THE SENSORY MADE SIMPLE PODCAST

Transcript

Welcome to Sensory Made Simple, a podcast dedicated to helping moms figure out how to understand your child's sensory needs and how to support them.

Whether it's tackling meltdowns, eating new foods, or just getting through the day without feeling completely drained.

Hi, I'm Dr.

Sam, a pediatric occupational therapist and busy boy mom.

And each week, I'll share simple, realistic tips that fit into your busy life.

Because believe me, I get it.

Adding one more thing to your plate feels overwhelming enough.

No complicated terms, just easy to follow strategies to help your child feel calm, confident, and understood.

So grab your coffee, chances are I've got mine too.

Pop in your earbuds, and let's figure this out together.

A little note before we begin.

Please be advised that this information in this podcast is not medical or occupational therapy advice, and is just for general and informational knowledge.

Okay, let's get to the show.

Get out the door in the morning is quite possibly one of the biggest challenges as a mom.

There's so many things to think about.

There are so many things that need to be done.

And you are just trying to do what you need to do to start the day right.

And every single step feels like a fight.

Your child's melting down about socks.

They're refusing to move.

They're clinging to you like a lifeline.

You are absolutely exhausted before 8 a.m.

and absolutely nothing you do seems to help.

Today, I want to talk a little bit about why mornings are especially hard for kids with sensory challenges and a few really simple things you can do to start making the mornings less chaotic because isn't that what we all want?

Just a little less chaos in our day.

This episode, I'm going to try and keep it really straightforward.

We're going to go right into what's hard and then we're going to go right into the tips.

Short, sweet, and to the point.

Okay, so let's talk about what is happening.

Why are mornings so challenging for kids who struggle with sensory issues?

Well, first of all, there is too much pressure, too fast.

Mornings are absolutely loaded.

We feel the pressure.

You have to get dressed.

You have to eat.

You need to brush your teeth, pack the bag, move quick, get out the door, all with these bright lights, with noises, with people talking.

It is a lot to take in.

It's a lot of sensory stimulation.

They are full of have-tos, and that kind of pressure is really overwhelming to a kid whose nervous system is already on the edge, is already kind of expecting the worst, expecting sensory input to not feel good.

That is a lot of pressure, too much, too fast in the morning.

Along with that, transitions.

We're asking for so many transitions.

We're asking for them to go from sleeping to waking up to getting dressed to eating to going into the car, brushing our teeth.

Every single step is a switch.

And that is really hard.

Transitions are notoriously challenging for kids with sensory issues.

It's a lot of switching in short amount of times.

Their brain needs more time to shift from one thing to the next.

And then we're asking for the biggest transition of all, to separate from you, their safe person.

Leaving you in the morning is emotional if they're going to school, if they're going to daycare, if they're going to a nanny.

They might cling to you, cry, or act out.

And it's not that they're trying to be difficult.

They're probably feeling a little anxious and overwhelmed.

You are their safe person and separating from you, especially if they're already dysregulated from all that pressure and from the transitions.

It's too much sometimes to handle.

And of course, this might differ day to day depending on how well they slept.

So a lot of kids who have sensory issues or struggle with sensory challenges, they also have a hard time sleeping because their body isn't getting the input it needs during the day or it's getting too much of the input, and it's unregulated at night.

And they might have a hard time staying asleep at night, sleeping soundly at night.

So then they're waking up and their body is even more unregulated because they're starting, you know, when you start a day without a lot of sleep, you're not starting as your best self.

And so, they need you a lot of the time to help regulate their body.

And so, if they are not sleeping well, it is often a lot harder in the mornings because they're coming to the table with their sensory thermometer, already feeling a little wonky.

And last, getting ready in the morning, getting out the door, requires really high level brain skills called executive functioning.

Now, for one thing, we are still developing our ability to have really good executive functioning until we are 25.

The brain is not fully developed until it's the age of 25.

So kids do not fully have their executive functioning skills developed.

In addition, executive functioning is really related to sensory processing.

So many kids who have trouble with sensory processing also have trouble with executive functioning.

And if you are not familiar with executive functioning, these are those really high level skills, planning, memory, emotional control, that we need to function on a daily basis.

If this is a concept that's newer to you, I highly recommend you listen to the episode that I recorded with Carrie Bainé.

She is an expert in this area.

I'll link that for you in the show notes, so you can get kind of the full lowdown on what executive functioning is, break down that big term, and really understand it.

Mornings require a lot of these really high level skills.

The ability to know what you need to do to get ready in the morning, the ability to plan out those steps in your head correctly, to get out the door efficiently.

While we might have in our head, okay, I know we need to do these things.

We need to eat it this time.

We need to pay attention to how much time we have left.

A lot of the times, a child in general, and especially a child with sensory processing challenges, this is a struggle for them.

They need us to help with that.

And while we think they might remember that these things need to be done, they know what they need to do.

They might be getting confused in there.

They might forget.

They might get carried away with something else.

They need our help a lot of the times with those executive functioning skills.

Okay, let's shift into those tips.

What can you actually do to help?

Because I know that's why you're here.

What can we do to make my mornings less chaotic?

I'm going to give you seven pretty simple tips.

Okay, number one, do whatever you can the night before.

I know this is not my favorite tip.

Because the night before, I am exhausted by the time we go to bed.

But it really does change how things go the next morning.

Pick out your clothes with them.

Pack the lunches.

Set up the breakfast choices together.

Taking this mental load off of the next morning gives you more time back.

And even just these small one or two things make the morning feel less rushed.

It's one less argument that you need to have in the morning because it's already been chosen together.

So pick out the clothes together.

Prep that snack.

Pack your bags.

One less thing means one less meltdown.

Number two, use a visual schedule and a visual timer.

A visual schedule is pretty much exactly what it sounds like.

It is a schedule with pictures of everything that you're going to do in the day.

Again, this helps with those executive functioning skills that we talked about, this planning.

It also helps with the transitions because they know what is coming next.

You can print pictures, you can draw it together.

If your child is able to read and write, you can just write it out.

But you literally want to write down kind of as many steps as you can.

Wake up, get dressed, eat, put your shoes, get in the car.

These visuals help your child see what is coming without these constant reminders from you.

And then a visual timer is a timer that shows usually a color.

So the timer will have kind of a shade on, if you're looking at a clock, think about it in quarters.

So like you would see that you have one big chunk left that's still red, and it would kind of get smaller and smaller as the time dwindles.

And that will help them see how much time is left.

So they know that they're getting closer when they see the color fading away.

Number three, include sensory input as early as you can in the morning.

Think about what your child's body needs to feel just right, and think about how they're waking up.

When they wake up in the morning, are they amped up and ready to run around?

And now you're asking them to sit and eat breakfast because their body might not be ready for that.

Are they waking up and they're really groggy, and they need some quiet time before they're ready to transition into that stuff?

What does your child's body need to feel just right?

We really want to think about their sensory system here.

We follow a lot of the times we'll see these plans that are like, okay, we'll just have low stimulation in the morning.

For a child who's really groggy and really tired, low stimulation might not be what they need.

They might need to actually get their body moving, do some deep pressure, do some animal walks.

On the other hand, another child who is bouncing off the walls in the morning, they might need some movement right away.

They might not respond at all to those low stimulation, low lights.

Other kids in general might just need some quiet time to curl up on the couch, read a book.

It's gonna be about what your child's body needs to feel just right.

And I want you to think about that from the moment that they wake up.

Yes, that might mean that you need to wake them up a little earlier and add in some buffer time to get what their body needs.

But the idea is you're actually going to waste less time fighting with them and more time giving their body what it needs to feel good and get out the door in a good mood.

Number four, offer a snack or a drink early.

So this is all the rage right now on Instagram is these morning wake up snacks.

I'm not saying everybody needs a wake up snack, but a lot of children with sensory processing challenges can't figure out what is going on inside their body.

So they often don't feel if they're hungry or if they're thirsty, they might not know.

They might not realize.

They might not be paying attention to those cues.

And so offering it to them kind of first thing when they wake up, hey, here's a water.

Have their water ready for them.

Hey, here's a little wake up snack ready for you.

Try it and see, do they do better?

Did they just need something to help make them a little less crabby until breakfast is ready?

Maybe that is the input that they need to get going.

Maybe sucking through a straw gives them that proprioceptive input that feels good and wakes up their body.

Maybe chewing helps calm our sensory seekers down a little bit.

Try it out.

See if it works for you.

If it doesn't, that's fine.

But you never know if that quick bite or that quick sip of water gives their body what it needs to get going.

Number five, keep clothing simple.

I know as parents, we want to dress our kids in the cutest clothes because kids' clothes are so much cuter than adult clothes.

But keep it easy for them.

If socks are a battle, try seamless options.

If they don't have to wear socks with their shoes, even better.

At school, I'm guessing they probably want you to wear socks, so try different options.

But don't let sensory issues about clothes steal your entire morning as a fight.

Comfort is going to come before fashion when it comes to that nervous system overload.

You can progressively start to work to new fabrics.

Start with soft, easy outfits that make their body feel good.

Remember, every single sensory stimulation that we are adding in changes their sensory thermometer.

So when we are making them wear uncomfortable clothing, that is taking away from their ability to regulate somewhere else.

So choose your battles.

Maybe they're okay with clothing.

Great.

Figure out what clothes are really good for them.

There are so many sensory-friendly options right now.

Target has a whole section online of sensory-friendly clothing.

There's so many bamboo options right now, even in cute, decorative clothing.

Try different things out.

Keep the clothing simple.

Make it easy for them.

Number six, add in extra time for transitions.

This tip hurts my heart even to say.

Wake them up a few minutes earlier if they need time for transitions.

I know, I know, if one more person tells me to wake up early, my head is going to explode.

But kids with sensory challenges often need more time.

They might need a five-minute warning.

They might need that visual timer.

They might need that time for sensory input.

It can really help to give them extra heads up and extra timers.

So we're brushing our teeth in two minutes.

Okay, we're gonna brush our teeth in one minute.

It gives them time to mentally prepare, as opposed to just brushing them through everything.

They need more time to process.

They need more time for their brain to switch between tasks.

Transitions are hard.

Expect to go slower.

It's hard for you too.

I know you're just trying to get out the door, but our goal here is to spend more time connecting and less time in chaos and meltdowns.

And waking up a little earlier, or giving those extra time for transitions might actually give you time back.

And last but especially not least, keep your energy calm.

This is way easier said than done, right?

I know this first, and I remember when I first started as an occupational therapist, my energy was absolutely not calm when I was in sessions.

I was stressed.

I was tense.

And the kids picked up on it.

But they need us to co-regulate with them.

If we are feeling stressed, if we are feeling rushed, if we are feeling tense, your child feels it.

Your calm helps regulate their chaos.

Even a deep breath can shift things.

They pick up on everything, even when they don't think they do.

Literally, if I lay my head on the floor, I can see my son pick up on it.

He'll come over.

He'll put his hand on me like, wait, are you okay?

If our tones are rushed or snappy, it might spike their stress response and kick off the fight or flight response.

Regulate yourself.

Get what you need to regulate and help change the tone of your morning.

All right.

Let's do a quick review here of those seven steps because I know when I listen to a podcast, when I get to the end, I have forgotten literally all of them.

What can you do to help your mornings be less chaotic?

Number one, do whatever you can the night before.

Number two, use a visual schedule or a visual timer.

Number three, get sensory input in there early.

Give them what they need.

And it doesn't have to be given them.

It could be low stimulation.

It would be taking away.

But help their body regulate.

Think about where their sensory thermometer is in the morning and help it get back to that just right spot as much as you can.

Offer a snack or drink early.

Have it ready for them.

Number five, keep their clothing simple.

Number six, add in extra time for transitions.

And number seven, keep your energy calm.

Mornings are not hard because you're failing.

I know as a parent, at least I feel like at the time, I always feel like I'm failing and flying by the seat of my pants.

But they are hard because you are juggling all of these things.

You're juggling sensory needs.

You're juggling transitions.

You're juggling emotions.

You are juggling trying to get out the door and get them to school on time, get to work on time, all before you have had your cup of coffee.

Here's the big thing I want you to take away from this though.

It's not about making mornings perfect.

It's about having a little less chaos and removing stress so you can start the day with a little bit more peace and your child starts the day with a little bit more peace because how we start the day really does set the tone for our day.

Try one thing.

You don't have to try this whole list.

Try one thing and see if it makes your morning just even a little bit, a little bit easier.

Start small.

Start with a cup of water.

And know that it's okay if it takes some time to figure this out.

It's a lot of trial and error to see what works for your child, and one of these tips might work and one of these tips might not work.

It's all about finding what works for you and your child or your family.

Try one thing, one simple thing, and see if it makes your morning just a little less chaotic.

If this episode feels like your life right now, go grab my free sensory guide if you haven't already in the show notes.

It breaks down the different types of sensory issues and what might be going on when your child is showing you certain things and what you can do to start understanding how to help them.

Or if you're like, Sam, I am all in.

I need more support.

Join the late list for Sensory Made Simple.

I'm working on it right now.

And it is amazing.

I would love to not only help your mornings, but your entire life.

Feel less chaotic and a little easier by understanding your child's sensory system and how you can support them.

You can jump on the wait list for that at www.doctorsamgoldman.com/sensorywaitlist.

Or if you wanted to free grab that free guide, you can go to www.doctorsamgoldman.com/sensorysurvivalguide.

And I will link all this in the show notes for you.

And I will see you next time.

Here's to making tomorrow morning just a little bit more peaceful and a little less chaotic.

Thank you so much for joining me today on Sensory Made Simple.

I hope you're heading off with a little extra confidence and some easy ideas to tackle those sensory struggles head on.

If this episode was helpful or gave you a tip you can't wait to try, it would mean so much if you would share it with a friend or leave a quick review.

It helps more moms like you find the show and support their child too.

And remember, every small step you take makes a big difference for your child.

You've got this and I am cheering you on every step of the way.

See you next time.