All About… Syringe Holsters

We have JUST finished a redesign of our popular Syringe Holsters – and we’ve made them into something you’re going to love even more! Here at Wallypop, we pride ourselves in bringing you handmade items that bring a real, practical improvement to your life, and we think these redesigned Syringe Holsters do exactly that!

First, when or why would you use a Syringe Holster? Most people use them for when they’re away from home and will need to give meds. For example, we most commonly use our syringe holsters when we’re gone for the day for trips to the hospital for clinic or other appointments. Most people who purchase a Syringe Holster have previously tried carrying their pre-drawn liquid medications in plastic bags, or in various hard plastic containers, or even – like I did a few times – in cups. But plastic bags can get messy and are hard to locate in your bag. Hard plastic containers are so bulky. And cups obviously don’t work all that great.

Benefits of using a Syringe Holster? Convenience. Less mess. Easy to find your medications in your bag. SO CUTE. Reusable. Collapsible. Protects your syringes better than plastic bags. And a further benefit of the Syringe Holsters is the ability to sort your medications by type or, as I do, by time. I load up our Holster with all the meds for the entire day, but I order them by time, so I can just work my way from left to right as the day wears on.

Our new Syringe Holsters have 8-9 pockets (the one pictured has 8) and will hold up to 20 syringes. And though I say “up to 20,” your average person who uses a variety of sizes of syringes will fit more like 8-12 syringes, depending on whether you want to use the larger last pocket there for gtube cushions, a small med bottle, etc., or if you want to use it for syringes. These holsters will accommodate up to about 30 mL syringes.

We can absolutely make larger (or smaller) holsters. We’ve made holsters for 60 mL syringes. We’ve made holsters for 30 syringes. We’ve made holsters for 5 syringes. We can make a holster to suit your needs!

After you fill your syringes and cap them, load them into the holster with your syringes, extension, gtube cushions, whatever. Then just roll up the Holster and fasten it with the elastic cord. It secures with a cord lock. (A vast improvement, I think, over the ribbon ties of our older model.)

Our syringe holsters are still constructed using the high-quality methods we’ve always used – a layer of decorative fabric on the front that shows when the holster is rolled, a layer of decorative fabric on the inside, matching or coordinating fabric for the pockets, and a layer of sturdy thicker material hidden inside to give the holster structure, sturdiness, and longevity.  For this model, we’ve added nice, sturdy elastic cord (the same elastic cord we use on our babywearing items) and high quality cord locks.

Our syringe holsters do NOT come with any of the accessories pictured. Syringes, extensions, medications, and gtube cushions are not included. You can purchase Wallypop/Boulevard Designs Tubie Button Cushions separately, but syringes and extensions need to come from your pharmacy, your DME supplier, or a retail medical supply store.

Available through our own website here, or from our Etsy store.

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7 Ways to use a Weighted Blanket or Lap Pad

We’ve learned all about our weighted blankets. We’ve learned the science that supports weighted blankets, and we’ve learned how they work. Now how about some ways to use weighted blankets or lap pads?

1. Sleeping. Obviously, many people use weighted blankets to help them get to sleep faster, wake fewer times, and feel more rested. We discussed that in-depth in a previous entry.

2. Long periods of sitting. Travel, for example, or church services. Kids (and adults) can struggle with staying seated for long periods (and they SHOULD – it isn’t really normal to sit for that long) – weighted lap pads or blankets can help in these situations. We find that Tbear does better in the car with staying calm and showing appropriate behavior when we combine frequent breaks with a weighted blanket. The blanket provides him the deep sensory input that he naturally seeks – and he doesn’t have to seek it out in other, less desirable ways. Like hitting his sister.

3. Stressful or anxious times. Science has shown that deep touch pressure reduces stress and anxiety, and promotes calm. We use weighted items during hospital stays, for example, and I find that when I’m particularly stressed, I tend to pile Teddy’s weighted blanket on top of my own for even more weight.

4. Schoolwork. Whether at school or at home, a weighted lap pad can improve concentration, help reduce wiggliness, and help students stay on-task (see weighted lap pad studies mentioned here.

5. Transition periods, particularly moving from a period of high activity to one of lower activity – such as sitting down to dinner after running around outside. Letting your child chill out for a few minutes under the weighted blanket in a calm environment can often help ease that transition between high activity and lower activity.

6. Meltdowns. Some parents find that they can head off meltdowns by strategic use of weighted blankets. Weighted blankets, as previously discussed, activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which has a calming effect on the body. Typically, parents need the child’s cooperation, but if they’re willing, and if the parent catches the meltdown early enough to head it off at the pass, a weighted blanket can help.

7. Heavy work. Many kids benefit from heavy work – during transition times, to get out their wiggles, to help re-focus. We often use our weighted blankets for heavy work. “Hey, Tbear, go get your heavy blanket for me!”

And you can get your very own weighted blanket or lap pad here!

Why do Weighted Blankets Work?

Weighted blankets work on the same basis as Deep Touch Pressure, or DTP. A hug is one way to get DTP, as is a massage. If you or your child are sensory-seeking, you might have noticed other ways you or they seek out DTP, as well – laying under the couch cushions, slipping between the mattress and box spring, wearing tight clothing, piling on blankets and pillows. And you can also get Deep Touch Pressure from a weighted blanket or weighted lap pad, which provide a nice, evenly distributed, gentle weight.

When the body is under stress or is overwhelmed (such as by sensory input), it moves to the “fight or flight” response – the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system causes your body to release cortisol, the stress hormone, which causes your heart rate and blood pressure to increase, makes you a little sweaty, and makes it hard to concentrate. You start to feel anxious and irritable, among other things. Kids with autism, SPD, ADHD, and other disorders spend far more time with their sympathetic nervous system in charge than most of us. And most of us in our modern society spend far more time with our sympathetic nervous system in charge than is ideal.

But when you apply Deep Touch Pressure to the body, it switches over to the parasympathetic nervous system. Cortisol decreases. Dopamine (neurotransmitter associated with brain’s pleasure center) and serotonin (neurotransmitter associated with feelings of well-being) increase. Your heart rate and blood pressure decrease. Your muscles relax, blood flow improves. You feel relaxed and calm.

You can apply Deep Touch Pressure many ways. A hug. Firm touch (with warning and approval of the person being touched, if they’re sensitive to touch). A massage. Or a weighted blanket or lap pad, which have the benefit of not requiring another person, and being available whenever and wherever you need.

Read more about our weighted blankets here, and more on the science that supports the idea of using weighted blankets for better sleep here. And get your very own weighted blanket or weighted lap pad from Wallypop.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16162447
Hsin-Yung Chen et. al., 2011   http://www.jmbe.org.tw/index.php?action=archives2&no=1961

Some of you may find this article about touch and ASD to be informative, as well.

Do Weighted Blankets Work? Here’s What The Science Says

What does science say about weighted blankets? Do studies support the idea that weighted blankets help with sleep?

We’ll cover the science behind how and why weighted blankets may help in another article, but for now, we wanted to focus on what the science currently says about whether weighted blankets objectively improve sleep.

And…well, not too many studies have looked at this issue, surprisingly, and they’re generally pretty small studies. But many studies that have been completed to date do show objective improvement in sleep, and most show subjective improvement.

Here are all the studies that HAVE been done that we could dig up.

—  1992 Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology. Temple Grandin’s study on her Hug Box supports the idea that deep pressure (such as you get from a hug, or from a weighted blanket, or from, as Dr. Grandin used to do, crawling under the couch cushions and having someone sit on you) objectively calms people with ASD and ADHD.
http://www.grandin.com/inc/squeeze.html

—  2008 Occupational Therapy in Mental Health.  This study looked at a small group of adults, and measured things like respiration rate, blood pressure, etc., during short periods of using a 30 lb weighted blanket (regardless of participant’s weight). They also looked at effectiveness by measuring electrodermal activity (EDA), using a standardized anxiety measurement, and an exit survey. “The results reveal that the use of the 30 lb weighted blanket, in the lying down position, is safe as evidenced by the vital sign metrics. Data obtained on effectiveness reveal 33% demonstrated lowering in EDA when using the weighted blanket, 63% reported lower anxiety after use, and 78% preferred the weighted blanket as a calming modality.”
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J004v24n01_05

—  2011 Nordic Journal of Psychiatry. This study looked at 21 children with ADHD, who slept with a weighted blanket for 14 days, and without for 14 days. Their sleep was monitored by sleep journals and actigraphy. Conclusion: “The results of this study show that the use of Ball Blankets is a relevant and effective treatment method with regard to minimizing sleep onset latency. We find that the use of Ball Blankets for 14-days improves the time it takes to fall asleep, individual day-to-day variation and the number of awakenings to a level that compares with those found in the healthy control group. Furthermore, we find that the use of Ball Blankets significantly reduces the number of nights that the ADHD child spends more than 30 min falling asleep from 19% to 0%.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20662681

—  2012 Australasian Psychiatry. This study looked at about 30 adults inpatient in a psychiatric unit. “Those individuals who used the weighted blanket reported significantly greater reductions in distress and clinician-rated anxiety than those who did not. No changes were noted in rates of seclusion or aggression.”
journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1039856212459585

—  2014 Pediatrics. This study looked at children with an ASD diagnosis and “severe sleep problems.” They gave kids a weighted blanket (no notes on the weight and whether it was appropriate for the weight of the child) and an otherwise identical regular blanket. One blanket was used for 2 weeks at bedtime, then the other blanket was used for 2 weeks at bedtime. 67 children completed the study. The results? “Using objective measures, the weighted blanket, compared with the control blanket, did not increase TST [total sleep time] as measured by actigraphy and adjusted for baseline TST. There were no group differences in any other objective or subjective measure of sleep, including behavioral outcomes. On subjective preference measures, parents and children favored the weighted blanket.” It’s hard to say what this result means. Perhaps the children and parents were experiencing a benefit not captured by the study. Perhaps it was a placebo effect (they expected to see a difference, so they did). It’s also possible that “severe sleep problems” involve larger issues than can be reasonably improved by a weighted blanket.
https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/134/2/298

—  2015 Journal of Sleep Medicine and Disorders. This study looked at 31 adults with chronic insomnia. They slept one week with usual bedding, 2 weeks with weighted blanket, then 1 week with usual bedding. 80% of study participants slept longer and spent less time awake during the night while using the weighted blanket. Participants also reported that it was easier to settle into sleep with the weighted blanket, feeling as though they’d slept better, and feeling more refreshed in the morning.
https://www.jscimedcentral.com/SleepMedicine/vol2issue3.php

—  2016 Journal of Formosan Medical Association. They used weighted blankets on people getting a wisdom tooth extraction and compared them with people without the weighted blanket. (This makes me wonder if they just used the lead aprons, lol. My favorite part of the dentist is using that lead apron. It’s sooooo heavy and feels sooooo nice.) They discovered that those WITH the weighted blanket showed more activity in the part of the nervous system that manages low-stress situations, suggesting the people with the blankets were less stressed by their wisdom tooth extraction.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0929664616301735

And then there’s the reported experiences of parents, kids, and adults, many of whom report better sleep with a weighted blanket than without. Get yours here!

Weighted Vests

I don’t know how relevant weighted vest studies are, since they’re used in different ways than blankets, but I wanted to include these weighted vest studies that I found:

http://www.terapeutas-ocupacionales.es/assets/files/COPTOA/Bibliotecavirtual/AJOT/Mayo-Junio-15/6903350010p1.pdf  Decrease stress, increase calm

A 2011 study in the South African Journal of Occupational Therapy found ADHD kids were more on-task while wearing weighted vests.

http://fileserver.daemen.edu/~rholmstr/weighted_vest_and_adhd.pdf  ADHD kids increase focus, but very small.

All About… Waist Belt Pouches

What Can’t You Fit in our Babywearing Waist Belt Pouches?

One of our more popular babywearing accessories is the Waist Belt Pouch. This handy accessory slips over the waistband of your SSC and holds your stuff.

What can they hold?

Keys, money, credit cards in a Compact size. (Some phones will fit in the Compact size.)

A cell phone, keys, some money, credit cards, an EpiPen, and a snack in a Regular size.

A cell phone, keys, some money, and credit cards in a Large size.

All of the above, plus a diaper and wipes (in a Small wet bag) in a Large size.

Tube feeding supplies in a Large pouch.

Hiking Kit in a Compact pouch.

Hiking Kits in a Large pouch.  (Notice my Freshette “lady penis.” It’s my favorite hiking companion – especially for babywearing. Lets you pee standing up, without depantsing.)

Medications in a Syringe Holster in a Large pouch – prefilled syringes not in a Holster might fit in the Compact or Regular, depending on how big they are and how many.

For many people, they can fit their necessities inside, and avoid having to carry a bigger bag or purse.

We offer three sizes. Compact size is about 5 inches tall and 6 inches wide. Regular is about 6 inches tall and 7 inches wide. Large is about 10 inches tall and 6 inches wide. The Large has snaps on the outside that allow you to snap it up smaller for times when you don’t need the full capacity.

Obviously, I’m not wearing a child in the carrier in these pictures. All pictures are with a Tula. Evidently, I’m just too lazy to get out my other carriers.

The pouches are constructed with canvas or twill on the back and the belt loop. The side that shows is made of cotton, typically in a fun print. The inside is made from either flannel, soft cotton, or a linen blend, depending on what we have on hand in a color that coordinates with the outside.

Buy Yours Here!