Sensory overload meltdown how to#

It’s important to understand that a meltdown is not another word for a tantrum. This is why an outburst of behaviour – the meltdown – occurs.

Sensory overload meltdown how to#

With children, they often can’t recognise, explain or know how to cope with the overwhelmed sensory processing system. She may not be able to carry on the conversation or even keep walking – she is seemingly shut down, standing in the middle of the sidewalk squeezing her head with her hands. Another person with SPD may squint and cover her eyes from the bright sun, but not recognise the cause or how to regain stability. In the above examples, one person with SPD may have an overwhelmed reaction from something much quieter or less obvious as the noisy TV. There are many forms of SPD, and each one can affect someone differently. So, you put on sunglasses and resume normal conversation. Or perhaps the sun is too bright, making it hard to see or to pay attention to what someone is saying because you’re distracted. If your hearing informs you that a scene on TV is too loud, then you can easily get up and turn the volume down. Here’s an example to illustrate the difference between a person without SPD and a person with. If you imagine more than just the five senses, and instead imagine all of the sensations from the environment and our own body that we perceive. This is why understanding how sensory processing works and how any amount of sensory overload can cause meltdowns is critical for parents to understand how to cope and adapt.

Additionally, for children with ADHD, ADD, autism, dyspraxia, or motor coordination problems, sensory processing issues often overlap with their other challenges. It leaves many children with anxiety and poor social skills for coping with school and everyday life.Įven if your child is not diagnosed with SPD, a large percentage of routine meltdowns stem from a stimulation overload. For children with this condition, the brain has trouble receiving and processing information from the senses. In my area of work, I most often see meltdowns associated with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). There are so many reasons a child could have a meltdown.