SENSES and SENSITIVITIES IN CHILDREN (Part Two) - for all mothers

SENSES AND SENSITIVITIES IN CHILDREN - pPart Two

(Part two)   Author: Robyn Sharrock © Adapted from her book ‘Drive the Genie Express’ and her ‘life experience’ with sensitive children.

FIRST SIMPLE SOLUTIONS: Solutions that bring change are often the most simple. Start by blocking the

worst of the stimulus in the space where children spend the largest chunk of time in their day – their bedroom. They spend more than one third of every day in this room.

SIGHT: Quieten the room down! This is contrary to all the decorating tips for children’s rooms, which advocate stimulating your little ones by creating an active lively room to keep them happy. I advise to do the opposite because this is the room they need to be the calm oasis in their world. Make the colour scheme soft and soothing, remove excessive visuals like posters, bright coloured borders and bright lights. Clock radios and music machines should be well away from the bed and tuned to soft easy listening music. Make sure all stuffed animals and any remaining pictures do not look at the bed/ child. In half light or dark the staring eyes of toys become frightening. This advice has helped many parents get children to sleep in their own rooms and want to go there for time out to calm down. This has worked for babies, toddlers and even one ten year old, who couldn’t sleep. How calm would you feel in a bright, lively and active room with lots of vague shapes staring at you?

TOUCH: Make the fabrics and feeling of the room soothing, soft and comforting. Kids love to snuggle in for cuddles and into their bed. Both of my sons, as babies, loved the feeling of soft netting to bury their face into. Later they had a favourite soft toy. This is the reason many kids love a dummy or suck their thumb – it is soothing.

TASTE: If children push presents or toys away – put them away even if grandma gave it to them. If the have something they don’t like in their room they will fixate on it and produce internal negative images and feelings. Some may not want to go into the room – so check out what they like. If they can’t talk read their body language in relation to items you point to.

HEARING: Check what can be heard in their rooms when they are sleeping at night or at other times. We often think it is quiet but the TV sound varies so they may hear disturbing sounds and not know where it comes from. Other noises to check for are arguing neighbours, arguing parents, siblings or anything unpleasant. In cases like this an easy listening very low music could mask the problem.

SMELL: Find out what natural smells they like eucalyptus oil, lavender or rose oil. When you find their favourite dab a little on things in the room to make it smell friendly and keep shoes mould free. Old stale toys or hand me down clothes need thorough cleaning and a little of their smell put onto it to make it feel like it belongs to them.

KNOWING: The bottom of the bed should not face the door directly. In Feng Shui this is known as the tomb position. I have had adults ask me about feeling disturbed in their beds. Usually the tomb position is the cause because ‘subconsciously’ we feel like someone can come in and grab us easily. We feel vulnerable just like at birth when we are pulled out from our comfort zone (the uterus) into a glary, noisy and scary world. If the tomb position can’t be avoided a curtain at the bottom of the bed helps.  In Feng Shui a Unicorn is the guardian of children and many children are drawn to them or parents ‘instinctively’ know this is needed in a child’s room.

We do not know all that they may know. For example Son No. 2 insisted on having a picture of a white tiger in the western corner of his room facing away from him. When I studied Feng Shui, much later, I found out that ‘white tiger’ is protective in the west facing out. I was quite impressed because even when I moved it he would replace it.

SIGNALLING: The hard question in part one was ‘which senses are involved with food sensitivity?’ This sense is the answer and it encompasses all the other senses. Eg a child eats red apples and the taste buds recognise salicylates and signal the brain ‘incoming allergic food’. The brain signals the body and the allergic reaction or behaviour is the response. In this article we are starting simply with the bedroom. Sensitive children read people, animals and the environment at a level that requires no words. They may see and feel things that you do not. This is the sense that may lead to strange reactions to or in the room such as screaming in fear of their room even after you have calmed it down.

They may see things in the dark become scared and obsessive about monsters under the bed. My solution to this one was using Boogie-man/ monster proof spray at bedtime. This was organic air freshener with Mum-made label that I ritually sprayed under the bed and in the wardrobes at bedtime.

ELECTROMAGNETIC POLLUTION: The simple solutions in the bedroom are to have all electrical items well away from the bed and the child head. The bed should not be up against a wall that has electrical items against it on the other side. We design houses for a living and I always try to make sure bedroom walls are not up against walls that have electrical appliances on the other side. If this cannot be avoided hang a long piece of silk behind the bed. Silk is very protective, which is the reason I have it under my lap-top as I type with it on my lap in a comfortable lay back chair. I also wear a device, which protects.

OUT-GASSING: The simple solution is to check by carefully by smelling, taking toys out of plastic sealed packaging early and giving them a good scrub. They may look all shiny and clean in their new wrapping but who has handled it to get it to this stage and what gas is being locked in by the seal? Plastic toys are in abundance now and most kids put them in their mouth. The worst experience I had was when my boys were moved into a brand new school. What a fabulous set up with the best decorative lino, new painting, computers, great lights – the works. But their behaviour deteriorated and I was called up to the school. I was over whelmed immediately as the buildings and contents were out-gassing badly and I felt the impact. Thankfully most teachers smelt it and kept the windows open and it was less in three months. I made sure the boys had plenty of fresh air and ‘outside time’ after school and on the weekends. A shopping centre regularly sends out promotional brochures, which smell so bad they have to go into the outside bin without me reading them. The glossy ink they use is just too toxic.

FINALLY BE A CHILD: go into their room at various times of the day and get down to their level and examine the room – open up your senses and try to experience what they experience.

End SENSES and SENSITIVITIES  IN CHILDREN (Part Two). Part Three –more complex issues coming soon.