(12-16-2010, 02:49 PM)Sila Wrote: "I just ordered and received my weighted blanket, and although I haven't seen an OT yet, I've already seen how it helps me. I can get to sleep easier at night, and in the morning my body isn't so low that I can't wake up without dozing off 10 more times during the morning. I can finally get up, lay under my blanket for 10 mins, do a few joint compressions to wake my body up a bit better, and then start doing normal morning activities. We'll see how much this helps come school time for me, at least.

You've reminded me Sila, I was going to mention my son's weighted blanket - he loves it, I've just reweighted it for him because he's grown so much. I made one for our old preschool, there was a boy there who was having serious meltdowns... for him it worked really well, the first time they used it it was like a switch, he was screaming and thrashing around and the teacher plopped it down on top of him and he stopped yelling, sat up and looked at the blanket and then pulled it up over his shoulders and went under it like a little turtle and didn't come out for half an hour, much happier and calmer. He soon learned that if he was feeling a bit bad he could get under it and take a break. My son says he goes to sleep better with it, "It's very cosy".

The weighted vests have some effect - our OT said that the best ones are also very tight/close fitting (which in our warm, humid summer climate in Sydney isn't very comfortable) - but the effect isn't very long lasting - only half an hour or so. Some people use a weighted lap pad when children have to sit still at a desk and work and are having problems. I've also used a bean bag cushion for children to sit on - make a little cushion big enough for a child's seat - and fill it with dried chick pea or bigger type beans, so that there's a good full layer for the child to sit on when it's out flat. They can use it on a chair or on the floor and it really seems to help stop the wiggling and jiggling that goes on.

BusyMum