The sensory is linked to sensitivity or the sense organs.
Sensory is that linked to the sense organs or sensitivity . To understand the concept, therefore, you must first know what the senses and sensitivity are.
The senses are the different capacities of a living being to, by appealing to certain organs, achieve the perception of internal or external stimuli . Human beings have five primary senses: smell , touch , hearing , taste and sight . Sensitivity , likewise, is the faculty that allows you to feel (experience a sensation).
sensory system
The sensory system is called, in this framework, the part of the nervous system that is responsible for processing information from the senses. Sensory organs , such as the eyes and tongue, are sensitive to stimuli and send nerve impulses to the brain, which interprets them and provides a response.
On the other hand, the specialized cells that capture stimuli and produce nervous impulses in reaction are called sensory receptors . These cells generate electrical signals from physical-chemical signals.
Consequences of the restriction of the senses
It is known as sensory deprivation , meanwhile, the partial or total limitation of the stimuli that are captured by one sense or by several of them. This restriction can be deliberately caused for different purposes.
Many times sensory deprivation is applied as torture . When extended over time, it can cause anything from hallucinations to an anxiety crisis. However, when sensory deprivation is brief and carried out in an environment controlled by the subject, it can contribute to meditation , for example.
Sensory stimulation
Sensory stimulation therapy stimulates the five senses, as well as the vestibular system and proprioception through certain activities and stimuli. It targets patients of all ages (although it is generally associated with childhood) and should be carried out with the supervision of a therapist. Its main goal is for the patient to experience an improvement in their quality of life, to increase their sensory perception and to enhance all aspects of their daily life , such as communication, interpersonal relationships, self-esteem and their perception of the environment. . Additionally, in case of anxiety, it can be used to relax you.
In fact, this therapy has so many different applications that it is recommended both to stimulate the child as a way of preventing certain disorders and to treat them when they have already manifested, even in adult patients. Dementia is one of the specific disorders that sensory stimulation therapy can prevent (in childhood) or treat (in adulthood), but in general it can be applied to compensate for any deficit in the use of the senses. Sessions usually last 45 minutes and are potentially different for each patient, as they must focus on the most effective stimulus for them. Additionally, each session focuses on only one direction .
The eye is a sensory organ.
Below we will see some of the pathologies that this therapy can treat in children:
* intellectual disability : this is a significant limitation in learning, reasoning and problem solving, in addition to social and practical skills, which begins before the age of majority;
* autism : affects communication, both verbal and non-verbal, and considerably reduces interaction with the environment;
* Asperger's : the patient can deal with other people, but his behavior is abnormal and he behaves inappropriately, since he does not process stimuli and emotions like others. They tend to be deeply interested in certain specific topics.