Many children get a Back-To-School haircut shortly before the new school year begins. Parents of kids who have autism, or other types of special needs, realize that this can be a traumatic experience for their child. The Pediatric Therapy Center recently made getting a haircut much less stressful.
Children who are young, and have no special needs, often find the experience of getting a haircut to be upsetting. As children get older, they typically adjust to this situation. Some will even start to look forward to it.
Children who have certain types of special needs, however, may find the experience of getting a haircut to be overwhelming and traumatic. Kids who have autism or who have a sensory processing disorder may not be able to cope with the sensations involved with a haircut.
Having their hair washed in a salon, leaning backwards over a sink, as the water trickles across their scalp can be more sensation than they are able to cope with. The sound that is made when scissors snip hair can be unsettling. It must be difficult for a child who does not respond well to being touched to have a stranger combing and cutting his hair.
The Pediatric Therapy Center is located in Papillion, Nebraska. They are a specialized outpatient clinic dedicated to providing high quality therapy services to children who have special needs. They can provide occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech therapy.
This week, the Pediatric Therapy Center provided dozens of children who have special needs with free haircuts. The children came to the Pediatric Therapy Center, a place that they were already familiar with and comfortable in, to receive a haircut. Hairdressers took into account the needs of the children, and let them see the comb, and hold it in their hand, before combing the child’s hair.
The children were able to have the opportunity to get their bodies ready to sit for a haircut before they ever got into the chair. The Center has areas where kids can safely crawl, bounce, and move around. That isn’t something that a child can do in a typical salon. Kids received a cookie after their haircut was completed. The selection included cookies that were gluten-free.
Some parents got emotional because this was the very first time that their child was able to calmly sit and have his or her hair cut. What was once a traumatic and stressful experience became a much easier situation. The Pediatric Therapy Center hopes to do more free haircut events like this one.
Image by weegeebored on Flickr