A Local Mother Writes About Special Needs

As parents, we all search for that perfect manual. The book that will not only help us become better parents but help our kids lead a happier life. When North Kingstown resident Carolyn Dalgliesh’s son was just two-years-old, she started searching for that perfect manual to help her.

Her son began showing signs of sensory challenges – diffculties in the way he processed information from his senses. Seemingly easy tasks such as getting ready to leave the house, sitting to have dinner or attending a play date became diffcult. An otherwise high functioning child and not eligible for many services, Carolyn soon realized that it would be her responsibility to make their daily home life work. “I was stuck in a place between how I had always thought parenting would be and what it really was for me and my child,” she says.

After years of developing strategies to organize her own home, Carolyn began Systems for Sensory Kids, LLC, a leading-edge organizing model for parents of sensory children. She started her in-home organizing business helping other families with rigid, anxious and distracted kids use structure and organizing tools to make their daily life less challenging.

From these in-home experiences, Carolyn created a road-map, a necessary manual, for parents to use on their own. The goal of her book, The Sensory Child Gets Organized, is to fill that void for many parents with sensory kids. “I was inspired out of my own experience with my sensory child. I wanted to help others by bridging the gap between essential clinical support and practical in-home solutions.”

The outline of her book came from a formalized plan she used in her own home; tools and tips that she had implemented for her son and saw great results. “Once I understood the core tools for sensory organization, I could apply them everywhere. The book shares these tools with other parents who can then implement them in their own home.”

Providing that support and clear road-map for others has been the most rewarding part of this experience for Carolyn. “When I saw a review from the editor of the SPD Blogger Network that said, ‘Once in a while a book comes along that changes your life…’ that was powerful.”