Help with Clothes and Shoes
We are constantly having a battle with getting to church or school on time since Jared constantly hates his shoes and jeans. He likes them in the beginning and then hates them within a few days. Some of it is his want of control, but I am somewhat thinking that because of his MD, he is more sensitive to the way the pants or the shoes feel on his body. Is anyone having a similar situation or have dealt with this and been able to find a better way to deal with this issue? Jared is still quite ambulatory and capable of getting himself dressed. Anyway, are there jeans and shoes out there that feel more comfortable? From what I have been reading in other discussions, shoes should be wide and flexible and lightweight. Please help us retain our sanity and do away with these terrible battles. Thank you for your help.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Karen Barnett on
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Hi Kari,
Daniel has tremendous sensory issues related to clothing, shoes and the feel of many other things on his body. Dressing has always been a real challenge. When Daniel had his neuropsych done in Cinc. I learned this was a problem that many boys with DMD dealt with and in fact from talking to other parents & reading other parents posts over the last 3 yrs I have seen this come up time and time again. The therapist that saw Daniel said when a sock or shoe doesn't "feel right" it is like having a rock in his shoes to him. It is nothing that he can control. We have to be sensitive to his problem and try and ease the discomfort by patiently talking to him & finding clothing that he can tolerate. Transitioning from summer to fall and back again is a very hard time. Clothing has to fit EXACTLY right every time. Socks have to be just perfect - no wrinkles, cuffs turned perfectly, etc. Changing colors to something he is not used to is a huge problem so try not to get him stuck on one thing and if you can mix it up a lot if you can. There are many articles related to this subject and ideas and ways to help with dressing that can lessen the sensory stress to them. Talk with your OT's at school too - they have ideas to help. With clothes it has been a lot of trial and error over the years. I know what clothes Daniel can tolerate the best now (T-shirts & sweats). He has never been able to tolerate jeans. It helps a lot to have him pick out his own clothes. This is especialy true with shoes. Now that we have it down I just stick with the same brand and style of clothing. Good luck!
Karen
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Permalink Reply by Kelly Bruhl on
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We just switched over to all elastic waist pants from the Children's Place. I think a lot of our boys have some characteristics similar to Austism spectrum disorders. Sensory issues just seem to be part of the territory. We can't buy shirts with letters stitched on the front. Cade can get himself dressed, but it is a waste of his energy. I have chosen to pick my battles with him. We also only get one style of shoes, one style of socks (now that we know which one's won't drive him nuts).
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Permalink Reply by Vicky Williamson on
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My son is 16 and has been "picky" about his clothes for years. What works for us now is the "tear-away" basketball pants that have snaps down the sides. He is in a wheelchair but can sit forward enough to use a urinal and just unsnap his pants ... he wears boxers so he can easily go to the bathroom at school or even in public accessible restrooms. Since we live in Wisconsin the winters are really cold and the summers really hot so in the summer he just switches to elastic waist basketball shorts and can pull them up in the crotch to use the urinal. So far this has worked great for us.
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Permalink Reply by Angela on
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Jack is very sensative to anything on his skin! We have tried MANY things and found the shoes were important, but more important were the socks. If they are not good quality with well done seams, no one in the house is happy. Also, the material that clothes are made of is very important. We have gotten to mostly organic cotton from Hanna Andersson. Which we, of course, can not afford (His underwear are $14.50 each, regular price) so I have mastered their sales calendar. They have a HUGE sale now. You might buy a cheap piece and see if this organic cotton also works for Jared. http://www.hannaandersson.com/
Ang :)
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Permalink Reply by Ana on
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Austin is also extremely picky about how his clothes and socks "feel". I have to adjust his socks when he puts them on, otherwise, he'll never stay in them. He also wears basketball pants and shorts or some of the more fashionable sweat pants. He does not like the tear away pants. I usually buy his from Old Navy, they have shiny ones, that look "cooler" and are still warm. They are also easy for him to get up and down during bathroom breaks.
Good luck, Ana
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Permalink Reply by MarcosDad on
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Wow! You just described my son. Shoes, shirts with tags, pants with belts, underwear, socks these are all issues. He usually runs around the house with his undies and t-shirt nothing more because of these sensory issues. He can't have a single drop of water on his cloths or they are off.
Here was our solution...
Shoes - We did New Balance they seem to work pretty good since they are very cushiony and light. Sketchers Z-strap works well also since they are light and they have a large cushiony tung and no laces (only straps with velcro).
Pants - he tolerates mostly the pants with elastic waist. You can get them anywhere, Kohls, Target, Walmart, Sears, etc...
Socks - Good luck! These seem to be tied to the shoe problem. They have to be cushiony and snug fitting because they will bunch up in the shoe otherwise, so it may not be the shoe. Good Hanes crew socks, wash and dry on high seems to work ok.
Shirts - no collar, no tag - cut tag really really close to where it is sewn on or pull off thread and remove is even better. Mark location with Sharpee permanent marker. Many shirts now come tagless - must be a common problem with people.
Underwear - Boxer briefs (not boxer shorts). Tighty whity briefs are too tight.
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Permalink Reply by christine good on
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Hi,
Like you all, my Kian has mega sensory issues. We use to do sensory integration at home, without much success.
I work in rehab, Many of my patients have edemetous legs and wear diabetic socks. Very soft, no seams and they stay up without being too tight. I also found that Kian prefers his Keen sandals to anything, but our Oregon rain makes it hard to do in winter. Timberland makes these great velcro strap shoes that are so comfy.
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Osh Kosh sells a seamless sock that is snug fitting and doesn't move or wrinkle. It helps to find the socks with spandex in them. Once I found these socks they saved me a lot of headaches. Hanes makes underwear that has the comfortsoft waistband. WalMart and Target carry them although they are always seem to be out of stock. I just order them off the Hanes sight.
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Permalink Reply by Joshua's mom on
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We always have to buy sweatpants or pants with the same soft material. He's not too picky in that regard. We can buy them at Wal-Mart. His socks have to fit just right; his shirts can't have any tags ( Wal-Mart); and he can't wear underwear or long underwear. His shoes have to be velcro. Wal-Mart, again, makes them without the hard and formed sole so his feet will conform to them themselves. We've just yet to find the perfect snow suit so he can move properly in the winter....
Naomi
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Permalink Reply by Michelle Strasheim on
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OH MY GOODNESS.......CAN I RELATE TO THAT!!! My son Tyler has the same issues and I have tried letting him pick his clothes out and like you said he will only wear them a couple of times. He is sooooo particular about his clothing and it is good to hear I am not alone because even though it is a minor issue, it really takes a toll on you when trying to get out the door for school or church. Tyler will have full on 'meltdowns' about it. I would love to know if there are better shoes because Tyler will wear nothing but crocs and in the winter it is a bit cold. Thanks for mentioning this!
-Michelle
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Permalink Reply by Kari on
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These new balance shoes we found are wonderful. Lightweight, flexible and wide. We hardly ask him to wear jeans anymore. Gave up that battle. Now no complaints. This was all suggested from my discussinon. Just read all the responses. It really helps getting tips from other.
Michelle Strasheim said:OH MY GOODNESS.......CAN I RELATE TO THAT!!! My son Tyler has the same issues and I have tried letting him pick his clothes out and like you said he will only wear them a couple of times. He is sooooo particular about his clothing and it is good to hear I am not alone because even though it is a minor issue, it really takes a toll on you when trying to get out the door for school or church. Tyler will have full on 'meltdowns' about it. I would love to know if there are better shoes because Tyler will wear nothing but crocs and in the winter it is a bit cold. Thanks for mentioning this!
-Michelle
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Permalink Reply by Holly Cahoon on
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I can't believe how many others have the sensory problem. My son Tyler not only has to have his shirts with no tags and his socks and underware just the way he likes, he also has a sensory problems with his pillow and blankets. If his pillow is turned the wrong way, or his blanket isn't laying on him just right when he's getting ready to go to bed it's a big battle every night. I adjust the blanket at least 3 or 4 times until it's just perfect for him, then he'll go right to sleep. Seams his blanket has to lay on him just right, and can have no bunches in it at all, just like the "socks" before he will go to sleep. I do pretty good with adjusting his blanket for him each night so he can get a good nights sleep, but it really drives me crazy when I have two other children to tuck in and get ready for bed too. Does any one else go through this same thing?
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