What is auditory sensitivity?

Answer 1

...."My 5 year old son is very bothered by loud, busy places/loud noises and tends to "shut down" or struggle when there is a lot of background noise. This is clearly interfering with his ability to function in school and social environments. His Occupational Therapist and Speech Therapist have not been able to offer any real advice on methods to address this problem. Do you have any suggestions? "

....--Patti

>

Sensitivity to certain noises and sounds is a very common problem in people

with Asperger¹s who also have sensory integration problems. This problem

is often called auditory defensiveness. Defensiveness occurs because the

individual is often trying to protect themselves from sounds that are very

irritating, scary or stressful. Some individuals are sensitive to only loud

sudden noises, such as fire drills, but others can be sensitive to noises

that others easily screen out, such as the background noises of machines

(e.g. fans, fluorescent lights, computers, ticking clocks, etc.) Also, some

individuals are sensitive to only certain voices, sometimes those that have

a higher pitched sound. Sensitivity to higher frequency sounds is also

common. Every person who has sensitivities experiences them differently.

The frustrating thing is that we can not always control for these sounds

that occur in our everyday environment and unfortunately the world seems to

be a louder place. Electronic sounds and loud music fill our lives. There are many ways to begin to help an individual with sensitivity to

sounds. Providing special accommodations for the individual or trying

methods to change the way sounds are emitted in the environment is

recommended. One might speak with professionals who treat children with

auditory sensitivity. I will try and provide some suggestions for each kind

of solution.

1. If you know that the child will be in an environment that will have

bothersome noises, you can try to provide strong sensory input before hand

that the child likes and helps them feel calm. These are often those that

offer strong input to the muscles and joints and deep pressure to the skin.

Some children like jumping or rough and tumble play. Carrying heavy

weighted objects or pushing heavy objects (wagons or carts) might also help.

2. Provide headphones or ear plugs that the child might use during the noisy

times. To view headphones made specifically for this purpose, log onto

www.sensorycomfort.com They also have a number of books and resources that

address this problem. In school, teachers might allow headphones if not

hooked into music, or some might even allow use of soft, Classical Music to

use on a Walkman.

3. Use earplugs (e.g. used for swimmers) that will provide protection,

however some children find these uncomfortable. You might try them first to

see how the child accepts them.

4. Some younger children might be do fine with just holding their hands over

their ears, if they are motivated enough to stay for a "noisy" event. For

instance, if they like musical concerts, you might help them cover their

ears to dampen down the sound.

5. I would not recommend taking a young child to fireworks displays if you

know they definitely have auditory sensitivity, However, if an older child

likes fireworks and is familiar with them but has auditory sensitivity, I

would recommend sitting far away and observing them from a distance.

Helping them cover their ears the entire time to dampen the sound might also

be helpful.

6. You might need to remove the child from the area until the sound goes

away or find a quieter corner that is away from the noise. For instance, in

a noisy restaurant try and find a quiet corner away from the kitchen. In a

noisy classroom you might suggest having a very quiet corner for the child

to go to get away from the noise.

7. Use rugs and/or curtains in a room to improve the acoustics of a room and

decrease the loudness of sounds. Turning off fluorescent lights might help.

(Use of natural lighting is often less stimulating anyway.)

8. Warn a child before hand if possible of any pending loud sounds. Let

them know you will be vacuuming the floor or using the washing machine and

help them with a plan to accommodate, whether it be to leave the room, wear

headphones, or use earplugs. In schools where fire drills occur several

times a year, you might speak to the teacher to see if there is a way to

warn the child ahead of time and develop a plan. In a small school or

preschool, you might suggest having the teachers use a soft sounding musical

instrument to warn the children, such as a triangle or soft Flute. The

preschool where my daughters attended has used the triangle for years and

has had many a successful fire drill.

9. Educate, educate, and educate! Share your awareness about your child¹s

sensitivity with teachers, family members, neighbors, etc. When a child

know that adults around him/her understand their "hidden" needs, the child

feels safer and is likely to feel less anxious.

10. If sensitivities to sounds become a serious issue that you would like to

see change, there are many specialists who can address these problems with

providing a kind of sensitivity training. Two methods that some people use

are called the Tomatis or Berard methods. These men have each developed

methods of intensive auditory therapy using specialized equipment. Those

using the method must be highly trained and have access to this equipment.

This type of intervention is usually directed at improving auditory

processing and decreasing sensitivity to auditory input although other

benefits are also reported. Many children and adults, especially those on

the Autistic spectrum, have been involved in auditory training. To learn

more about Tomatis, contact www.tomatis.com. To learn more about Berard, or

the Berard Auditory Integration Training system, contact

www.auditory-integration.net. There are some occupational therapists that

have started to combine the use of the Tomatis method and sensory

integration intervention together in their practice.

11. Some occupational therapists also have training with Therapeutic

Listening therapy that they use within the scope of a sensory integration

treatment session and in an intensive home program. To learn more about

this, see www.vitalLinks.net>

....

Answer 2

Auditory acuity means how well you can hear.