Dressing is rather complicated in a pinless halo, we have discovered! We already knew anything over the head was out. The halo adds several inches to the circumference and it would make the neck of the shirt huge. Abby has been in a brace before and she was able to wear button down shirts one size bigger than usual. It wasn't too much of a challenge.
Now, the metal bar in the back of the halo connecting the head to the brace sticks out an extra 2 inches, making wearing button down shirts pretty much impossible! I went up 2 sizes and she wasn't even close. Going up 3 sizes would cause her to just swim in it length-wise.
On a whim, I threw in an Adidas jacket when I was packing her for this stay. It is stretchy without a hood and is the only thing we have here that works! Even other hooded sweatshirts I brought aren't stretchy enough to fit. I may be able to go up a size on those, but we don't have any here right now. Plus, I think a hood would just add even more bulk behind her head and would be uncomfortable.
I have one more Adidas jacket at home and ordered several others! It is a zip-up track jacket that has quite a bit of give in it, and we can zip up the front most of the way up. She feels comfortable in it and it fits!
I also had an idea that a knit poncho might work. (Not the kind you wear to keep dry--the cute kind!) They tend to have wider head holes and just lay on top of everything. I figured I might give it a shot, but I can't find anything that isn't ridiculously expensive. I'm going to keep an eye out.
She will hopefully be out of this before the weather gets warm, but it is basically impossible to find short sleeved zip-up shirts! We are just going to hope that it won't be an issue.
As far as pants go, I had already learned with her last brace that leggings were the easiest. Regular pants got pushed down by the brace and weren't comfortable for her to wear. Lucky for her, she has plenty of Lularoe leggings! 😃. I didn't even bother packing any regular pants.
Because Abby is still very unsteady on her feet and is struggling to adjust to this new weight on her upper body, she is only wearing sturdy tennis shoes right now. She loves her boots, but they just aren't safe right now. Safety > fashion!
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