Autism and Intentional Living: Using Sensory Inputs to Improve Regulation

Autism in the Adult

Want to live with more intention in order to achieve your goals? You may wish to start with steps to improve your core resilience so you can challenge yourself in other life areas. In this third episode in a series on intentional living, Dr. Regan identifies ways to improve resilience by using physical inputs to calm and center the nervous system.

As referenced in the current episode:

Dr. Regan's Zur Institute courses for clinicians

Autism in the Adult regulation series- episode one

The Alert Program

The Alert Program: Your Best Self Online Course

Dr. Regan's Resources

Book: Understanding Autism in Adults and Aging Adults, 2nd ed

Audiobook

Book: Understanding Autistic Behaviors

Autism in the Adult website homepage

Website Resources for Clinicians

Read the transcript here:

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Hi,

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everyone.

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This is Dr Regan, host of the podcast Autism in the Adult.

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I'm a neuropsychologist,

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a certified autism specialist and mom to a teen on the spectrum.

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It's my great pleasure to direct an autism diagnostic clinic in Central Illinois for adolescents,

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adults and aging adults.

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If you are a clinician wanting to increase your knowledge of autism,

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in order to better serve your clients,

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you may want to check out my courses at Zur Institute,

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Z U R Institute.

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The links will be in the show notes for this podcast episode.

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If you're a regular follower of the podcast,

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you will know that we are in the third episode in a series about living with intention on the spectrum.

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I would encourage you to listen to the first two episodes to get the most information.

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Although this episode can be stand alone as well.

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Today,

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we'll be talking about a goal within the area of health and wellness and specifically,

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we're going to focus on improving regulation using sensory inputs.

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Now,

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I have several other episodes about regulation and I'll link them in the show notes,

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but in short regulation refers to the ability to stay centered balanced to get that just right state to be both calm and attentive.

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At the same time,

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this regulation can look like a meltdown,

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a panic attack,

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an outburst or it could look like withdrawal from a place or activity.

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For example,

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I need to quit this conversation or I need to go to my room off by myself.

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I can't attend work today.

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I can't go to school.

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It can also look like freeze,

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like shutting down feeling offline or dissociating.

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And finally,

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disregulation can look like the experience of physical symptoms that are not rooted or at least not completely caused by a physical condition,

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injury or disease process.

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Individuals on the spectrum are more likely to struggle with dysregulation in some form.

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Although what the dysregulation looks like can be different from one person to the next and can also change over the lifespan of the individual.

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So we can see how important the wellness topic of regulation is and why we're talking about regulation as a goal first because for some people on the spectrum regulation needs to improve before they can experience enough resiliency to get out of their comfort zone in other areas of life,

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like relationships or working or other areas that we've discussed in the series.

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So far,

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the tricky thing is that there are often more limitations to the success of regulation strategies on the spectrum than for the neurotypical.

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And the go to strategies are often some combination of counseling or talking through the difficulty,

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maybe reasoning through problems,

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we might add medication for the support of regulation or use punishment and reward programs.

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It's not that there's anything wrong with these approaches and they can be helpful as part of a layer in an overall program to help with regulation.

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However,

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if these are the only approaches we're relying on,

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there are likely to be some pretty big limitations.

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So let's think about how the nervous system works.

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If an infant is screaming,

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relentlessly crying,

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very upset,

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can't calm down.

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In other words,

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they can't regulate.

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We don't try to reason with them about how they're completely safe.

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They've just been fed,

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they're not in any danger or that their crying is really too loud.

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It's bedtime.

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We don't go reasoning through all that.

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We don't give them medication for depression or for anxiety.

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We don't use rewards or punishments in the traditional sense.

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Again,

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it's not that I don't recommend these approaches.

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I think they can be very helpful at times.

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But I'm pointing out that there is another way for humans to regulate their nervous system.

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And if you picture what we do for the infant,

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we hold them.

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Sometimes we swaddle the infant in a blanket and the holding or swaddling gives them pressure inputs that gives them this snug hug and then what do we do?

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Well,

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typically we rack them and this gives their brain some movement to input.

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This isn't always a magic way of calming an infant.

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But it often helps quite a bit as an approach to help the infant regulate,

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to center,

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to feel calm.

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Because the infant relies on the adult for regulation.

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This approach of using pressure,

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which we call proprioceptive inputs and movement.

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In this case,

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I'm talking about vestibular inputs.

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This approach of getting these inputs into the nervous system helps people of all ages and with all variations of nervous connections,

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nervous systems,

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uh whether you are neurotypical,

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whether you are neuro diverse,

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it doesn't matter we do.

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This is how our nervous system works.

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That's why therapists working with little kids on regulation may have them do heavy work like carrying or pushing something heavy.

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That's for the pressure input.

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It's why some individuals like weighted blankets for calming,

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that's pressure as well.

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Other individuals like to ride their bike after work or go jogging.

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Well,

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that's movement input.

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So we all tap into some of these inputs without really realizing why we like them or what role they have in helping us feel centered.

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Today,

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we'll focus on increasing your awareness of what your nervous system may need as far as physical inputs to help with regulation as well as how and when to use them.

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One place to start can be to think about what you have historically been drawn to perhaps as a child or in school or most recently,

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you can get pressure in the muscles or the joints,

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proprioceptive inputs into the brain pressure in the muscles could be from a massage or laying in a hammock.

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You get that squeeze input,

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laying under a weighted blanket,

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draping over an exercise ball,

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curling up in a chair.

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When we say I just want to curl up and read a good book.

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That's when we're giving ourselves,

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that kind of squeeze input being in the fetal position helps us have that squeeze hugs or bear hugs can give us that input laying on the ground or flapping on the ground.

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Pressure into the joints could be from things like pushing,

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pulling,

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hanging,

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anything that offers resistance through the joints,

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hanging from a pull up bar,

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shoveling snow,

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swimming,

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stretching a Farrah band or resistance band,

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riding a bike pressure through the jaw by chewing,

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resistive foods can also be pressure input for the nervous system.

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Maybe somebody loves to attack some beef jerky or crunchy food or chew gum pressure through the hands or feet by using a stress ball or rolling your foot over a tennis ball.

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You'll get the most input for the nervous system.

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When you're doing whole body activities,

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then when you're using the jaw or hands and feet,

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but we can't always do whole body activities.

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Maybe we're in a classroom and all we can do is have some gum that we're gonna chew on and maybe squeeze a stress ball under the desk movement.

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Input like the rocking baby gives vestibular input into the brain,

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the brain does not get vestibular input when we move our arms and legs,

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but we stand or sit still.

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There's no vestibular input.

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When we're on a treadmill,

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for example,

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or we're using a stationary bike,

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the fluid in our ears has to be moving.

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So when we're moving through space,

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like running through the neighborhood,

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swinging or riding a bike outside,

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then we're getting vestibular input.

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So those who say,

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oh,

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I love riding my bike,

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but I will not ride a stationary bike.

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What they may be saying is that their nervous system really needs that movement,

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that vestibular input through space.

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There are three types of vestibular input linear.

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So going in a relatively straight line,

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like if you're jumping up and down on a trampoline,

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swinging front and back or rocking left and right or front to back,

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rotary is spinning or twirling.

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That's the second kind of vestibular input.

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And the third kind are inversions which involves being upside down,

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like hanging upside down,

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doing a forward bend or doing a down dog position.

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In yoga.

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The movement inputs can be alerting or calming,

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intense or gentle as an individual.

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You can see what helps your nervous system at any given time.

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Someone who wants to feel calm or may want to rock in a rocking chair,

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sometimes people like to ride in the car and that just helps them feel centered and calm babies or little kids might fall asleep in the car.

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Even when they were so upset when they were actually getting in the car,

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another person may really feel calmer when they've been swinging again.

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We have the swings for infants that they can rock in and get that gentle front and back motion.

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Someone who wants to feel more alert and activated like I need energy,

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I need momentum to get going.

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They may want to ride their bike down a hill or jump on a trampoline.

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That vigorous movement input is often more alerting.

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So someone might say,

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oh,

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now,

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now I'm really awake.

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Every nervous system though responds a bit uniquely to these different kinds of inputs.

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So it's really important to know your own system to try different things safely and to gradually develop your own insight about what you need.

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And when there are some activities that provide both pressure and movement input,

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riding a bike gives pressure through the joints as well as movement through space.

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Climbing,

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a rock wall provides really intense pressure in the joints as well as gentle movement up the wall,

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swimming provides resistance through the joints.

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Some mild pressure on the muscles from the water pressure and some movement which could be mild or more intense depending on the speed of movement.

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Whether the person is going upside down.

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Are they diving off of a height or going down a water slide?

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If you think back to what you have really loved to do,

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you may get clues about what your nervous system prefers.

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One person may have a history of a love for diving and they've been on the swim team during school,

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but maybe they don't have any source of inputs since they graduated.

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They haven't even realized how important these inputs were to their regulation.

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Another person may have a love of roller coasters,

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fast motorcycles,

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skydiving,

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their system loves intense vestibular inputs.

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Another may love weightlifting,

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cracking their knuckles.

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This is another source of joint pressure and heavy work,

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like yard work,

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gardening,

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household projects involving a lot of lifting of supplies.

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If you can pinpoint what your system has liked,

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historically,

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you may have a place to start in experimenting with what your system needs.

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Now also take into account your current health,

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your physical abilities or restrictions and your doctor's advice.

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If you can't pinpoint what you've liked in the past,

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start making a list of things to try a little bit at a time.

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Perhaps some waits on one day,

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a walk through nature the next or swinging at the park.

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Once you identify an area of inputs that your system benefits from.

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And again,

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the benefit is feeling more centered,

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calm and fully present than before the activity,

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then start thinking,

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how else could I get inputs like this?

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If you love bike riding,

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perhaps try swinging for movement and pressure.

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If you love a way to blanket over you while rocking in a rocking chair,

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you may want to investigate a whole body swing that can be hung from the ceiling and just envelops you like a cocoon in the fabric while you move gently or vigorously.

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It can even spin in rotation.

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If you like weights,

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you might wanna try rock climbing for intense joint pressure.

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Some people who like vestibular input like to join aerial fitness gyms that allow them to hang upside down in a safe and controlled environment.

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Be creative and develop some awareness of what your system responds positively toward and again,

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make sure you know,

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your own body,

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your limitations and any recommendations from your own physician.

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So let's regroup.

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So far,

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you've learned about pressure and movement inputs,

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the variations of intensity and exercise versus restorative based inputs.

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So exercise could be something like riding a bike,

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restorative,

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could be something like laying in a hammock swing or a hammock.

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You've considered what you have liked or not liked historically.

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And perhaps you have a list of things to try in order to build up a repertoire of options.

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The next key to growing in the area of regulation is this don't wait to do the activities until you feel like you need it.

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This is crucial.

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Now,

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this doesn't mean that you shouldn't listen to your body if you're ill or injured and not able to do a specific activity that day.

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But what often happens for the autistic is that they feel great,

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great,

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great.

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And then they feel really off center.

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And a lot of times they'll say I just did not see that coming.

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So by the time they use their as needed inputs,

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they're already deregulated.

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So that's not the goal,

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the goal is to do the activities and give regular nervous system inputs that are regulating so that the episodes of disregulation decrease in number and they're easier to recover from.

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So think about ways to give yourself centering inputs multiple times a day and that will be individual to you.

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Some people might do this three times a day,

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maybe at the beginning,

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middle and end,

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they may need some pressure and movement in the morning to wake up to become energized and to also feel calm and attentive,

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they may need inputs over the lunch hour or midday.

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And then again at night,

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perhaps restorative inputs like a rocking chair or a weighted blanket,

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maybe some nighttime yoga.

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Then when you do become deregulated on any given day,

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think ahead of time about what your as needed inputs might be.

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So when you're in the moment of disregulation,

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it's really difficult to figure out what you need.

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So you may be able to think to yourself ahead of time.

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You know,

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when I get dis regulated,

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this is what that looks and feels like.

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And when I start to see myself in that place,

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I can try these handful of things to see if it helps in that moment of crisis or kind of surprise.

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Uh,

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off centering,

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you may say,

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ok,

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I've had a particularly intense day.

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I'm feeling more off center than usual.

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I'm going to walk around my work building three times or I'm going to do forward bends and shake my head back and forth or listen to music with my headphones.

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This can be what as needed inputs look like.

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So you can see that like with the music and headphones,

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sometimes the regulating inputs could be also um a sensory input from another domain.

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What do you like to listen to?

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What scent do you like to smell like?

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Lavender or vanilla?

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But usually the big regulating inputs will involve movement and pressure.

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So today,

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we have chosen a growth area within health and wellness.

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This may be a good place for you to start as you live life with intention because feeling more grounded can help you feel more resilient as you try to stretch your comfort zone in other areas.

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Remember,

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the general approach we discussed in episode two when developing this program.

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So try to set up small reachable steps forward,

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use strategy to find your momentum.

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And once you've integrated the physical inputs into your daily routine,

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that momentum will kick in and it'll help you.

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Um not feel that this whole thing is effortful.

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It'll be just what you do on a regular basis.

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You'll also reap the benefits of having a more regulated nervous system.

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Be sure to check out the show notes,

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I have various links that we've mentioned here in the episode.

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One is a link to the Z Institute courses,

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Z U R for clinicians to learn more about autism in adolescents,

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adults and aging adults.

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I also have links to my podcast episodes about regulation if you'd like to do a deeper dive.

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And I'm also including links to the alert program put together by occupational therapists who have expertise in teaching people about using sensory inputs like movement or pressure to help regulate the nervous system,

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to feel calmer and more attentive.

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There's also a link specifically for their for All Program alert program four.

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That's the number four,

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not the word all dot com alert program for all dot com.

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That is a self guided study.

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You can purchase for a deeper dive into your own nervous system,

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figuring out what kind of inputs help you regulate.

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And I will have all four of those links in the show notes.

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Thank you for joining me today.

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I hope you will be able to enjoy the benefits of a more regulated nervous system and be sure to listen to our next episode as we continue this series on living with intention making goals and leaving our comfort zone.