More Insight: IEP language and Heavy Work

More from the chapter in Miller's book, Sensational Kids:

Discussing school adaptations, LaTonya has "an Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) stating that she has sensory problems causing her to have behavioral issues that hurt her academic performance".  I took note of the specific wording here for possible use in Katie's plan.  "The plan contains specific objectives, and one of these is to calm her overreactivity so she can pay attention in class".  Again, wording that could apply specifically to Katie.

Miller goes on to discuss a particular intervention of heavy work used in LaTanya's case "for calming her overalert sensory system and recharging her batteries for the big challenge of the classroom".  In this case, LaTanya goes to the library every morning and carries a load of heavy books to her classroom- one example of heavy work.  I wonder if such a scheme would be helpful for Kate too?

Miller defines Heavy Work here as "a term applied to any activity that engages the muscles and joints of the proprioceptive system".  She had previously explained the stimulating the proprioceptive sense can generate calming messages to the brain. "Tasks that engage more or bigger muscles generally create greater proprioceptive stimulation and have the biggest effect on behavior".  

"In (Occupational) therapy, children are taught to recognize when they need heavy work and to generate it for themselves with activities such as pushing against a wall or another resistant surface, pulling a heavy load like a wagon with another child as passenger, or walking up a flight of stairs".  Miller says that "heavy work tends to lower arousal levels and reduce cumulative effect so that the child is prepared for the next sensory surprise."  and "Heavy work for LaTanya (and Katie) is the equivalent of finding the volume button on the background noise that is always buzzing in her sensory system and turning it down."

Interesting note here, on one of Kate's visits to her therapist, the blinking tic was particularly bad and the therapist decided to try some heavy work.  She had Katie plant her feet and push hard against the wall, as if trying to push it over, and then gave her a squeeze ball and had her squeeze it as hard as she could for as long as she could hold it.  She reported to me later that after this the tic was gone and did not return for the rest of their session!  Hmmm, something to think about....

Fear Where Others Find Fun

Picture an average kindergartener going to a cousin's birthday party.  She looks forward to it with great anticipation, but problems arise where there is supposed to be fun.  The party is at Pump-It-Up, an indoor inflatable play place, and for extra fun, it's a glow-in-the-dark party, so the lights are off and instead there are star-like sparkles and disco lights flashing.  It looks really cool and the pumpin' music completes the scene.  While the cousin and his friends tumble down the inflatable slide and bounce houses, Katelyn is paralyzed with fear.  She cries and clings to me, insisting on being held, and begging to go home.


Katie has always had a serious fear of the dark.  Having difficulty with vestibular input, she can't sense where her body is in relation to her surroundings, so she usually relies on her sight to clue her in, but can't in the dark.  She finds the flashing lights disorienting  The music everyone else finds fun feels like an assault to her sensitive ears, as do the screams and squeals of fun from all the other kids.  While Katie loves the proprioceptive input of bouncing and jumping, she only feels safe doing it on her own terms, with no one else around to bump into her or wiggle the inflatable unpredictably.  At a party, though, she can't get the bounce house all to herself, so she just sits in the corner of it and screams if anyone else gets too boisterous.  Every movement feels to her like being tossed on a stormy sea.  She is in perpetual fight-or-flight mode as her body tells her she is in great danger.