suddenly the child can feel like they are not alone and that mum and/or dad can relate to them. In addition to any genetic disposition your child may have, bed wetting can also be caused by things like:

Your child may have a bladder that is smaller than expected for a functioning bladder in a child of his or her age,

Your child may be maturing a little later than other children of the same age and hence may not yet be ready to make the connection between a full bladder and the need to wake from sleep,

Your child may be a particularly deep sleeper and hence, their brain may not get the message that they need to wake up to empty their bladder,

Your child might be low in the anti-diuretic hormone which sends a signal to the kidneys to make less urine during periods (of slumber for instance), and

Your child might be constipated and the constant pressure on the bladder over several hours through the night causes the bladder to contract and empty.

Irrespective of the cause of the bed wetting in your household, using a sensory device is a safe and efficient method for arresting an ongoing problem. Sensory devices override any kinds of behavioral or physical/medical problems such as the size of the bladder or any constipation (that a parent may or may not be aware of).

A sensory device helps the child to learn to move quickly to the lavatory to empty their bladder. It does this by sounding a buzzer or alarm that is sounded when any moisture is present.

Reasons to Choose An Alarm over Medication

Sensory devices are manufactured in a number of different constructions, but they all essentially perform the same function. All products contain a device that senses the moisture and an alarm which sounds to wake a sleeping child and alert them that it is time to empty their bladder.

Products do vary however in the ways in which they are designed and the method in which they are used. For example, some products use sensory devices that are attached to the underpants and the alarm is attached to the wrist while other products attach the alarm to the shoulder.

Anecdotally, there are many stories of parents who have successfully used sensory alarms in preference to medication; achieving long term success. But some parents are so frustrated that anecdotal stories are simply not enough, and they need harder evidence to move to yet another strategy.

In a study that was outlined in the Journal of Wound Ostomy Continence Nursing, researchers confirmed that medical testing had demonstrated categorically that sound or alarm devices were the most effective treatment in preventing bed wetting, over and above other treatments such as medications.

A second study that was outlined in the Journal of Paediatric Child Health also reported that in a study of 505 children, 79% of those children achieved a dry bed within 10 weeks of wearing a sensory alarm each night and that of that group, a further 73% had maintained that dryness over the ensuing six months.

A third study conducted by the University of Aberdeen in Scotland comprising 2,345 children proved that 67% of children who used a sensory device ceased bed wetting within two weeks.

They further demonstrated that children that were using medication did stop bedwetting faster than those using bed wetting devices, but in fact, once the treatment stopped, the drugs were less effective in sustaining a long term bed wetting solution.

In addition, only 18% of the children using medication stayed dry in the weeks following the study, compared with 67% of children who used sensory devices.

Some Of The Products Currently Available

There are a myriad of sensory devices available online, through your medical practitioner or health care professional and at the drug store. Some of the more common products including: DRISleeper, Nytone, Nite Train-r, Wet Stop Original, DryNite and Nature Calls.

For a parent who is trying to solve their child's long standing bed wetting problem, it can be difficult to know which product to choose. The descriptions below provide information on some of the more useful and downright annoying features of the products.

DRISleeper is one of the leading brands available. DriSleeper offers a sensor cord that can be unplugged and plugged in for immediate re-use. The device itself is made of moulded plastic and has no sharp edges. It is also very thin, meaning that it does not disrupt your child while he or she is sleeping.

The unit itself is very light and takes four button sized batteries. The DRISleeper sensor is attached to the shoulder of the child; increasing the chance that your child will be woken by the alarm. DRISleeper offers a 30 day warranty.

Nytone is a highly sensitive device that allows the drops or flow of urine to flow across it - giving it maximum sensitivity and hence, a promptly sounding alarm. It is made of a metal dome and can be easily washed and cleaned. Nytone offers a unisex design, meaning it can be used for more than one child in the family if washed thoroughly after use. Ntyone requires a 504 battery. Nytone offers a 30 day warranty.

Nite Train-r is made of layers of foam plastic, making it an unpopular choice with children as it can seem uncomfortable when the child moves around. It has a simple unplugging facility making it easy to replace the sensor if required. The urine is collected in specially designed holes so washing and cleaning must be thorough. Despite some of these negative characteristics, like DRISleeper, the sensor on the Nite Train-r is attached to your childs' shoulder rather than the wrist. Nite Train-r offers a 60 day warranty.

Wet-Stop Original is manufactured using hard plastic. For this device to work effectively, moms will need to sew pads to the underpants and then the sensor device is attached to the sewn in pads. This can be a nuisance for some parents.

It is also important that the electrodes be kept clean and although this is a challenge it is relatively easy to keep the Velcro and sensor areas clean with washing and wiping. Wet-Stop Original is light and thin making it easy to use. It offers a One Year warranty.

DryNite is one of the more reliable brands available, as the alarm continues to sound until the sensor itself is cleaned, dried or the batteries are actually removed from the device. DryNite uses a small plastic clip which attaches to your child's underpants. The sensor is placed inside a pouch which is then attached to your child's shoulder. DryNite offers a unisex design and comes with a 30 day warranty.

Nature Calls again offers a reliable alarm feature in that is continues to sound every 60 seconds until such time as the sensor is dried. This ensures that there is no opportunity for your child to drift off back to sleep after first being woken for the device. The downside of this product is that the sensors require frequent replacement for sanitary reasons as the manufacturer suggests weekly replacement. It is however, light and thin and is easily attached to your child's underpants without discomfort. Nature Calls offers a unisex design and comes with a 90 day warranty.

Integrating an Alarm into the Night Time Routine

It is important to recognise that choosing to use a sensory device with your child each night is a significant commitment and requires lots of patience and time. You will need to learn how to use the device yourself and then transfer this knowledge by training your child to use it too. It may involve a few sleepless nights as you both make the make mad dashes to the lavatory together.

To ensure that the alarm or sensory device works most effectively, you should follow the same routine each night. This involves encouraging your child to empty their bladder immediately before going to bed. You will need to then teach your child how to reset the alarm - you may need to do this a few times - and then encourage them to do it themselves. Other things that might help include:

Have fun with your child in testing the buzzer to make sure it is working,

Turn it into a game and encourage your child to try to beat the alarm by emptying their bladder before the buzzer sounds,

Leave a night light on so your child can walk freely to the toilet and has enough light to be able to re-set the buzzer,

Maintain a rewards chart and each morning, add a star if your child has had a dry night; offer a reward for 5 or 10 stars (dry nights).

Studies show that over a 10-12 week period of intensive use of a sensory device, children eventually begin to wake before the alarm even sounds and are able to move to the lavatory without wetting the device, their night clothes or their bed.

What To Do Next

If you have been struggling with bed wetting strategies on your own, then it is important that you start to work collaboratively with your medical practitioner or health care professional before adopting any new strategies.

Your medical practitioner not only has access to the latest information about bed wetting technologies, but can also provide you with advice and support. Having an impartial but understanding sounding board is particularly important for parents who feel like the bed wetting nightmare will never end and they are almost at the end of their tether.

Talk to your medical practitioner or health care professional about some of the more common products on the market, including DRISleeper, Nytone, Nite Train-r, Wet Stop Original, DryNite and Nature Calls. Ask him or her which product she or he would recommend for your child's situation.

Frances Peters frances@no-more-bedwetting.com

If you need bedwetting information and strategies please visit http://www.no-more-bedwetting.com

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2012年9月14日星期五

Sensory Reduction and the Quest for Human Potential

As the nature of our lives evolves and changes we are constantly looking for ways to improve our creativity and production. This is not a new challenge but one that has taken a sudden sense of urgency, especially in the modern business world. One of the strategies for doing this is to step out of our daily routines, block out the world and focus on our 'inner selves'. 'Getting away from it all' has taken on new meaning and relevance in our stress-filled hurried lives.

The quest for human potential has been going on for 'eons'. Some argue that Cro-Magnon people isolated themselves from their outside world by entering caves and eventually producing pre-historic cave art. The great religious leaders often promoted meditation and introspection as a means of gaining greater understanding and ultimately arriving at a higher level of potential and production.

Today we try to get away to isolated vacation spots, stress-reducing spas and use New and Old Age methods of turning off the outside world. The premise is that by shutting down the barrage of outside stimuli we can allow ourselves to develop internally. And of course in the Modern Era we use technology to help us with our quest.

One such technological innovation is the flotation tank. No one knows when the idea for sensory reduction started but the first scientific experiments began in the early 1950s. The original premise was that by shutting down outside stimuli one could shut down brain function. The initial surprise was that the brain did not shut down but instead became more active in different ways.

A flotation tank has been described as a portable closet turned on its side and filled with about ten inches of concentrated Epsom salts dissolved in water. The typical tank will have between 800 and 1000 pounds of concentrated Epsom. Newer tanks have an air supply and a temperature regulator that keeps the solution a constant 93.5 degrees F. or skin temperature and a door that essentially shuts out all light. Earplugs are often worn and most tanks have very little or 'no' sound.

The floater enters the tank, closes the door and with it blocks out most external stimuli. The floating experience comes close to no gravity -- one floats and physically cannot sink in the tank. There are no rules -- no set procedures, no instructions, no agenda.

Each floater takes into the tank what they bring with themselves. Some meditate, others work on business problems, and others let their minds go and try to enter a creative state. Many, though not all, go into a brainwave state known as the 'theta zone' -- a brainwave pattern similar to sleep. There are no drugs, massages, or therapy processes. In short, there is no intervention of any kind -- only the floater and the tank.

"Floaters" report many different types of experiences and many of these experiences are perceived as profound. I recently conducted a series of interviews with floaters and was told the following: A systems analyst uses the tank to reduce stress and become 'less of an nerd'; a research scientist visualizes molecules and protein structures; a banker uses the tank to work on difficult projects by isolating each component of a project and visualizing how these components can come together. Athletes use floating for optimal performance, visualization and injury healing.

Doctors and chiropractors recommend floating as a way to reduce pain, especially back pain. Psychologists recommend floating as a way to reduce levels of depression. Writers and inventors use floating as a way to create and innovate.

Why does floating work? There are a number of theories: the anti-gravity effect, the increase of left brain activity as right brain activity is decreased, endorphin production, and integration of the primitive and modern brain layers, brain waves (theta), biofeedback and homeostasis of the human brain.

But most floaters do not care so much how it works but that it works. They report that old ways of thinking simply 'melt away' and do not have to be 'strategically broken down'. They report a greater sense of well being and an enhanced sense of creativity and innovation. Many report that floating has significantly changed their lives. The effects can last for days, weeks, years or a lifetime.

As a matter of curiosity I tried floating. The immediate effect I noted was a sense of well being that lasted for weeks. I cannot say whether it was cause and effect, but after floating regularly for several months, I started a new business venture that I had been contemplating for over a year.

As a true skeptic I cannot say what is going on but I can say that something is going on. My wild guess is that it has something to do with endorphin production but admittedly that is a wild guess.

For those of us that constantly deal with human potential in the workplace we cannot ignore the human mind. Although we do not fully understand how the mind works, we do know some of the basics. We now know that constant stimuli bombardment can lead to high levels of stress, which in turn can cause mental and physical maladies. These maladies can lead to lower production and a reduced potential.

The Brave New World of the future may not have our minds hooked up to stimuli producing machines. The Brave New World may have us float in a tank and 'regress' to some primordial state where we can shut out the modern world and realize ourselves and our own potential.

In a true sense, we may be returning to the cave to find ourselves.

Jack D. Deal is the owner of Deal Business Consulting. aRelated articles [http://www.jddeal.com] may be found at [http://www.jddeal.com] and http://www.freeandinquiringmind.typepad.com

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2012年9月13日星期四

Adult ADHD: Why Sensory Stimulation is the Secret

In my last article I told about a kid with ADHD symptoms who I was working with in my practice. I taught him to connect his love of hockey with doing science homework, which he was currently getting F's in because he was bored. He used hockey cards and posters and music to do this and he ended up getting A's in Science as a result.

That's an example of someone with ADHD symptoms connecting something they love and something they're not that excited about together to make it at least a semi-exciting experience.

Today, Stephanie Frank and I are going to going to talk about how to use sensory stimulation with Adult ADHD symptoms--using all five senses--to help focus the brain with Adult ADHD.

An example of this is when I have to do the dishes--something I find extremely boring. It's hard for me to stand there for more than two minutes. My ADHD symptoms kick in and I wander off. So here's what I do to stay focused when I do the dishes.

First I make myself a nice pot of coffee (ever noticed how people with Adult ADHD love coffee?). The second thing I do when I want to get a household chore done at high speed is, a technique I started using after we came up with this hockey idea for the kid with ADHD symptoms I was working with: except I use a different interest.

I'm a distance runner. I love running. So, I actually will get in my running clothes, shoes, shorts, and shirt, and do the dishes at high speed while dressed up like a runner. It's kind of a funny sight, but it works. It works really well--and can work great for anyone Adult ADHD symptoms.

Stephanie Frank explains why this really works with Adult ADHD symptoms:

Stephanie: Let's talk about why that works with Adult ADHD, Tellman. If you're focusing on something, you're probably doing it unconsciously. You're not even aware of all the things that are happening. Let's bring that up to the awareness level that people with Adult ADHD symptoms operate at.

The point is that when you want to focus, people with Adult ADHD symptoms have a brain, a body, a mind that works automatically in kind of a multi-tasking sort of a mode. People with Adult ADHD can accomplish many, many things at once, whereas most people without ADHD symptoms have to go from one thing to the next thing to the next thing.

Because you have Adult ADHD symptoms, you like to do lots of things at once. This is because when you sit down and you try to just focus on this one thing, what happens is your brain almost rebels. It shuts down. It gets to that point where it says, "Ugh. I'm so bored. There's not enough stimulus. There's nothing going on. I can't just focus on this one thing because I have such a capacity to do more things."

The basic premise for getting something done with Adult ADHD symptoms, especially when it's something you don't like to do, is very simple, and it's this: you have to involve multiple senses. You have to involve all your senses.

Tellman said that he puts on a pot of coffee for the sense of smell. Of course, caffeine doesn't hurt, right? So right there, you can smell the coffee. Then he puts on his running clothes. That's kinesthetic. That's feeling in your body. You could also light a candle. That could be a visual sense that doesn't distract, or it could be a smell too.

You can play music. That is auditory. So, you've got your entire body, all your senses involved and being stimulated...and your ADHD symptoms are just soaking it up, actually helping you to focus more...did I get all the senses?

Tellman: Well, you're talking about visual, kinesthetic, auditory or hearing, olfactory, and gustatory which is smell and taste. Then, some people would say, "What about your connection with your spiritual life?" Some people would even refer to that as a sixth sense.

You can integrate that too, if that's your style, and that makes sense to you. Whatever religion you practice, see if you can somehow incorporate that into what you're doing.

There are lots of very powerful ways to simply connect up things that interest you with what you're doing, to really make them work for you. Be creative. Use your ADHD symptoms of hyper-creativity and innovation to your advantage on this.

While we're on the subject, there is another solution people with Adult ADHD symptoms can use for getting those things done that you don't like to do, and it's called "outsourcing."

There are very specific ways people with Adult ADHD can outsource things at home, and things at work, that are taking your time and energy that shouldn't be. To find out more about outsourcing and other great techniques for Adult ADHD, see below.

Tellman Knudson can help you learn to focus, beat distraction and accomplish your goals. Learn more about Adult ADHD Symptoms and pick up your free newsletter of ADHD practical tips and techniques to make your life better today!

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2012年9月12日星期三

Treating the Sensory Problems of Autism

So what is autism? First of all, we must make some distinctions. There are various types of difficulty within the spectrum of disability of which we are speaking. The major distinctions are as follows:

Autism Asperger's syndrome, Rett Syndrom, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder. The most prevalent and commonly known two of these are autism and Asperger's Syndrome.

What do we mean when we say autism is a 'spectrum disorder?'

When the term, 'spectrum disorder' is used it means that there are a range of symptoms, which can be attributed to autism. Any one individual may display any combination of these symptoms, in differing degrees of severity. Therefore an individual at one end of the autistic spectrum may seem very different to an individual at the other end of the spectrum.

Who first discovered autism?

Autism was first recognized in the mid 1940's by a psychiatrist called Leo Kanner. He described a group of children, whom he was treating, who presented with some very unusual symptoms such as; - atypical social development, irregular development of communication and language, and recurring / repetitive and obsessional behaviour with aversion to novelty and refusal to accept change. His first thoughts were that they were suffering some sort of childhood psychiatric disorder.

At around the same time that Kanner was grappling with the problems of these children, a German scientist, Hans Asperger was caring for a group of children whose behaviour also seemed irregular. Asperger suggested that these children were suffering from what he termed 'autistic psychopathy. ' These children experienced remarkably similar symptoms to the children described by Kanner, with a single exception. - Their language development was normal! There is still an ongoing debate as to whether autism and Asperger's syndrome are separable conditions, or whether Asperger's syndrome is merely a mild form of autism.

What is the cause of autism?In the 1960s and 1970s there arose a theory that autism was caused by abnormal family relationships. This led on to the 'refrigerator mother' theory, which claimed that autism in the child was caused by cold, emotionless mothers! (Bettleheim, 1967). However the weight of evidence quickly put this theory to bed as evidence was found to support the idea that the real cause was to be found in abnormalities in the brain. This evidence was quickly followed by findings, which clearly demonstrated that the EEG's of children with autism were, in many cases, atypical and the fact that a large proportion of children also suffered from epilepsy.

From this time, autism has been looked upon as a disorder, which develops as a consequence of abnormal brain development. Recently, evidence has shown that in some cases, the abnormal brain development may be caused by specific genes.

However, we should not forget that genes can only express themselves if the appropriate environmental conditions exist for them to do so and so, we should not rule out additional, environmental causes for autism. We should not forget that autism can also be caused by brain-injury, that an insult to the brain can produce the same effects as can abnormal development of the brain, which may have been caused by genetic and other environmental factors. I have seen too many children who have suffered oxygen starvation at birth, who have gone on to display symptoms of autism. So, it is my view that autism can also be caused by brain-injury.

There are also other possibilities, which can ultimately produce the type of brain dysfunction, which we recognize as autism. There is a great deal of research being carried out at the moment in the area of 'oxidative stress' and methylation and it's effects upon the integrity of neural networks. There is also the debate surrounding mercury levels in vaccines, which is as of yet, unresolved.

The fact is that 'many roads lead to Rome. ' - There are likely to be several factors both genetic and environmental, which can ultimately lead to the type of brain dysfunction, which we call autism.

So, how do we recognize autism?

On a descriptive level, autism involves a dysfunction of the brain's systems, which control communication, socialization, imagination and sensory perception. My theory is that it is the distortions of sensory perception, which are so characteristic of autism, which exacerbates many (but not all) of the other difficulties. Imagine a child suffering from autism who suffers distortions of sensory perception. For instance, the child who suffers distortions of visual perception, might find situations which require eye -contact to be exceptionally threatening, or on the other end of the scale might become obsessive about specific visual stimuli. The child who suffers distortions of tactile perception, might at one end of the spectrum find any situation which requires physical contact to be terrifying, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, they might be a 'sensation seeker' to the point of becoming self -injurious. The child who suffers distortions of auditory perception might at one end of the spectrum, be terrified of sounds of a certain pitch or intensity, whereas at the other end of the spectrum, they might actively seek out, or become obsessive about certain sounds.

Treatment

The question is, what can we do to help redress these distortions of sensory perception. Well, we can learn from the newborn baby. When baby is born, he sleeps for most of the time, only spending short periods of time interacting with this new environment in which he finds himself; - a new environment which bombards his senses with new sights, noises and smells. So he retreats into the safe, calm environment of sleep, which provides the sensory safe haven which up until recently was the sanctuary of the womb. Very gradually, as baby adjusts his sensory system to his new environment, he spends more and more time in the waking world, interacting and learning to communicate, - but he adjusts very gradually!

There is possibly a neurological explanation for this. There are structures within the brain, which act to 'tune' sensory attention. These three structures, which allow us to tune our attention are structures, which enables us to 'tune out' background interference when we wish to selectively attend to something in particular. They also enables us to 'tune in' to another stimulus when we are attending to something completely different. They are the same mechanisms of the brain, which allows us to listen to what our friend is saying to us, even when we are standing in the midst of heavy traffic on a busy road. It is these mechanisms that allow us, even though we are in conversation in a crowded room, to hear our name being spoken by someone else across that room. It is these mechanisms, which allow a mother to sleep though various loud, night-time noises such as her husband snoring, or an airplane passing overhead and yet the instant her new baby stirs, she is woken. It is a remarkable feature of the human brain and it is the responsibility of three structures operating cooperatively - these are the ascending reticular activating formation, the thalamus and the limbic system.

Having made such a bold claim, allow me to furnish you with the evidence to support it. The three structures just mentioned receive sensory information from the sense organs and relay the information to specific areas of the cortex. The thalamus in particular is responsible for controlling the general excitability of the cortex (whether that excitability tunes the cortex up to be overexcited, tunes it down to be under excited, or tunes it inwardly to selectively attend to it's own internal sensory world. ) (Carlson, 2007). The performance of these neurological structures, or in the case of our children, their distorted performance seems to be at the root of the sensory problems faced not only by newborn babies, but the sensory difficulties our children face and yes, as the newborn shows, their performance CAN be influenced, - they can be re-tuned.

I believe the sensory system of some children with autism is experiencing similar difficulties to that of a newborn, - at one end of the autistic spectrum, the cortex is being over-excited by these structures and the person is overwhelmed and has difficulty accommodating the mass of sensory stimulation within the environment. At the other end of the autistic spectrum, the cortex is being under-excited and the person has trouble in perceiving sensory stimulation from the environment. The question is; - How do we facilitate the re-tuning of this neurological system in individuals who have autism. The newborn retreats into sleep, a self imposed dampening of incoming sensory information. Whilst the child with autism does not do this, many children with autism attempt to withdraw from their environment because they find it so threatening.

We believe at Snowdrop that for the child at the end of the autistic spectrum who is suffering an amplification of sensory stimulation, we should create a setting where he can retreat from a world, which is overwhelming his immature sensory system. This 'adapted environment,' which should be as free as possible from all visual, auditory, tactile and olfactory stimulation will serve as a milieu where his sensory system can re-tune itself. Of course it may just be a single sense like vision, or hearing, or tactility, or any combination of senses, which are causing the difficulties and the environment may be adapted appropriately. The child suffering these difficulties will usually welcome this adapted environment, which is in effect a 'safe haven' for his immature sensory system. He should be given free access to, or placed within the adapted environment as needed and you will notice hopefully that he will relax and begin to enjoy being within its safe confines, where there are no sensory surprises.

This procedure should be continued for as long as necessary, - for several weeks or months. Indeed, some children might always need periods of time within the 'safe haven. ' As the child begins to accept and be at ease in his safe haven, stimulation in whatever sensory modality is causing the difficulties, should begin to be introduced at a very low level, so low in fact that it is hardly noticeable. If the child tolerates this, then it can be used more frequently until it becomes an accepted part of the sensory environment. If the child reacts negatively in any way, then the stimulus is withdrawn and reintroduced at a later date. In this way, we can very gradually begin to build the level of tolerance, which the child has towards the stimulus.

For the child at the other end of the autistic spectrum, the child whose sensory attentional system is not exciting the cortex enough, with the consequence that he is not noticing enough of the stimulation in his sensory environment, the approach needs to be the exact opposite. These are the children who we see producing self-stimulatory behaviour. I believe that this behaviour is an attempt by the nervous system to provide itself with what it needs from the environment, - a sensory message of greater intensity! We see many children with autism 'flapping' their hands in front of their eyes, or becoming visually obsessed by certain toys, movements, colours etc. I propose that this is a reaction by the nervous system to attempt to increase the intensity, frequency and duration of the sensory stimulus due to a problem with perceiving visual stimuli from the environment.

Of course, children with autism display a far greater range of difficulties than a theory, focused upon a malfunctioning sensory - attentional system could explain. I am not attempting to claim that sensory problems on their own are an adequate explanation for every facet of autism, - that would be ridiculous! This is merely a possible explanation of a range of issues experienced by some children who have autism, which could be produced or exacerbated by the child suffering distortions of sensory perception. For instance, the following symptoms within the autistic spectrum could possibly be explained at the sensory level.

Failure to make eye contact. Difficulty in sharing attention with anyone. Avoiding interaction with others. Avoiding physical contact. Seeming disconnected from the environment. Appearing not to notice anything visually. Visual distraction, as though the child is looking at something which you cannot see. Visual obsession with particular features of the environment. Inability to 'switch' visual attention from one feature of the environment to another. General discomfort with the visual environment. Appearing not to hear anything. Auditory distraction, as though listening to something which you cannot hear. Auditory obsession with particular sounds within the environment. Inability to 'switch' auditory attention from one sound within the environment to another. Inability to 'tune out' extraneous sounds in the environment. General discomfort with the auditory environment. Appearing not to feel much sensation. Appearing to bee distracted by tactile stimuli of which you are not aware. Obsession with particular tactile sensations within the environment. Appears unable to 'switch' tactile attention from one sensation to another. General discomfort with the tactile environment. Difficulty in communicating with others.

We believe at Snowdrop, that our sensory re-tuning environments offer the best chance for children to overcome such distortions of sensory perception.

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Sensory Overload and Stress

As we move into the new millennium, we witness the effects of increasing environmental, economic, and psychological stress. Sensory overload is taxing the human system. The pressures upon all life on earth have reached unparalleled proportions.

Our bodies are subject to an onslaught of man-made stressors: crisscrossing fields of microwave, radio, television, and electronic transmissions, pollution, noise, and traffic, as well as the bombardments of information and advertising, and the requirements to produce more and more efficiently in the face of fierce economic competition. Add to that the threats of terrorism and war that have created a palpable level of world anxiety and we have a culture dominated by stress, tension, and fear. We are beings of energy vibrating at the edge of disintegration in a sea of over-stimulation.

How do we maintain our balance? What do we do when an intense stressor such as a lost job, divorce, or the death of a loved one lands on top of the load we bear? What if, to complicate matters, this load rests on a personal history of trauma?

One of the main reasons we have a hard time breaking out of this cycle is that we do not realize how deeply we are affected by stress. On the surface, we may speak of being in a time-crunch, feeling burned-out, or needing to get away. We joke about vibrating from all the pressure. When our stress is intensified, we feel that we are going to go ballistic. We blow off steam in more or less productive ways, from exercise to alcohol to road rage, but the underlying pattern of denial remains.

Psychologists describe our perpetual tension, or the fight/flight response, as a reaction to the relentless fronts of over-stimulation. This response pattern is characterized by high-frequency brain waves termed beta waves. We are functioning as if we are on high alert all of the time.

Moreover, medical scientists are discovering how this state of perpetual tension adversely affects our well-being. Stress creates chronic patterns of muscular tension. Muscular tension restricts the flow of blood, lymphatic fluid, and nerve impulses. Cells are deprived of oxygen and nutrients and unable to clear toxic substances. This leads to chronic pain, cellular toxicity, and decreased immune response.

On an emotional level, we experience chronic anxiety and reactive response patterns marked by inappropriate anger and projected blame and criticism. Mentally, we become locked in rigid thinking patterns marked by a defensive mindset governed by fear. Spiritually we resign ourselves to being victims of circumstances and isolate ourselves in a survival mode. While our problems are not new, the pace of modern life has multiplied their negative effects exponentially.

If that sounds overly grim, take heart. It can be motivation to shift our state of awareness. It can intensify the search for ways to live differently. In recent decades, a time-honored light has begun to shine through the dense, tangled lines of our modern networks. This light radiates through a variety of old and new refractions. We see the emergence of a multitude of holistic practices.

In support of these phenomena, research has shown that certain exercises for the mind and body reduce stress and produce deep relaxation via slower alpha-theta brain-wave frequencies. In the states affected by these exercises, such a slowdown simultaneously occurs in many of the body's systems. This slowdown produces integrating, synchronizing, and healing effects. The practice of these exercises can develop capacities within us that will enable us to handle the pressures of our lives.

Taking these exercises even further, we are able to develop senses and modes of perception that have been latent in human evolution, as we know it. We can develop the ability to perceive and cultivate ourselves as the energetic beings that we are on the most fundamental level.

As an entry point to the expansion of the conscious domain, biofeedback research shows that we can positively affect aspects of our lives that we thought were automatic and inaccessible, such as brain-wave frequencies, heart rate, respiration, and chronic muscle-tension, to name a few. Guided-imagery research has proven the power of imagination and visualization in overcoming disease and increasing wellness. Meditation research describes how, through the application of awareness and intention, we can positively affect the intricate pathways that serve as conductors for qi ("chee"), the universal vitalizing force that enlivens our bodies.

Dr. John Sarno, a physician who specializes in pain relief, has shown that emotion and consciousness play a large role in health and disease. He has coined the term Tension Myositis Syndrome (TMS) to describe a host of symptoms that are caused by stress, tension, and repressed rage. To show the direct relationship of consciousness to TMS he found that "Awareness, insight, knowledge, and information were the magic medicines that would cure this disorder" (The Mindbody Prescription, New York: Warner Books, Inc., 1998, p. xxi). This supports what physicists have been saying for many years, which is that consciousness and physical reality are interwoven; mind and matter are inseparable. In the context of the qigong meditation, we see how body, emotion, mind, and spirit form a feedback system that can be used to shift our state of being.

Tension-causing sensory overload is both our most predominant problem and our window of opportunity. It is through a thorough understanding of our stress that we will find a new way. When we uncover the source of stress and take action to release this tension, we open to new possibilities. We recover and develop our fuller sensitivities and feelings of vitality.

These are not the mists of fantasy or the mere ear tickle of sweet sounding words. This is a well-mapped path. The Chinese have used Qigong Meditation as a powerful tool for self-development for thousands of years. You can receive a free introduction to this method and discover a step-by-step program of qigong meditation in my "LEARN QIGONG MEDITATION" course available from http://www.learnqigongmeditation.com

Kevin Schoeninger: M.A. Philosophy, Certified Personal Trainer, Qigong Meditation Instructor, and Reiki Master. http://www.learnqigongmeditation.com

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Heavy Work Activities for Proprioceptive Input in the Classroom - For Kids With Sensory Issues

All children, but particularly those with sensory processing disorder, can benefit from movement activities in the classroom that provide input to the proprioceptive receptors in the joints and ligaments. In addition to providing exercise, these types of "heavy work" movements make it easier for the child to focus and attend. For the child with SPD, it's vital to get proprioceptive and deep pressure input throughout the course of the day as part of what's called a "sensory diet" of activities. It is not enough to get plenty of exercise and calming input before or after school, or during one session of OT. Most children with SPD need to be encouraged and guided to get the input they need throughout the course of the day.

There are many ways to help kids get this input within an ordinary classroom and school building. The child who is a sensory seeker will likely eagerly participate and even find her own ways to get the input she senses her body needs (be sure to guide her in finding appropriate activities, though). In contrast, the child with sensory issues who is underaroused or a sensory avoider may have to be reminded to follow the sensory diet the OT has set up. In either case, while it is great to provide opportunities for input, a child who isn't disciplined or self-motivated enough to carry out a sensory diet on her own will definitely need guidance to ensure that it happens. Given that the alternative is a child who is unfocused, becoming more anxious and agitated, and moving toward sensory overload and a fight-or-flight panic reaction such as aggression or total withdrawal, implementing a sensory diet during the school day during the school day is crucial.

When you integrate these activities into the classroom routine, and other children may participate as well, it helps the child with SPD to not feel quite so different or singled out. If the child is the only one doing the activity, give it a positive spin. Let her be the "playground equipment monitor," carrying the balls and equipment to and from the playground, or the "whiteboard monitor" who erases the whiteboard at the end of each day. You might even have a team of kids, including the children with sensory issues, in charge of washing desks or helping the janitor, and give them an honorary name such as the "clean crew." All of these strategies will reduce the stigma for the sensory child who must have an in-school sensory diet in order to stay focused.

Remember, the child who is focused on the discomfort in her body and her urge to move may be polite and obedient, appearing to pay attention when, in reality, her mind is not on what the teacher is saying. By incorporating a sensory diet tailored to the sensory child's specific, unique needs by a sensory smart school or private OT, you make it far easier for her to focus on what we would all like her to focus on: learning! If the child is verbal, be sure to include her in the setting up of a sensory diet. What works for one child may not work for another.

And check in regularly to be sure that she's really getting the benefit of the activities set up for her, and make it a goal to have her advocate for herself and meet her sensory needs in a socially acceptable way.

Here are some easy ways to get proprioceptive and deep pressure input within a classroom and school environment (of course, the playground and gym offer plenty more activities during recess and gym time, too):

* Move stacks of books

* Deliver items from one classroom to another place in the building (especially if it requires carrying something and climbing stairs)

* Stack items, such as reams of paper, books, or storage bins

* Erase blackboards and whiteboards

* Move chairs or tables, put chairs on top of tables at the end of the day and take them down at the beginning of the day

* Wash desks or cafeteria tables

* Set up and put away folding chairs and tables

* Carry bins of lunchboxes into and out of cafeteria

* Empty wastebaskets, sweep, mop

* Sharpen pencils with an old-fashioned, crank pencil sharpener

* Assist gym teacher or playground supervisor with taking out and putting away equipment such as bags full of balls, mats, scooters, etc.

* Do laps around the gym or playground

* Climb stairs

* Cut cardboard and heavy paper card stock

* Do pushups against the wall

* Do chair push ups (holding the chair on either side as you sit, then pushing up to lift the body)

* Bounce while sitting on an exercise ball (loose or in a holder)

* Press legs against a lycra band stretched around chair or desk legs

* Sit on an inflatable cushion such as the Disc O' Sit

* Walk up a ramp or incline such as a wheelchair ramp or hill on the playground

* Hold open heavy doors, or open them for individuals entering or exiting the building

* Push or drag boxes, carts, or furniture across carpeted floor.

Nancy Peske is a professional writer and editor and the mother of a child diagnosed with sensory processing disorder and multiple developmental delays. She is the coauthor of the award-winning book Raising a Sensory Smart Child: The Definitive Handbook for Helping Your Child with Sensory Processing Issues and has been active in the special needs community since 2002. She sends out a weekly newsletter of practical tips for parents and provides helpful information on SPD on her website at http://www.sensorysmartparent.com

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2012年9月11日星期二

Sensory Function in Children From Birth

Such functions include Vision, hearing, smell, taste and touch. How are they peculiar to a newborn or a child?

Vision
At birth, the eye is structurally incomplete. The fovea centralis is not yet completely differentiated from the macula. The ciliary muscles are also immature, limiting the ability of the eyes to accommodate and fix on an object. However, the pupils react to light, the blink reflex is responsive to a minimal stimulus, and the corneal reflex is activated by a light touch. Tear glands usually do not begin to function until the neonate is 2 to 4 weeks of age.

The newborn has the ability to momentarily fix on a bright or moving object that is within 20cm (8 inches) and in the midline of movement is greater during the first hour of life than during the succeeding several days. Although Visual acuity is difficult to measure, it has been found that a newborn can respond to orthokinetic stripes that are comparable to 20/50 vision.

Hearing
Once the amniotic fluid has drained from the ears, the infant probably has auditory acuity similar to that of an adult. The neonate is able to detect a loud sound of about 90 decibels and reacts with a startle reflex. The newborn's response to sounds of low frequency and high frequency differs; the former, such as the sound of a heartbeat, metronome, or lullaby, tends to decrease an infant's motor activity and crying, whereas the latter elicits an alerting reaction.

There also seems to be an early sensitivity to the sound of human voices, although not to specific speech sounds. One study found that infants younger than 3 days of age can discriminate the mother's voice from that of other females. As early as age 2 weeks the neonate may stop crying to listen to the sound of a voice. The cortical activity associated with hearing or with any other sense is still incomplete at this stage because of the immature myelination of the various neural pathways beyond the midbrain, This lack of cortical integration is responsible for the infant's response to sound.

The internal and middle ears are larger at birth, but the external canal is small. The mastoid process and the bony part of the external canal have not yer developed. Consequently, the tympanic membrane and facial nerve are very close to the surface and can be easily damaged.

Smell
Limited research has been done on the newborn's ability to smell, However, it is known that newborns will react to strong odors such as alcohol or vinegar by turning their heads away. Recent studies have demonstrated that breast-fed infants are able to smell breast milk and will cry to their mothers when the breasts are engorged and leaking. Infants also have the ability to differentiate the breast milk from their mother or from other females by the smell.

Taste
The newborn has the ability to distinguish between tastes. Various types of solutions elicit differing gustofacial reflexes. A tasteless solution elicits no facial expression, a sweet solution elicits an eager suck and a look of satisfaction, a sour solution causes the usual expression. During early childhood the taste buds are distributed mostly on the tip of the tongue.

Touch
At birth, the infant is able to perceive tactile sensation in any part of the body, although the face (especially the mouth), hands, and soles of the feet seems to be most sensitive. There is increasing documentation that touches and motion are essential to normal growth and development, Gentle patting of the back or rubbing of the abdomen usually elicits a calming response from the infant. However, painful stimuli, such as a pinprick, will elicit an angry, upsetting response.

These peculiarities are very essential in observing the healthy state of a newborn or infant.

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2012年9月10日星期一

Sensory Loss in Older Adults - Taste, Smell & Touch - Behavioral Approaches for Caregivers

This article is the third in a series of three articles that discuss the prominent sensory changes that accompany aging, and considers the necessary behavioral adjustments or accommodations that should be made by professional, paraprofessional, and family caregivers who interact with older adults. Though the medical conditions are not reviewed in depth, the purpose of this article is to introduce many of the behavioral health insights, principles, and approaches that should influence our care giving roles. This article addresses age-related changes in taste, smell, and touch, and a related subject, facial expressiveness.

I. TASTE AND SMELL

A. Changes in taste and smell with aging:

1. Less involved in interpersonal communication, leading to decreased quality of life, and contributing to depression and apathy;

2. The decline in taste sensitivity with aging is worsened by smoking, chewing tobacco, and poor oral care. This results in more complaints about food tasting unpleasant or unappetizing, and sometimes causing the person to stop eating altogether;

3. With aging, there is a decline in the sense of smell, resulting in a decreased ability to identify odors. Also the person with a declining sense of smell is more tolerant of unpleasant odors, and this can be further exacerbated by smoking, some medications, and certain illnesses.

B. Effects of taste and smell changes on demented elderly:

1. Individuals with Alzheimers Disease lose their sense of smell more than non-dementia individuals, due to change in their recognition thresholds. This is because there is a concentration of tangles and plaques characteristic of Alzheimers Disease found in olfactory areas of the brains of patients with this disease, compounding the declining sense of smell that accompanies old age;

2. The impairment in the ability to distinguish flavors in foods for those with dementia results in diminished eating pleasure, and a loss of appetite. Recommendation: more attention to and greater awareness of the importance of eating, and reminders of having eaten, which can minimize the risk of malnutrition and dehydration;

3. The impaired sense of taste and smell can result in a serious inability to sense danger, such as gas leaks, smoke or other odors, which would obviously interfere with taking necessary steps for safety. Also, problems with taste may cause the person to overcook or use spoiled foods, raising the risk of food poisoning. Recommendation: use smoke detectors, clean out refrigerators regularly, and check drawers for food hoarding.

II. TOUCH

A. Changes in sense of touch with aging:

1. The sense of touch includes perception of pressure, vibration, temperature, pain, position of body in space, and localization of a touch. Some of this sense of touch diminishes with aging, but affects no more than 50% of older adults;

2. The most pronounced changes occur in the feet, and changes become less apparent as we move up the body. A decline in the sense of perception in the feet contributes to increased danger of falling or tripping over objects. Changes in hand sensitivity will often lead to dropping of objects;

3. Because the sense of touch is the most intact of all senses in older adults, and least impacted by advancing years, it can be the more important means of communicating, whether to gain his or her attention, to reassure him or her, to let the person know that you are there to help, and to guide the person in an activity;

4. Touch is therapeutic since older adults may be touch deprived. In medical and institutional settings, such as nursing homes, there may be even fewer opportunities for touch and physical contact. Recommendation: take extraordinary steps to make appropriate physical contact with the older adult for reassurance, to gain attention, to confirm communication, and to provide a greater sense of safety and security.

III. FACIAL EXPRESSIVENESS

1. Some neurological disorders, like Alzheimers

disease, Parkinsons, and other types of dementia result in decreased facial expressiveness. This makes it difficult to discern emotional reactions or expressions that would otherwise be apparent in those without such disorders;

2. Because we depend so much on non-verbal communications and facial expressiveness, it is difficult to know if the other person is hearing and understanding what we are communicating. This makes it less enjoyable and less rewarding to communicate with someone who does not show the expected emotional reaction, such as a smile, a laugh, a grimace, or even a shrug.
Recommendation: even in the absence of facial expressiveness, do not avoid communicating with this person, but do not be upset or disappointed when the emotional reaction does not appear. Caregiver disappointment and rejection only contributes further to apathy and withdrawal.

PRINCIPLES FOR CAREGIVERS

1. Observe his or her behavior, and look for cues and signs of pain or discomfort;

2. Help the person work through the emotional impact of the sensory changes, allowing expression, acceptance, and support of the grief and sadness accompanying these losses;

3. Do not try to fix the unpleasantness; acceptance and support goes a longer way toward healing than a quick fix or a patronizing attitude;

4. Reduce excess disability by maximizing whatever functioning is still left, such as proper eyeglass prescriptions, or functioning hearing aids;

5. Consider assistive devices (phone amplifiers, large text books, headphones, and the Braille Institute for a variety of useful visual aids).

6. Remember that the need for touch increases during periods of stress, illness, loneliness, and depression;

7. Touch is especially important when communicating with blind, deaf, and cognitively impaired individuals;

8. Use touch often, but only to the extent that the person is comfortable with it;

9. Do not give the person a pat on the head, or a tap on the cheek, as this can be perceived as condescending.

Normal aging brings with it a general decline in sensory functioning. To minimize the emotional, behavioral and attitudinal impact these losses have on older adults, caregivers should develop insights and approaches that take the special needs into account, and try to turn unpleasant, frustrating situations into more caring, helpful, and sensitive interactions. As caregivers can integrate behavioral principles in the delivery of the health care with older adults, we can have a positive impact on the management of these losses.

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2012年9月9日星期日

Movement, Rhythm, and Sensory Disturbances Affect Perceptual Reality - What Can We Do to Help?

An organized body leads to an organized mind! A person with severe, nonverbal autism often exhibits intense sensory, movement, and rhythm difficulties that affect all areas of development. The messages, the impaired sensory systems project are irregular and often confusing. In some cases, but not all, there are disrupted underlying thought processes, which cause difficulty organizing and categorizing thought. When movements (dyspraxia/apraxia) are not automatic, problems initiating and implementing motor skills including speech often occur. Central nervous system dysfunction may be the cause of this miscommunication among neurons, which renders someone with severe autism unable to think and move his body simultaneously. Initiating, stopping, and switching movement are all difficult.

If the person is unable to direct his body upon verbal request, or to imitate when provided visual cues, motor him through movement patterns. Repetition with a ramping down of motored prompts develops the neuron circuitry that allows the voluntary movement to become automatic. Break skills down into small units and keep language simple and direct. Use visual and gestured cuing as needed. Incorporate, backward chaining techniques, a process where the person is motored through the majority of the steps and then encouraged to complete the last step on his own. For example, when learning to zip a jacket, motor the person through the process of engaging the zipper and let him complete the last step by pulling it up. These strategies work well with self-help skills that require a series of steps. (I.e. tooth brushing, dressing, and shoe typing)

Dyspraxia/apraxia renders sign language difficult to learn; a poor choice for expressive communication; however, learning to understand signs and gestures as visual cues is effective receptively as many of these individuals are stronger using visual rather than auditory systems. When performing gross motor movements, motoring and repetition is key! Exercises that cross the midline and engage both hemispheres may have added benefit. (I.e. Brain Gym) Start early for the best outcome; however, it is never too late for improvement. Nature walks on uneven terrain encourage the individual to attend to a natural environment, and to respond automatically with appropriate movements. This lessens the inhibitory factor that often appears in artificial settings.

A nonverbal individual may appear to give priority to one sensory channel at a time. There is often a delay in auditory processing; hence, a visual stimulus may not be experienced simultaneously with auditory input. Some might demonstrate totally disconnected sensory channels. For example, an individual who responds correctly by selecting a correct response from a field of words or pictures may lose his accuracy in selecting a correct response if he has to get up and move. Is it just that he has difficulty thinking and moving at the same time or could it be more complex? A visual prompt, - picture, sign or gesture- will usually remedy the problem, but it does not wholly explain the break.

A person may indicate he understands and appropriately reply to a directive verbally, typing, using words/picture cards, but still not be able carry out the action. For example, ask the person, "Where are you going?" He responds, verbally or using alternative communication devices, " I'm going to hang up my coat." Instead of hanging up his coat, seemingly oblivious, he heads off in a different direction. Is it going from listening to thinking to moving that cause the thought disruption? A lost connection occurs when the student moves.

When working from a field of choices, a person may never look at the choices, not even a quick peripheral glance may be detected, yet, his selection of responses may be correct! It appears as if he is seeing and controlling his body from outside himself. A person, who has difficulty integrating sensory channels may easily match objects presented visually. (I.e. word to word, picture-to-picture, object-to-object) This process becomes more difficult when pairing visual material that varies from the concrete (object) to the representational (picture) to the word (abstract). (I.e. matching two words or two pictures is much easier than matching the word to the picture. Matching the word to the picture is easier than matching the word to the object.) Crossing sensory channels can be difficult. The person may be unable to match an object presented visually with an unseen object. For example, put a crayon, bottle of glue, scissors, and a ball, in a bag. Show the individual a crayon, and then ask him to reach into the bag and find the same. If he is unable to find the crayon, put one of the crayons in his hand, and ask him again to reach in the bag to find the other crayon. Repeat the activity, using the other objects. The person may be successful visual to visual or tactile to tactile, but not visual/auditory to tactile. After a good deal of practice, he may improve while another may continue to have difficulty.

An individual may appear to lack an internal rhythm. When young, parents should hold their child close, so he can feel the heartbeat/rhythm of the mother or father. An older child may be provided an external rhythm by alternately tapping the right and left hand, shoulder, or arm. Many of these individuals like rhythmic pressure to the sides or front and back of their heads. Listening to ocean waves, nature sounds, or music might help him attune to the rhythm of the earth. Moving to music or drumbeats might also help. An agitated person can be encaged in meditation by holding hands and breathing in unison with calm person.

Sight, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures may serve as sensory irritants. Eliminate aggravations when possible. One reason a student may engage in self-stimulatory behavior is to modulate unwanted stimuli. These repetitive behaviors might also help the person establish a rhythm to organize their movements. A person may also be trying to block out interfering thoughts and emotions of others or he might be stimmming as a strategy to return to his own internal world. Whatever the reason, instructors should encourage the person to stop when in the process of direct instruction since self-stimulation seems to enable the client to block the teacher, parent, or therapist. When not involved in instruction, let the individual re-engage in his preferred self-stimulatory activities as these activities may be helping him self organize and/or relax. If the self-stimulatory behaviors are dangerous or socially unacceptable, attempt to replace, rather than fade them.

Allow ample time for spinning, swinging or jumping on a trampoline for the individual student is the best judge of the type, intensity, and duration for vestibular and proprioceptive input over time. Each individual should determine what he needs. Brushing, deep-pressure massage, joint compressions, meditation, sacral cranial, reiki, and reflexology may help the person feel comfortable in his body. If comfortable, the person is more apt to stay present and attend to instruction. The importance of rhythm and movement is paramount in helping a person with severe autism reach his full potential.

Definition of Terms: apraxia/ dyspraxia: Impairment of the ability to execute purposeful, voluntary movement. binaural beats: Two different frequencies are presented, one to each ear, the brain detects phase differences between these signals. A perceptual integration of the two signals takes place. Vestibular: The system that sub serves the bodily functions of balance and equilibrium. It accomplishes this by assessing head and body movement and position in space, generating a neural code representing this information, and distributing this code to appropriate sites located throughout the central nervous system. Vestibular function is largely reflex and a€‥unconscious in nature. Proprioceptive: describes the ability of the to sense the movement and position of muscles without visual guides. It is essential for any activity requiring hand-eye coordination, awareness of posture, movement, and changes in equilibrium and knowledge of position, weight, and resistance of objects as they relate to the body. Resonant entrainment of brain waves: Because neural activity is electrochemical, brain waves can be influenced. Think of the tuning fork effect. Rhythm: a measured movement, the recurrence of an action or function at regular intervals. Subconscious: The part of the mind below conscious perception where subconscious joining or blending may occur. I speculate that the mixing of subconscious minds can exist without one's conscious awareness. This blending can be very helpful in helping the person understand and operate in "our" typical perceptual reality.

I have worked with a vast array of people with autism. Many of the ideas I present are based on experiences intuitively listening to what my students were trying to show and tell me. My ideas have also been influenced by information that I have read based on the work of others that has resonated with me.

Mary Ann Harrington MS

http://web.mac.com/maharrington

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2012年9月2日星期日

Sensory Stages One and Two in Concept Development

In order to learn about the world and the things in it, we must explore our surroundings and gather information through our senses. Regardless of whether we are talking about a child or adult, or a developmentally delayed or gifted individual, and regardless of the skill or concept we are considering, the brain must begin its search for information by using the senses.

If we do not recognize something as having been encountered in the past or if we encountered it but did not understand it, we will rely on our sensory organs to gather information. Both children and adults who are presented with something completely novel to them will begin their investigation by looking, touching, tasting or listening to it. It is only after we have gained information about the physical properties of the thing we are exploring that we can move on to investigating it at a more sophisticated level.

Because sensory exploration is the foundation of all learning, individuals who have visual or hearing impairments and those who have inadequate sensory integration or sensory processing abilities are at a great disadvantage and are therefore at higher risk for experiencing delayed development and learning disabilities.

All skills and concepts follow the same sequence of developmental stages: acquiring information about something's physical properties by exploring it with the sensory organs, discovering how these properties change when an action is taken (cause and effect relationships), and the ability to manipulate this information symbolically in the mind in the absence of the thing itself.

Children with atypical development progress through the same stages of concept development and in the same order as children with typical development. Due to the sensory processing problems that the atypical population experiences, however, they often cannot progress as fast through these stages and can become stuck in a stage for years, perhaps even indefinitely, if they are unable to gain access to the information and experiences they need in order to progress to the next higher level.

The fist two stages of skill or concept development (we call this "cognitive" development) are the sensory stages. In the first stage the learner uses only one sense at a time to explore something. Stage One is marked by behaviors like watching but not touching or looking away from something that is being manipulated by the hands.

Stage Two is marked by exploration behaviors that show the coordination of two or more senses: an object an be manipulated at the same time it is being watched or it can be mouthed at the same time it is being manipulated with the fingers.

The sensory stages illustrate the progression from "simple to complex" and from "single to multiple" that will mark all of the stages of cognitive development. In language development, for example, infants vocalize and produce individual sounds, grunts, or squeals before they produce more complex constructions like combining consonants and vowels ("canonical babbling"). In the same way, children first explore individual physical properties of things before they can coordinate their senses well enough to explore two or more dimensions of an object at once.

We can think of the process through which brains gather information from sensory exploration as like stringing beads to create a necklace. Individual bits are collected and strung together one after the other before the pattern appears. In the next article we will explore how brains move from collecting information about the sensory properties of objects to considering how those properties might change when an action is performed (e.g. exploring cause and effect). It is in this next level of cognitive development that the brain will move beyond a simple fact gathering machine to higher level cognitive abilities like imagination, creativity and attaching symbols with meaning, While the first two stages of sensory exploration form the foundation of all learning, it is in the next three "cause and effect" stages that higher level cognitive abilities begin to appear.

To learn more about stages of development in language and play, visit http://www.braintraining.com

More specific information on cognitive development can be found in Dr. MacAlpine's books: Brain Training: New Hope for Children with Delayed Development, Sensory Processing Disorders, or Samurai Teacher: A Practical Guide to Brain Based Education (available from Publishers Graphics Bookstore at http://www.publishersgraphicsbookstore.com/MacAlpine-Michelle_bymfg_26-3-1.html

Dr. Michelle MacAlpine is a cognitive developmental neuroscientist in private practice at Brain Training Associates in Plano, Texas, 75093

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Diagnosing Autism and the Differences With Sensory Integration Disorder

When it comes to diagnosing autism, there are many different factors that need to be considered. This is because the autism spectrum disorders have such a vast range of potential symptoms and no two cases are alike. Therefore, it is very easy to mistake autism for another condition. Among the most common mistakes when diagnosing autism is not understanding the difference between being on the spectrum, and sensory integration disorder.

This leads to the question of whether autism spectrum disorder and sensory integration disorder (also known as sensory processing disorder) are the same condition, or at the very least if they are related. Does one exclude the other? To begin, they are considered to be completely separate disorders, but to further understand them, Dr. Lucy Jane Miller performed a study "Quantitative psychophysiologic evaluation of Sensory Processing in children with autistic spectrum disorders", involving 40 high functioning autism or Aspergers Syndrome children who were tested for sensory integration disorder.

Dr Miller's results showed 78 percent of the participating children also displayed notable signs of sensory integration disorder. While, 22 percent of the participants did not show signs. However, a secondary study by the same researchers, "Relations among subtypes of Sensory Modulation Dysfunction" looked into children diagnosed with sensory integration disorder and tested them to see how many also had autism. Within that experiment, zero percent of the participants had autism. The reason that this is interesting is that while children with autism can exist without having sensory integration disorder, the majority show signs of the condition. On the other hand, there is no inclination toward autism in children who have only sensory integration disorder.

Children with both disorders demonstrate challenges with high-level tasks that involve the integration of different areas of the brain. This can include emotional regulation as well as complex sensory functions. However, the key to diagnosing autism as opposed to sensory integration disorder usually lies in the fact that autistic children experience greater problems in the areas of language, empathy, and social skills. Sensory integration disorder children do not experience the same connective breakdowns for controlling emotional empathy and social interaction.

In both disorders, children experience difficulties in tasks that require their brains to make long-distance connections, for example, between the frontal lobes (which coordinate the activities of the brain) and with the cerebellum (which regulates the perceptions and responses within the brain).

If you think that your child may have one or both of these disorders, it is important to speak to your child's pediatrician for autism diagnosing or identification of sensory integration disorder on its own or in combination with autism. If autism or autism alongside sensory integration disorder is the diagnosis, then you will be able to begin talking about the possible treatments available. These treatments can include various medications as well as alternative therapies and may overlap in terms of addressing aspects of both conditions simultaneously. For example many children with autism benefit from sensory integration therapies that also work well for children with sensory integration disorder.

Grab your free copy of Rachel Evans' brand new Autism Newsletter - Overflowing with easy to implement methods to help you and your family find out how to go about diagnosing autism and for information on autism characteristics please visit The Essential Guide To Autism.

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