Response to questions regarding the "Our Bath Time Journey Post"

A friend of mine responded to my Our Bath Time Journey post with several questions. This led me to the idea of answering them in a blog, so that anyone else thinking the same thing will be able to read about it. Here Goes: “So, just read your blog... I had no idea bath time was that much of a struggle for you and J early on... I was wondering, how was he when you got caught in the rain? Or if he ever stepped in a puddle of water by mistake? Or even if he spilled something on his clothes? Was he ok with these situations or were they tough for him also? “ To her questions above I replied: the answer to all of the below is yes - he had issues with rain, puddles, getting wet, getting dirty, anything on his clothes etc. No one really knows all we went through (other than the psychologist and behaviorist.) It has been a long and draining process. He has come such a long way, but we still are working through some things. To expand my answers to her questions: What would he do if he was caught in the rain: As with many things, it would depend on how he was feeling that day. Sensory issues are a strange thing to those of us that don’t have them. Some days the rain scared him, other days he would scream “I am getting wet or I am wet; dry me off” and then there were days that although he didn’t like the rain, he could tolerate it without sensory overload. All in all, the actual rain was not that big of an issue over the years. If he ever stepped in a puddle: This one is a little more complex. Since he has sensory issues, getting him into certain types of shoes was a battle in itself, let alone into rain boots so that he could enjoy puddles like the rest of the little kids his age. At first, we avoided puddles like the plaque. When he would accidentally step in one, he would definitely “freak out”, wanting his shoes and socks to be changed and not wanting to be wet at all. At a certain point we were able to get this under control enough to get him into rain boots and out into small puddles; yet when his pants got wet while playing in the water he was not able to deal with them being wet and we had to cease play immediately, go inside and get changed. I still recall the first day he actually enjoyed jumping in the puddles. We actually took pictures. I would have let him play for hours if he wanted to because it was such a HUGE step toward normalcy for him. If he spilled something on his clothes: He would meltdown; insist that his clothes be changed immediately. I would bring at least 2 changes of clothes with me no matter where I went; just in case some part of his clothing got wet. It didn’t matter if it was the rain, spilled water or food; he needed to get out of those clothes as soon as possible. It was almost as though his clothes were on fire. This was definitely something that lasted for a long time. Little by little as his sensory issues got under control, he was able to get wet without an issue. Today, I no longer have to bring changes of clothes and he no longer gets hysterical when his clothes get wet. Not only is he ok with puddles and his clothes getting wet, he goes out of his way to jump in them from time to time. Telling me now, “mom, it’s ok to get wet and dirty; that’s what kids do mommy”. I remember crying tears of joy when I heard those words coming from his little mouth. Please let me know if you enjoyed this Q and A post. If so, I would be happy to answer any questions you may have for me, related or unrelated to the Posts I have written.