Children who are vestibularly hypersensitive are likely to be easily overwhelmed by movement activities. This overwhelming feeling can be similar to anxiety and to children can feel simply scary. They may avoid playing on swings or participating in any jumping or tumbling activities.
This can have an impact on their ability and desire to participate in activities such as in gym class or playing with their peers on the playground. These children likely don’t understand why they feel the way that they do, why they’re so afraid to use the swings or slides when their friends are all having such a good time.
This can have a negative impact on their emotional and social development as a result of their insecurities and their discomfort within their own bodies. This can have an impact on the development of skills that require balance and coordination and are naturally developed during typical movement and play experiences.
Since they are so sensitive to movement input, situations where they need to balance or adjust their body in a specific way can be more difficult or challenging. This extra challenge can be due to the distraction of being overwhelmed by the movement they’re feeling. It’s definitely more difficult to perform an activity if you’re under stress or feeling fear while you do it.
Vestibular hypersensitivity can also impact body awareness. If a child isn’t moving much and testing where their body is in space then they are going to have difficulty being familiar with how their body feels or should feel in order to perform activities successfully. They will be challenged when trying to place their body in a certain position such as when playing baseball and attempting a good batting position. It’s hard to position your body when you aren’t familiar with where it is based on feel alone.
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