Hi Kate! Welcome! My sons are off the wall when they get home from school. They can hold it together long enough to be good in school, but as soon as they're home, they let it all out. For the first hour they're home, I try to get them to do something active or using their muscles. On nice days, I can send them outside to play. We have a trampoline which they love to jump on, or they ride their scooters, or sometimes they swing. Those things seem to help them calm their bodies and calm their minds. Then they are better able to work on homework afterward.

My older son (10 now) was 6 when we got the diagnosis. He's more sensory defensive/avoider. When he was younger, if someone brushed by him or bumped him, his first reaction would be to punch that person because it felt like an attack to him. It's taken a long time but he's better about that now. But recently I noticed that when he had a meltdown, he punched the arm of the chair. When he was younger, he would just scream and cry for his meltdowns. I hope that he won't get more violent as he approaches puberty. I may need to get a punching bag to hang up in the basement!

My younger son (6) has mild SPD. He's a sensory seeker. He will control his anger with friends, but he will punch or kick his brother if they get into an argument. But that might just be a normal brother thing, not SPD related.

Welcome to the group!!