Care & Maintenance of Cerebral Palsy: Bathing, Toilet Training, Dressing, Feeding &
Nutrition, Play, Fitness, Seizures, Sleep, Suctioning, Hearing, Vision and Teeth

Dressing

Children with disabilities, like other children, should be encouraged from an early age to help with their own dressing. It is important, however, not to push a child to learn skills that are still too difficult for her level of development. Some people may never be able to dress themselves like those with total-body cerebral palsy or those whose hands and arms are both disabled.

Learning to dress and undress is a major step toward independence. Depending on the degree of your child’s problems with moving, independent dressing may or may not be a realistic goal. If you child has the control their movement, you will want to do everything possible to help him succeed; if he has the desire and understanding without the skills, you will want to help him participate as fully as possible in the process. If your child is interested, she is bound to be more cooperative. Encourage her to do things for herself, even if it takes longer. Give her lots of praise for every achievement, however small.

As in most other activities for individuals with Cerebral Palsy, proper positioning is critical to success in the dressing process. Children with CP usually find dressing easier when seated on a low bench or chair. Depending upon the type of Cerebral Palsy the child has, their sense of balance (or lack thereof) and their ability to stand steadily may make getting undressed or dressing from a standing position difficult. If your child doesn’t have the head and trunk control for standing, you may need to seat him on your lap. Positioning to minimize spasms will also make the dressing process easier.

Generally, undressing is an easier skill than dressing. So learning to undress should be tried first. Many children find taking off socks the easiest skill of all. If you begin with socks, you may need to help your child by pulling the sock almost off then let him have the final success of tugging it off. As soon as your child is able to accomplish this step in the dressing process, gradually reduce your help. Then go on to the next step.

If your child cannot take off his clothes himself, encourage him to help any way that he can. For example, ask him to raise his arm as you pull off his shirt sleeve or to shift his weight so you can take his pants off more easily. If your child’s ability to control his movement is limited, he can still participate by looking toward the next item to be removed when you ask a question like, "What comes next?"

You can help make it easier for children and adults with Cerebral Palsy to dress themselves by:

• choosing clothes that are easy to put on and take off, such as those that zip or button in the front (not the back) or that have large buttons, ties, or Velcro fasteners
• selecting easy-to-fasten, comfortable shoes, such as slip-on shoes or shoes with Velcro closures
• selecting clothing out of fabrics that easily glide over the skin and other fabrics, they are easier to put on and generally more comfortable to wear
• look for easy-on styles or step-in garments

You may want to talk to an occupational therapist about other suggestions.

It is important to remember that, just as with bathing, care should be given so that the caregiver’s back is protected while helping the child to dress and undress. The child should be at a height that will not put strain on the caregiver. The best position for undressing and dressing is standing. The child should be encouraged to stand holding onto a piece of furniture for support. No matter what position the child is in while dressing take their abilities and disabilities into consideration.

If the child must be dressed in bed because of their lack of mobility, try to make the bed high enough off the floor so you don't have to strain to reach down while dressing them. Of course this would also make it necessary to have some kind of side rail or support so that the child could not hurt herself by falling out of bed. As she gets older, bigger and heavier, this can be a concern.

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