Genes2Teens

Connecting parents across the globe

Subscribe to newsletter
SPD child sleeps with weighted blanket

Does a weighted blanket help with sensory issues?

, , , · ·

Sensory Processing Disorder: When your child is "in touch" too much or too little
  1. What is sensory processing disorder and how can I help my child?
  2. Sensory processing disorder (SPD) kids: How they are different
  3. You know sensory processing disorder exists, so why don’t they?
  4. What to do when your sensory sensitive child has a meltdown
  5. Challenges your sensory sensitive child will face at school
  6. Does a weighted blanket help with sensory issues?

Children with SPD can have trouble falling asleep at night. Any kind of itchy tag or crooked sleepwear can feel irritating. Sensory seekers may have trouble with the constant need to move and therefore, keep themselves awake. The dysregulated feeling that often comes alongside SPD can induce anxiety and sleeplessness. Weighted blankets are one item that many  SPD families have in their toolbox of comfort items. 4 moms weigh in on their potential benefits.

 A weighted blanket is like a hug (Lesley Scott)

A weighted blanket can be highly beneficial to an SPD child or adult. The weighted blanket provides a similar stimulus to a hug and the deep pressure applied to the body’s sensory receptors has a calming effect on the nervous system. A weighted blanket has been found to boost mood, improve sleep, increase spatial awareness, and have a calming effect. It can be used in a variety of situations including during a meltdown to assist in calming your child.

A weighted blanket helped my son sleep through the night (Amanda Whittington)

My son was about 6 years old and still not sleeping well at night. He was a restless sleeper, and often woke himself up in the night with his own wiggling. Worse yet was his inability to relax, due to his need for sensory input. A weighted blanket from a friend was an absolute treasure. The first night my son used his weighted blanket was the first night he slept through the night.

Weighted blankets offer calming deep pressure, which soothes the central nervous system. It can reduce anxiety, release positive endorphins, and improve sleep. Speak with an occupational therapist or doctor to find out if a weighted blanket is right for your child with SPD. The weight and size of the blanket are determined by the child’s size, weight, and severity of SPD. 

With the right therapy, a weighted blanket might not be needed (Tiffany Cook)

I would not go so far as to say one “absolutely has” to have a weighted blanket for a sensory child.  Weighted blankets are a tool that a child with SPD can use in various situations such as long car rides, time of extreme stress, transitioning from high to low energy, etc. to help them control, or regulate, their emotional responses to scenarios like these. This is called self-regulation. There are techniques and strategies that occupational and behavioral therapists can train the child with SPD to use in order to achieve self-regulation.  If the child has achieved some level of mastery using these strategies, adaptive tools such as weighted blankets and vests, compression shirts, and other aids may not be needed.

There’s no scientific basis for using weighted blankets for SPD (Kereth Harris)

You absolutely do not have to have a sensory blanket for a sensory child or for any child for that matter. If you Google weighted blankets lots of adverts for buying them comes up, but very little research. The claims made by many of the retailers are not supported by research. For many little people, and big people, weighted blankets do work. I love mine, but in terms of them being an evidence based tool to support your SPD child. Sorry, no!

Read all articles in this series<< Challenges your sensory sensitive child will face at school
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

Authors

  • Kereth Harris

    Kereth has a bachelor's degree in education from Edith Cowan University along with a graduate diploma in counseling and a certificate in education. She is currently completing her masters Education (Trauma Informed Practice). A sassy individual with a passion for life, Kereth has had a colorful life, working a teacher and educational advisor. including 11 years in Germany and the UK. Now settled in Fremantle, Western Australia with her husband and 2 teenagers, Kereth now devotes her professional life in her current position as teaching and learning coordinator at SMYL Community College to working with disadvantaged young people in the education system. Her personal interests include child and adolescent mental health, developmentally appropriate and gentle curriculum for all young people.

  • Lesley Scott

    Lesley is a mother of 2 who lives in the Cape Winelands of South Africa. With a commitment to lifelong learning, she is in the process of completing her master’s degree in psychology. As a Search and Teach practitioner for NILD (National Institute for Learning Development) South Africa, she empowers young children experiencing difficulties with their developmental pre-reading skills. Lesley is registered with the Council for Counsellors South Africa and offers coaching and counselling that addresses a diverse array of life issues. As a mom to a child with a complex health condition, she uses her own experience to inform and advocate on behalf of others in similar situations. Lesley believes in the power of community and that connecting with others helps us make sense of the world. She relies on tea and chocolate to survive parenthood with her sense of humor intact.

  • Tiffany Cook

    Tiffany has a degree and several certifications in Early Childhood Education and Teaching. She has worked as a preschool teacher and with adaptive technology for the blind and visually impaired. She has her own educational consultancy company that provides services for students and families facing various learning challenges. Born in the Philippines and reared in the Eastern United States,Tiffany was a simple girl from the country with big ambitions and who possessed an imagination that would not quit. Now, at nearly 50, Tiffany’s writing and creativity is seasoned by her life experiences and her journey as a happily married middle-aged mom of 3 including a son who is autistic. She currently resides in Northern Colorado with her family.

  • Amanda Whittington

    Amanda is a big-hearted, determined, coffee-drinking mom to 6 young children. She spends her free time absorbed in gardening and fitness, taking pictures and attempting clean eating, all while spreading autism awareness, encouraging adoption and foster care, championing the underdog, and of course, working with her chickens and goats. She is an ordained pastor, local church music director, and freelance writer.

You might also like

logo