Vestibular Sensory System Part 1

• Balance and Spatial Orientation: The vestibular system helps us understand where our body is in space and how we are moving. This understanding is crucial for performing tasks like walking, running, and even sitting upright.
• Muscle Tone: The vestibular system has a significant impact on the our muscle tone, which is essential for posture and coordination. A well-functioning vestibular system ensures that muscles can respond quickly and appropriately to changes in position.
• Arousal Level Regulation: The vestibular system plays a role in regulating arousal levels—how alert or calm we feel. This regulation helps modulate responses to sensory input, supporting focus, and attention.
• Link to Auditory Processing: The vestibular system is closely linked to the auditory system, influencing how we process sound. This connection can affect how we hear and interpret sounds in our environment, impacting our overall sensory experience.

Children with an underdeveloped vestibular processing system may face significant challenges in everyday life. These problems can make activities that many take for granted, such as playing on a swing or walking on uneven surfaces, very difficult. Vestibular processing issues can occur in various ways:

• Hypo-Responsiveness to Movement: Some children may not effectively register vestibular input, appearing under-responsive to movement. They may constantly seek out intense sensory experiences, such as spinning, jumping, or swinging, to help them feel more balanced and oriented. This behavior contrasts with children who are fearful of movement due to feelings of insecurity and imbalance.
• Fear of Movement and Avoidance of Physical Activity: Other children may be overly sensitive to vestibular input and fearful of movement because they feel insecure and unbalanced. This can lead to a preference for sedentary activities, avoiding swings, climbing, elevators, unstable surfaces or any activity where their feet leave the ground.
• Balance and Coordination Issues: Children might struggle with activities requiring balance, such as riding a bike, jumping, hopping or even walking in a straight line. These children might appear clumsy or uncoordinated, making it difficult to participate in everyday activities.
• Poor Posture and Muscle Tone: A weak vestibular system can lead to poor muscle tone, causing issues like slouching, difficulty sitting upright, or fatigue when standing for extended periods. This can further impact a child's ability to engage in physical tasks effectively.
• Constant Motion and Difficulty with Focus: On the other end of the spectrum, some children with vestibular processing challenges are in constant motion, unable to sit still. This hyperactivity can affect social and learning activities such as reading and writing at school and make it difficult to sustain concentration without moving. These children might appear uncoordinated or clumsy, frequently falling and moving through environments without regard for safety, impulsively jumping, spinning or running.
• Difficulty Navigating Environments and Locating Objects: Children with vestibular issues may seem lost in familiar environments, struggling to locate objects or navigate spaces effectively. This can lead to confusion and frustration, further impacting their ability to engage in everyday tasks.
• Psychological Impact: Vestibular processing challenges affect not only physical abilities but also psychological well-being. Children may have heightened emotional reactions to stressful experiences, leading to anxiety or feelings of insecurity in certain environments.
• Challenges with Sequencing and Bilateral Coordination: Vestibular processing issues can also impact a child’s ability to sequence activities and coordinate both sides of the body. Tasks like ball throwing or catching may become particularly challenging, affecting the child's ability to participate in games and physical activities.

Vestibular avoiders are highly sensitive to movement and tend to become overwhelmed by everyday activities such as play and travel. These children often:

• have extreme or upsetting reactions to even mild stimulation. 
• as a result, they may appear withdrawn or defensive and have trouble fitting in with their peers. 
• experience symptoms associated with anxiety disorders and engage in repetitive self-soothing behaviors
• Prefer sedentary activities, such as video games or reading.
• Avoid swings, slides, monkey bars, and other playground equipment.
• Feel off-balance or unsteady on slanted or uneven floors.
• Become fearful when tilted backward or unable to touch the ground.
• Experience motion sickness or headaches after intense movement.

• Give Warnings Before Movement: Don’t lift, tilt, or move your child without giving a warning. This helps them prepare and feel more secure.
• Provide Grounding Support: Hold your child’s hand while walking to offer grounding and a sense of stability.
• Ensure Comfortable Seating: Use a footstool if your child’s feet can’t comfortably touch the ground while sitting.
• Offer Calm Alternatives: Provide calm alternatives to playground activities, such as hiking or playing catch, that don’t involve intense movement.
• Manage Motion Sickness: Teach your child to focus on a static point inside the vehicle to reduce motion sickness.
• Develop Calming Strategies: Work on calming strategies together and create a plan for how to exit overwhelming situations.
• Provide a Quiet Recovery Space: After experiencing motion sickness or headaches, provide a quiet place for your child to lie down and recover.

Vestibular seekers often crave sensory stimulation through constant physical activity. Unlike vestibular avoiders, seekers seem to need continuous movement to feel balanced. Children who are vestibular seekers often:

• Appear to have hyperactivity or behavioral issues, often being mislabeled due to their constant need for movement.
• Constantly be in motion—running, jumping, spinning, or climbing on furniture and other objects.
• Love being upside down or spinning in circles and seem never to get dizzy, seeking out intense sensory experiences.
• Engage in fast, impulsive, or unintentionally rough movement during play, which can sometimes lead to accidents.
• Struggle to concentrate while sitting and may find it nearly impossible to stay still for even short periods.

• Introduce sensory-rich toys and activities such as swings, bicycles, and trampolines that provide the intense vestibular input they seek.
• Offer a variety of seating options like exercise balls or bean bags to allow movement even while seated.
• Use footstools or resistance bands around chairs to provide subtle stimulation during tasks requiring sitting.
• Schedule regular movement breaks throughout the day, such as running in place, doing push-ups, or jumping jacks, to help with transitions between activities.

References:

Ayres, A. J. (2005). Sensory Integration and the Child. Western Psychological Services.

Gannotti, M. E., & Bowers, A. A. (2014). "The effect of vestibular input on postural control in children with developmental coordination disorder." American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 68(3), 298-305.

Miller, L. J., & Lane, S. J. (2000). "Diagnostic Manual for the Sensory Processing Measure." SOP Publishing.

Kranowitz, C. S. (2005). The Out-of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder. Perigee Books.