New Sensory Friendly Bedroom

 

Z’s new sensory friendly bed

I was checking on Z one night when it suddenly struck me, my little boy now filled the entire length of his toddler bed. That little tot had somehow grown into a long limbed kid. I couldn’t deny it any longer, the poor thing needed a new bed. 

We live in a 3 bedroom semi, but in reality it’s 2 bedrooms and a tiny box room that we use as an office and hobby space. The bed I would need had to work as not only a comfy place to sleep but also be practical on space, in a short time baby L will be sharing that room with Z and I have no idea how he is going to like that! 

I had originally got my eye on the IKEA Kura convertible bed, which I thought would be great to provide a space below for Z to play in; and in later years maybe as a desk space. Until, that is, my parents reminded me that they had stored away my brother’s old cabin bed (thanks for being a hoarder Dad).

The bed needed some modifications, I wanted higher sides put on because as it was, it didn’t feel very safe for a 5 year old. So my very crafty father in law transformed it from a teenagers old bed into a safe and exciting new bed for Z, complete with PlayStation symbols cut into it and a secured safe ladder for a keen but sometimes wobbly climber. 

I really wanted to make his bed into a sensory friendly safe space, especially with being short on space in our home, I thought it might be a good place for him to escape to when feeling overwhelmed. A good mattress is so important for a good night sleep, I picked the IKEA Morgedal memory foam mattress in medium firm (which frankly I regret not buying for myself now). It is super comfy, supportive and squashy without being too soft, Z has definitely been a fan and has slept so soundly on it.

 
I also got this Bed Tent from Amazon to create a relaxing private space that helps shut away distractions. I haven't closed the 'doors' on it as yet and the lights that come with it don't fix onto anything but they are pretty and Z is a fan of having a tent on his bed!

Under the bed I wanted to create a den like space for Z that he can use to relax, look at books or use his tablet in. Z's grandparents donated a spare mattress to put underneath (which will also come in handy for me on long nights when baby L moves into that room). I've covered it with a really soft fleece blanket of Z's and added loads of his cushions, teddy bears and coloured lights. I'm still deciding whether to hang some material across the side to make it a dark, contained space. I'm not sure if he'd like it or not so I guess the best thing to do is rig up a quick version for him to try at some point. 

At the moment its a bit of a mashup of themes, somewhere between jungle and space but Z doesn't care, so I guess I shouldn't either! As for the rest of his room, I put blackout blinds across the window to cut out the morning sun light - this was especially important during summer months as Z goes through phases of waking really early as soon as the sun is up. I put a groclock on his shelves which he likes to press each morning and night to show it's time to wake up or go to sleep. 

He also enjoys his projector lamp which can either be set to stars and moons or under the sea (why not add another theme to the mix). I couldn't find the exact one we have but it was very similar to this one on Amazon. 

Lastly I like to use essential oils at night to fill the room with a nice, calming scent to help him relax. I often use Aromantic's Lavender oil in his diffuser, sometimes I use Vetiver oil too because it's well known for its sedative and balancing properties but it's quite a heavy scent when used alone. The diffuser we have is no longer available but we got it from HoMedics.

I hope this information was useful, Z has been quite enjoying going to bed lately (which never happened) and he was absolutely over the moon when we surprised him with it! I should say, it was a risk to surprise him with a new bed, we're never quite sure if it's wise because he doesn't always react well to change but, he does tend to respond better than if he saw us taking his old bed down and packing it away.

If you have any tips on other sensory bedroom ideas I'd love to hear them. This is what is working for Z so far, but every autistic person will have different sensory needs, it's worth trying out a few things and building it up slowly. We've added things in and out of Z's bedroom and routine over the years, often things I expect him to love, he isn't even bothered about - typical!

Sarah x