Sensory Processing Disorders (SPDs) And Speech

Last Thursday, we had a little one come in with her parents for an assessment. She was making these adorable funny sounds instead of talking, which isn’t exactly a new scenario for us. You know how it is – parents just want their kids to start talking!
It’s a concern we hear quite often during these assessments. But here’s the twist – as we delve into these cases, we often uncover a more intricate link between sensory processing and speech.

Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) is all about how kids experience sensations like taste, touch, sound, sight, smell, movement, and body awareness. Sometimes, it’s a major part of conditions like Autism or ADHD, or it can stand on its own. Some kids are super sensitive to these sensations (hyperresponsive), while others seek out more sensations (hyporesponsive). You can check here for a detailed overview of SPDs.

How Sensory Processing Disorders Affect Speech

Those unique sensory responses, whether they’re under-sensitive or over-sensitive, can have a big impact. They predict things like speech, communication, and even meltdowns in kids with Sensory Processing Disorders. And get this: kids with more sensory processing difficulties tend to show different behaviors like irritability, lethargy, hyperactivity, and not-so-great speech and social conversations.

Oral Sensory Issues: Children with SPDs may have sensitivities or aversions to certain oral sensations, affecting their ability to explore and interact with food textures, tastes, and oral movements. This can impact oral-motor skills necessary for speech.

Auditory Processing: SPDs can affect how a child processes auditory information. This may result in challenges in discriminating sounds, following instructions, or understanding speech, leading to difficulties in expressive and receptive language skills.

Tactile Sensitivities: Sensory sensitivities to touch or tactile input can influence a child’s comfort level with oral-motor activities. Difficulties in processing tactile information may impact speech-related movements, such as tongue and lip coordination.

Proprioceptive Challenges: Proprioception involves awareness of body movements and positioning. Children with SPDs may struggle with proprioceptive input, affecting their ability to coordinate the precise movements required for clear speech.

Attention and Focus: SPDs can impact a child’s attention and focus, making it challenging for them to concentrate on verbal communication. This may result in difficulties in language processing, memory, and overall communication skills.

Social Interaction: Social challenges associated with SPDs can affect a child’s motivation to communicate and engage in social interactions. This, in turn, may impact the development of language and communication skills.

Effective Sensory Activities for Children with Speech Challenges

But not to worry, there’s good news too.  We’ve witnessed remarkable progress in working with children facing speech difficulties, especially during those vital early years before reaching the age of five. We’ve observed significant improvements, from kids who initially had no speech to developing full speech capabilities, and from those who struggled to communicate to expressing themselves clearly.

In our upcoming blog post, we’ll delve into the various sensory based activities that have proven to be highly effective in supporting and enhancing speech development.  Stay tuned for more insights!