“Back to School” is a phrase that the majority of parents look forward to and dream about for two months. However, as a parent of a child with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) I know that these feelings are very different. The smiles can be replaced with nervousness, fear, and a sense of anxiety on both the parent and child’s part. As we all know, parenting is like a curvy road and you’re not quite sure where it will take you. A parent of an SPD child is maneuvering the “road” of life, but the path is not always paved. Often, we are maneuvering on an unpaved or even gravel road.

It’s been 8 years since a team of therapists from Early Intervention diagnosed my oldest son with Sensory Processing Disorder. Before that evaluation I had never heard of Sensory Processing Disorder or the acronym SPD. At that point in my life, my family life was so chaotic. Most nights I would get into bed feeling utterly exhausted and defeated. I felt hopeless!!

One of the most surprising problems my daughter encountered in her first year of Kindergarten was eating at lunchtime.

She had gone from a small and quiet preschool setting with 10 other children to the hustle and bustle of 60+ kids in the school lunchroom. I was especially worried the first week when every day she brought home a full lunch box with a few bites taken out of her sandwich.

Siblings that have a brother or sister with Sensory Processing Disorder deserve an Olympic gold medal. Our 11 year-old son Jackson has an amazing brother in our 13 year-old son, Bryce. Bryce’s life started out fairly uncomplicated minus a few first-time parent moments that we all have as we learn the ropes of parenting.  At the age of two, though, his life was changed along with ours when SPD entered our world.

Last month, my son Brennan graduated from 5^th grade.  This was truly one of the proudest moments of my life as a mother so far.  This was a day that we had talked about for the last couple of years.  What Brennan had talked about most was what he would be wearing.  Brennan had goals of wearing a suit to his graduation when he was in 3^rd grade and we went to his friend’s graduation.  In 4^th grade, he talked about wearing dress slacks and a tie.  Every year he talked about his outfit for graduation so there was a lot of pressure already built up about h

Former Chicago White Sox baseball player, Paul Konerko, has designed a limited edition t-shirt that will help raise awareness of Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) with proceeds going to STAR Institute for SPD (formerly know as SPD Foundation).

Being a parent is like being a calendar.  Every day is different.  You go to bed at night and awake to something new.

Having a morning routine is something adults have long embraced, with early rituals even inspiring a website, MyMorningRoutine.com. It presents a different routine every day to help motivate people to be more productive the rest of their days. Morning routines are embraced by everyone from bestselling authors and CEOs, to professional athletes and teachers. They help people become more efficient by getting important tasks out of the way, while creating a peaceful state of mind that serves as preparation for what lies ahead.

There is a story called “Welcome to Holland” by Emily Perl Kingsley that I always read to my expecting parents while I work as a prenatal instructor. The story talks about this perfect trip to Italy that you’ve been planning your entire life. The plane lands and as you exit the plane, the flight attendant welcomes you to Holland. Holland? That’s not where I wanted to go!