I'm signed up for a different support group on this site but happened to see this one today (and how it could have helped me a few years ago had I known about it! :)
So I wanted to share with you my daughter's journey. She is turning 7 years old next week.
She was diagnosed with SID at age 3, but we knew as an infant that something she had some extraordinary sensitivities.

She was a calm baby when she was first born. Loved having her little head washed at bath time. Only cried when she was hungry.

But at about 3 months old, things changed. I suddenly could no longer feed her a bottle in the living room as I always had done. She would scream and scream. And it was only through much trial and error that I discovered that it now needed to be in her bedroom, in the rocking chair, pacifier in the mouth, blanket over the eyes......she needed to settle herself down before she would take her bottle.

So we had to go through this routine before any feeding. I couldn't feed her in a store, etc. Had to be at home in her room with the whole routine.

She didn't like car rides. If it was more than 10 minutes, she'd work herself up into so much emotion....crying so hard that she would throw up.

She cried A LOTt as a baby and as a toddler. I spent most of my time holding and consoling her.

She would get overstimulated very easily even though my husband and I are soft spoken, calm people. But take her to a family gathering with some noise and it would be a disaster even at just a few months old.

She still liked baths but this changed after a year or two. Lots of screaming. Clothes were difficult. Sock seams. "scratchy shirts". She couldn't eat food with texture. For example, no Gerber green beans with rice. If it had texture, she'd spit it out.

Meals were incredibly difficult until she was about 3 or 4 years old. She would cry and scream and we didn't know why.

Terrified of playground equipment. Sounds, especially loud sounds, were an issue. But even the hardly noticeable sound of the thermostat clicking on and off during the day.would send her into a panic.

To this day she still doesn't like the game Operation...anything with a surprise sound.

And certain toys we wouldn't put batteries in because she was afraid of the sound.

I'd take her to Gymboree or Kindermusk or Babynastics and she'd cry and cry and cry while everyone else was having fun and looking at me like what is wrong with her?

I have no doubt that she has cried a thousand more times than the average kid. If someone would so much as say "would you like to go on the swing?" she'd burst into tears even at age 18 months.

Then the worries and anxieties started at a very young age.....like at 18 months.

She is highly intelligent. She could speak in sentences by age 18 months. She is lovable and sensitive and compassionate.

But she struggled so much. When we finally sought the opinion of the pediatrician when she was almost 3, we were told to see a psychiatrist. That she needed medication.

That did not sit well with us. So we went to a psychologist instead. Who suggested that she go to an OT to be evaluated for SID.

This didn't come as a surprise. I had been reading the Out of Sync Child per the recommendation of a friend whose son is on the autism spectrum.

So I knew something sensory was going on with her. And so by the time we went to the OT and got a diagnosis......honestly it was sheer relief. To have a name for this. Not that she needs a "label". But that there was an explanation for this and most importantly....help for this.

We went to OT twice a week for months. And then eventually once a week for months. She worked so hard in there on their playground equipment. There would be tears and difficult times. But we persevered.

We would brush her to help settle her down when she'd have a hard time. And incorporate "heavy lifting work" into her day to help regulate her nervous system. And not just the brushing but the pushes on the joints that they teach you in OT.

I've already written a book here so I don't want to ramble too much.

But please know that there is hope. She now loves swings, playground equipment, bridges! She loves baths. She now takes swimming lessons. There was a time when she woudn't even go in a pool because she didn't like the feel of a wet bathing suit on her.

She can now handle loud sounds without falling to pieces. She might cover her ears during fireworks....we are always sure to sit far away. But she has come such an amazingly long way.

She also has/had separation anxiety disorder. Very intensely. And so preschool was very challenging. For a while we thought she would need special schooling. But she has persevered. She cried a lot at preschool. She cried a lot at kindergarten. But the teachers have been amazing at working with us and her anxieties, etc.

So I am so proud to say she is now a 1st grader and there has not been one single tear at school this year :) She integrates well with other kids. She manages her emotions so well. She can self regulate now.

There are still some residual things....like a lot of food aversions....that's probably the area that is still most challenging. But every year she adds a handful of new foods to her repertoire.

But she will not eat pizza, or anything with sauce, hot dogs, etc. etc. Typical things that other kids eat she will not eat.

But then she will eat artichokes :)

She is her own person :) and she is positively amazing. She can now perform in plays, gymnastics shows, ballet recitals.

So much that was so unthinkable to us a couple years ago because she was so paralyzed by her anxieties and sensory challenges..........it's simply amazing.

So I credit OT. I would also write lots of social stories using photos that I would take of her during OT to reinforce to her how brave she was.

I also took her for Reiki which I think helped somewhat. And she occasionally still goes to a psychologist when we hit a bump in the road.

So please know that this can be overcome. I have seen the miracle occur before my eyes.