Autism ? What is your best traveling tip?

[joyfull]

What is your best tip for families traveling with a person with autism? Also what is your best tip for going to WDW parks or Disney Cruise ?

[FFerret]

I'm curious as well--my little boy will be five when we go and he's autistic.

We went to see a movie for the first time yesterday; Finding Nemo. Jess did great :)

[brerpaul]

I have been with my son twice in the last 6 months. He is a seven year old autistic. Here are some quick tips:

1. Go to guest services and get a blue guest assistance card that will let you use the fastpass lane as much as you like.
2. Tell the people at check in that you child has autism and you would like a room that is close to the foodcourt.
3. Seat your child on the plane near the window with you in the middle. Bring lots of stim toys for the flight. Make sure you are seated together before the trip.
4. Use the first class security check lane at the airport. Just let the person know your situation and that your child cannot tolerate lines.
5. Start at Magic Kingdom with the teacup ride. If your child does well, move up the intensity. My son couldn't get enough of the fast rides.
6. Stand near an exit before parade time at the parks in case you need to leave.
Hope this helps

[BethanyF]

Originally posted by joyfull
What is your best tip for families traveling with a person with autism? Also what is your best tip for going to WDW parks or Disney Cruise ?

First of, know your child, know what sets him off, and how to regulate him (in our case spinning is a great regulatory activity, think teacups ride).
Be patient, autistic kids like repetition, so be prepared to repeat things.
My son does great if he knows the plan for the day. So I tell him every morning what our plan is, and he is learning to tolerate changes to the schedule.
Remember they can be set off by things we dont see, hear, or smell. A tiny piece of sand in their shoe could be drastically painful, same for a tag on his shirt, etc.
If he has a small comfort object, let him bring it. My son wears a fanny pack to keep his stuff handy.
If he has oral or chewing issues, bring a chewy tube or some other appropriate thing to chew on (licorice, gum, etc).
Dont expect to see and do everything. You need to go at his pace. If you see the signs for a meltdown, remove him from the situation and wait until he is regulated to go back.
Be prepared to leave shows or parades, the noise and activity can be overwhelming to some kids.
Watch for problems with the heat. My son cant regulate his body temperature very well, so we usually have water available to pour on his head or whatever. We also had one of those misting fans for him.
Prepare him for the trip....vacation videos, sign alongs (Fun At Disneyland is perfect), Birnbaums books, and so on. By the time we got there, Sam knew more about the parks than I did, LOL. He had those things memorized.
Repeat, repeat, repeat everything. I had to constantly tell Sam 'we will try to find Mickey" or 'we will try to xxxxxx'. He understands 'try' means maybe. That way he isnt too disappointed if we cant find Mickey or do whatever.
OK, that was just a bunch of random thoughts, but hopefully they helped you in some way.

[SueM in MN]

This website (http://pixiedustinn.com/disabilitiesfaq/DisabilitiesFAQ.html) has a lot of info about touring WDW with children with autism.

[Nik's Mom]

This thread is so timely for me. We were recently told that our son shows signs of autism and are going through the diagnosis process. I was wondering about our upcoming trip. I want it to be pleasurable for him. Glad to get any tips to accomplish this! I'm also glad to hear that I am not alone! We were beginning to feel like we were the only ones with this problem.

[Poohnatic]

Best advice I can think of is to follow your child's lead. If it seems as if DS/DD is getting overstimulated, try to find a 'quiet place' to recharge, like the baby care centers in each park.

Take some time at your resort. We get more mileage with my son if he gets pool time a couple of mornings on the trip.

Use a stroller. I found out on day 3 of the first trip how nice those AK stollers were (son insisted on one at Conservation Station). I'm so glad he did-we now tour the parks with a pair of strollers for my kids, and I don't care how big he gets, he'll get a stroller. Another perk of the WDW strollers is that they surround the child on three sides, cutting out a lot of visual stimuli!

We also do a lot of character meals. This way, I don't have to worry about him wanting to meet the characters and waiting in a lot of lines for it. The one line we wait in consistently is Buzz and Woody, his heroes. The character meals are good for both my kids because they have to sit down and take time to eat, and usually we do a buffet to get more food into them.

Enjoy your trip...you CAN do WDW!
Suzanne

[Mel6197]

For my daughter, letting her know the Plans are very important. Story Boards helped with the Plane ride etc.

Make sure your near a Exit for some parads and shows, Its very LOUD. Earmuffs help her, and sitting in a stroller to cut down on Visual Stimulation

Slow Down.. LOL.. some of our best times were trying on Hats at the shops and seeing how she looked

Use the Pools, Find quiet areas to Unwind..

We are going back in Oct. And of course get the GAC...We only used it 3 times for our trip in Dec, but its a NICE backup..

[SueM in MN]

Use a stroller. I found out on day 3 of the first trip how nice those AK stollers were (son insisted on one at Conservation Station). I'm so glad he did-we now tour the parks with a pair of strollers for my kids, and I don't care how big he gets, he'll get a stroller. Another perk of the WDW strollers is that they surround the child on three sides, cutting out a lot of visual stimuli!
You can also get a GAC that allows you to use a stroller as a wheelchair. This allows the stroller to be brought into queues if necessary and into buildings like the pavilions at Epcot where strollers are not usually allowed. You may not need to use the stroller except to get from here to there, but it's another good back-up, insurance tool to have.

[s&k'smom]

I couldn't agree more with the above tips. For my son we kept a schedule. So he knew exactly what we would do. We took a long afternoon break everyday and went to the hotel pool area. We also bought one of those $10 umbrella strollers for him and it was invaluable. though he was six he's so skinny he fit it just right. We also sent down a package of all his favorite foods which he loved having in the room. We also didn't push it. We were back in the room by 8:30-9pm everynight. We really did follow his lead and he did much better than I could have hoped. (Though he hated the plane)! Oh and one more thing if he has a blankie don't wash it for about a month before you go. I did this and he buried his face in in more than once for comfort, something about the scent of home.

[Crazy Kanga]

All of the already mentioned info is great advice. I can't reiterate enough how important it is for down time in the middle of the day. Staying on property really helps with this. I wish we could afford to stay at a deluxe on the monorail. This would be the ideal situation for getting back to the room/pool quickly so if you can I would highly reccomend it. Also, check out the menus at www.wdwig.com/dining.htm to see which restaurants have foods your child likes. We had a hard time the first time we went because no where on Disney property had Dr. Pepper which is my sons favorite soft drink. We knew next time to take some six packs with us. Little things like that can stop meltdowns or at least keep them to a minimum.

[SueM in MN]

You can also check out the menus right on the DIS. Go to www.wdwinfo.com and look for the dining links.

[StitchGirl88]

I am 14 and i have asthma and they made a portable battery opperated asthma breathing machine ase the person has asthma bad ask your dr. about it it is really nice plus for your hotel bring the reagular breathing treatment machine that's what we do and bring an inhaler the machines if you have insurance may pay for in but the portable breathing treatment that runs on batteries coast around $90.00 which isin't bad and a big one depends on what kind you get Hope this helps!!!

[StitchGirl88]

sorry scratch the idea i gave i read it fast and thought it said asthma!! SORRY!! REALLY I AM!!

[SueM in MN]

That's OK, StitchGirl.
If you find in the future that you made a mistake, you can edit or delete your post if you want. At the bottom of your post, you'll find a button that says Edit. Click on that and it will bring up your post in an editing window so you can change whatever you want to chenge. If you just want to delete the whole thing and start over, you can check the Delete box on the left side at the top of the edit window, then click the button that says Delete Now and your post will be gone.

[Mel6197]

Thanks a bunch for the tip about using strollers as a wheelchair to.. I didnt know they could add that to the GAC card..
But what area's could I use the stroller, I dont remember having to leave the stroller behind for anything untill we went on rides.. So Where can I use the stroller? Thanks a bunch again..

[s&k'smom]

I just though of it and sorry if it's being repeated but one thing that really helped was we got the promotional video that Disney offers. We watched it over, over, over, over, over again. But what surprised me was the things that my son pointed out once we got to WDW. When he freaked on the plane we would talk to him about all the fun things we saw on the video and that we were on our way to go do those fun things. Of course we stayed at GF so needless to say he is now completely spoiled. :)

[SueM in MN]

But what area's could I use the stroller, I dont remember having to leave the stroller behind for anything untill we went on rides.. So Where can I use the stroller?
You normaly can't bring a stroller into any lines in any parks or into any of the pavilions at Epcot (with the exception of Innoventions in Future World). The "Stroller as a Wheelchair" GAC would allow you to bring the stroller in if that would help your child to feel more in control.

[Earstou]

My son has always had trouble with anyone dressed as a character. So we prepared him for the fact that there would be lots of characters at WDW, starting about 4 months before the trip. We told him stories of great character breakfasts we had before he was born. We told him he did not have to interact with the characters, but we also let him know he couldn't treat the characters badly. I tried to prepare as best I could, and also to set limits ahead of time.
Our trip was last month, and the preparation was the best thing I did! He would hang back when approached, and we never pushed him. We did a character meal towards the end of the trip, and he actually interacted with the characters after he saw how much fun we were having!
I got my first pictures of my son with a character this trip!!!
So, my suggestion is to try to prepare them as far ahead of time as possible!

[Crazy Kanga]

I agree with the tip about watching the planning video repeatedly and talking about all of the fun things you will do, make a list, draw pictures etc. We did push our son to interact with the characters, but we also know his limits and were careful about how we approached it. I am so glad we did, because once we got him to go up to him, Mickey kissed him on the head and he was hooked. We spent the rest of the trip having to go see Mickey. It was great.

[StitchGirl88]

thanks SueminMN i didn't know you could do that anyways thanks again!

[SueM in MN]

You're welcome, StitchGirl.

[Nik's Mom]

I have a tip. If you are concerned about your child wandering away and getting lost, you might want to order a medicalert bracelet. I just ordered one for my son on Monday. It will indicate on the bracelet that he has speech problems and may not be able to communicate well. The bracelet has zoo animals on it to make it appeal more toward children, but there are several bracelets or necklaces to choose from.

[lalapodip]

My goodness - I can't believe that you just posted this about the MedicAlert!! :D My son received his today - I gladly paid for FedEx overnight shipping - after he escaped on Tuesday. IT WAS VERY SCARY!! He's not too happy about leaving it on - but he'll get used to it!! :D We got the free standard bracelet with engraved tag. It says:

Autistic
Non-verbal
His name
Call immediately

There is the MedicAlert phone number on the top to call - and they will contact us immediately to let us know where he is. It costs $35 for the year and $20 per year thereafter. All information can be updated (phone #s, doctors, etc.) at any time. Totally worth it for our situation!!

:D Hope someone else can use this tip!!

[SueM in MN]

Good hints.

[tebright]

I have been wanting to order one of these. Thanks for mentioning it and reminding me.

My son is on the nervous mode today because we are talking about fireworks. His hearing is too sensitive to deal with it. He will be going over to Mommom's house tonight during fireworks...lol.

[Amaris]

We have two children with autism.. here is the biggest help for us... We prepare them for EVERY transition... if we are going on a ride, we remind them we are only riding one time, then half way through, "Remember, we are only riding how many times?" and have them say once! We find when they know every transition in advance, we have far less tantruming...

If your child cannot speak then visuals.. whatever works for him or her.

[Nik's Mom]

I'm concerned that Nik won't wear his bracelet. I read on another thread about identifying a diabetic child that you can put the tag on the child's shoe. If Nik just won't budge, I may try that. We'll just have to see when it arrives.

[Amaris]

With our kids, we use big stickers on their backs with their names and a cell phone number of a cell phone we have with us. My kids would not wear a bracelet as well... If you slap a sticker on their they probably won't notice and can't reach it to pull it off. Also, it is easier to spot than a bracelet.

[eeyorefanatic]

Please don't put identifying information on the outside of a childs clothes. Put it on the inside only where a passing person can't see it.

[Amaris]

We always do. If they get lost, I can't imagine how many people will be looking in shoes for tags, just my opinion, especially if the child can't tell them where to look. Most school groups travel with the child's name on a tag sticker, along with what school they are from, same basic concept. If they get lost, they can find the school group in the park.

I could see not putting a physical address and full name.. That would be dangerous as some one could come get your child later! I am suggesting a cell number people can reach you on at the park in case you get detached.

[lalapodip]

My son ALWAYS knows when there is something stuck on his shirt! :rolleyes: We tried that last year and he kept reaching back to pull it off. FYI - as I posted before, my son is non-verbal, and he's had the bracelet on for one day now. It really jumps out at you, especially since he's in shorts and tees/tanks for summer. My son never leaves his shoes on, so a tag on a shoe is useless (but I can see how it would work for a diabetic child that you could explain something to).

Transitions are still tough - he understands all done, but not "one time" only, so the rides are still a challenge! Still, it's worth saying "one time" and see if it finally sinks in. Thanks! :D

[Amaris]

Last year we went to Busch Gardens and they have an EXCELLENT policy for disabilities.. they let us go in ALL of the exits for all of the rides ( never a wait) Plus they let us ride everything TWICE! I wish Disney did that but then again, there are probably so many people with disabilities there, it would be impossible to do!

Can you do a sew in tag in a shirt on or a sleeve even?

It is tough but you have to have something.. We also have a rope we use ( sort of like a harness but more discrete) that goes from beltloop to beltloop. That helps a great deal, if we feel a tug.. of course we hang on to our daughter and son constantly but never hurts to have a just in case tug!

[Cheshire Figment]

This is a comment about the idea of a clothing tag.

Around 50 years ago I went to sleep-away camp for 8 weeks every summer. My parents were able to get cloth nametags with my full name on them and an iron-on backing. These were placed in all of my clothes. It took real effort to remove them. They also survived MANY launderings.

I would imagine they are still available; you could get them with a child's first name and the ten-digit cell phone number. If I remember, they came on a roll; my mother would cut them between the names and using a standard iron would melt the glue and they would be stuck very securely to the clothing.

I am sure such a product is still available; probably a search on "iron-on nametags" in a general search engine.

[Amaris]

This looks like a winner, just searched on line for you. Hope this helps. I found a feedback thread and about ten positive posts about this company :)


http://www.namemaker.com/

I think I will order some as well! Great idea :)

[SueM in MN]

That is a good idea, Cheshire Figment. I've seen those iron on tags in fabric stores (like JoAnn Fabrics). You can also get a laundry marker usually wher the tags are sold (to write on them).

[Nik's Mom]

I've heard from many police officials that you should not have your child wear something where his/her name would be visible. That's why I like the medicalert bracelet. It lists his name on the inside along with the medicalert phone number to call in case of emergencies. And if he is found by an official person like the police or medical personnel for example, they are trained to look at the wrist or neck for medicalert tags. But my son also has those clothing tags on the inside of his shirts. These are easy to use. Just iron them on and they stay put! I'm so glad I found this thread. So many of you have great tips!

[s&k'smom]

OMG that medicalert bracelt is a brilliant idea. Now anyone have the number. I'm going to order immediately.

[SueM in MN]

OMG that medicalert bracelt is a brilliant idea. Now anyone have the number. I'm going to order immediately.
Here's a link to the MedicAlert website. (http://www.medicalert.com/(zae3j5bvbfl4mknskxfhes55)/home/Home.aspx)

[s&k'smom]

Thank you Sue, you know everything!

[FFerret]

Wow--now I'm considering the same bracelet for my autistic son (turns 5 in 11 days :) )

Is it easy for him to remove? What if we get the animal sports band with it--does that come off easy? He's probably going to fight it is why I'm asking, but he has to have SOME kind of ID on him, or I'm going to fret myself stupid!

[Amaris]

Both of our kids have autism, and they would *never* wear a bracelet like this. There are sensory issues that they would fight, especially with a sports band. Also, the bracelet which is a GREAT idea, seems to have an annual fee attached.

We have also put bracelets like this ( id tags) in belt loops rather than using them on wrists, that way they don't have to touch them and be bothered by the sensory issue.

For autism, with sensory issues, I would move to the iron on labels in a shirt and hope that someone would look inside his shirt... or at least use that as a backup in case he takes the bracelet off. AND hope he doesn't dislike the itch of the tag!!

The main thing with a non verbal child is to have something people will be able to spot quickly. We use our cell phone numbers on our tags and we have the cell phones with us. We have never lost a child for more than five minutes, but those five minutes can be VERY scary!

I hope the id bracelets work well for everyone , they do look like a HUGE resource, if you can get your child to wear them :)

[SueM in MN]

originally posted by s&k'smom
Thank you Sue, you know everything!
I'm mostly good at finding things.
My DD has sensory issues too, so I understand those of you whose children would never keep a MedicAlert bracelet on. When we ent to E-night, we finally had to go back to the place you get E night bracelets and get a new one to put on DD's backpack because she worked so hard to get it off her arm.
The bracelets have a latch on them that is not easy to take off, but any determined child would be able to remove it. i don't know what the answer to that is (if I did, I could make a fortune selling non-removable IDs to nursing homes and hospitals so the confused patients could not get them off).;)
The advantage of having it is that MedicAlert has beeen around for a long time (maybe 40 years) and health care workers all over the world are very aware of it. They keep a database of specific information - contact info for you, your doctor, etc that can be accessed by police or medical people 24 hours a day.
It's a non-profit organization and the fee goes toward keeping up their database and having people around 24 hours a day to access the information in their database.

[FFerret]

thanks so much for y'all's imput :)

here's what I'm going to try tonight--I'm going to braid a silly little string bracelet for my son and see how long he'll keep it on--just determine the struggle factor

heck, he may not even care (yeah, right :))

Amaris--looks like we'll be there at the same time!
BTW, CleverMoms is a great site :)
I still remember the big egg hunt from last year

[Amaris]

Thanks for the nice words about Clevermoms :)

I love it! It is fun to find deals and coupons for a JOB :) I have learned to pass up goodies lately, there are SO MANY!!! The Holiday hunt comes up in early December which is fun too!

We are trying to decide between the GF and WL.. teetering back and forth ... :)

[Nik's Mom]

Amaris,
Great idea about putting the id tag through a belt loop! That wouldn't bother my son at all. You must have tons of other tips, having 2 children with autism. Please share more. My son was just recently diagnosed. I have a lot to learn! By the way, go with WL! Our son loved this hotel in our last stay!

[lalapodip]

I tried the belt loop, but most of Dennis' clothing has elastic waists and no belt loops. He also tries very hard to remove it when he DOES happen to have loops - we made our own ID tags with his picture, laminated them, and attached them to our key rings, just in case.

UPDATE:

Dennis made it through our VT vacation with the bracelet ON and WITHOUT getting lost - hurrah! He notices the bracelet but does not complain about it anymore. I hope that you all have luck with your id tags! :D Love the MedicAlert!

[lalapodip]

is down to 24 days.... PANIC ATTACK!! I have to UNPACK from Vermont....I can't believe how time is flying.....:rolleyes:

[s&k'smom]

Don't panic lalapodip, you'll do fine. Let us know how it all goes. We are planning on next Oct. 04 and are prepping our son already as he if freaked by the plane. Of course I just like talking about WDW!

[Earstou]

I've decided when we travel, we will buy 2 sizes of t-shirts when we buy our souveneir shirts for my DS. We'll buy the current size and one size larger.
I have so much trouble getting him to wear new clothes. The new clothes have to hang in the closet for awhile before he will wear them! (Then they aren't "new" anymore and he doesn't view it as a change). .
So buying two of the trip shirts he picks out will help solve this problem! He will be used to the 2nd shirt right away when it's time to switch sizes!

[Nik's Mom]

Earstou,
My son is the same way about new shoes! We usually try putting the new shoes on while he's asleep. For some reason, if he wakes up and sees them already on, it doesn't bother him as much. I was jumping for joy this weekend when he let us put on new Teva sandals without even fussing. He just watched us strap them on his feet! I felt like it was a major breakthrough!:D

[s&k'smom]

Just thought of something else as I was making a way ahead of time ressie for HDD. I called early so we could make a request to sit on the side of the hall so that if DS needs to get up and release a little energy it won't be such a big deal. Anyhow I was thinking if $ allows lunch and dinner at the resorts is a lot less hectic than in the parks. We eat around 5pm and have found the resort restaurants usually nice and quiet or at least by the time we leave it has just begun to fill up and start to set DS off. We found last Oct places like Cape May, Trail's End, Grand Floridian Cafe (for breakfast) to have a quiet vibe even if busy. We tended to have more than one meal at those places becuase of the atmosphere. We did do a busy place like 50's but DS knew that we would be heading to the pool right after so that would keep him ok. Just a thought.

[lalapodip]

Eating at the resorts is a great idea! We had a great dinner at Trail's End - my son really sat nicely and ate well, too. Not too overwhelming for him.:D We also had a late seating at Garden Grill for lunch and it was VERY quiet there as well. Lots of character interaction as well. The only downside is that I ate A LOT and it really slowed me up! :rolleyes:

[Figment1964]

Originally posted by lalapodip
We also had a late seating at Garden Grill for lunch and it was VERY quiet there as well. Lots of character interaction as well. The only downside is that I ate A LOT and it really slowed me up! :rolleyes:

I would second the Garden Grill! We ate there for a late lunch last August and walked right in. Very relaxing, with individually enclosed eating areas for each party. The character interaction was great too!

My AS son really seemed to do well here. This was a highlight for him since the characters came right to us, no waiting in line or anything!

For the flights the best thing we did was to rent video players from InMotion Pictures. We picked it up in Portland (our airport) when we got to the airport and dropped it at the Orlando airport when we arrived. We did the opposite when we flew home. Now we have a computer with a DVD player so that will work too. It kept our 2 boys VERY quiet and occupied!

Have a great time...wish it were us! ;)

[Mel6197]

I was at Target, and saw this tiny black and white mini tv that Plays Mini Dvd's
You can buy headphones to go with it,
The videos play Nick toons. (spongebob, fairly Odd Parents)

Im thinking about buying it for Kira for the flight, Even if it keeps her happy waiting for the plane, it will be worth it to me :)

Also I found that Kira did Really good at Le Celiar, It just seemed quieter and darker, Not as hetic, she really enjoyed having lunch there :)

[s&k'smom]

What great ideas about the mini dvd player. When I flew last in June we were on Song Airline (Delta's discount airline-otherwise known as the old Delta Express) anyway the flight attendant was saying by October they were going to have those personal tv's at every seat. So if you are flying by the fall you may want to ask. Also I was on another post about Netgrocer.com and I had no idea about being able to shop on line. The reason I say is because I've noticed a lot of special needs parents need to bring particular foods on our trips and to be able to just order on line and they will be able to deliver to the resort. How great is that!

[Amaris]

We always carry our laptop with dvds, much to the envy of everyone else around us with kids! Good battery charge will make it most trips. :)