How a simple piece of clothing helped Boston start preschool with a serious illness

Four-year-old Boston hasn't had the easiest start to life.

Just 28 days after he was born, mum Amanda knew something was wrong when he started "projectile vomiting everywhere", but she never could have imagined what was to follow.

"I'm a paediatric nurse so I knew the signs and I [thought] 'he's got pyloric stenosis', which is something that isn't super common but it's easily fixed with surgery."

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But after baby Boston came out of surgery, she says "he didn't get better" and it wasn't long before they realised "he obviously had a lot more going on".

Amanda has told 9Honey Parenting that not only did her son have serious bowel and bladder issues, but he got "much worse" from a respiratory arrest at two months old that put him back in intensive care.

Boston, now four, has since had almost 30 different surgeries to try and fix his bowel which doesn't work.

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Amanda says unfortunately her son is "medically complex", which is why doctors still don't know what is wrong with him because "he doesn't fit any picture of a disease".

As a result, Boston is in and out of hospital every month while doctors treat his gastro and bowel issues while still trying to work out a diagnosis.

But she says despite being poked and prodded on a regular basis, Boston takes it all in his stride, in part thanks to a special t-shirt he was given from the hospital.

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The Supertee is a specialised hospital-grade top Boston can wear to not only feel like a superhero, but so doctors and nurses can modestly access his ileostomy bag, gastrostomy button and porta-cath in his chest.

Amanda says Boston has been sporting the Supertee "since he was big enough to wear it" and always has it on for "every admission and hospital appointment".

"It's easy to access all his devices on his tummy and chest, and I think he really enjoys the fact that people make positive comments about him when he wears it."

Developmental psychologist Dr Stephanie Carlson says she can see how the t-shirt is helping children with serious illness cope with the challenges they face.

"A Supertee gives children a sense of armour, or a sense of protection and it can help them feel braver, leading to a better experience than they might otherwise have had in medical settings and while facing medical challenges."

Amanda says she's noticed the t-shirt gives Boston extra confidence when he knows it's going to be an uncomfortable day.

The four-year-old also chose to wear it on his first day of preschool this year "to show all his new friends", but Amanda was worried it might lead to a lot of questions.

"Kids are naturally inquisitive and Boston is more than happy to answer and tell everyone what he has. But kids can also be quite mean, and a big fear of mine is his differences being pointed out in a negative way versus in a positive educational way."

Amanda fears he could become "a target for mean kids" when they discover he isn't like the rest of his class.

"Yesterday was the first time he actually said to me, 'I want to be like the boys and I want to feel when I could wee and poo' because he has no sense that he can't feel anything."

But for now the Supertee is keeping everything covered up for class.

Amanda says not only does Boston feel like a superhero, he also has some sidekicks watching over him too.

"His two older brothers also have superhero sidekick t-shirts to show they're part of his support team."?

She says Boston's brothers, Camden and Nash, are his "biggest advocates" and always wear their sidekick t-shirts when he goes into hospital as a show of support.

"Impersonating a character like a superhero can help improve a child's emotion regulation, giving them the power to face a situation they might be nervous or anxious about," Carlson says.

"It's similar to the advice 'fake it 'til you make it'. Imagining you're someone more competent and confident can help children eventually become more competent and confident in themselves".