Hello all!! My name is Debbie and my 4 year old grandson has SPD and Communication Disorder. He and my daughter live in my home, I'm his caregiver when she's working and he's not at his Early Childhood Special Education preschool.

Since he was an infant, I knew something was different with him. I have a background in Early Childhood Education. At around 20 months he was tested and started in the Early On program. It's been a struggle, but he's finally getting services through the school district and receiving outside OT which his insurance is covering. The school district says he doesn't need these services. He was just tested for private speech and doesn't qualify! There is at least twice a ay that he says something I can not understand, how is this ok for a 4 year 4 month old? The struggle is real and if I had not been there to push the district and push my daughter to get him evaluated privately, he would still be getting no help. He started the special preschool on his 4th birthday in October, so it's still new. Private OT is only 4 weeks in. The school says he doesn't qualify for those services either. It's sad to think how many children don't get the needed services because of the district testing.

Immediate help? Yes, OT has suggested he get some items to help him cope, weighted blankets, vests, head phones, etc. where can we get these? Is there a lending or rental place for equipment? We have a very limited income, I have MS, his mom just graduated with her bachelors but has yet to find any good career and is making just above minimum wage only working part time.



Keegan is the light of my life! He is the sweetest kid I know of. He would not open his first Christmas gift until I had one to open!! How many four year olds do that? He loves hot wheels, the iPad, Legos and Pete the pirate.

My hobbies, gardening........sad that Keegan doesn't share my love for dirt and worms,lol.

Do you know how to sew? It's possible to make a weighted blanket for not too much money. I personally made mine for $50, and I'm an adult so I had to make an adult sized and weighted one. Yours would be much smaller.

If you can sew (or have a friend who can, then poly pellets (which are reasonable cost on ebay), some nice cotton fabric, and time, and you get a weighted blanket ). I can help with advice as to how to do so, how much weight to use, etc, if this makes sense as to how to go about it.

Other options; It's rare, but sometimes insurance will cover a weighted blanket. With the diagnoses you have its unlikely, but you could attempt it. Usually it only works for people with autism, and only sometimes then, but its a thing you could try.

Used on ebay is generally a thing to look into for certain types of things. I'd make a blanket over getting one used, because they do wear out and because you can make them so cheap, but other things that's a great option. I got noise cancelling headphones for $25 - a solid midline pair, not Bose, but what had been Sony's top end at one point in the past. I got the headphones and some CDs for therapeutic listening (I don't know if they recommended that for you) on there for cheaper than I would be able to rent them from my OT - still a good bit of money, but some savings, and I could resell after if I needed (I have kept them because I still use them).

A weighted vest I don't have good advice for places to get. I haven't found any commercial ones that are adult sized that I like, don't know about any that only make kid sized ones. Mine was homemade for me.

However another great option for that is to look into compression shirts. Instead of weight there, you have compression, and there you can do something as simple as the athletic wear. It's normal clothing cost instead of medical cost, hard for someone low income, but easier than medical equipment and how those are always more expensive costs.

There are lots of tools for SPD, but there are a lot of ways to make a bunch of them obtainable cheaper.

(02-10-2015, 05:25 PM)Tuttleturtle Wrote: Do you know how to sew? It's possible to make a weighted blanket for not too much money. I personally made mine for $50, and I'm an adult so I had to make an adult sized and weighted one. Yours would be much smaller.

If you can sew (or have a friend who can, then poly pellets (which are reasonable cost on ebay), some nice cotton fabric, and time, and you get a weighted blanket ). I can help with advice as to how to do so, how much weight to use, etc, if this makes sense as to how to go about it.

Other options; It's rare, but sometimes insurance will cover a weighted blanket. With the diagnoses you have its unlikely, but you could attempt it. Usually it only works for people with autism, and only sometimes then, but its a thing you could try.

Used on ebay is generally a thing to look into for certain types of things. I'd make a blanket over getting one used, because they do wear out and because you can make them so cheap, but other things that's a great option. I got noise cancelling headphones for $25 - a solid midline pair, not Bose, but what had been Sony's top end at one point in the past. I got the headphones and some CDs for therapeutic listening (I don't know if they recommended that for you) on there for cheaper than I would be able to rent them from my OT - still a good bit of money, but some savings, and I could resell after if I needed (I have kept them because I still use them).

A weighted vest I don't have good advice for places to get. I haven't found any commercial ones that are adult sized that I like, don't know about any that only make kid sized ones. Mine was homemade for me.

However another great option for that is to look into compression shirts. Instead of weight there, you have compression, and there you can do something as simple as the athletic wear. It's normal clothing cost instead of medical cost, hard for someone low income, but easier than medical equipment and how those are always more expensive costs.

There are lots of tools for SPD, but there are a lot of ways to make a bunch of them obtainable cheaper.

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Thank you so very much, I do know how to sew!! He weighs 44 pounds, how much weight should the blanket be or how do I find that out? I want it to be for his bed which is a twin size.

I will definitely check ebay to see what they have on there.

Thank you for your reply.

Debbie

(02-11-2015, 12:21 AM)Fdebb Wrote:

(02-10-2015, 05:25 PM)Tuttleturtle Wrote: Do you know how to sew? It's possible to make a weighted blanket for not too much money. I personally made mine for $50, and I'm an adult so I had to make an adult sized and weighted one. Yours would be much smaller.

If you can sew (or have a friend who can, then poly pellets (which are reasonable cost on ebay), some nice cotton fabric, and time, and you get a weighted blanket ). I can help with advice as to how to do so, how much weight to use, etc, if this makes sense as to how to go about it.

Other options; It's rare, but sometimes insurance will cover a weighted blanket. With the diagnoses you have its unlikely, but you could attempt it. Usually it only works for people with autism, and only sometimes then, but its a thing you could try.

Used on ebay is generally a thing to look into for certain types of things. I'd make a blanket over getting one used, because they do wear out and because you can make them so cheap, but other things that's a great option. I got noise cancelling headphones for $25 - a solid midline pair, not Bose, but what had been Sony's top end at one point in the past. I got the headphones and some CDs for therapeutic listening (I don't know if they recommended that for you) on there for cheaper than I would be able to rent them from my OT - still a good bit of money, but some savings, and I could resell after if I needed (I have kept them because I still use them).

A weighted vest I don't have good advice for places to get. I haven't found any commercial ones that are adult sized that I like, don't know about any that only make kid sized ones. Mine was homemade for me.

However another great option for that is to look into compression shirts. Instead of weight there, you have compression, and there you can do something as simple as the athletic wear. It's normal clothing cost instead of medical cost, hard for someone low income, but easier than medical equipment and how those are always more expensive costs.

There are lots of tools for SPD, but there are a lot of ways to make a bunch of them obtainable cheaper.

So, in general the recommended weight for a weighted blanket is 10%+1 lb for someone. The maximum weight is 20% of their weight. So you would want somewhere between 5.4 lbs and 8.8 lbs. One of the reasons people do the going up to 20% of the weight is for growing children, while others do that for people who like lots of squishiness. I'd recommend somewhere in that range, but not going above it.

The basic idea for it, is that you want to make 4"x4" squares in the blanket, and fill them equally with the poly pellets. So, split up them into the amounts you'd need for the squares for 4"x4" squares for the top of a twin bed, sew a row of squares, fill a row of squares, repeat until its filled!

In detail what I did to make mine is here: http://turtleisaverb.blogspot.com/2014/0...nkets.html

(02-11-2015, 12:33 AM)Tuttleturtle Wrote: So, in general the recommended weight for a weighted blanket is 10%+1 lb for someone. The maximum weight is 20% of their weight. So you would want somewhere between 5.4 lbs and 8.8 lbs. One of the reasons people do the going up to 20% of the weight is for growing children, while others do that for people who like lots of squishiness. I'd recommend somewhere in that range, but not going above it.

The basic idea for it, is that you want to make 4"x4" squares in the blanket, and fill them equally with the poly pellets. So, split up them into the amounts you'd need for the squares for 4"x4" squares for the top of a twin bed, sew a row of squares, fill a row of squares, repeat until its filled!

In detail what I did to make mine is here: http://turtleisaverb.blogspot.com/2014/0...nkets.html

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Awesome, thank you! Have some pellets, but the store didn't have enough, looking for fabric too.

Such a cool idea - just found a pattern http://www.mamasmiles.com/sewing-tutoria...y-blanket/

(02-12-2015, 09:31 PM)Fdebb Wrote:

(02-11-2015, 12:33 AM)Tuttleturtle Wrote: So, in general the recommended weight for a weighted blanket is 10%+1 lb for someone. The maximum weight is 20% of their weight. So you would want somewhere between 5.4 lbs and 8.8 lbs. One of the reasons people do the going up to 20% of the weight is for growing children, while others do that for people who like lots of squishiness. I'd recommend somewhere in that range, but not going above it.

The basic idea for it, is that you want to make 4"x4" squares in the blanket, and fill them equally with the poly pellets. So, split up them into the amounts you'd need for the squares for 4"x4" squares for the top of a twin bed, sew a row of squares, fill a row of squares, repeat until its filled!

In detail what I did to make mine is here: http://turtleisaverb.blogspot.com/2014/0...nkets.html

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Awesome, thank you! Have some pellets, but the store didn't have enough, looking for fabric too.