Shoes, Socks, and 504's

It was beginning to be a nightmare to get Bryce to school in the mornings, mainly because of his shoes and socks. He hates wearing either and especially for long periods of times-he struggles. Typically he wears only crocs with no socks, or no shoes at all. There are times-church, a sport, playing in the snow-when he will wear them but it usually takes time to get his socks just right and he wears them for an hour or two, sometimes with a lot of bribing and tears beforehand, and then immediately takes them off. So for him to wear shoes specific shoes and socks for a whole day was hard on him. 

Bryce has a SPD (sensory processing disorder) his official diagnosis right now is

OCD

Other Disturbances of Skin Sensation

Other Disturbances of Smell and Taste

Going to school with one sock an not the other because he hated how it felt

These things can make certain things hard for him-like wearing socks and athletic type shoes to school. (He goes to a charter school so they are pretty specific about the dress code). We dealt with the same issues last year. I finally decided it wasn't worth the fight anymore and called a meeting with the Special Ed Director. 

A typical morning trying to find a sock that fit and felt just right-it was so frustrating!

With his diagnosis and notes from his doctors we determined he qualified for a 504 plan. He now can wear crocs (black ones to match dress code) with or without socks to school. He also gets two sensory breaks during the day which help him regulate himself a little bit. Another thing that was determined was that Bryce is so smart -really off the charts in certain areas, and with his OCD that sometimes sitting for long periods of times, especially with kids who aren't always following directions or not quite at his level is really hard on him, so he gets sensory breaks to help him regulate and stay calm.

These two changes have made a huge difference. He never cries in the mornings anymore. I'm not fighting him and running late to get to work. He is just all around happier. 

Sometimes it's just the littlest change that can make the biggest difference you just have to be willing to ask for things and then be prepared to fight for them if you know that's what your child really needs. In Bryce's case I was super lucky the school was so accommodating and willing to make a change.