The Science Behind Sensory Challenges and Dressing
Tips to avoid, Advice to consider, and Research to explore
Children of any age and ability may struggle with dressing in the morning. Your child does not want to wear those pants, but they have only worn them once! Although your child’s ‘fashion sense’ may change over time, this may not be why the child refuses to wear specific clothing.
Tips to Avoid
Some children experience sensory overload due to discomfort in their clothing, irritation, or pain. Many factors can cause this, so let us highlight the most common:
Tags. Those little things can irritate anyone when they itch your skin. However, to a child with sensory difficulties, the label may be so unbearable that it causes problematic behaviors in that child. The body’s skin receptors receive sensations, including touch, pressure, temperature, pain, and movement of the hairs on the skin. SPD can cause hypersensitivity to these touches, avoiding and disliking rough clothing (Play and Playground Encyclopedia, 2023).
Bunchy layers. Layers are an excellent substitute for a child who refuses to wear bulky winter coats. However, layers have their downfall, too. The bottom and middle layers of clothing should offer light compression, allowing the child to feel snug but not restricted. Likewise, layers that hug your child’s body will reduce friction and rubbing on the child’s skin.
Mismatched Textures. Inconsistency in clothing textures can be very distressing. Mixing seams, elastic at wrists and ankles, the back of an embroidered design, zippers, and (again) clothing tags that touch the skin (Peske, 2022) are some examples of mismatched textures that may influence your child’s tolerance to clothing.
Why does this happen?
Not all children diagnosed with or experiencing symptoms of Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) display the same preferences and dislikes for every sensation. However, all children with SPD symptoms have similarities in brain processing.
Children diagnosed with or experiencing SPD have altered pathways for brain connectivity, which results in challenges in auditory and tactile processing (Leigh, 2016). Multiple research studies examined the white matter in children's brains with and without sensory difficulties (Leigh, 2016; Nakagawa et al., 2023). When comparing the white matter in the children’s brains, there was a strong correlation between the white matter processes and sensory functioning. Using advanced technology, researchers tracked the process of a child’s sensory experience. This is recorded by small signals reflected via microscopic movement of water molecules within the brain. This movement demonstrated the direction of the white matter fibers, allowing researchers to follow the structural connections between brain regions. The imaging detected irregular white matter tracts in children with SPD (Leigh, 2016; Nakagawa et al., 2023). This outlined the issues with processing sensory stimulation in the brain and altering the timing of sensory processing, making integrating sensory information across multiple senses difficult or impossible.
Dressing Strategies
Now that you know some of the common barriers associated with dressing and why this may occur, below are a few tools and strategies that can be incorporated into your daily routine to increase engagement and independence with dressing:
Weighed top layers. Weighted vests and jackets come in various shapes, colors, and styles. Providing your child with a heavy top layer can be comforting and relax your child’s sensory systems. Deep pressure can help compensate for discomfort with clothing (Szklut, 2020). Before your child puts on their clothing, try deep pressure- like a squeeze on their shoulders or a big hug, so your child’s body is ready (Szklut, 2020). Check out our blog, Weighted Vests 101, to learn more.
Heavy top layer. An alternative to weighted vests is just having your child wear heavy layers on top! Wearing heavier clothing can help ‘ground’ the child, making them feel ‘cocooned’ in their clothing. This can also help to avoid irritation caused by multiple light clothing layers bouncing on your child’s body.
One crucial factor to remember is that each child’s sensory tolerance and processing patterns are uniquely different. A child may react significantly to touch, sound, etc., one day and be completely content with it the next (Leigh, 2016). A child can range from “sensory-extreme” to “sensory typical” (Leigh, 2016), truly demonstrating the range of sensory sensitivity levels among all children diagnosed with SPD. So, the most significant thing you can do is be adaptable and allow accommodations. That is the most effective way to work with your child’s sensory needs.
References
Leigh, S. (2016, January 26). Brain’s wiring connected to sensory processing disorder.
The University of California San Francisco, UCSF.
https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2016/01/401461/brains-wiring-connected-sensory-processing-disorder#:~:text=Researchers%20at%20UC%20San%20Franciscowith%20auditory%20and%20tactile%20processing.
Nakagawa, K. Cheong, Y., Lee, S., Habata, K., Kamiya, T., & Shiotsu, D.
(2023) Region-based analysis of sensory processing using diffusion tensor imaging. PLoS ONE 18(4). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0284250
Play and Playground Encyclopedia. (2023). Sensory processing disorder.
https://www.pgpedia.com/s/sensory-processing-disorder#:~:text=The%20tactile%20sense%20receives%20input,play%20and%20dislike%20rough%20clothes.
Peske, N. (2022, August 19). Sensory-friendly clothing and why shirts that give big hugs
can help. Sensory Smart Parent. https://www.sensorysmartparent.com/post/2019/10/01/sensory-friendly-clothing-and-why-shirts-that-give-big-hugs-can-help#:~:text=Snugly%2Dfitting%20clothing%20or%20even,an%20actual%20hug%20might%20do.
Szklut, J. (2020, December 13). Tips and tricks for getting dressed for school (with
a tactile sensitive child). https://southshoretherapies.com/b/5-tips-for-getting-dressed-for-school-with-a-tactile-sensitive-child