Weighted blankets

[DammitJanet]

I know some of you talked about weighted blankets for Sensory Integration Disorder (SID) and then you talked about them for use for restless legs. Did anyone ever buy them for that purpose? If so, what weight did you get?

Did they work?

Before I take an ax and chop Tonys legs off, I thought I might try weighing down his legs...lol. I havent managed a full nights sleep with him in the bed for weeks and weeks now. Maybe months. His legs are getting worse. My medications arent even getting me to sleep now through his movement. He bucks so badly the bed is like something from the Exorcist. I got this idea tonite to attempt to weigh his legs down with this old army surplus sleeping bag that is thick as hell and I filled it with two bags of cat litter. I put it over his legs. He isnt happy with me but oh well.

The only other thing I can think of is to put him IN the sleeping bag!

 

[susiestar]

Janet,

I haven't heard of weighted blankets for restless legs. I wonder if his doctor would call in a scrip, knowing the financial situation??

At this point, it really sounds like having one of you sleep on the couch would be a good idea. Or in a spare room if you have one.

I am sorry his legs are so bad. And that you can't sleep.

Hugs,

Susie

 

[DammitJanet]

He has no doctor.

I would suggest sleeping elsewhere but Cory and Mandy are sleeping on the couch now since their air bed died. We dont have any other beds. If we ever get a spare dime I intend to invest in a twin bed for me. I may see if I can convince the doctors that I need a hospital bed. That would work too. My bedroom is big enough to put one in. Money is just so tight right now.

 

[flutterbee]

Here's a link to a place that makes weighted blankets. It states that it has helped people with RLS. It also has all kinds of info on what weight you should get (a lap blanket should be less per body weight than a full blanket...it explains it). I haven't ordered from there - yet - but another board member has and has been happy with it.

http://www.weightedblanket.net/

 

[Marguerite]

We got a weighted vest for difficult child 3. It was made by a woman who lives near us and followed a fairly standard pattern like a photographer's vest (woth lots of long narrow pockets). It was made from a sturdy non-stretch fabric like calico and had french seams so they wouldn't rub.
The long narrow pockets were designed to take the long, narrow sandbags (which she also made). Again, the sandbags were made with double-stitched french seams and were filled with sifted sand. Each bag weighed 200 g and was about as thick as a thumb and about as long as tip of middle finger to wrist.

It should be easy to make something that would do the job. With the sandbags, it meant we could adjust the weight until we got it to a point which worked well. They're also softer and more flexible than solid weights.

If you can't sew for yourself, you might be able to find someone who could make it for you without having to pay a premium.

Marg

 

[gcvmom]

Janet, I did purchase a blanket from the website Heather indicated.

difficult child 2 LOVES his blanket from that vendor. He's had it about three years and it's holding up very well. The vendor has LOTS of fabric choices and the product I received was very well-made. The great thing about their product is that you can wash it in your regular washer and dry it in the dryer with no problem because of the plastic beads they use for the filler.

I think they provide a formula on the site for calculating the correct weight to order. You can also e-mail them if you're not sure (I did this just to double-check what I was ordering and they were very nice to reply and confirm my calculations).

While it was a bit expensive, for me it was money well-spent.