<p>Also, I had to force my D to take her ski jacket which she did not like the design.
When it got cold, she did wear it until we could get another jacket of a design that she liked better. So basically, forcing is key.</p>
<p>My kids grew up in the NE, but when it started to snow/rain sideways in Ithaca, even my kids were miserable. They very much appreciated their Patagonia water proofed jackets (elastic around neck and sleeves so no water could get in). They also wore cashmere socks to keep warm (thinner and softer than wool). We bought most of their winter gears in spring/summer to get good sales. Sierra trading post is a good site to get a lot of winter clothes/boots.</p>
<p>Pizzagirl, you’re right, it is concerning. And as we see, the OP is concerned. But she has a daughter who, though socially oblivious and not as attuned to body signals as other people, is academically ready for college. And the OP has decided, we can assume for good reason, that she’ll send her daughter off to college and hope she muddles through. And the OP wants to give her daughter the best possible chance.</p>
<p>Having two opposite children I get to live with the - won’t pack for the appropriate weather one and the other one who thinks a new, enormous wardrobe will fit in her dorm closet. </p>
<p>My son went from the mid-atlantic to upstate ny. Once he acclimated to the cold he told us most kids just wear hoodies when it’s around freezing out. No one whips out the coats and warm clothes until it’s unbearably cold. Last year we gave him cashmere scarf, and hats and gloves and long johns as a christmas gift and he left them behind. It was one of the coldest winters they’d seen in a long time. He called me the second day back and asked to get them mailed.</p>
<p>However, he will ONLY wear jeans and t-shirts and that’s it. I’ve tried many different tactics and he just agreed to have one decent outfit when jeans and t-shirts aren’t appropriate. Which he doesn’t recognize when that is if I don’t tell him.</p>
<p>Ok, CF. It’s just that the title is misleading, because the OP knows what to pack - it probably would have been helpful and gotten the OP what she wanted if it had been advice on how to get someone on the spectrum to recognize / wear warm clothing when it’s cold out. Because the advice for a neurotypical kid just doesn’t seem helpful to the OP. </p>
<p>I asked for packing lists, and I got a few and a boatload of unsolicited parenting advice. The title was exactly what I wanted, but like so many threads on here it turned into what people wanted to discuss, not what I asked for. Some of the specific suggestions and quantities are helpful. It can be hard to remember exactly what you were wearing or how many sweaters you needed 25 years ago.</p>
<p>mathyone, you got mostly what you asked for. If you had explained in the OP that you have a bright, academically advanced kid who seems to be on the spectrum and will not listen to her mom’s advice but will follow said advice given by people she normally would listen to, like other parents, we would have provided you with a greater number of lists. Fingers crossed for your kid.</p>
<p>IMO, I find some parental advice posted in the Parent Cafe, even unsolicited, very valuable. Sometimes, it makes you look at the problem from a completely different angle. </p>
<p>You got lists and suggestions; the suggestions also happened to include “just let her be, don’t fight this battle, she’ll figure it out when she gets cold” because it’s not the collective posters’ fault that they didn’t know / realize that your D was on the spectrum until you revealed that in post 54. </p>
<p>When my daughter was younger, her sensory integration issues were more of a problem
She did not perceive the cold. Obviously she was cold, but it didn’t register as cold.
She could not tolerate the fan or heat on in the car, and went one year wearing the same tank top, shorts and sandals every day.
However this was in elementary school. As her nervous system matured she eventually began wearing more clothes.
Now she even seems to be sensitive to it.</p>
<p>IMO, just as adults learn that they need to eat and drink at certain intervals even if they don’t feel hungry or thirsty, they have to learn to wear appropriate clothing.</p>