If you were building a new house, what would you do different for your child?

[gatorsmom]

Greenbean is 5yo and has SPD. He is vision and auditory hypersensitive and proprioceptive hyposensitive (meanng he seeks deep- muscle and joint input). We are building a house and he will have his own room at our new house. When building it, we provided extra insulation around his room for some sound protection and I've had his room painted a soothing medium grey color. It's almost a light blue. His room gets a lot of natural light as it is south-facing (which I will have to protect against and am not sure yet how).. I was going to give him the 2 twin-size Step 2 race car beds his brothers are now sleeping in and move them to different bedroom sets that we inherited from my parents. Greenbean is very familiar with his older brothers' beds and has played in them and laid in them enough for them to feel comfotable and familiar. I am hoping that will help alot in this big transition to a new house for him. But Im wondering if there is more I should be doing. He will be the only one of the kids with a walk-in closet which I could see him using to organize f he needs to. But I was wondering if there is anythin else we should do to make this room really a comforting and safe-feeling place for him? The race-car beds are primary colors and at some point we might want to get him a plain bed with a plain, solid- colored bedspread to tone down the visual input. And there will be enough room for a peapod bean bag in his room for proprioceptive input.

Any other ideas?

[hillview]

DS2 is a lot like GB.

I'd set up something in the basement or another room as a play room where the kids can kick balls and lift heavy things (weights) and do all kinds of active play. They do this in the playroom as that is all we have and it is OK but I'd prefer a larger room for this sort of thing that was also away from the kitchen.

For DS's room a nice hugging chair -- maybe something from here
http://funandfunction.com/

Also DS2 LOVES his red expedit shelf -- lots of room for his stuff.

[gatorsmom]

Good ideas, thank you. I'm sorry you know what we struggle with here. Some days with SPD are so tough. Hugs.

[snowbunnies300]

Is there room in the bedroom for a swing? One of the kinds that you bolt to the ceiling? Below is the swing my sons prefer at school and the bar you would bolt to the ceiling. If it were in his room he could go there when he needs the sensory break and provide his own self regulation.

https://store.schoolspecialty.com/OA_HTML/ibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?minisite=10206&item=2118825

https://store.schoolspecialty.com/OA_HTML/ibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?minisite=10206&item=93332

I would also consider seeing how he responds to red light. For my children and many with sensory issues a red light is comforting. Most people become aggitated. My oldest son responded well at school to being in a small space that was dark and the only light came from a red bulb. The teachers/aides first sat in with him but had to leave and sit outside the room because it was so irritating to them but DS1 would be calm.

How does he do with bouncing/jumping. My children need an exercise ball. Maybe one in his room that he can sit on and bounce lightly would also help regulate him when he is needing sensory input.

I would consider textures in his bedding. Does he like crisp sheets or fleece. My children do much better with fleece ~ even in the summer. We found that laying a heavy fleece blanket over their sheets made them sleep better. I've given up on a nice comforter and stick with fleece blankets.

If GB has a room that he knows is sensory "safe" he will go to it when he needs to as he will be drawn to meet his sensory needs.

[Kestrel]

I only know a bit about the subject, but a family member's child loves the door to thier room being a half-door. She can close the bottom half and keep siblings out when she chooses, but still have the top open.

[kijip]

Can you install a hammock? I mean in addition to the beds and not in lieu. These seem really great with many kids with sensory issues, including T. Best spot to cocoon and read. We don't have a spot for it now so he uses one only outside in summer but out next place will definitely have this for him inside.

[melrose7]

If you have space, whether it's in his room or a playroom, we got this a few months ago for DD1. I thought I would be able to use it for deep pressure, which it does some, but compresses a little too much, but has been great for jumping, getting out some energy.

Everyone loves our crash pad!

http://www.amazon.com/Skil-Care-Exercise-Crash-Pad-CRASH/dp/B004NTO8T8/ref=sr_1_2?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1357107945&sr=1-2&keywords=crash+pad

So between us having this, a mini trampoline, a real 8 ft balance beam, I would love to have an OT room if we had extra space.

[pastrygirl]

I would LOVE to put one of these in Toby's room: http://southpawenterprises.com/Vestibular/CuddleSwing.asp

I'm of two minds when it comes to setting up his bedroom. He loves the downtime-sensory stuff, like soothing lights (we have a great USB "lava" lamp that's perfect), air mattress, furry pillows, weighted blanket. But he also loves the gym-type stuff, like trampolines and river stones.

Right now, our spare room is set up as a "rest-ation" room -- he named it, rest and relaxation. ;) It has a Yogibo bean bag thing, rocker/recliner from when it was a nursery, Fortamajig (xmas present) for setting up a quiet/private space. I had a small ball pit in there but it was too tiny. I want to get a bigger pool to set it back up, because it's very soothing to him, like a bath.

I keep all the "active" stuff in his bedroom, like the trampoline and weights for heavy work.

I wonder if I have it backwards, and should make his bedroom the rest-ation room.

ETA: I love the Yogibo because it's VERY comfy, light, stands up to get it out of the way, and makes noise. The texture is neat and interesting to Toby.