Challenges with sustained attention may be due to difficulty with integration of sensory input. Often parents describe their children’s behavior as “all over the place,” “always on the move,” or “can’t sit still.” Some children cannot “shut out” the lights, sounds, and confusion of so many people doing so many things in the surrounding environment.
The child’s brain is working in overdrive absorbing all of the unimportant stimuli in the surrounding environment, preventing the ability to focus on the important tasks at hand that truly require his/her attention. This area can be addressed through occupational therapy using a sensory integrative approach to treatment to work on improving the child’s ability to process and integrate the sensory input in his/her environment.