There are days when trying to get Parker to focus and pay attention to the task at hand is a huge experience in futility.
I teasingly refer to it as ‘Goofball Mode’
It’s when Parker simply starts…well, acting like a Goofball. Twisting his body from side to side. Giggling. Going from a limp noodle to stiff as a board. It reminds me a bit of when one of my other sons, diagnosed with ADHD, was young and would just kinda start bouncing off the walls when he was overstimulated.
Most of the time when GM attacks, I can pretty much write off the rest of the day as far as anything productive being accomplished.
I’ve talked to his therapists and each one of them has mentioned that in working with Parker, sensory issues are a huge hurdle. In the summer when the air conditioning is on I’ve noticed that just the cool air over his skin can drive him up a wall.
Before we turn on the iPad I take Parker’s pointer finger and, using gentle pressure, work my way up and down it while singing the ‘Where is Pointer’ song.
There have been several times when I can tell by the signs that Parker is about to go into ‘Goofball mode.’ I’ve started doing the same pressure sort of massage on various parts of his body when the warning signals begin to manifest. We’ll be working on an activity and Parker will offer up his hand……his signal to me that he would like some gentle sensory pressure applied, please.
I used to use a brushing technique when Parker was younger. Unfortunately that tactic seems to have morphed into something that he no longer enjoys. I’ve also wrapped him up burrito style in a blanket, but he’s come to dislike that as well.
So, I’m going to try a weighted vest, borrowed from Parker’s Home Hospital Special Needs teacher.
This vest has four pockets that can hold weight. I was surprised at how heavy each weight is. Using all four weights, I’m pretty sure the vest weighs more than Parker.
Obviously I need to remove some of the weight, but I’m not sure if I should remove the weights from the front or the back of the vest. It seems like if I remove them from either side that is going to put him off balance.
He’s such a boney little guy, he even inherited his Grandpa’s knobby knees and chicken legs. I need to be cautious introducing this.
Weighted vests may not work for Parker because of his size, and while I may need to look at something along the lines of compression shirts, I’d like to at least give weighted vests a try.
Have you used weighted vests with your kid before? Did they work? Was your child willing to wear them? How did you determine the weight distribution?
I’d love to hear your ideas and experiences.
Twitter: bateminx
Feb 21, 12
While I don’t have any direct experience with weighted vests, I was speaking to a friend lastnight who said that she had tried weighted vests with her son, but she found them fairly ineffective for him, and that he now wears a compression vest at school, which works much better and keeps him calm and more focused. I hadn’t heard of compression vests before, but she said it’s kind of like a wet suit. Good luck!
Becca recently posted..Keepin’ it Simple: October 2008
Can you try replacing the current weights with,say, beanbags to make it lighter & still keep it even? Guess they might rattle & shift… maybe small paperbacks, or water soaked washclothes (in baggies)? Hmmm…
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My oldest has ADHD and he used a weighted vest when he was in preschool. Do you have an occupational therapist you could talk to? I know there is a formula they use, based on the child’s weight, to determine how much weight should be in the vest. Off the top of my head I am thinking 5% of body weight? The vest my son wore has small weight packets that they added evenly to the front and back. I would try to make some small packets with sand, salt, etc so you aren’t putting weight on unevenly.
We also used the small white brush for Jake and then did joint compressions. Maybe trying that again with Parker since you haven’t done it in awhile. I found that if we stopped for awhile sometimes things would work again for awhile. We would also have a “sensory diet” for him that we would do before we would do sitting tasks… such as bouncing on the ball or lying on his belly on the ball and having him reach to pick up items off the floor. Jumping on a trampoline was another option. Sometimes we would let him pick which sensory activity he would do before activities. He would also sit on a special cushion that would allow him to wiggle while still staying in his chair.
Our OT at school uses modeling clay in Ziploc bags in some of our little vests. It means that you can split it up evenly, so it doesn’t impact balance or body in space awareness. When she’s working on vests, she gets modeling clay and already knows the total weight we need. (That’s usually 3-5 % of body weight). We roll little marbles of clay, (my students and I) and she weighs the marbles, and we get to put them in a bag and squish them. Rolling makes it easier to measure and just fun!
The clay is harder to spill and the proximity to your body means the clay weight conforms to body shape with less bulk! I also have students who use compression vests. Some of my students respond better to weight and some to compression.