Hi Everyone
I have recently been on a most relaxing overnight spa retreat with my bestie, and I was in such awe of the rolling hills and splendour that the KZN Midlands Meander has to offer. We stayed the night at the “lightening bird” cottage, complete with two very high but comfortable single
beds. I am rather petite with my bestie being even more height impaired than I am (dynamite does come in small packages). So, needless to say we really did “climb” into bed at the end of all of our treatments and some delicious dinner that evening.
But, being the person that I am, I am unable to turn off my speechie brain, even with the sound of the bubbling water and chirping birds in the background and I was immediately reminded of the story of the Princess and the Pea by Hans Christian Anderson.
This fairytale is told of a prince who is searching for a princess bride, but is having much difficulty finding a suitable spouse. He meets many princesses but is unsure if they are the real deal. One stormy night, a young lady sopping with rain arrives at his castle seeking shelter. She claims to be a princess, but the queen is uncertain. Nevertheless, they welcome the unexpected guest and decide to test the princess by placing a pea within the bed she is offered for the night, covered by twenty mattresses and down duvets.
In the morning the princess tells the host that she had a restless night, kept awake by something hard in the bed and that she is certain it has bruised her. It is at this moment, the prince and the queen realize that this guest is a princess after all, since no one but a real princess could be so delicate.
So, what does this fairytale have to do with speech therapy? Well, it has made me realize that perhaps our autistics, may just be royalty; after all, they do bruise so easily and are so delicate especially when it comes to clothing, fabrics and textures.
The princess and the pea
Avoiding certain fabrics and clothing is common within the autistic community due to a hypersensitive sense of touch. Scratchy seams and clothing labels feel like barbed wire; so much so that I have often wondered why its stitched on with the roughest cotton. If there is anyone in the clothing industry reading
this, please help. I am more than happy to start the petition to ban the use of scratchy clothing labels on all clothing.
How can we help our princes and princesses to keep their clothes on? Firstly, we need to identify the cause; Labels? Seams? Fabrics? Loose or too tight? For our non-verbal royalty, we may have to try out different fits and ensure that you remove labels, rough spots and remove loose threads before you even put it on. If your child is verbal, ask directly about what could be causing the irritation; but be specific “is it too tight?” “is it itchy?”. And I always like a follow up to this yes/no question. “how can we make it better?” “should we change?” “can we cut out the label?”.
Sometimes, my oatie (occupational therapists) friends recommend alternate sensory options, especially if you’re not in a position to change the offensive clothing immediately. Weighted blankets and fidget toys may serve as a temporary solution.
Understanding the need to remove clothing with our autistic royals, requires much patience, remember its not bad behaviour but a sensory need. Making little changes and being able to anticipate what will cause an irritation or discomfort may prove successful. Have you as a parent or an autistic individual found any solutions? Why not share your views and ideas so that we can assist all our royal highnesses. I hope that my opinion on our autistics being majestic has struck a chord, because after all only truevroyalty can be this delicate.
Your Super Speechie
Priya