Hi everyone,
I’d really appreciate some advice or hearing other people’s experiences, because we’re really struggling with clothing battles with our 3-year-old at the moment.
He has become incredibly sensitive to how clothes feel, and it’s getting worse rather than better. Every morning feels like a battle and it’s starting to affect all of us.
Some of the things we’re dealing with:
• He finds tiny sock wrinkles unbearable, especially over the top of the foot when he flexes. We often end up having to put shoes on 3–4 times because he takes them off again the moment he feels a wrinkle. Once he’s actually out and about, he forgets about it, but getting to that point is traumatic for all of us!
• He rejects a lot of trousers – too tight, too loose, too long, too bunchy, too “flappy.” Tried age 4 clothes to give more room, but if they’re baggy or long, he instantly refuses.
• He won’t wear layers at all. No vests, no hoodies, no fleeces. Even thin jumpers feel “too tight” or “too bulky” to him. At bedtime he often refuses all bottoms and will only sleep topless or in one very specific top. Thankfully he’s got a warm winter jacket that he’ll put on when cold but that’s the only layer he’ll wear.
• He gets attached to things he’s wearing. For example, if he’s worn a crocodile t-shirt that day, he gets very upset when he has to take it off for bed, and wants to wear it again the next day even if it’s been put in the wash. Switching to a different design can take ages and always comes with distress.
He is otherwise totally fine day-to-day. This doesn’t spill over into other areas of life and we’re not jumping to neurodiversity as the explanation. He does have a shy temperament – around other adults, he won’t speak at all until he’s spent a good amount of time with them – but apart from that, there aren’t other big red flags. It’s really just clothing.
At the moment we’re considering doing a sort of “uniform”: finding a type of long-sleeve top, joggers and socks he’s genuinely comfortable with and just buying multiples in different colours to reduce the overwhelm and daily battles.
Has anyone else had a child with really strong sensory reactions to clothing like this?
Did they grow out of it?
Did you find anything that actually helped?
Is a set “uniform” a good idea?
Any tips for managing winter/forest school when layers are a no-go? Eg recommendations for warm long sleeve tees/thermals 🙏🏻
Recommendations for socks for kids with sensory issues? (He’ll only wear knee high socks!)
We’re just very tired and stressed, and would love to hear if this is something other families have been through and come out the other side of.
Oh I’m not a bot - but I did ask chat gpt to write this so I could just cut and paste :)