Dental Professionals

Our eyes are obviously very sensitive. It only takes one time of being poked in the eye or having a flashlight pointed toward your eyes to know you must carefully protect them. This sensitivity, and the unfamiliar environment of an optometrist's office, make it difficult for children with SPD to easily have their eyes examined. Learning about SPD and the calming strategies that can help with regulation will help eye care professionals provide exceptional care to children with SPD.

Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, Physicians, Physician Assistants, Technicians, Medical Assistants and other healthcare professionals obviously have extensive knowledge about the human body. However, Sensory Processing Disorder isn't a commonly studied deficit. Understanding SPD and how it impacts their patients can help healthcare workers approach, respond to and plan for their pediatric patient interactions.

Some children with Sensory Processing Disorder struggle to simply have their hair brushed by a parent or familiar caregiver. Often those same children tantrum or "meltdown" at the hair salon or barber shop. Understanding sensory issues that contribute to these meltdowns will help hair care professionals to respond appropriately to dysregulation; or even prevent meltdowns entirely.

Teachers, school staff and child care providers are all likely to regularly interact with children that struggle with sensory processing. Children who are emotionally regulated in a quiet home environment, can quickly become dysregulated in a "sensory rich" school environment. Understanding Sensory Processing Disorder can help adults working with these children provide strategies and tools to support their success. Crafting a sensory friendly educational environment will not only help children with SPD, but will support emotional regulation for all children.

The unpredictable sights, sounds and experiences that are typically part of the excitement of traveling, can be very dysregulating to children with sensory processing disorder. Understanding SPD can help tourism professionals to anticipate difficult situations, respond quickly and appropriately to children who are struggling, and to craft experiences that are more positive for children and families allowing them to enjoy their travel adventures.