Goals & Objectives for Sensory Integration Disorder

Sensory integration disorders (SID) can affect adults and children alike. The condition is a result of the brain's inability to integrate sensory information within its processing routines. Goals and objectives for treating SID attempt to help people become comfortable with different types of sensory stimulation while learning how to process different types of information. These skills can then be applied within normal, everyday activities.

Sensory Adaptation

• Difficulties with sensory processing lie at the heart of sensory integration disorder. According to the Quality Healthcare Center, these difficulties lead to heightened or lowered sensitivities in different areas. Loud noises, bright lights or rough textures can cause a person to behave in socially unacceptable ways, by withdrawing, acting aggressively or hyperactive behaviors. These types of responses make it difficult for children, in particular, to learn in school or socialize with their peers.

  Initial treatment goals work toward helping people adapt to multiple sensory experiences while maintaining acceptable behavior, according to SensoryNation, an SID resource site. Treatment objectives focus on helping people become comfortable using techniques that encourage relaxation, communication and focusing abilities. In the process, a person learns to receive multiple sensory experiences without feeling overwhelmed or frustrated.

Sensory Integration

• According to the Quality Healthcare Center, sensory integration goals for treating sensory integration disorder attempt to assist individuals with organizing different types of sensory stimuli as they are received so that normal cognitive processing functions can take place. Treatment objectives may vary depending on the types of sensory overload a person experiences. Desensitization techniques can be used in cases where someone is highly sensitive to noise, light or tactile sensations. This approach enables the person to gradually integrate a particular sensory distortion with other forms of sensory information. By combining different types of stimuli, such as listening to music while doing artwork, sensory integration can develop as people learn to process incoming stimuli.

Occupational Development

• According to SensoryNation, occupational development goals focus on integrating newly learned sensory integration skills with everyday living environments, such as home, work or school. Gradual adjustments in setting, such as a quiet classroom vs. a busy classroom, can be used to help children adapt to learning at school. Targeted objectives attempt to replace inappropriate coping behaviors, such as withdrawal or aggression, with skills that enable people to use reasoning and communication as a means of working through difficult sensory experiences. As people progress toward a more integrated sensory experience, improvements in learning, socializing and communicating may develop as the brain's processing centers become more adept at communicating with one another.