The Experience Miracles Podcast

Sensory Overload: The Hidden Battles of Families Living with SPD

Apr 2, 2024

Sensory Processing Disorder in Children

Episode 14, Experience Miracles Podcast | Host: Dr. Tony Ebel, DC, CACCP, Pediatric Chiropractor & Founder of PX Docs | Published: April 2, 2024 | Duration: ~55 min

Key Takeaways

  • Sensory processing disorder (SPD) is not a behavioral issue or a phase, it is a brain-body disconnection rooted in nervous system dysregulation, and children do not grow out of it. Kids with colic grow into sensory issues; kids with sensory issues grow into ADHD, anxiety, and sometimes autism spectrum disorder.
  • The two main types of SPD are overstimulation (“raging bull”, stuck in sympathetic fight-or-flight overdrive) and understimulation (“drunken bull”, physically uncoordinated, emotionally flat, sensory-seeking). Nearly every child with SPD has components of both.
  • The Perfect Storm, three sequential triggers, drives SPD: high-stress pregnancy, birth interventions (forceps, vacuum, C-section, induction), and early developmental disruptions like colic and antibiotic overuse. In Dr. Tony Ebel’s clinical experience, 85–90% of sensory children have at least one birth intervention in their case history.
  • Four neurological dysfunctions underlie SPD: Subluxation, Dysautonomia, Nervous System Dysregulation, and Vagus Nerve Dysfunction. These are the cause, SPD is the symptom.
  • Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care, guided by INSiGHT scanning technology (EMG and HRV), can measure these dysfunctions objectively and deliver personalized neuro-tonal adjustments to repair and restore sensory processing, without drugs.

What Is Sensory Processing Disorder, and Why Is It So Misunderstood?

Sensory processing disorder is a neurological condition in which the brain struggles to receive, organize, and integrate sensory information from both inside and outside the body. At its core, it is a brain-body disconnection, a nervous system that is dysregulated, disorganized, and confused. It is not a behavioral phase, not a parenting problem, and not something children simply grow out of.

SPD goes by many names, sensory integration disorder, sensory modulation disorder, sensory overdrive, sensory overwhelm, which contributes to widespread confusion among parents and even among healthcare professionals. The condition is deeply linked to other neurodevelopmental challenges: children with colic frequently develop sensory issues, children with sensory issues frequently develop ADHD and anxiety, and many children with autism spectrum disorder also experience significant sensory dysfunction. These conditions share the same neurophysiological root.

Conventional medicine has largely failed families navigating SPD. Most pediatricians dismiss sensory concerns as normal toddler behavior or developmental phases. What parents need, and what Dr. Tony Ebel, DC, CACCP delivers in this episode, is a clear explanation of the neuroscience behind SPD and a roadmap to addressing its root causes without medication.

What Is Sensory Processing and Why Does It Break Down? [00:15:00 – 00:21:45]

Dr. Tony Ebel, DC, CACCP: The nervous system, specifically the central and autonomic nervous system, is responsible for receiving, processing, organizing, and integrating every piece of sensory information the body encounters. This process is known formally as sensory integration.

Most people learn about five senses in school. But there are actually seven. The sixth and seventh, proprioception (the perception of body position and movement) and vestibular function (balance and spatial orientation), are the most important in the context of sensory processing disorder. When the nervous system is functioning well, it operates like a perfectly run air traffic control system, coordinating millions of incoming signals every second without missing a beat.

Researcher Jane Ayres described what goes wrong in SPD as a “neurological traffic jam.” When Subluxation, interference in the nervous system, is present, the brain can no longer efficiently process sensory input from either the internal environment (digestion, body awareness, motor function) or the external environment (noise, light, touch, temperature). The result is a child whose brain is in constant overload, underload, or both simultaneously. This is not a mindset problem. It is a measurable neurological dysfunction.

Two Types of Sensory Kids: Raging Bull vs. Drunken Bull [00:22:00 – 00:31:05]

Sensory processing disorder presents differently in every child, but it falls into two broad categories.

The first is overstimulation. These children, nicknamed “raging bulls”, are stuck in sympathetic fight-or-flight overdrive, even at rest. Their brains are constantly noisy. When additional sensory input arrives (a sudden sound, a light touch, a transition between activities), it gets layered on top of an already-maxed-out system. The result is meltdowns, tantrums, extreme sensitivity to clothes textures, food textures, haircuts, dental visits, and loud environments. These children often thrive in fast-paced, high-energy sports, then struggle deeply with handwriting and reading comprehension when the brain cannot slow down enough for fine motor tasks.

“Even at rest, their brain is noisy.”

The second type is understimulation. These children, nicknamed “drunken bulls”, are hyposensitive. Their nervous systems lack enough tone and input to stay organized. They appear physically uncoordinated, struggle with posture, avoid sports, have trouble reading social cues and personal space, and seek out sensory stimulation wherever they can find it: jumping from heights, bumping into things, chewing on objects, fixating on video games. These are children more commonly presenting with ADD-like focus and emotional regulation challenges.

Almost every child with sensory challenges has components of both types. This is because when Dysautonomia is present, neurological imbalance across the autonomic nervous system, some areas of the system are excessively stimulated while others are shut down. Occupational and physical therapists who work with these children often observe this pattern directly: tight, hypertonic areas alongside weak, low-tone areas. These are two sides of the same neurological coin.

“Sensory overdrive and sympathetic overdrive, one and the same. I want you to think of those terms as the same forever forward.”

The Perfect Storm: Three Triggers That Create Sensory Issues [00:31:05 – 00:36:55]

Sensory processing disorder does not appear out of nowhere. Dr. Tony Ebel’s Perfect Storm framework identifies three chronological triggers that set the neurological stage for SPD.

Trigger 1: Fertility and Pregnancy Challenges. The nervous system is the first thing to develop in utero, and it develops in sequence: the sympathetic (fight-or-flight) side develops first; the parasympathetic system and the Vagus Nerve do not fully develop until late in pregnancy. High-stress, high-risk pregnancies mean babies are born with a nervous system that is already tipped toward sympathetic dominance, before they ever take their first breath.

Trigger 2: Birth Trauma and Birth Interventions. Forceps, vacuum extraction, C-section (scheduled or emergency), induction, cord wrapping, breech positioning, epidural, manual assistance, all of these physically stress the nerves, muscles, and tissues of the upper cervical spine and brainstem, where autonomic nervous system regulation and the vagus nerve reside anatomically. In Dr. Ebel’s clinical experience, 85–90% of children struggling with mild to severe sensory issues have at least one of these birth interventions in their case history, a correlation that research in PubMed now supports.

Trigger 3: Early Developmental Disruptions. Colicky, chronically stressed infants who don’t sleep or soothe well are displaying the same neurological pattern that becomes sensory meltdowns at age four. Antibiotic overuse in the first two years of life disrupts the gut-brain connection, the microbiome, and the production of serotonin and dopamine, all of which run through the vagus nerve. These early disruptions compound the neurological instability set in motion by the first two triggers.

The Four Neurological Dysfunctions Behind SPD [00:37:00 – 00:44:55]

Once the Perfect Storm triggers are in place, they produce four interrelated neurological dysfunctions. Dr. Ebel describes them as distinct terms for what is ultimately one interconnected problem.

Subluxation is the first and foundational dysfunction. When early stress overwhelms a child’s nervous system, subluxation sets in, interference in the neurospinal system that jams the brain-body communication highway. It immediately shifts the nervous system toward Sympathetic Dominance, triggering the sensory traffic jam.

“Subluxation is the interference. Dysautonomia is the neurological imbalance.”

Dysautonomia is the state that follows. The autonomic nervous system falls out of balance, too much fight-or-flight tone in some areas, too little tone in others. This is why sensory children simultaneously have hypertonic (tight) areas and hypotonic (weak, low-tone) areas. OTs and PTs working with these children are often addressing the downstream expression of dysautonomia without being able to reach the upstream neurological cause.

Nervous System Dysregulation is the functional consequence, a nervous system that cannot reliably regulate behavior, emotions, motor function, sleep, digestion, or immune response. This is why sensory kids get sick more often, struggle with sleep, and have gut challenges alongside their sensory symptoms.

Vagus Nerve Dysfunction is the fourth and perhaps most critical dysfunction. The Vagus Nerve, nicknamed “the great wandering nerve” and “the great protector”, is 85% sensory fiber and entirely parasympathetic in function, meaning it governs calming, rest, digestion, immune regulation, and sensory integration. When the upper cervical spine is injured through birth trauma and the sympathetic nervous system is chronically overstimulated, the vagus nerve is suppressed. A suppressed vagus nerve cannot perform its regulatory role. It is the most important nerve for sensory children, and it is the target that neurologically-focused chiropractic care is specifically positioned to restore.

Why OT and PT Help, But Often Hit a Ceiling [00:41:00 – 00:45:50]

Dr. Tony Ebel: Occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech therapy are all movement-based therapies, and they are genuinely valuable for children with sensory challenges. They work by stimulating understimulated areas of the nervous system and calming overstimulated ones through play, interaction, and targeted exercises.

But many families find that after months, sometimes years, of OT, PT, and speech, they see partial results and then plateau. That plateau reveals something important: there is a deeper neurological dysfunction upstream from the motor tone and coordination issues these therapies are addressing.

OT works on the effects of dysautonomia. Chiropractic care, specifically Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care, works on the cause. In order to truly improve proprioception, vestibular function, motor tone, and auditory processing, the central and autonomic nervous system must be functioning better first. The neurospinal system is responsible for 60–80% of all proprioception into the brain, with the upper cervical spine accounting for roughly one-third of that input. That is the access point, and it is exactly what Neuro-Tonal Adjustments are designed to reach.

How Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care Helps SPD [00:45:50 – 00:53:57]

Dr. Tony Ebel: When a child comes into a PX Docs office for sensory challenges, the intake process begins with a thorough case history, looking specifically for Perfect Storm triggers. From there, the process that sets this approach apart from any other care is the INSiGHT Scanning System.

The INSiGHT scans include electromyography (EMG), which measures neuromotor tone throughout the neurospinal system, and heart rate variability (HRV) technology, which directly measures whether the autonomic nervous system is balanced or sympathetically dominant. These scans show, objectively, where the nervous system has too much tone and noise, and where it is exhausted and understimulated. Parents and practitioners do not have to guess. The nervous system can be measured.

Once scans are completed, a neurological repair and restoration care plan is built for that specific child, not based on symptoms, but on what their nervous system actually needs. Care is delivered in phases over weeks to months, working toward what Dr. Ebel calls neurological reorganization.

The adjustments themselves come in two types. The first releases stuck sympathetic tension in the upper cervical spine, when this happens, children typically sleep better, calm more easily, and digest better within the first weeks of care. These are what Dr. Ebel calls neurological soft signs of early progress. The second type of adjustment specifically stimulates and activates the vagus nerve and the parasympathetic system. It is the combination of these two types of Neuro-Tonal Adjustments that produces the most complete drug-free neurological restoration for sensory children.

Progress is tracked through repeat INSiGHT scans, not just through parent questionnaires. Objective data confirms the nervous system is healing, reorganizing, and rebalancing. This distinguishes Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care from symptom-chasing approaches and gives families confidence that the changes their children are experiencing will be lasting.

“The vagus nerve is the most important nerve to help kids with sensory challenges. It’s not even close.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Is sensory processing disorder a real diagnosis, or will my child grow out of it?

Sensory processing disorder is a real neurological condition, not a phase, not a behavior problem. Children do not grow out of it. According to Dr. Tony Ebel, children with colic grow into sensory challenges, children with sensory challenges grow into ADHD and anxiety, and many develop autism spectrum disorder if the underlying nervous system dysregulation is not addressed. Dismissing it as “just a toddler stage” delays the care these children need.

What actually causes sensory processing disorder in kids?

Dr. Tony Ebel’s Perfect Storm framework identifies three sequential triggers: high-stress pregnancy (which skews the developing nervous system toward sympathetic dominance), birth interventions like forceps, vacuum, or C-section (which physically stress the upper cervical spine and brainstem), and early developmental disruptions like chronic colic and antibiotic overuse (which damage the gut-brain connection and Vagus Nerve function). In his clinical experience, 85–90% of sensory children have at least one birth intervention in their case history.

What is the difference between an overstimulated and understimulated sensory child?

Overstimulated (“raging bull”) children are stuck in sympathetic fight-or-flight overdrive even at rest. They react intensely to noise, light, touch, and transitions, their brains are already at capacity before any new input arrives. Understimulated (“drunken bull”) children lack sufficient nervous system tone, they are physically uncoordinated, seek out intense sensory input (jumping, crashing, chewing), and struggle with focus and social awareness. Most children with SPD have features of both types simultaneously, because Dysautonomia creates too much tone in some areas and too little in others.

Why does OT help some sensory kids but not completely fix the problem?

Occupational therapy is valuable and genuinely helps, but it works on the downstream effects of nervous system dysregulation rather than the upstream cause. OT stimulates understimulated areas and calms overstimulated ones through movement and play. When children plateau after months of OT, it usually indicates that a deeper neurological dysfunction, Subluxation, Dysautonomia, Vagus Nerve Dysfunction, has not been addressed. Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care targets those root-level dysfunctions first, which is why it often produces results that movement-based therapies alone cannot reach.

What does neurologically-focused chiropractic care actually do for sensory kids?

PX Docs chiropractors use INSiGHT scanning technology (EMG and HRV) to objectively measure nervous system imbalance, then deliver Neuro-Tonal Adjustments targeted to the upper cervical spine and vagus nerve. One type of adjustment releases stuck sympathetic tension, producing early improvements in sleep, calm, and digestion. The other activates the Vagus Nerve and parasympathetic system to restore sensory regulation from the root. Progress is confirmed through repeat scans, not just symptom tracking.

How do I find a chiropractor who specializes in sensory processing disorder?

Not every chiropractor is trained in this approach. Look for a PX Docs provider who uses INSiGHT scanning technology, takes a thorough Perfect Storm case history, and builds personalized neurological repair plans. You can find a qualified office through the PX Docs Directory.

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