One of my favorite traditions of the holidays is stockings. There’s just something SO FUN about searching and finding “all of the things” for that special someone and seeing how many items you can make fit in that elongated sock.

This year, I’ve gathered a list of ten popular sensory-sensitive items that would make great stocking stuffers for the kiddos on your list! Sensory play helps to encourage problem-solving and creativity. The clinicians at Marshall incorporate sensory play into sessions to help improve things such as but not limited to:

Use the links below to stem some inspiration and cross off a few kiddos on your list this year!

Sensory-Friendly Stocking Stuffer Ideas

One of the most challenging aspects of parenting toddlers is learning to manage their temper tantrums. Besides being frustrating and exhausting, watching your child have frequent outbursts can make you feel like having one of your own. 

Still, it is important to remember that temper tantrums are a normal part of toddlerhood. By recognizing what might be causing their meltdowns, you can prepare yourself to deal with them in a compassionate, effective manner. Here is what you should know about handling your toddler's temper tantrums.

Toddlers are not as complicated as they might seem. In most cases, a young child will have a meltdown for one primary reason: they want something. For younger children, temper tantrums often stem from an inability to communicate their needs. However, older toddlers may be able to let you know what they want but don't have as much independence as they'd prefer.

Regardless of the cause of your child's temper tantrum, it is important to remember that every toddler has emotional outbursts, and their behavior is not a sign that you are failing as a parent. By not taking their meltdowns personally and responding calmly, you can help your child learn boundaries and control their emotions while feeling supported by you. Keep these tips in mind to help you do just that.

Your child will behave the way they see you behave. If you raise your voice when you're angry, so will they. With this in mind, do your best to 

 when your toddler has a temper tantrum. If you yell at them, be sure to apologize and follow up by responding more appropriately.  

Aggressive behavior is never acceptable, even when a young child is frustrated. If you see your toddler hitting, kicking, or behaving aggressively, do not wait to correct them. Let them know at the moment that it is okay to feel angry or frustrated, but it is never okay to hurt others or destroy things.

Everyone feels frustrated from time to time when they can't do something they want to; toddlers are no different. If you see your child getting angry because they are incapable of performing a certain task, such as putting on their shirt, turn their frustration into empowerment by showing them how to do it correctly.

Speaking with brevity and clarity can often help de-escalate an emotionally-charged toddler. Rather than throwing a lot of lengthy or vague commands at your child, which will inevitably get tuned out, let them know exactly what you want from them by speaking in short, clear sentences. 

Temper tantrums aren't a free pass that can get your child out of doing something they don't want to do. After they've calmed down from a meltdown, follow through with whatever you told them to do that caused the outburst in the first place. When they do what you ask, shower them with plenty of praise to reinforce their positive behavior.

As soon as a tantrum is over, your child has likely forgotten about it. Don't ruin everyone's day by holding onto it yourself. While meltdowns can be hurtful, remember that they're a way for your toddler to blow off steam, not a personal attack on you as a parent. 

When Should I Call a Pediatric Therapist?

Usually, temper tantrums during toddlerhood are nothing to be worried about. However, it may be worth consulting a 

Marshall Pediatric Therapy is Here for You

You don't have to manage your toddler's temper tantrums alone. The experienced team at 

 can give you the tools you need to support your child as they learn to communicate effectively, deal with negative emotions, and recognize boundaries. 

How To Handle Toddler Tantrums

ommunication. AAC is communication in a variety of ways, other than talking. This could be Alternative communication, to be used in place of speech. Or it can be Augmentative, to be used to support speech in order to make it more effective. 

AAC can include no-tech options, low-tech options, or high-tech options. Examples include:

AAC can be used for a variety of individuals, including young children with developmental disabilities, Autistic individuals, or adults who have acquired a disorder later on in life. 

These modes of communication allow for independence in the user’s environment. This could include allowing a child to communicate wants at home, being able to participate in conversations at school, making friends with same-age peers, and advocating for themselves in a variety of situations

All individuals have the fundamental right to communication. Reach out to your therapists with any questions you may have. 

https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/professional-issues/augmentative-and-alternative-communication/#collapse_1

https://www.asha.org/njc/communication-bill-of-rights/

AAC. What is it, and is it Right For My Child?

Long before I ever thought of physical therapy, before I knew what a pelvic floor was, I had a favorite picture book as a child titled “Everyone Poops.” Perhaps, even you read it yourself. Picture after picture of different animals and their piles of poop made me giggle, and I marveled at how even the tiniest ant pooped as I did.

But, what I didn’t know until I became a pediatric therapist, is that everyone 

poop with ease. And, even more importantly, the number of children affected by constipation and/or related urinary incontinence. According to van den Berg et al, up to 30 percent of children suffer from constipation and accounts for approximately 3% to 5% of all visits to pediatricians. Chronic constipation can result in a variety of long-term and short-term impairments including progressive bowel issues, enlarged rectum, colon dysfunction, and urinary incontinence at either daytime or nighttime.

According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), by 5 years of age, over 90% of children have daytime bladder control. However, that leaves 10% of children over the age of 5 with daytime or nighttime leaks or complete incontinence.

With all that said, you might be asking yourself “how can a physical therapist help my child with their bowel and bladder problems?” I would have to agree it sounds a little out of the box. When I first became a pediatric therapist, I never saw myself impacting the way kids can void and manage their bathroom time. But, with lots of research, additional training, and a whole lot of love, I’ve been able to work with families and kids to achieve their goals and resolve daily leaks, decreased awareness of when they need to void, nighttime leaks, and constipation. How? By specifically targeting a group of muscles called the 

I like to tell parents to think of their child’s pelvic floor as a bowl. It sits at the base of the pelvis, and like a bowl, holds in liquids such as urine or solids such as feces. Now, imagine that the bowel is made out of really thin paper, or in other words is 

Do you think it would still hold in liquids well? I’d say not. A weak pelvic floor can result in leaks, daytime or nighttime, or urgency, i.e. when your child does the “potty dance” and can hardly make it to the bathroom in time. Together with other core muscles, the pelvic floor plays a role in posture, breathing, and relaxation for when we actually do need to use the restroom.

Which brings us to constipation. When the pelvic floor muscles are overactive or have trouble relaxing, your child may experience painful bowel movements or straining. This can result in withholding patterns, and over time causes chronic constipation. Chronic constipation can also lead to incontinence or leakage, as an impacted bowel press on our bladder and urethra.

But, how might a Physical Therapist address these issues, and what does a pelvic floor PT session look like?

First, an evaluation would occur. This would include:

●  Current voiding patterns such as when and how often

●  Current concerns you have for your child

●  A postural assessment in sitting, standing, and lying

, visual inspection of your child’s perineum

●  Discussion with you and your child about voiding awareness

Once you and your therapist determine what needs your child has, you meet with your therapist on a weekly or twice weekly basis.

This is where it gets tricky; pelvic floor therapy is a commitment. It requires additional homework for you as a parent, with various strategies, charts, and logs completed in order to best monitor your child’s progress. BUT, the end result is wholly worth it.

So what does the therapist do exactly? Your therapist will implement a variety of techniques, including core strengthening, biofeedback, SEMG biofeedback, games, pictures, and relaxation techniques to get your child engaged and their muscles working correctly. Each week, activities will progress or change to further challenge your child and achieve their goals.

Thinking your child might need pelvic floor therapy? Great candidates for this type of therapy include

●  Children leaks or “accidents” after being toilet trained for at least 1 year

●  Children that are having difficulty toileting training past age 5

●  Children experiencing leaks at night

●  Children with diagnosed constipation

●  Children who need >5-10 minutes to complete their bathroom routine

●  Children who report pain or discomfort when urinating or having a bowel movement

●  Children or adolescents who leak with activity, such as sports, jumping, running, or giggling

●  Children who have difficulty “holding” when they have the sensation to urinate

●  Children who experience “streaking” of feces in their underwear consistently

If you take nothing else away from this article, I hope that you know the following 3 things:

Have questions about incontinence, constipation, or your child’s toilet routine? Consider 

 us at Marshall Pediatric Therapy and scheduling a Pelvic Floor Evaluation today!

It Hurts When I Poop, I Dance When I Pee, Why Your Child's Pelvic Floor is as Important as Their ABC's 

Disciplining and educating children on what is right and wrong are appropriate ways of instilling good behaviors in them. However, teaching good behaviors is challenging for parents without guidance from autism therapy support, considering many find it difficult to understand non-verbal communication cues. In addition, disciplining a child, especially one with autism, requires great patience, and as a result, most parents are torn between reinforcement and punishment strategies when implementing discipline.

Marshall Pediatric Therapy offers you a wide range of therapy services committed to providing support and opportunities required to promote overall development and independence from childhood into adulthood. In addition, we offer customized therapy sessions to meet individual needs since we understand children are different and might behave uniquely.

In behavior psychology, reinforcement introduces a favorable condition or stimulus to a child's desired behavior that is likely to happen or continue in the future. There are two basic types of reinforcement, namely negative and positive reinforcements. Both can be effective and useful when applied correctly in shaping a child with autism. Parents can also use reinforcement to teach a child the right skills for use in the future, such as table manners, communication, socialization, and self-helping.

Positive reinforcement involves adding a pleasant stimulant to enhance the desired behavior. For instance, a parent might reward a child by giving them access to their favorite toys for good and polite behavior. However, parents should not always reward children with something tangible. The use of verbal praise to applaud the child for displaying positive actions is highly encouraged. This lets the child know that their actions were appropriate and motivates them to continue displaying these positive behaviors. It also helps them to feel good about themselves, which is something children with autism continuously struggle with.

With negative reinforcement, parents remove an aversive or undesirable stimulus to enhance or increase a behavior. This method, however, rarely works with children with autism as they need direct instructions and ways to work within the structure their autism level requires.

How Does Reinforcement Help Change Behavior

Reinforcement is an effective tool in promoting good behavior among both neurotypical and neurodivergent children when applied correctly. Using reinforcement might not get you the most intended results, but it is the most appropriate tool to promote desirable behavior. Parents should also consider the interest of each child and identify their motivation accordingly when using reinforcement to ensure positive behavior change.

Punishing children with autism to make an undesired behavior less likely to occur is not a method that works well. It is crucial to understand positive reinforcement aims to increase a desirable behavior while punishment aims to decrease undesirable behaviors.

Positive punishment, also known as punishment by application, is the most common type of punishment people know. Positive punishment involves introducing an aversive stimulus after an undesirable behavior has occurred. For instance, a parent might scold or use verbal warning when a child with autism misbehaves. This method has been shown to be the least effective for children with autism. It lacks the structure needed for even children with a Level 1 diagnosis.

Negative punishment involves taking away a pleasant stimulus to discourage a behavior. In this case, parents might take a child's favorite toy when they get messy and fail to clear up the room after playing. In the future, the child will avoid cluttering the room or clear it up after playing to prevent their toys from being taken away. This also does not work for children with autism, no matter what level they are diagnosed with, even though this may work for neurotypical children.

The Role of Positive Reinforcement in Making Behavioral Changes

Positive reinforcement is most effective for children with autism. The goal is to teach appropriate social, academic, communication, and behavior skills that will become a regular part of their life as they grow and develop. Positive reinforcement is ideal for this because, as children, they are drawn to positive words and actions, and even as adults we tend to find ways to avoid things we don’t like.

Why Choosing Reinforcement Is Vital For Children with Autism

There are a variety of ways to encourage or discourage the behavior. However, choosing reinforcement over punishment is more effective. First, the process is painless (emotional or physical) and involves dialogue over physical action. It also promotes bonding between parents or guardians with children with autism. The key to implementing reinforcement successfully is consistency.

Call Marshall Pediatric Therapy Today For Therapy Service for Children with Autism

Parents can get in touch with our experts at Marshall Pediatric Therapy for more information since understanding the difference between punishment and reinforcement when parenting can be difficult.

 Marshall Pediatric Therapy at any of our multiple locations for all therapy services for your child with autism.

From Our Experts

Sensory-Friendly Stocking Stuffer Ideas

How To Handle Toddler Tantrums

AAC. What is it, and is it Right For My Child?

It Hurts When I Poop, I Dance When I Pee, Why Your Child's Pelvic Floor is as Important as Their ABC's

Punishment Vs. Reinforcement