Weighted blanket

[tgwillis]

No, he doesn't complain of being too hot. I just asked him and he says it doesn't make him hot but it is warmer than other blankets. He used to have two blankets on his bed with a sheet. Now he has a comforter the weighted blanket and the sheet. In the colder months we put extras on too. But his room isn't too warm in the winter.

Also I looked at the tag and it says it can be machine washed if you pre-fill the machine and add other heavy items to balance the load. However I have a front loader and I'm not certain how it could be washed in that. It specifically says not to put it in the drier and I think the weight would be the issue there.
I know there are other weighted blanket companies on line but I chose the Salt of the Earth particularly because of the rocks instead of beads. The blankets are made to order, so it took 3-4 weeks for it to arrive. I actually called them because we got the Paypal confirmation but no confirmation from the people themselves about the order. When I called they were really nice and everything was on track.

Good luck with this. How old is your son??

He is 13. He has Aspergers and lots of sensory issues. We have found that weighted items really help with calming.

[Debkcs]

Took care of a teenager with Asperger's whose mom made a blanket with pockets for weights. When it needed washing, she just unvelcroed the pockets, took out the weights and washed it like any other blanket. It was a 'quilt' not knitted, but the boy really loved it. I had him for a long weekend while his parents took respite, it was definitley a learning experience for me.

Oh, the 'weights' were some kind of flexible, heavy weight plastic disc.

[jackie58]

Appearance wise while lying on the bed it is no thicker than a regular comforter. Possibly thinner and less fluffy. The first morning my son had it my daughter was in his room and said "hey, why does it feel like your blanket is full of rocks?" Some weighted blankets are filled with poly beads but for 11 pounds of weight that would be very very thick, so the river rock is less obtrusive. Also the rocks are naturally flame retardant and if years later the blanket is actually thrown away or something the rocks can just go in some gravel. Poly beads would melt in a fire and cause horrible burns and of course they never decompose or go away.

Washing is a whole other ball game. It's too heavy to run through a machine I think it could break or unbalance a machine. And if the weight didn't do it a ripped seam and spilling rocks into the machine would! It can be spot cleaned. Or I have considered spot cleaning and hosing off on a sunny day. My son has his between his sheet and regular comforter so I guess that protects it a bit too. We have only had it since December and I haven't tried to wash it. You could e-mail the company and ask about washing. Also getting a dark color shows less dirt.

Karina--weighted blankets are used to provide deep pressure to kids (or adults) during the night if they have sensory integration disorder which occurs either by itself or is part of the symptoms of autism and Aspergers. Theoretically the deep pressure is calming and can help the person be more aware of their body and have a better sense of proprioception during the day. My son is a teen ager and does NOT sleep in or for hours on end like his peers, I was hoping this blanket would help him sleep longer and I haven't seen that result. I think he does get a more restful and comforting sleep and he enjoys the weight. I don't know that it's improved his body awareness either! But hey he likes it and uses it. And when we have slept elsewhere with out it he misses it. So the weight is comforting. I have heard of people using weighted blankets just because they like them though.

Wow , I was surprised to see that you have a weighted blanket filled with stones. UGH!! I read were you mentioned poly pellets melting but you didn't mention what would happen to the fabric if in a fire, especially a cotton/poly mix, it would melt before it reached the stones, wouldn't it?? I think any blanket would burn in a fire , wouldn't you agree?? Even fire retardant fabrics melt.

It wouldn't really matter what was inside as it would already have burned.

Our autisic child has used a weighted blanket from DreamCatcher Weighted Blankets for the past four years. It has been wonderful and we will soon be ordering a new one from them for the other child. I like the pellets instead of stones as I don't like the idea of stones being porous and retaining water inside the blanket causing mold. YUCK. The blanket we have is a 20LB full and not at all thick. Hard to imagine not washing a blanket for 5 months, we have washed ours every week since we received it last November and have had no problems at all with the machine.

If any one wants the web site to DreamCatcher Weighted Blankets I will email it to you. My email is kd7tuf@qwestoffice.net.
Hope it the post helps and gives another point of view.