Dressing strategies for children with special needs
Many children with special needs have sensory needs, which can make wearing clothes uncomfortable and upsetting due to clothing sensitivity. Textures, seams, material, and colour can all affect sensory stimuli, causing sensory overload, distress, and anxiety. It is therefore important to consider your child’s sensory needs when buying clothing for them.
The following are suggestions of strategies that you could use to help your child dress:
Ask your child which clothes feel comfortable and which don’t
Communicate with your child and, if possible, find out what clothes they feel comfortable wearing and what they don’t. Build their wardrobe around this so that they have a cupboard full of clothes that make them feel happy and confident.
Consider sensory clothing
Sensory clothing is a game-changer for children with special needs and their parents - designed with comfort in mind, but not forgetting style and any adaption needs like holes for PEG feeding or backward fastenings for those who tend to strip off or are at risk of smearing. We have a wide range of sensory clothing on our website – be sure to take a look!
You can get a wide range of sensory and adaptive clothing based on your child's needs. For example if your child struggles with seams our range of adaptive bodysuits/popper vests and sleep-suits are designed with flat lock and top stitched seams for minimal disruption. We know that tags can be a big issue for children with clothing sensitivities, therefore our range of clothing is tag free.
Use deep pressure
Try using deep pressure activities – like a tight hug – before dressing, as this can help to decrease tactile sensitivities. There are also clothing items that you can buy, such as weighted vests, which can help children to feel more comfortable.
Cut labels out of clothing
Labels can be extremely irritating for children and impossible to ignore. Ideally, buy clothes without labels, however, cut the labels out of any clothes that do have them.
Be prepared and organise your child's outfits
Organise what your child is wearing in advance – if possible, the day before. Transitioning clothing for the next season can take time, so try to make sure your child is prepared in advance by using social stories and discussing what might change, for example, the need to wear warmer clothes in the winter.
Easy wear clothing and shoes
If your child finds it difficult to dress themselves, consider easy wear clothing. For example, try school shirts with Velcro instead of buttons and use Billy Shoes or Friendly Shoes, which are designed so that they are easier to fasten.
Keep auditory distractions to a minimum
If possible, avoid noisy distractions whilst your child is preparing to get dressed.
Leave extra time
With all the preparation in the world, your child might still find it difficult to get dressed. Make sure you leave plenty of time for them to get dressed. Using a timer and discussing how long getting dressed should take might be encouraging for some children.