I can’t count the amount of days my son struggled with having to get dressed for the day. And when winter comes along, oh my goodness!!! I feel like I’ve walked into the clothing wars.
Today on Voices of SPD we are joined by Jessica of Sensory Speak, talking about how she manages the clothing wars in her own home.
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The Clothing Wars
I’d like to think I understand B’s extreme sensory challenges when it comes to how clothing feels. Then I have mornings like this morning…and realize I am extremely intolerable and like every other parent out there just want her to wear what I pick out.
I admit it. I lose my cool over this issue way more often then I should. After all, I refuse to wear a shirt that fits too snug or a sweater that’s too itchy. How’s that any different for B?
This morning B didn’t want to wear the shirt I picked out. I had an immature mommy moment. I replied with, “Fine. Pick out what you want to wear from now on.” Only it wasn’t what I said. I used the “tone.” You know what tone I’m talking about. The one I used, but in that extremely mad and irritated voice.
For kids with sensory processing disorder, tone and inflection in our voices can really stress them out. Many times, they are more sensitive to EVERYTHING and that definitely includes our tone of voice. I failed to remember that as I growled out what I said. Her tears and the sobs followed. Honestly, the way I reacted, I can’t blame her.
The shirt she wanted to wear is this bright, totally adorable owl shirt that we bought when school first started. See the featured image of this post. At the time I bought it, I failed to recognize how much it would shrink (Darn you China). We bought it in a size 7. My bad! She tried it on today and when she lifted up her arms it showed her belly. She hates when shirts do that. She feels they are immediately too small when that happens. Like all of us that no longer fit into our favorite pair of jeans, she was mad. She whipped the shirt over her head and threw it onto the floor. More sobbing ensued.
About ten minutes later I was able to ask her what she was really upset about. See, most kids with sensory processing disorder cannot articulate how they are feeling in the moment. When you ask them, they will either ignore you completely or shout out, “I don’t know!” When she was able to rationalize, she explained that she just loves this shirt and now it doesn’t fit her anymore. That and she was just having a really bad morning.
So what does every parent do when their child’s heart is broken over something? You try to replace it. Unfortunately, the shirt is now on clearance and only comes in a size 4/5. The good news…she picked out a new shirt (That I seriously can’t stand, but I pick my battles), in a size 8, online. Oh, and even though we couldn’t get the owl shirt in her size…we did manage to find the owl shirt as a pajama set!!! I will say that just made her morning 🙂
More Recommended Reading
For further reading about Sensory Processing Disorder:
The Out-of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Differences
Raising a Sensory Smart Child: The Definitive Handbook for Helping Your Child with Sensory Processing IssuesUnderstanding Your Child’s Sensory Signals: A Practical Daily Use Handbook for Parents and TeachersHelping Your Child with Sensory Regulation: Skills to Manage the Emotional and Behavioral Components of Your Child’s Sensory Processing Challenges
This post originally appeared on Sensory Speak. You can read more from Jessica there.
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