For the queue

To disgruntled person in Disney World line,

Standing in this line is difficult for you, isn't it? The crowds, and the noise, and the physical strain of standing in one place for a while can be overwhelming. Makes it hard to control your outbursts, doesn't it?

Now, I want you to think about that irritation you’re feeling. As I've said, it’s perfectly understandable. But I want you to think about it, really embrace it - and now I want you to imagine that you’re 5 years old. I bet waiting in this line just got even more trying for you, didn't it?

Now imagine you also have a sensory processing disorder. This means that every sensation is multiplied. Without on-going therapy, even simple sights and sounds that people usually enjoy can occasionally send you into a frenzy or render you catatonic. So imagine what happens with an overload of unpleasant stimuli.

Now I want you to imagine that you have Autism. Along with a list of stumbling blocks as long as my arm, this means communicating is especially challenging, if not impossible. It’s not your fault, but people can’t always read your mind and sometimes crying or throwing a tantrum is the only way you feel you can be understood. You don’t mean to hurt or annoy the people around you but you can’t talk and sometimes it’s just all too much. Your parents and other family and friends watch you very carefully, and try their hardest to maintain the balance of stimulus and rest so you can have something like a normal life experience. All you want to do is have fun at Disney World, because after all, you’re 5, but sometimes you need people to cut you a break.

Now you can be you again. Maybe this is a relief to you, maybe it’s not. But you get to choose. You can let the strain get to you, vent your aggravation on passersby. Or you can switch gears and choose to be happy in the “happiest place on earth.” Maybe take a cue from my special needs family and take a rest break if you’re feeling grumpy. It’s really all the same to me. I’ll continue to push or accommodate my children as I think best. It just might help you to remember, you’re not alone in the world - my son has certainly experienced frustration, just like you.

Best wishes,
Amy B.



A little note I composed after a little research into the Disney Guest Assistance Cards and the snide remarks some people have faced when using them. I guess this could really be handed out to any "snide remarker" in a line whether you were using a card or not. Just things I wish I could say to people who don't get it.

Long Sleeve Shirt --- Sensory Processing Tool!

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend a continuing education course given by Children's Healthcare of Atlanta called "Sensory Processing: Behavior, Memory, Learning." The target audience was speech, occuptional, and physical therapists but parents were invited as well (with a nice discount on registration fees, I might add.) So worth the price of admission! The instructor was a woman named Laura Barker and she practically had me crying (tears of hope) by the end of the class. It was an all day course so I won't even attempt to represent all the things I learned in this post but I would definitely recommend visiting her website www.sensoryprocessing.com and looking into a READY Approach class in your area.

One specific tip she gave us was turning a sweat shirt into a weighted (Deep Pressure Input) device. (If you've never heard of weighted blankets or compression vests and don't know what I'm talking about, go here). The weight is sewn into the arms of the shirt. The torso section can be pulled down over the back of a chair, and then the arms can be wrapped around the person and rest in their lap.

I didn't have a sweat shirt on hand that I thought would do what I wanted it to so instead I pulled out one of my old long sleeve stretchy T's. You'll want to pick a shirt made of a sturdy fabric, especially if your kid likes to chew on things the way mine does. (Alexander actually chewed a tiny whole in his wrap in the time it took me to come up here and start this post. So I'm going to need to revamp a little but if you pay attention you should be all good.) The shirt I sewed up is white but here's a black version so you get the "supplies" idea. 

The Homemade Weighted "Hug" Wrap

Supplies:

Adult sized (small or medium) long sleeve shirt

3 lbs* Poly-Pellets (Stuffing Beads)

Sewing machine (threaded)

Rubber band(s)

Scale (optional)

*The weight recommendation for any therapeutic weighted object is one tenth the body weight of the person for whom it's being made. My son weighs 29.25 lbs. I rounded that to 30 and used 3 lbs of beads for his "hug wrap". You'll need to know your child's weight and scale the measurements accordingly.

Step 1:

Grab one sleeve to start with and use your machine to double stitch it shut at the bottom. Keep sewing off both edges to ensure the sleeve is completely sealed off. You don't want any of your little beads working their way out.

Step 2: 

Measure out (or guestimate) 0.5 lbs (ie: 1/6 total quantity) of beads and pour them down into the closed off sleeve. 

I grabbed the food scale and a good sized cup from our kitchen. The scale's tare function allowed me to use the cup to hold the beads while they were weighed. Then I pulled the "mouth" of the sleeve over the top of the cup and flipped the cup over to pour the beads in. (Dealing with these itty-bitty beads is a bit of a pain, but my method seemed to work well this time.)

Step 3:

Use the rubber band to tie off the sleeve with the beads as well packed as you can get them. 

I cut the rubber band and used it more like a tourniquet so I could really get it tight enough not to let any beads through.

Step 4: Double stitch through the non-stuffed part of the sleeve as close to the rubber band as you can without sewing through bunched material. 

If you look closely at the picture above, you can see my stitching about an inch to the right of the rubber band. It took some finagling to get the material to lie flat so I could get a really good closure. Just take your time and don't worry too much about a straight line, as long as no beads can get through, you're good. 

Step 5: Measure out (or guestimate) 1.0 lb (ie: 1/3 total quantity) of beads and pour them down into what is now the top half of the closed off sleeve.

Step 6: Repeat steps 3 and 4 with the top half of the sleeve. 

Step 7: Repeat steps 1-6 with other sleeve.

Finished product

Test Run

Snug as a bug in a rug

I'm considering adding "fidgets" with velcro (might cover that little hole I was talking about) but now you have the basic idea. I plan on caring for my hug wrap by hand washing and then laying out to dry. If I get really courageous all of the sudden I may try a machine cycle on the hand wash settling and maybe even try a tumble dry on low. I just can't imagine what all those little beads would do to my machine if they got loose somehow.

Big Honking Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional. This is a home made item and hasn't been studied or endorsed by any of those fancy government mommysitter agencies. Please judge for yourself whether this sounds like something you want your child to be using (with or without supervision.) You may also want to discuss weight therapy with your child's doctor before proceeding.