Help! 3 year old clothing issues..

[AliRebekah]

Please help..

my little boy is almost 3 and ever since he was about 1, we have had major battles with clothing. He point blank refuses to wear anything but his nappy in the house, not even pjs at night. I’ve had to have the heating full whack and I just cannot afford it anymore.
he will just about wear a single jumper and trackie bottoms when we go out but it’s a major fight. In the winter he will not wear coats, hats, wellies anything!
as it’s getting sunnier outside, he’s desperate to play in the garden but will only go outside in his nappy

I’ve tried every single different fabric, I’ve tried bribery and I’ve tried explaining why he needs to wear things.
he struggles with communication/speech so he cannot tell me why he won’t wear anything.

im started to really struggle with this CONSTANT battle :(

please any help would be so appreciated

It sounds like your son has very pronounced sensory issues. Coupled with his speech/language needs, this indicates that he’d benefit from an assessment of his additional needs.

This website specialises in sensory clothing: https://sensorysmart.co.uk/collections/clothing?grid_list=grid-view

Have you tried seamless clothes, or super baggy items? My son is NT, but wears several sizes too big on top, is not comfortable with labels, tags, or any kind of restriction. The other way to go is thick tights. Dd2 has some great bright ones that wouldn't look odd on a boy.

Edit - ds is 5, and I had him assessed via NHS for sensory seeking behaviour thinking maybe adhd. He was also slow to speak.

My daughter will wear PJ's but refuses to have any covers on at night and wakes up freezing. We have a small electric radiator in her room on a timer switch so we don't have to keep the house at 18-19 oC overnight and she a heated undersheet too. It made a huge difference to her overnight sleep. She will wear clothes but hates been warm and I frequently pick her up from nursery freezing as she only had a thin t shirt and a rain Mac on and refuses anything warmer.

It's so hard isn't it?! Especially in winter and when they don't really understand.

I'd definitely recommend reading up on sensory processing difficulties.

Agree with big and baggy. My dd wears at least 3 sizes too big. Though some kids also like the opposite and prefer soft but tight.

We've found that inside out is also easier (even seamless have seams that my dd can't deal with, plus no problems with labels either).

Also velour type fabric - especially pjs.
And pjs for the daytime.
Dd used to live in some short/t shirt type pjs. She had three pairs (though wouldn't wear one of those pairs for some reason).

For inside the house, I think it's ok for your child to be comfortable. So have stuff available but don't force it. Take the battle away totally so there's no pressure at all around clothes. My dd will also happily wrap herself in a blanket inside if she's cold - I can't afford the heating on all the time! Though she does have a couple of trousers and tops that she will wear now.

I think for going outside it's a case of sticking by your guns but as minimal clothing as is safe in the weather for the day.

Something that used to help when mine was that age is that I'd take the shoes, coat, trousers etc in the car and she was much more likely to put them on when we had got to our destination as she wanted to go and play in the park we'd just driven to etc. It had a more immediate and obvious motivation.

It will get easier as you both learn to work stuff out that works for you both. But I know it's frustrating and stressful at the time. I used to HATE leaving the house for the clothing and shoe stresses.

My dd is now 13 and still can have (smaller) meltdowns leaving the house when it's cold or wet out as she finds coats and wellies really hard to wear. (She also hates to be cold or dirty). It's much easier when she can wear her crocs and no coat or jumper (she never wears jumpers - even when it's freezing).

But she does understand more what bothers her about clothes and it's easier to help her adapt them or find clothes that do work for her.