What Are Sensory Processing Issues?

Sensory processing issues are when your brain has trouble understanding or reacting to information from your senses.

Imagine you're playing outside on a sunny day, and suddenly someone shines a bright flashlight in your eyes, it's like the light is too loud for your brain. That’s what happens with sensory processing issues: your brain gets overwhelmed by things that most people find normal.

Think of your senses as radios. When you hear a sound, see something, or feel something touch you, it's like the radio is playing music. But if your brain has sensory processing issues, it’s like someone turned the volume up to maximum when only a little music was playing, and that can make everything too much.

Other times, your brain might be like a radio that’s too quiet, you need more sound or touch to notice what's going on. So sometimes it feels like the world is too loud, and sometimes it feels like the world is too quiet.

That’s why some kids might cover their ears in a noisy room, or seem distracted by something small like a tag on their shirt, their brain is working really hard to understand all the information coming at them!