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Here are some suggested organisations that offer expert advice on special needs.

Here are some suggested organisations that offer expert advice on special needs.

SN children

Son Stims with Thread

16 replies

SJJBWN · 12/09/2017 10:45

My son is 9 and has high functioning ASD. When he is at home he likes to stim with a piece of thread, he wont do it outside of the house incase his friends see him. He is ruining our towels, hems of trousers, curtains anywhere where he can grab a piece of thread. I've bought him fidget spinners etc but he still carries on. I've told him countless times to stop or recycle the threads but to no avail. I know its a ridiculous thing to post but I've just found his new jogging trousers with the hem ruined again. Any tips?

OP posts:

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LightTripper · 12/09/2017 11:07

Could you go to a haberdashers together and choose some bits of fabric that he can do this with? You could stash one under the sofa cushion where he sits, another in his room under his pillow, etc. They usually have small off-cuts for a couple of pounds each and then he can choose something that is just right for fiddling with?

LightTripper · 12/09/2017 11:09

Or is he pulling the hem apart (i.e. pulling the hemming thread rather than the fabric threads)? In which case could you choose some old clothes at a charity shop that he could pull the hems off? Or a friend with a sewing machine could create some hems specifically for him to strip?

SJJBWN · 12/09/2017 12:51

I'll have a chat with him when he gets home from school about a compromise. He gets defensive about it and just tells me he'll grow out of it one day. I can't afford to replace towels, curtain, socks etc.

OP posts:

Polter · 12/09/2017 16:48

Buy remnants of material.
Get cheap towels just for him.
Give him a sewing box.
Ask friends for old shirts etc.

SJJBWN · 12/09/2017 20:36

I've given him an old beach towel and a fidget spinner as backup!

OP posts:

Polter · 12/09/2017 21:15

TBH 'fidget spinners' are pretty crap as sensory fidgets, they are massively over-hyped IMHO. Have a look at things like koosh balls and things with more texture.

SJJBWN · 12/09/2017 21:48

To be honest he isn't that bothered about the fidget spinner. I'm not quite sure what he gets out of the threads though!

OP posts:

Polter · 12/09/2017 21:57

I don't think it needs explaining, he just likes doing it. Just like some children like dressing up dolls or building Lego. Not everything has to have a purpose!

notgivingin789 · 12/09/2017 22:01

Have you tried introducing sensory toys ?

DS is literally obsessed with them, we used to have a sensory box full of sensory toys. Though he accidentally broke all of them by playing with them too much .

Space kraft and other SEN websites have nice collections of sensory toys.

notgivingin789 · 12/09/2017 22:03

Agree with the fidget spinners. I don't think they are THAT good.

Polter · 12/09/2017 22:09

OP really doesn't need to spend money on sensory stuff when her ds wants fabric, which is cheap/free.

And I say this as someone who has all the sensory kit

zzzzz · 12/09/2017 22:37

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

SJJBWN · 13/09/2017 20:39

He likes to flick the thread around, it seems to animate him.

OP posts:

CaptainKirkssparetupee · 14/09/2017 10:32

Thread is very cheap, you are very lucky.

SJJBWN · 14/09/2017 16:12

What do other kids use to stim? The thread is cheap except when he pulls it out of the carpet or our settee. My son seems to do it when he is at a loss for something to do; he doesn't bother when he is occupied or outside the house. He does like to bounce on the trampoline a lot and can run for miles. I sometimes wonder if he has a bit of ADHD too.

OP posts:

CaptainKirkssparetupee · 14/09/2017 18:10

What do other kids use to stim?
Absolutely any thing you can imagine. I get that you want to change his for something else but it would be far easier to embrace it.
The thread is cheap except when he pulls it out of the carpet or our settee.
Which is why you buy him off cuts, so he has his own thread.
My son seems to do it when he is at a loss for something to do
Yes stims are calming.

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