As I peck this out on the keyboard the Aspie teen is off in the city to a lecture with his Dad.
I won some tickets to a talk, part of the Melbourne Writer's Festival, on White Noise in a Networked World.
Science + history + lecture + digital + networking = right up Aspie teen's alley of interests!
Of course, when I complained about the 'inland moisture event'(you and I know it better as a big bloody storm) hubby leapt to the rescue of taking him in to the lecture.
Now, Aspie teen has had increased sensory sensitivity in the past 18 months, increasing to the point that he throws his arms out wide declaring
"I'm a tree! Hug me!"
To which we are expected to give him really tight squishy hugs.
Which he returns.
And almost busts our ribs.
Anywho, he'd been banging on about getting a Snuggie for almost a year when hubby snaffled him one at a local cheapie shop (plain blue, no faux leopard print in this house!) and Aspie teen has been in 7th Heaven.
Cos he can wrap it around himself tightly.
His sense of smell is so sensitive to the point he was refusing to have showers cos he was overwhelmed by the perfume of soaps/shampoo, toothpaste, etc.
We became somewhat sensitive to his particular smell but that's another tale *snort*
Same with his hearing - he's able to partially block out everything around him while out by playing his DS Nintendo (it's saved our sanity a bajillion times) but he can hear us speaking softly from several rooms away and he's become increasingly light sensitive to the point you'd describe him as photo-phobic.
Side-tracking here... he used to be on medication that made his eyes more sensitive to UV light leading to a higher chance of developing cataracts if he didn't wear sunnies while outdoors yet the school fought us on every attempt to allow him to wear them at recess, interesting to see SunSmart Victoria is now including it as part of the sun-smart clothing!
Aspie teen has often complained about white noise distracting and irritating him to the point he has a meltdown.
Not that he can pin-point that white noise is the cause, we have to work our way back through Every.Tiny.Little.Itty.Bitty detail and it's not something that used to automatically spring to my mind.
I'm so glad I live in this techno-savvy world where we can use hand-held computer games to block out irritants, use iPhones and iPads to help kids to communicate and where we're able to identify and recognise irritants like white noise whereas 50 years ago people would have been labelled insane.
He's now home describing the lecture, talking about a room in Cambridge University where it's minus 13 decibels and so noise dampened that you can hear your blood running through your veins, hear the electrical signals of the nervous system and your digestion!
Some people become so overwhelmed they can become nauseous, pass out or have audio hallucinations.
Yeah, how abouts we don't build one at home here?!@
8 comments:
Why wouldn't you want a noise dampened room? It would make a great hideout when the kid has a tanty.
I bet you're glad you got out of going to that lecture! LOL
I think you mean meltdown, River, and he'd find me easily enough :)
LOL, Cheryl, sitting at home in the warmth or out in the biting cold wind... tough choice lol ;)
Meltdown; I knew I used the wrong word. But you knew what I meant.
The lecture sounds fascinating. :)
Daniel's only real notable sensitivity is taste and texture (hates anything mushy or stringy or with a strong flavor. Ground beef is fine, but all other forms are out. He'll eat chicken, but only certain cuts. Dislikes turkey, fish, and pork in all incarnations). Most spices are out. Which means feeding him is a bit of a headache.
His current obsession is with the theory that explains gravity. Science hasn't yet come up with a satisfactory explanation--at least not one that satisfies Daniel. He has his own.
Put me in one of those rooms and I'd go on a diet immediately after hearing the fat squelch as I walked.
We could make money with a 'fat room' Jayne.
Oh, Lordy, I know what you mean about their own theories/explanations, Mary, and how THOROUGHLY they have been considered ! ;)
I'd be in the padded room next door, JahTeh :P
SPD is still a bit of a mystery to me, with regards to my son that is as he can't talk yet so therefore can't describe how exactly different things affect him sigh. We have to stab in the dark and work it out. It probably helps that I have pretty big sensory issues with sound, like and texture myself. Interesting post, it was good to see another take on it and glad you got to stay home :) Jen
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