Useful Gifts for Invisible Disabilities: Comfort, Functionality, and Self-Care
If you're trying to buy a holiday gift for someone who is neurodivergent, chronically ill, or disabled, this gift guide is for you.
Watch the video at the link below or read on for the full shopping list and transcript.
Shopping List:
*Nee Doh https://amzn.to/4fuB8uT
*Ono Roller https://amzn.to/3UWF8Mq
Fidget Cube https://www.antsylabs.com/products/fidget-cube-the-original-fidget-toy
*Tangles https://amzn.to/3YXjgSo
*Speks Magnetic Fidget https://amzn.to/40YrX1v
Coloring Books / Reverse Coloring Books
Meal Service
Grocery Service
*Neck Fan https://amzn.to/40SGoEf
*Compact Fan https://amzn.to/4fSG3W7
*Folding Fan https://amzn.to/4fS6ETn
Bodice Chiller
*Ice Ring https://amzn.to/48SETI1
*Ice Vest https://amzn.to/3V09bmj
*Heating Pad https://amzn.to/3CyDY3r
*Hot Water Bottle https://amzn.to/3OcE8Qu
BedJet https://bedjet.com/
*Kindle Paperwhite eReader https://amzn.to/3V1yTa7
*Book Palma 2 eReader https://amzn.to/3OcEpmu
*Bob & Brad Massage Gun https://amzn.to/4hNKoff
*Vibration Plate (330lb weight limit - ones with higher limits exist) https://amzn.to/3CKmqkL
*Loop Earplugs https://loop-earplugs.sjv.io/yRdzG3
*Sony WH-1000XM5 Active Noise Canceling (ANC) Headphones https://amzn.to/3YXONDP
*Aranet4 Home: Wireless Indoor Air Quality Monitor https://amzn.to/4fuCwOf
At Home Covid PCR-Like Tests (Please do your research to find the right one for you)
Weighted Blanket (10% of body weight)
Weighted Stuffies
*Rolling Saddle Stool https://amzn.to/3YRmuqx
*Anti Fatigue Mat https://amzn.to/3YY9O0U
*Shower Stool https://amzn.to/48UTeDU
*Large Pill Organizer https://amzn.to/3AQ4Qvg
Neo Walk Walking Stick https://www.neo-walk.com/
*Affiliate Disclaimer: This description contains affiliate links that allow you to find items mentioned in this video and support the channel at no cost to you. While this channel may earn minimal sums when the viewer uses the links, the viewer is in NO WAY obligated to use these links. Thank you for your support!
Video Transcript:
Hi, I'm Cassie Winter. I'm a productivity and self care coach for neurodivergent, chronically ill and disabled individuals. Let's get to the gift guide, shall we? This first idea is really important. Give them something that they would love that isn't necessarily related to their disability. Just because someone is disabled in any way doesn't mean that they want a gift related to that.
So make sure to ask them their preference. Every product that I'm going to list today will be linked in the description box below, so you can go find it and shop for it later. Let's start out with some fidget toys. A few of these are ones that I've been using a lot recently and I've been really enjoying. So first up is Nee Doh. It's a gelatinous cube essentially. I like storing it in the fridge because I like also having something cold to fidget with because I struggle with temperature regulation.
And oh my goodness, it is so satisfying to play with when I need something cold and I need something to fidget with. And it always returns to its original cubic shape. It's really awesome. Another one is the Ono Roller. It's a really smooth rolling sensation and it's made out of metal so it'll stay cold for like three minutes, which I love. But then my heat my hand heats it up really fast, but it's still a really satisfying fidget.
Another one is the good old fashioned Fidget cube and then one that I've been using a lot are tangles. They are so satisfying. And then these next two fidgets were suggested by my assistant Shae. We've got magnetic balls and coloring books and you can get them for children, for adults, whatever floats your boat and meets your needs. There are also reverse coloring books where it's like a wash of different colors and you're actually drawing in the lines.
There are lots of cool things in that realm these days. Another really nice thing to get for someone with less capacity than an able bodied or neurotypical person is a meal service or grocery service that helps take out the work of meal planning, shopping, prepping, cooking, cleanup. Like anything that can help reduce the physical and cognitive labor of the process of eating helps so much. I can't tell you how many times myself or one of my students in my program the Action Navigator have been like, "If I didn't have to eat, it'd be great!"
It'd be so nice. The next category we're diving in is to some more temperature regulation. Many people with chronic illnesses or disabilities struggle with temperature regulation, so some stay cool options are a neck fan, a folding fan, either like battery powered or one of those ones that go (WHOOSH) I love those. And then this is one I discovered recently because I was on Ren Faire TikTok, but it's called a bodice chiller, and it's essentially a metal cylindrical flask that you can put ice water in and close.
And you could, if you're in like a Ren Fair outfit and you're wearing some sort of bodice that compresses you, you can just put it down the front center of your bodice and it keeps your chest and your torso cold. Genius. There's also something called an ice ring, and so it's like a neck fan, but on steroids because it's literally a ring of ice that you can put around your neck.
And then there's also ice vests. And then if you struggle with staying warm, obviously there's heating pads and hot water bottles and stuff like that. The thing I think I mentioned in my last gift guide, which you can find a link to up here in the card above, is something called a Bed Jet. That's one of the more bougie gifts, but, oh my God, I love that thing so much.
It can create heat for inside your bed and it can't necessarily, like, cool the air, but it can circulate air, which tends to feel cooler if you struggle with overheating and getting sweaty in bed. I love it so much. And you can program it to do particular heats and fan settings over time. So I have one that starts out really hot because I tend to be freezing when I go to bed.
Over time, I've set it to gradually reduce the temperature and get cooler. And I love it so much. Moving on to some technology. If your person does not already have an E reader, they might really enjoy it. E readers tend to be easier to hold than a physical book. I myself have stopped buying physical books as of years ago because it's just simply too painful and taxing to hold a physical book and read it. Exclusively
used Kindles from Amazon. So first a Kindle Paperwhite and then a Kindle Oasis. I still recommend those devices, but this thing appeared. It's called a Boox Palma, and again, it'll be linked down in the description box below. And what I love about it is it's the same size as my phone. This is a Samsung S22+ I believe for reference they're more or less the same size and I just put another grip on the back and I find this much more comfortable to hold than even a Kindle paper white or Kindle Oasis for long periods of time.
I love it so much. And it's also technically just a phone. So you're using the app store. So you can also easily browse the Internet, go on social media. It's just instead it's an E paper or an E ink screen. So it's going to be black and white. But you can set this to have a high refresh rate if you did want to go on TikTok for some reason on this.
But I love it makes it a lot easier if you want to read fanfic, for example, instead of having to do all the fancy shenanigans to get fanfics onto your Kindle, you just browse to it on the browser and read it that way. So I've really been enjoying this. Next up is one of my favorite new things. This one and the next idea seriously have been lifesavers for me.
So the first one is the Bob and Brad massage gun. It comes in this nice case. I've had massage guns before. The thing I love about this one is the unit that you hold A) is small. Like I can get this whole thing in my suitcase when I travel really easily. But not only is it small, it's not like pistol shaped. It has this extra part at the top.
So if you're someone who struggles with getting leverage with a massage gun, I hold it like this or like this and then I can just use the weight of my arm instead of it being something like pistol shaped where I'm holding it over here and then I'm trying to apply pressure with the end here and that creates like a pivot point. Whereas with this you can put the weight of your hand over top and it's.
I love it so much. And then the other thing about this particular version, it comes with a heated or cooled, you get to pick attachment. So see this metal plate? It's actually there's electricity happening. So these are two different things that you have to charge. But you can set this to be cold or hot. So here, let me turn on. There we go. So little green light. I just turned on the cold section and this is now getting really cold and then I've set it to hot.
So now this is going to get warm. It heats up so fast. It's amazing. And honestly I only ever use it on this lowest setting but it has so many, so that's low. Another one. There's another one. There's another. This is even the highest setting and it's really not that loud in person. I don't know what the mic is picking up. The power! Beyond that it also comes with this attachment.
This attachment? This attachment, it's hard to see. And then this is the one I probably use the most besides the heating one. But this attachment. This particular unit will be linked in the description box below. And I love it so much. And then the next thing, I spend anywhere from like one to three hours on this thing every day. I'm not even joking. It is a vibration plate.
It lives in the living room. It's designed for people to do like stability based exercises. So, like you stand on it, you can do squats and other body weight exercises or use the stretch bands that come with it too, like upper body exercises, exercises while you're on this platform. The way it moves is it's like a seesaw that goes back and forth really fast. I don't use it that way.
I don't stand on it. I use it for blood flow, lymphatic drainage, and nervous system regulation. So I use it in two ways. One is I literally lie down on the floor, and I put my lower legs, like my calves on it and I just let it jiggle me from anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes. And then the other way I use it is actually just seated right here.
I put it in front of where I'm sitting, I turn it on and I put my feet on it. And it is amazing at helping with my circulation because with my POTS, I struggle with blood pooling and edema in my feet and ankles and lower legs and whatever. And it helps so much with circulation. It is incredible vestibular input, if you have a sensory need for vestibular input, it is incredible.
Like, we don't have enough room for a rocking chair here in my home, for example. This is a way for me to passively receive vestibular input. I'm being moved by something else and that helps to meet the sensory need. But also, if I find myself on the verge of an autistic shutdown or meltdown, I find it's a really great way to help regulate my nervous system. It's also helpful to just relax me before bed. Sometimes I will also just sit on it.
I, I will keep it like right here in front of the sofa and I'll put a big pillow between my, my back and the front of the seat right here, and I'll just sit on it and I'll let it jiggle my pelvis and upward. And I don't do that one as often because that one does feel a bit like an exercise, because in order to keep my spine aligned and not hurt my neck, I have to be a little bit more engaged.
But, man, it's incredible. The other thing it helps me with, I apologize if this is TMI. It helps me with my gut motility if I'm struggling with constipation, for example, just like even 10 minutes on it. And I find that the lying down version is the one that helps the most with this. If I'm lying down on the floor with my calves on it, it helps a lot.
So if you're someone who also struggles with constipation, the massage gun and the vibration plate are easily my favorite discoveries of the past year. I love them so much. And when I am traveling, I essentially use the massage gun for that lymphatic drainage. I lie wrong way on my hotel bed with my butt as close to the wall as I can with my legs up the wall. And then I use the massage gun on my calves, my shins, my quads, and the backs of my thighs.
And that also helps with the circulation. And I wish I could take the vibration plate with me on vacation, but it's basically the size of a carry on, so not feasible. But hey. More sensory needs: earplugs. I'm a huge fan of loop earplugs, and they have been continuing to innovate and improve their products. So, for example, I'm still using the original version of their quiet sleep earplugs, and I love them.
Apparently the new ones are even better. (Pookie, what you doing? Did I gesticulate too close to the sun? Okay.) But they have different earplugs depending on what kind of audio needs you have. So they have the sleep version, they have the conversation version. I'm not sure if that's what it's called, but that's the one I use when I go dancing because I can still hear enough of the music to be able to dance well, but I'm not getting overstimulated by too loud noise.
And then they also have what are called the experience earplugs, which are great for like a concert. And then another sound based sensory need active noise canceling headphones. Oh my God. I'm still using my Sony XM3s that my partner got for me years ago. I think they're on the XM5 now, but that's the one I recommend. That's another bit of a bougie purchase, but definitely worth it. And then if the person you're buying for is a Covid conscious person like myself, let me know down in the comments if you're still masking too. The pandemic is not over people.
Anyways, the Aranet4 air quality monitor is a really wonderful gift. It's a portable way of seeing how good the air quality is in a given space. And then they're also making the at home equivalent of PCR tests for Covid that are much more accurate than the over the counter tests that you can buy at your grocery store, for example. This is something that you would want to collaborate with your person to know exactly what they want.
But those are expensive investments that someone may want but not necessarily be able to afford. Next up, another sensory need. Weighted blankets and weighted stuffies. Sometimes you just want your soul to be crushed back into your body. At least that's how I describe it. But weighted blankets and weighted stuffies can be absolutely amazing for anyone who is neurodivergent, chronically ill, disabled. And if you're going for a weighted blanket, the medically accurate weight to go for is 10% of the person's body.
So you don't want to be higher than that because that might, you know, smoosh them too much, and then less than that they're not necessarily going to get a, an effect, a positive effect with it. And then weighted stuffies are a little bit different because it's localized. Because if you think of like a 25 pound blanket, that weight is going to be distributed across the whole blanket. And if you were to fold it in half, even though it's a 25 pound blanket, it's suddenly acting like a 50 pound blanket because it's double up, doubling up its pounds per square inch.
So that's something to take into consideration with a weighted stuffy. Like if you have a stuffy that's as big as this guy, weighs 25 pounds, it's probably going to be too much. So, things to keep in mind, a couple other home items. A kitchen stool. I've been using a saddle seat stool on like rollerblade wheels in my kitchen this past year and I love it so much. It's so comfortable.
I can't necessarily sit in it for hours and hours because my seat bones do get sore. But it gets the job done. I'm able to do more in the kitchen and I even use it in my sewing station, which is just like around the island from the kitchen. It's really easy to wheel from space to space. And the one I'll have linked below is good for tall people too, because I'm 5 foot 11 and it gets tall enough for me.
Another thing is an anti fatigue kitchen mat or just mat in general to put on hard surfaces. They're super duper squishy. You've probably encountered them at a grocery store before because a lot of grocery stores have them for their staff. Really comfy to stand on makes standing for longer periods of time easier. And then the other thing which I know I recommended in my last gift guide a few years ago, but I had yet to have purchased for myself.
I finally, finally got a shower stool for myself. It is life changing. It is so hard to give yourself permission to get accommodation items like that. I like, I understand it and it's something I coach my clients through all the time. I know it's harder when you're trying to help yourself, but man, if you've even thought about getting a shower stool, that's your sign to get one. I love it so much and I miss it when I'm on vacation.
Same with the vibration plate. The last item, I'm sharing this because I just got it and I love it. I have this little tiny coffee table here, but it used to have bottles, bottles, painkillers, vitamins. So many bottles and that plus cats equals chaos. So I ended up getting one of these things which is designed to hold a bunch of different things and the top rotates. So if I wanted Aleve, for example, I put that over there and that's, that's where the spout comes out.
You're not unlocking the top when you twist this part. And so this has replaced the bottles and bottles on my coffee table and just making my life ever so much simpler. And I like it a lot and it's a pretty color. Yeah, and I think it also comes in a smaller size too. I've been considering getting that for travel purposes. (Almost forgot my other favorite purchase of 2024: my Neo Walk walking stick!) Please share your own gift ideas in the comments.
If you're new here and want to know a little bit about what I do, I run an online productivity and self care program called the Action Navigator. It's designed for those who are neurodivergent, chronically ill, or disabled, and is packed with tools and techniques for mastering your time, getting organized, and offering yourself radical compassion. If that sounds like exactly what someone you love has been looking for, learn more at the link in the description box below.
If you're new to my work you can watch this video next. And you can also find my previous gift guide here. If you like this video, hit that like button and subscribe. And be sure to share it with one other person. I'll be back soon with another video. See you then. Bye.
