The Case For All Things That Spin

The idea of taking your family thousands of miles away to a foreign county might conger up visions of crying moody children, long flights and something to just be avoided.  Well, I’ve just completed nearly 6 weeks of travel and I’ve lived to tell about it.

The first leg of our journey, getting from our home in Colorado to the beautiful hills of Budapest took an unexpected twist.  We traveled for 42 hour, 4 countries, 3 planes, 2 missed connections and 1 (unexpected) overnight layover.  I’ve calculated the damages but can’t report any instance of bad mood, over tired, hyper sensitive or sugar crashes in all that.  This goes against SPD physics, or does it?

I can’t say exactly why it worked so well.  My ease of all things unexpected might have helped.  Each change in plan I took with stride, the “well, we will just have to figure out the next step” without any stress or worry was my motto.  My children seem to have followed my lead and just made due with the situation, in the best way, have some fun.  The fact that airports are big vast open spaces allows for a lot of room to roam when you’ve been stuck in a plane.

There is something to say about a heavy suitcase.  Pull it, drag it, maneuver it around a huge airport and when you are tired, sit on it.  The backpacks helped too to add some weight.  I let the boys pick out what they wanted in the backpacks this year and made it clear that they would have to carry them the whole journey.  No complaints!

At some point during a particularly long wait, they got to run free around an empty baggage claim.  Then there was a short ride on the carts, no adult that came into the area gave a thought about it, nothing to harm.  I’m thinking at every baggage claim, one should be set aside for kid rides! How else get out some built up energy from a long flight!

Some airports do have a kid play areas.  The ones I’ve experienced are either made for the very young (say 3 and under) or have video games, and some have both.  I’d like to see a huge dryer I can strap my kid into before I board, but I maybe alone in that.  What about a climbing area? Somewhere to swing?  How about lessons in gravity before we try to spend hours defying it?

I was lucky for most of the trip, it seemed a bit of a vacation from SPD as well.  I just kept my eye on things and dropped my stress to nearly null, wow, how that has in impact on the kids!  There did come a time when we did have some sensory incompatibility.

After several weeks and one episode of illness we were guests for dinner at friend’s house in The Netherlands.  Though our hosts were wonderful and understanding, they did not have younger kids (and the toys that come with that!).  I suggested to my son, who was starting to touch everything, make annoying sounds and argue with his brother, that we take a walk.  Our host suggested we walk about a block and half to a small park in the neighborhood.  This is typical Dutch area that is in the middle of a housing area. Accessible by foot or bike, but not cars, a safe place for the kids to go and get their energy out.

Both boys happily found a merry-go-round at the park! Wow, just what we needed, therapy within walking distance.  I got both boys to take turns laying down for a spin, one way then the other, face down then face up.   They each took turns pushing the other brother, and hanging on the edge trying not to be shot off.  Lots of laughing, fresh air and happier children with a few spins. It only took minutes to go from sensory incompatibility to sensory sustainability.  Just a few spins, a block away gave us the same result we get back home thousands of miles away.

We spent a few more minutes at the park, teeter-totter and a little climbing.  I was remembering back to our sons’ playground at school.  They do not have a merry-go-round.  As I think of it, barely anything moves, barely even the children.  They do have swings, but the rider must obey strict rules to use them, no twisting them up and then spinning quickly as then un-spin.  The height of the swing is limited, and then so is the fun.  They have some climbing, but limited to age groups, no running on concrete, which for several months of the year is the only place to play unless you have come to school dressed for a blizzard.

Even the local parks back home have traded old fashioned fun for single rider controlled equipment.  I do see the need for safety, but as I watch my children glow from the endorphins of fun in a foreign country, I wonder where we are headed in the US.  Everywhere we went in The Netherlands some play structure spun, rotated or need the use of human power to move.  Gravity and child were the main ingredients.  A zip line that crosses a creek, a slide that included rollers as you shot down adding extra sensation, and sand to bury your toes in all commonplace.

There is another thing about the Dutch that I admire, bikes.  Kids bike to school, and home.  Some school kids come home for lunch then return again, this makes 4 trips by bike.  And well The Netherlands is sort of flat they do have enough of a challenge for young child to ride.  When I’ve biked with my own children to school I have gotten wonderful reports from the teachers about better attention and better flexibility.   If only they had something to spin on during recess.  The Dutch are the tallest people in the world, they seem happy and healthy when ever I’ve been there (and I married one too).  They also eat chocolate for breakfast, just before they bike off to school and work!  Seems the Dutch have been doing a few things right.  For a small country, they have a big impact on the world

Occupational therapy for SPD usually involves spinning.  Lots of movement is helpful for any child at any age.    What if an occupational therapist designed the playgrounds?  I’m sure we’d have safety and movement.  I envision swings in classrooms, but maybe I am too optimistic.  Our son’s OT suggested spinning and swinging before school, but he is not much of a morning person.  the biking is great, but then again we live in a state that gets several feet of snow a year.  We will be enjoying the nice weather at the start of school, and maybe by the first snow fall, usually Halloween, we’ll have back up plans.

If you are thinking of going to a foreign country, remember that no matter where you are in the world, just look around for something that spins, and hopefully you can help your child be centered.

Merry-go-rounds make the world a better place.