On my porch sat a heavy brown box full of what I would soon discover was worth more than its weight in gold! My DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blanket for my son had arrived. Excitedly, I opened the package to discover our personal fabric selection with an adorable pirate theme. As I pulled the blanket from the box, I was pleasantly surprised by the hefty weight of it. I could not wait until my son came home from school to try out the blanket.
Determining the Appropriate Weight
From the onset, Eileen Jackson, owner and operator of DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets, offered amazing customer service. Her initial goal was to determine our son’s specific sensory needs by requesting his height, weight, age and bed size. Occupational Therapist, Britt Collins, shares, “The rule of thumb for a weighted blanket is typically 5-10% of the child’s body weight. The length is whatever is comfortable for the child.” Our blanket ended up being 10 pounds. Gwen Wild, OTR/L elaborates, “Most kids typically prefer about 15% of their body weight in the blanket, but it’s okay to go higher as long as they are comfortable.”
Just Right
Eileen writes to me, “Based on your son’s height and weight and his need for deep pressure, he would take 10 pounds in a twin size blanket. Just based on his weight, he would take 6 lbs. We added 2 pounds because of his height of 48″ inches and a twin is 75″ long. As much of the blanket is not on him at this time, increasing the weight a little gives him the right amount of pressure in the portion of the blanket that is on him and it will remain the right pressure as he grows. Finally, because he likes deep pressure we add another 2 pounds to the formula.” More on Weight and Sizing.
Safety??
I was concerned about the safety of the weight and whether the blanket would hang over the sides of the bed, thereby increasing the weight. The custom made twin blanket fit perfectly atop my son’s bed with no over hang. Gwen Wild recommends the following criteria to determine if a particular child can use a weighted blanket safely:
1. Can they easily get out from under the blanket independently?
2. Do they show appropriate responses to physiological variables – for example, does it occur to them to remove a jacket when they get too hot?
3. Are they three years of age or older?
“If I can answer yes to all three of these questions, I feel comfortable allowing the child to sleep under the blanket all night if he/she chooses to.”
However, at DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets, they have many clients with children under 3 years old. The under 3 age rule references the guidelines set by the CSPC relating to items that could present as a choking hazard for young children. The DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets design is unique in construction compared to other brands. Each blanket is individual made with great care to ensure that no weighting material can escape from inside the blanket due to poor workmanship. Additional safety features include 6″ on each end with no weighting material just in case a child is a chewer. If the child is a chewer, Eileen and her crew will actually add extra reinforcements to the ends to ensure safety.
In Love with the “Blankie”
My son arrived home from school to find this adorable pirate blanket weighing down the back of the rocking chair in the living room. After holding himself together the best he can all day at school, when he gets home, he unleashes his need to be kinesthetic. But this particular day, he plopped into the rocking chair, wrapped the blanket around him and asked for a television show. He remained there for an abnormal amount of time for him. This was so out of my son’s norm, I checked his forehead for a temperature and he was fine, just cozy and content.
Finally, a Good Night Sleep and Not Just for my Son!
Both of my younger boys play musical beds with us all night long. One, if not both, awaken at some point in the night and curl into bed with mom and dad…greatly impacting the restfulness of our sleep. It is really hard to sleep with a foot in your nose, a knee in your belly or a bump to your heads with one of their hard noggins! Now we are only down to one foot up the nose, as our son with the DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blanket has slept through the night every night since we laid this blanket out on his bed!!
A God Send
Now, he will cuddle with me to a point at bed time and then leave to go get under his blanket or drag his blanket into our room. He has fallen asleep curled up under the blanket on the floor watching television or another night while petting the dog! I am telling you, this blanket has been a God send!
Continued Outstanding Customer Service
The customer service did not stop with determining my son’s sensory needs for appropriate weight. Eileen provided me with multiple links of which to select the fabric design of my choice. Then I was able to select what type of backing I wanted. She additionally offers satin binding if desired and can make the blanket out of just about any fabric you choose, satin, velvet, suede, even quilt tops! All this customization and the blanket ended up on my porch in less than 2 weeks! I received a Federal Express shipping notification via e-mail to alert me of its pending arrival.
Don’t just take my word for it! Check out the endless list of testimonials….
The Jacksons researched weighted therapy and interviewed many therapists and medical professionals in the field of sensory integration therapy. The theory behind the success of the DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets is the deep pressure touch stimulation believed to release serotonin in the brain resulting in a sense of calm. Learn more.
About DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets
DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets was founded by Eileen and JC Jackson, the parents of a son, with “classic” autism. Up until age 9, their son had not slept through the night. Multiple “sleep therapies” had been tried to no avail. His occupational therapist suggested a weighted product. The Jacksons began their quest for a weighted blanket 9 years looking for a qualityproduct meeting a variety of high standards but could not find the right fit. So, they made their own. That first blanket offered their son his first full night sleep in 9 years and has continued to sleep through the night since.”It was not only his therapy, but was also ours.”
Almost a decade later, with tons of trial and error, loads of research behind them, and their son serving as the “comfort cop”, DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets offers an exclusive patent pending and copyrighted design. Word of mouth resulted in an explosion of orders. Eileen and JC now operate DreamCatcher ™ Weighted Blankets with 6 full time employees and many part time employees.
About Tiffani Lawton, R.N.
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