First and foremost, a very heartfelt thank you goes out to all of you who responded to our call to action with our Oprah letter writing campaign. Over 1,200 comments were posted in reference to the mention of sensory integration on the Oprah show that aired on February 18, 2011.
The child on this show, Zach, had violent rages and at the age of seven raised a knife to his mother. He was diagnosed with four disorders, one of them being Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). However, the only disorder that Oprah mentioned on the show was SPD, which may have lead people to believe that SPD causes violent rages.
Our hope in starting this letter writing campaign was to educate others and relay the correct information about SPD. With your comments and shared personal experiences your sensational voices were heard! Oprah.com has listed the Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation along with a link to our website as a “Related Resource” in reference to Zach’s story.
This exposure is monumental to our mission of education and advocacy for children with SPD and their families. Over 70 million people per month view Oprah’s website!
It certainly would be great for Oprah to do a show about Sensory Processing Disorder and we are not giving up on that hope. This has caused quite a media stir in a favorable way for the awareness of SPD. We know that many of you contacted your local media. Should you receive a response and have any questions about media interviews, or if you would like them to interview someone at the SPD Foundation, please contact us.
You can view a recap of the show here. Directly under the story is a section called “Related Resources.” The Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation link is at the bottom of this list.
Thank you for believing that YOU could make a difference. You have!