The child may seek out certain textures, smells, or simply enjoy the feeling of the item in their mouth or throat.In this therapy, alternative methods are offered for obtaining the sensory stimulation that your child may be seeking or can assist in releasing anxiety.
This would address Pica if the basis of the child’s eating disorder is derived from sensory or anxiety related issues. Occupational therapy - this typically focuses on treating the sensory imbalances present in many developmental and intellectual disorders.There are multiple recommended avenues to explore once you receive a Pica diagnosis. Unfortunately, when you have a low functioning child, many questions go unanswered – especially the whys. We have received multiple opinions - sensory stimulation and anxiety release. In our son’s case, the exact root cause has still not been determined. Once the root cause has been established by a specialist, the next step is figuring out what works to manage your concerns and ensure your child’s safety. Diet deficiency was ruled out as a root cause for our son and we began discussing next steps with our developmental specialist. Medical and diet deficiencies, sensory stimulation, anxiety and behavior-related issues are typical root causes for Pica that the doctors will investigate. Seeking medical assistance from the nearest research hospital, was the first action we took in our journey.Doctors began the arduous diagnosis process with standard blood tests to extract nutrient deficiencies – zinc or iron - which can sometimes provoke the urge to chew and ingest non-edible items. Our son was constantly chewing on things, drooling, and eventually choking or vomiting from attempting to swallow non-edible objects. Pica, unlike many other mental health disorders, is easily diagnosed as its only major symptom is immediately detectable. These are all valid questions to ask yourself and it’s also very important to seek out a formal diagnosis as the first step in helping to heal your child. What are the available options to help my child with this condition?.How can I ensure every preferred non-edible item is always out of reach and avoidable?.Why is my child seeking out these non-edible items to eat?.
Not to mention extremely stressful and emotionally draining. To the parents and caretakers however, it’s a dangerous and continuous struggle of daily safety management. Juggling his non-verbal Autism along with Pica seemed nearly impossible in that moment.Pica can range in severity and typically exposes the child to dangers such as choking, ingestion of harmful or toxic substances and damaging of teeth. We had to constantly observe him and ensure we swept his environment for potentially harmful things that he may target. It is one thing reading about this behavior and quite another watching your son eat things like clothing, paper or screws. It was described so matter of fact, however as a parent, I found it immensely overwhelming as we attempted to comprehend why my son would ingest random objects in his environment. I remember searching the internet and finding Webster’s definition of Pica: “an abnormal desire to eat substances not normally eaten”. I recall how strange this disorder seemed when we were first introduced to it in our youngest son. Pica is classified as an eating disorder often present in children who suffer from Autism and other developmental and intellectual disabilities. What do you do however, when a condition is paired with another debilitating disorder - in this case Pica?What is Pica exactly? As a parent of children with disabilities, the primary focus we seek to provide our children is quality of their life, achieving moments of independence, socialization with others and their overall well-being. Caring for a child with special needs is difficult and challenging to manage on its own.
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