How to install a Sensory Swing, easy steps to DIY
I had never considered a sensory swing at home until I started doing aerial yoga. My instructor at Coastal Retreat mentioned that she installed them in her kids’ room at home. After a long cold wet winter, I was desperate for a new indoor activity. Installing two took less than 30 minutes (start to finish).
Materials
Tools
Power drill, drill bit, wrench. My new Milwaukee power drill made quick work of the job.
Hangers and Swings
I selected these stainless steel hangers. They are simple to install. I used the hanger as a template, marked where the holes would go on header. I predrilled for the bolts. This serves two purposes: 1) makes it WAY easier to drive the bolts; and 2) it allows you to verify the framing above the trim. 99% of doors should have a very solid load bearing header. When you drill your pilot holes you should be able to feel them if they are there.
These minimal hangers are industrial looking and aesthetically pleasing.
Sensory swing, aka Yoga Hammock
There are a ton of sensory swings on the market. Many of them use single point attachments. Lots of them have an upward weight limit around 100 lbs. I’ll admit that I selected the yoga swing so I could use it too. There are a dizzying array of straps and harnesses available with yoga hammocks.
I voted for a simple yoga hammock from f. life: essentially 5+ yards of two-way stretch nylon. It came in so many amazing colors I had a hard time picking. In the end, I let the boys pick. K, as usual, picked his favorite color, yellow. And J settled on blue.
Mine came with detailed instructions for tying the knots to hang them. It made zero sense until I did it a couple times. And because the material stretches you will have to adjust your knots from time to time. So it’s worth practicing (and because your kids will get it dirty and it can easily go in the washer.)
Then you thread your locking carabiner through your knot, hook the carabiner over your hanger, and you are done.
Safety Additions
These swings hang in a large doorway (seven feet wide) and if I had hung just one of them, I wouldn’t worry much about safety at all. Twins makes everything more complicated. And two swings presented some safety challenges.
It has coined a new term at our house. When heads get knocked together by accident it’s called a ‘coconut’ and they boys think it’s HILARIOUS.
It became quickly obvious that someone was going to coconut the door jamb – and that might mean stitches or worse. So I bought some 2 inch thick foam from Joanns. I wrapped it in a fabric that coordinated with the paint color. And used some thin wooden trim to fasten the foam around the molding.
It didn’t take half a day for the boys to test the utility of these pads. Especially when they are spinning or get off kilter with a swing they can bounce off relatively unscathed.
Benefits to a Sensory Swing
Developing NEW senses
Toddlers are rapidly developing two integral systems of their body-brain connection. They are actually TWO ADDITIONAL SENSES to the sight, smell, touch, vision, and auditory senses we are used to thinking about.
Their vestibular system controls balance and movement, specifically it tells the brain where the head is in relationship to the body and the ground.
Proprioception comes from input from muscles and joints and tells us where our body is in space (close your eyes and touch your finger to your nose, that’s proprioception).
While these are developing – and for kids that have developmental issues – the sensory input from these systems can be overwhelming or uncomfortable. Swinging and spinning help integrate these senses.
Balance
Working on vestibular and proprioception helps kids refine their balance and coordination. My guys are at that toddler stage where their ability to move WILDLY outpace their ability to balance (and to think through what they are doing).
Strength
My Toddlers started life 8 weeks before their due date. And physical developmental delay has been part of their life. Which means physical therapy has been part of their lives since the beginning.
Climbing in and out of the hammocks, standing in them, and swinging in them requires them to use muscles in new ways. Arm strengthening and core strength (especially) has improved since they’ve started using the hammocks.
Swinging in a sensory swing is soothing
Anyone can tell you that chilling in a hammock gently rocking away is amazingly soothing. When my guys are getting agitated/frustrated with life or each other sometimes just a few minutes swinging can reset their attitude. And after I’ve shut the door on a pair of threenagers at bedtime, a few minutes does me wonders, too.
Squeezing/retreat
The yoga hammock is large enough that when my toddlers get in it they can sit completely cocooned inside it’s stretchy embrace. Then they play peekaboo, pile their stuffed animals in with them, even sometimes get to watch their own private show on a tablet inside.
Both my guys like a good squeeze and the double stretch nylon has a nice snugness to it. Believe it or not, we all pile in one many nights after dinner and it’s such a perfect little ‘boat’ for the three of us.
Concentration/ Agitation Solution
We have started using a number of sensory stimulation tools to deal with behavioral issues with our toddlers. When they begin to go off the rails I tell them to climb on their Comfort Nugget, stand on a balance board, or get in their hammock.
It only takes a few minutes sometimes. My favorite is when they lay facedown with their arms and head out and play with their toys.
Sensory swings are FUN!
Indoor physical fun is at a premium in the winter time
My twins are rough and tumble types. A cold and miserable February kept us in the house too much and their kinetic energy was off the charts. These swings let them burn off tons of physical energy regardless of the weather.
On rainy days these are a godsend.
Physical experimentation
On a nearly daily basis, the boys are trying new things with their swings. They take special delight in showing off their new skills. And special delight in making Momma have half a heart attack.
I see their confidence growing each time they discover some ridiculous new move.
My favorite thing I bought for the boys, by far
I’ll admit that these were a bit of an impulse buy – I hit up Amazon after I went to an aerial yoga class and after 10 days of the weather keeping us inside. These easy to install and remove sensory swings have added an amazing layer of play to our lives. For less than $100, we have gotten WAY more than $100 worth of utility out of them.
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