Getting Dressed

My Daughter is 3.5 years old and I feel she has been dealing with SPD from day one. We are bringing her in next week to be evaluated at her pediatrician b/c it is progressively getting worse.




Every morning there is a struggle to get dressed. Any panties, pants or socks are evil to her. Which you can imagine, makes it difficult to get dressed. I have had to physically restrain her before to get her dressed to go to pre-school. Then the minute we return home she has removed her clothing and put on a nightgown and asked if she could take off her panties. The cold winters make her requests regarding little to no clothing difficult to comply with. She is in tears every morning having to put on panties and clothes of any sort and my husband and I are at the end of our ropes.

Any suggestions on home therapies we can do while waiting for her to be evaluated? I feel like people are looking at us like we are crazy and totally making a mountain out of a molehill when we discuss this issue. I think a lot of people feel as though we are letting her play us by her behavior - I just want to know what is the best approach. Thank you!



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Apr 06, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		Clothes and Shoes...
by: Anonymous

I would recommend sports type clothing for kids. You can get these at Academy Sports and now Target has a great selection as well. My daughter is exactly this way and we have tried everything and the sporty clothing that one plays or runs in (tennis skorts, tagless wicking shirts, tagless wicking shorts - all like runners/tennis players wear, but in children sizes) work so well. They feel like silk on my daughters skin. We also wear crocs in the summer. The skorts don't require underwear because they have built in shorts that fit properly without being too tight. I completely understand your frustration.

Also, we have a trampoline indoors and we do pillow fights every morning before she gets dressed - this works so much more than the brushing the OT suggested. Hope this helps - everyday is an adventure!!
Mar 24, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		clothes
by: Anonymous

My son is 4 and has SPD, I know what u r going through. What works for me is I have him pick out his own clothes in the store and in the morning he gets to choose between 2 different outfits. I also do a reward chart with stickers when he gets a certain amount he gets a toy. Hope this helps.
Feb 20, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		what to do until your appointment
by: Anonymous

A few things that have worked for me is the brushing protocol and having my son play w/ moon sand/silly putty. I've even read that some parents do a type of brushing while the child is bathing. Check out more information about Tactile Defensiveness on the tab to the left.

The other thing that you can do while waiting is to read a few books: "The Out-of-Sync Child" & "How Does Your Engine Run?".

Sometimes when my son doesn't want to do a particular thing, I get him to bounce on the ball/some heavy fun work and he is more willing to do the activity/chore after wards.

You are at the beginning of an long but amazing journey (an you thought being a parent was an interesting one) so don't give up hope, use your instincts, read, research and ask questions. This posting as well as other groups for SID are very helpful.
Feb 19, 2009
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by: Anonymous

Could you possibly try to take her shopping or bring some new clothes home and let her pick out what feels most comfortable to her? Maybe certain types of clothing feel better than others and you may get lucky and find an outfit or two that she can tolerate. Try many different materials. Maybe some sweats, or dresses that are loose?

Feb 19, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		clothes
by: Anonymous

Hi! My son who is 5 years old has some clothing issues, but not quite the same. He doesn't like fuzzy materials like fleece or sweats. Actually he really only likes denim pants and it is really not worth the fight most of the time to put anything else on him. He can't stand it and says they itch. No sweatshirts or fleece pullovers either. And of course NO tags!

Luckily these are things we can work around when choosing clothes. But it is not unusually to find him only in underwear at home. We are making progress by reminding him that big boys have to wear their clothes. A friend of mine had/has SPD and has shared with me that when she was 7 years old for almost a whole year wouldn't wear underwear and only cotton pants, no denim jeans for her, but she outgrew this so there is hope!

Don't let the opinions of others effect what you do with your daughter. So many people don't know what SPD is and therefore don't understand how it effects people. Hang in there and do what works for your family!
Feb 19, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		My heart is with you.
by: Anonymous

This is so real and believe me you are not alone, my grandaughter was diagnosed with SPD when she was 4. Today she is 6 years old and she still does not wear underwear or socks. My daughter cannot keep a job because she could never be on time because every day getting her daughter dressed was such a huge issue.

Please try different things, instead of fighting with her, been there, done that! Doesn't work everyone ends up unhappy for the whole day! Clothes for these children feel like steel wool on their skin. My grandaughter takes off her clothes off the minute she comes home. That's okay with me she's much happier that way.

She has been having Occupational Therapy for about a year, and it has made things like getting her dressed, brushing her hair and bathing her a little easier Please let her know that you understand, This is real! Don't give up hope! It will get a little easier, you will find a way.

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