SPD Awareness Design with Ribbon for Sensory Processing Awareness Month

Oh noes, it's a double Freebie Friday! I know breast cancer awareness takes top spot for October, but I couldn't leave out Sensory Processing Disorder. After allergies, it's the biggest cause we try to spread the word about. 

What feels like ages ago, I ran into a couple of sensory mom blogs that changed our world. We all have sensory issues, but for some children and adults, those feeling can effect the way they live. SPD generally falls in two categories - seeker or avoiders.

Avoiders are pretty easy to identify - like the kid who can't eat anything messy or loose (mash potatoes just ain't never gonna happen). Other types of avoidance are touch, smells, noises, and types of movement like spinning.

Now that we know what my son's triggers are, noise is definitely the biggest day to day issue. He wears work grade headphones and can still hear a normal conversation in a loud room. Imagine everything being so loud all of the time and you couldn't stop it, even a paper moving or clock ticking. 

Seekers (not the quidditch kind) are the kids who are bouncing off the walls, falling, crashing into doorways, literally seeking input so they can feel their body or know where their body is.

Seeking behaviors were actually the first signs we didn't put together until we learned about SPD. Our rambunctious little toddler couldn't feel temperatures. Early on he burned his hand on a stove we didn't know was hot and when it snowed for the first time he couldn't tell it was cold. 

Other behaviors to look out for are:

• draping (laying over things to get pressure on the body)
• toe walking
• w-sitting
• oversensitivity to noise, touch, smells
• inablity to stay in their own personal space

So if you have a little one who has some unexplainable habits or see meltdowns triggered by similar situations, Sensory Processing Disorder might be something to look into. You can read more about it at the STAR Institute or check out Carol Kranowitz's The Out of Sync Child (most libraries have a copy). 

Back to the design though. This one's a list of the eight sensory systems with a SPD ribbon layered over solid letters and separate quote on the bottom (three pieces total).

Your download will contain one file for each format (SVG, DXF & PNG). And this one's great because it works for Mom, Dad and the rest of the family. 

Also, if you're at the beginning of your journey and need someone to talk to, always feel free to send me a message. There are some super helpful support groups I can share with you plus I totally get it. In the beginning it feels like you're going to break and nothing you try is working, but it gets so much better with occupational therapy, regulation and tons of love, I promise!

Download Time!

Quick favor before you get to the downloading? If you could help me share by pinning this design to your favorite svg or freebie board, it would be awesome! (You know you have a huge board full of cut file ideas).

Know someone else who has to have a copy? Send them link so they can download it too. Thank you so much!