The kids decided earlier this week that they won’t be heading out trick or treating this year. Instead, they have chosen a more family approach. Since Sydney has multiple food allergies trick or treating for her is always very disappointing not to mention the whole over stimulation from the frantic pace of going door to door to some overly gruesome masks and the fact that it’s dark and things are lurking in the bushes to scare you. In her 9 years she’s maybe gone out 2 of those. She’s opted instead to stay in and hand out candy. Her big brother on the other hand this year really felt the plight of his food intolerance/anaphaliaxis ridden sister and for the first time really got how difficult this trick or treating thing is for her and he too opted to sit out this year.
Instead of the running around for candy we as a family decided that we’ll carve the pumpkins the night before. We packed some Halloween bags up for the kids in the neighbourhood that they play with and today the two of them went out and hand delivered them explaining that they won’t be out Halloween night and but they wanted to take them the treats! Then on Halloween night we’ll turn off all the lights outside, order pizza, crawl into PJ’s, watch movies all tucked in our bed and let all the other ghosts and goblins haunt the night. Sounds like a plan to me!
Each year we arrive at a new milestone and this year was no different. Sydney has issues sometimes with tactile exploration of things; especially items that are really ooey and gooey like pumpkin guts. Up until this year she would not stick her hand into the pumpkin at all.
Learning to Love Touch
As mentioned in the introduction of this section, some people love touch experiences. For people who fall into this category, many of the activities reviewed above should be incorporated into their schedules frequently during the day. Even having tactile baskets, boxes and/or bags filled with lots of textured objects for them to go to during rest time is a good idea. Choosing fluffy, silky clothes and all kinds of pillows and blankets will help provide the tactile input that they crave.
For many, however, touch is not as comfortable a thing. As a matter of fact, for certain individuals, the thought of touching some substances makes them feel sick. While a coping mechanism often employed is to avoid all things tactile, this is not a healthy approach to life. Wearing gloves alleviates the need to have skin contact with objects, but an associated underlying anxiety stays with the individual throughout the day as the need to “protect” and guard against tactile stimulation is an ongoing issue.
Courtesy of Tactile Exploration and Discrimination at The Motor Story Read the full article here
Well, this year she did and she actually carved the whole pumpkin all by herself. I caught her on video working through the pumpkin guts and she even says, “I’m working through the gooey stuff.” It’s a small step but one none the less that gets her closer to facing those feelings and experiences that make her uneasy and apprehensive.
If you have a chance here’s the video of the pumpkin carving. I called it Halloween Ooey Gooey and the picture that graced the beginning of the blog post, that’s her work of art.
Happy Day before Halloween!
