Sunset Dip in the Sea on Mauritius Island

Enjoying a dip in the sea at sunset is a new positive change for us. Elyza now simply loves the calm relaxing atmosphere during sunset ...

One of Elyza's sensory processing challenges was that of fading light and that included sunset time. As the sun would set, she would find it challenging to cope with the fading light, her ocular sensory systems would be in a state of alert. Even the air seems different, the smell and the sound around in the environment ... all changes. Subtly for all maybe, but Elyza with her autism spectrum disorder (ASD) would feel the physical, atmospheric and biological change .... the slightest change

• in barometric pressure,

• in the wavelengths of lights,

• in the humidity in the air,

• in the sound made by the animals and the insects in her immediate environment,

• in the smell of the air with the change in tide,

• the feeling of the sunlight on the skin,

• the colour of the sky

• the shape of the sun,

• the temperature,

• the pollutants in the air,

• the biological cool down.

I love sunset and sunrise time. And the best time to be at the beach to enjoy some quiet and relaxing time is indeed during that time. Looking at it retrospectively, it seems like unintentionally I worked on desensitising Elyza's sensory processing challenges with fading lights ... because I felt that it is the calm time of the day that she would enjoy. Maybe I am wrong? Maybe it is not calming at all for her ... those are always the worries of a mother of child with ASD.

But during our time in Mauritius, Elyza seemed to genuinely enjoy sunset at the beach, especially when it was with her grandmother. Swimming and playing with her grandmother for some quality grandmother - granddaughter time.