Thursday 17 May 2018

Looking after our autistic kids hair

Boy with wet hair

I'm a proud mama.  All my kids have gorgeous locks of beautiful multi-tonal auburn, blonde and brown hair.  They are gorgeous.  But given two of them have autism and with that a large range of sensory needs. I'm happy to share some of the things that have worked for us in the dealing with their hair; brushing, washing, cutting and helping them with pesky nits.

General hair care

Looking after a kids hair when they don't like getting touched, pulled or possibly even wet can be
really challenging.

We are fortunate that neither of the boys' hair tangles or knots.  But Jane's definitely does.  Indeed she has the most knotted hair in the family without a doubt. And that's how we found detangle hairbrushes.

If you like using a regular shaped hair brush which can be helpful for familiarity reason's then the Tangle Tamer is great - for less strokes go with a Tangle Teezer - it's got a bigger surface area and so needs less brushing.  Both these makes removing tangles and knots relatively tug free and that's a big bonus.  The bristles are soft and generally make brushing any of kids hair easier.

When it comes to washing, it can be challenging.  We still use no-tears shampoos aimed at babies because we find they are the softest and easiest to get out with only a little rinsing.  Some of the ones that smell nicemake is easier too as it can calm the kids.

Cutting

While Anthony now manages to go to the hairdressers, this is still impossible for David.  There's just too much going on, he doesn't trust what's happening or anything going on near his head like this. We can't even make the Me Too & Co hairdressing sessions which are great if your kid is sensitive.

However, we did find calming clippers - and they work great.  They are scissors that have been adapted so they have them same guides on them that electric razors do.  Now you get some fantastic hair dressers who go the extra mile for kids like ours, but if this still doesn't work, then calming clippers might be worth looking at.

Girl with plaits

Nits and head lice

We did not get a single case of head live in our family home until Jane, our youngest, started school last year.  Some mix of her being the only girl, being social and having long hair means if there was a case of nits in the class, then we got them.  Can because we still do a fair amount of co sleeping as a means to actually get some sleep, either I would get them or her brother David would.

Jane, understands that we have to help her head if it's itchy, but our pre-verbal son David, does not. He's not great with washing his hair full stop so when it came to helping our home with head lice I had to look around at what would work for us.

Hedrin do three products that work well for us.  Hedrin Once is good because it works really quickly.  If your kid can stand having their head sprayed with this stuff then it is brilliant, with everything done in 15 minutes and then time to wash it off.  It is however really thick and greasy which means lots of washing to get it out.

The one that works best for David is the Treat and Go Mousse.  Because the mousse is squirted into your hand and then onto your hair, it's not as strange feeling as having something sprayed onto your head.  I can sit with David and he'll let me apply it gently. Then the best part for him.. it stays in for eight hours at least and gets washed out when you next wash your hair.  It can look a bit grubby in the meantime but this allows us just to wash David's hair 'as normal' next time and this makes the whole process much easier.

Our last help is that you can also get preventative sprays to help stop the lice in the first place.  I get it out as soon as there is a mention of lice at any of the schools now.  We also make sure Jane's hair is tied back preferably in a plait so there is less chance of hair touching.   These ideas helps our sensitive kids not have to worry about nits at all.

If you've got any great tips for looking after the hair of sensitive, autistic or additional needs kids (or adults actually) I'd love to hear them.




I was contacted by Hedrin to run a giveaway and as users of their products 
was happy to include it in this post. This giveaway has now closed.

Conditions: UK  Residents only. Entrants must be aged over 18.  Entry is via Rafflecopter.  Entries can be made up until midnight on Friday 1st June 2018.  Two winners will be chosen from all valid entries at random the day after closing.  The winner will be contacted within a week of the closing date and have one week to respond.  The Prize is one bottle of Hedrin Once per each of two winners (chosen and sent direct from Hedrin).  An alternative product of similar or higher value may be sent if stock is unavailable.  No cash alternative.  Any data collected will only be used solely for the purpose of contacting you should you win the competition and will not be used or stored by me for any other reason.  Check further details about Rafflecopter's privacy here or see my policy below. 

12 comments:

  1. Always good to keep on top of nits - perfect for the boys !

    ReplyDelete
  2. Always my go to treatment when the dreaded nits are seen! great review by the way very well balanced xx following now

    ReplyDelete
  3. This would be perfect to win just in case my children catch nits 💝

    ReplyDelete
  4. A great post, thank you. Although, as always with nits, just reading this has made me itchy! #coolmumclub

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have been in a constant battle with these annoying little critters for 2 years! It's a nightmare ..think I will give this a try as I haven't used this one before on my daughter

    ReplyDelete
  6. preventative sprays are good -although the one we use smells strongly of almonds!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Charlene Merrall30 May 2018 at 13:41

    Absolutely hate having to get headlice out, my girls hair is so long and knotty its a horrible experience for us both!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Lorraine Langham1 June 2018 at 04:21

    Headlice can be a complete pain and so difficult to completely eradicate - any product that makes dealing with them easier would be a Godsend.

    ReplyDelete
  9. With having 2 girls with long hair the process can be long xxx

    ReplyDelete
  10. I like this post. Thanks for sharing. It is an informative post. go right here get more info...

    ReplyDelete
  11. That's really a good information regarding our hair and health.

    Thanks
    Grooming Tips 2018

    ReplyDelete
  12. I'm constantly searching on the internet for posts that will help me. Too much is clearly to learn about this. I believe you created good quality items in Functions also. Keep working, congrats! pink wig

    ReplyDelete

I read all your comments and appreciate you sharing your thoughts with me and our readers. I welcome any feedback on my posts and you can always contact me directly. Thank you.

Have a look at our most recent posts:

Follow
@rainbowsaretoo facebook.com/rainbowsaretoobeautiful Ann H on Google + rainbowsaretoo pinterest rainbowsaretoobeautiful bloglovin Instagram rainbowsaretoobeautiful