It is time to teach your son to shave.
Shaving wasn’t on your radar until now.
Maybe you have been shaving him or taking him to the barber.
BUT……..
His beard is growing in too fast for the occasional barber visit.
His coordination and safety awareness? Not as fast.
He needs to learn to shave.
Why Occupational Therapists Care about Which Razor You Choose
I have been an occupational therapist for decades. Most of my experience in this area has been with clients who HAD been independent in shaving for decades. An injury or disease process altered their skills. I was doing remediation and adaptation, not instruction. Now I am working with a handful of teen boys with special needs, whose ADL skill goals include shaving. This has made me take a longer look at which tools make learning easier.
As my clientele changed, I had to change my skill set. I think that full self-care independence has meaning for most teen boys. Regardless of their challenges, they want to have agency and control over their bodies. Being passively shaved is a fairly intimate act. Teen boys almost always want to be more mature, more adult. They chafe at imposed schedules and rules. Even if they are unable to understand that shaving is something that adult men do, they probably understand that being able to shave independently means that they will have more control over the timing and pacing of grooming.
When a boy’s beard begins to grow, it is thin and often random in coverage. When it can’t be ignored any longer, their parents often take them to a barber or get a quick shave at home. For a while, a biweekly or weekly appointment does the job.
They get older. Fast.
Their beard becomes thicker and fuller. Parents have to decide when and how to introduce shaving as an ADL skill. It can take months, even years for many special needs teens to become independent in shaving. They may always need an adult to “double check” their work before they leave the house. This post isn’t going to teach you how to teach them to shave. It is on having the right tool for the job.
Why is having the right razor so important?
Because the more challenged the client, the more a tool can compensate for their challenges without stressing them, or their parents, out too much. Nobody learns well when they are afraid or confused. Nobody can keep practicing without seeing some progress. The right tool helps young men with special needs learn how to shave.
The Philips Norelco OneBlade Pro is the right tool for THIS job.
Why?
- The razor shaves close, but not too close for excessive force to damage skin.
- It doesn’t need foam. Boys often cannot see remaining beard hair when partially covered by shaving foam.
- It is waterproof.
- The small blade head swivels easily. This accommodates limited wrist control while optimizing flush contact with skin.
- The blade edges limit accidental skin nicks. Nobody likes to see blood.
- It is lightweight, perfect for kids with limited strength or with low muscle tone.
- The thin textured handle is easy to hold, even when wet.
Is it perfect?
No; no tool is. It requires cleaning that many special needs teens cannot perform properly. Because the blades do not hold the shaved hair, a boy who cannot lean over the sink effectively will end up with a lot of beard hair on their shirt. The small blade head is slower to finish the job than an electric razor with a larger contact surface. Most of my clients need a fresh blade to get the best results and minimize skin irritation. You will be changing blades fairly often. That isn’t a bad thing. These blades are affordable. Your child will be a success for less!
Looking for more posts on ADL skills for older kids?
Read Why Cutting Nails Is Such a Challenge for Autistic and Sensory Kids and Can Your Autistic Child use the Potty in a Public Place Yet? . They will up your game and make your life easier!
Looking for a way to build your older special needs child’s functional skills? Many of my older clients need support for other daily living skills. Things like toothbrushing and simple kitchen skills. I even wrote a handout pack on special needs food preparation skills. It includes recipes and equipment suggestions for safe and independent food prep:
Where can you find it? On a great site for all of my handout packs! Your Therapy Source!
