Community donates weighted blankets to St. Louis Center

(Chelsea Update would like to thank Joe Yekulis for the information in this story.)

Deana Fisher is the COO of St. Louis Center, and manages the direct care staff who care for the children and adults who live there.

She reports that the community has been extremely responsive to the needs of the  residents, and details the impact that the “Stay at Home” policy in Michigan has had during the past three weeks.

“With the onset of the Coronavirus quarantine, the lives of the children we care for were turned upside down,” she said in a press release.

“For many of them, particularly those with autism, the lack of a routine produces a great amount of anxiety, and many of them are unable to verbalize their fears. They are having difficulty sleeping, and are acting out with behaviors related to this anxiety. Research in the areas of anxiety and trauma has shown that the use of weighted blankets can help calm these individuals down and promote sleep,” she said.

Deep Touch Pressure (DTP) stimulation is what gives the weighted blanket most of its benefits. When the blanket is being used, it provides the body with the sensory input needed to regulate stimulation overload. It has a calming effect on the body’s senses, addressing sleep problems to give them a therapeutic night’s sleep.

St. Louis Center put a plea out on Facebook, and boy, did our friends deliver.

Fifteen new weighted blankets arrived after just a few days.

Once they were properly disinfected, and staff were trained in their use, they were distributed into the children’s homes, and hopefully we will see calmer days ahead. Ask, and you shall receive. We are grateful to our supporters, she said.

St. Louis Center is a residential care facility for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and has been serving families in Michigan for 60 years.

To assist St. Louis Center, please visit www.stlouiscenter.org and click on the “Give Now” tab, or contact Deana Fisher at 734-475-8430 to donate a weighted blanket.