Vestibular stuff

Hi everyone, 

Please bear with me, I've only learned about the vestibular sense in the last year so I am on a very sharp learning curve here... Of all the senses, this is the one that my boy (5, almost 6) seems to get the most over-stimulated with, plus he's had an official coordination assessment, which he scored just 5% in, so that's triggered another referral back to paediatrics. Obviously waiting lists are insane so I'm not expecting to hear from them any time soon. 

But I just wanted to know if anyone's had experience in terms of channeling this particular area. Can kids with vestibular dysfunction (if that what he has?) be good with dance, gymnastics, sport? Any positive takes other than throwing himself around and swaying his head and getting dangerously close to the busy road? (This is obviously a very real concern that needs addressing now and not in 18 months when his appt comes in!) 

Another thing... his vestibular stimming has definitely got more pronounced lately. Is this something that changes with age? 

Thank you! x 

  • I used to spin all the time as a child. We even had these sit-n-spins. Most children love swinging, and movement which helps them engage with their sense of gravity. It's quite good for our human selves. I wouldn't call this stimming. It's simply Being Human, just not Being 'trained' out of him by Neurotypical socialising. Autistics may not mature out of very natural states at the same time as their peers, due to not worrying about what everyone thinks of them (difference in socialising) and so not repressing their internal innate being. While there are some drawbacks to appearing younger, we also have a greater ability to engage a sense of Wonder/Awe and this is a positive. But also, the earth is in motion. Literally all things are in motion. We can be very tapped in to this natural state of things and far more concerned for our physical environment than social. 

    I also had Alice in Wonderland Syndrome which is a Vestibular issue with the sense of gravity, which I believe goes as away as we lose hearing. it's still untapped science. The Vestibular system was really only discovered in the 90s, so it's new. 

    But I have chatted with others also autistic and we noticed how much we benefitted from judo, yoga, dance, gymnastics - early on. None of us being interested in the competition, but the engaged practice of hyper-focusing on the kinetics of the the sport. As an adult, I've ben told I'm quite graceful - but if you interrupt me or demand I immediately shift focus or I am not allowed to do one thing at a time I will absolutely trip, fall, break things and hurt myself.  Fun stuff!  A side note that EDS biology might mean we require stretching and moving a little more often https://www.ehlers-danlos.org/information/exercise-and-movement-for-adults-with-hypermobile-ehlers-danlos-syndrome-and-hypermobility-spectrum-disorders/#:~:text=Doing%20gentle%20stretches%20(or%20%27mindful,to%20overstretch%20into%20hyperextended%20positions.

    Grunya Sukhareva, who pioneered autism, recommended vestibular exercises for her kids.

    I'd encourage swinging, jump-roping, jumping jacks, spinning at home - stationary stretching which you can maybe do with him when out and about, so it doesn't cause injuries. Sometimes encouraging a particular engaged movement in particular places can help with habit-forming. 

  • Can kids with vestibular dysfunction (if that what he has?) be good with dance, gymnastics, sport?

    From what I have read on the subject there is no "cure" for it - just therapy to help the other senses adapt to compensate for the poor balance etc that come with it.

    There is quite an interesting (if rather technical) article on it here:

    https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnint.2021.743561/full

    the majority of subjects with ASD have some degree of auditory and vestibular dysfunction.

    ...

    Vestibular dysfunction in ASD includes postural instability, gait dysfunction, and impaired gaze. Untreated vestibular dysfunction in children can lead to delayed milestones such as sitting and walking and poor motor coordination later in life.

    ...

    There is evidence that early intervention for children with ASD focusing on eye contact, gesturing, and vocalizations results in significant improvements in the child’s language and social interactions

    The article is mostly about the early screening for vestibular dysfunction rather than the treatments though, but there is a wealth of links to other research which may give more illumination on this.

  • I am a natural climber, but have terrible hand-eye coordination; I’m terrible with coordination in traffic, but I glide-over rock fields on beaches; I’m a natural archer, but terrible at tennis; I’m a natural grappler, but terrible at boxing.. that’s all I can think to say atm..Thinking