Does your child cover their ears in response to loud noises?
Are they bothered by ordinary household items such as vacuum cleaners?
Or are they distracted by background noises that others ignore?
In this post, we explore auditory defensiveness and its challenges in children with sensory processing difficulties.
Also known as auditory hypersensitivity, over-responsivity or over-reactivity to noise, this sensory challenge can lead to auditory overload and cause a state of stress for the child. Typically, auditory defensiveness is when the brain perceives auditory sensations in a more intense way than others. Therefore, the responses of a child overly responsive to auditory sensations are of greater amplitude than others. These challenges can be common among children with ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Sensory Processing Disorder, but also in the absence of a formal diagnosis.
It is common for kids with auditory processing challenges to also have hypersensitivities in other sensory domains, such as tactile aversion or sensitivity to smell. Everyone has a sensory profile and they can vary greatly in how their body processes and reacts to sensory stimuli. For example, some kids will be under-responsive to auditory stimuli and thus seek more input, whereas auditory defensive children will avoid sensory stimuli where possible.
Common signs and symptoms of auditory defensiveness include:
- Easily startled by noises
- Covers their ears in response to loud noises
- Runs and hides after loud noises
- Gets overwhelmed in busy and noisy environments e.g., shopping centres or birthday parties.
- Frequently distracted by background noises and has difficulty focusing
- Seems to ignore instructions
It can be tough for children to maintain a state of optimal arousal and alertness if their nervous system is constantly overloaded. This may impact their social development and participation in meaningful occupations.
How can Occupational Therapists help?
When first seeing a child who presents with auditory sensitivities, the occupational therapist might ask the parents to complete a sensory questionnaire, such as the Sensory Profile (Dunn, 1994) or Sensory Processing Measure 2 (Parham et al., 2021) to assess the sensory reactivity of the child.
Interventions that may help with auditory sensitivities include:
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- Modifying the child’s environment such as:
- Change their classroom seating arrangement
- Provide a safe and quiet area for them to retreat to when needed
- Providing access to noise-cancelling headphones to use in loud environments such as classrooms, shopping centres, concerts or birthday parties. Headphones can decrease auditory distraction and increase engagement and attention to tasks.
- Modifying the child’s environment such as:
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- Providing input to other sensory systems and using sensory tools such as:
- Fiddle with hand fidgets when school bell is ringing
- Chew on something when you’re in a busy shopping centre
- Put on noise-cancelling headphones when transitioning in and out of the assembly
- Incorporate heavy work activities before, during and after the event of concern
- Write a social story with the child about strategies or equipment to use when feeling overwhelmed.
- Incorporate auditory input into play activities to help the brain process and understand different volumes.
- E.g., Play with drums at different volumes.
- Pre-warning the child, acknowledging the source of the sound and acknowledging the feelings of the child.
- Use a visual schedule to help them prepare and have some control over what will happen e.g., Breakfast, get dressed, then go to the shopping centre with Mum.
- Providing input to other sensory systems and using sensory tools such as:
Some children will integrate their sensory system and reduce their auditory sensitivities, whereas others will benefit from coping strategies in response to auditory stimuli. No matter what the sensory difficulty, the child will benefit from clinic-based intervention from an occupational therapist.
Together with your occupational therapist, you can support your child’s sensory needs with the greater goal of increasing participation and engagement in their daily occupations.
If you would like to inquire about this or learn more about how we can help your child, please call us on 9913 3823 or email hello@occupationaltherapy.com.au.