ADHD and the World?

[figmentaholic]

I apologized if this has been posted already, but I didn't see it on the front page.

I have ADHD, possibly mildly autistic (possibly AS), though I have not been "officialy" diagnosed with the second, I have a couple of autistic friends who have suggested that I might have it.


Anyways, I have the rather unusual situation of being both excited and overwhelmed by all the sights and sounds and smells of the parks.

I need to be moving, I need to be doing more than one thing at a time, but sometime there is so much that is going on that it ends up being too much and I have to go "cool down" in a quiet store or sometime in a bathroom stall.


Does anyone have any suggestions on how to balance stimulation and overstimulation?

I am going to WDW in just over a month. I am so excited!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Hi and to DisBoards and disABILITIES!

You might go to a sporting goods store and pick up a pair of shooter's earmuffs. These will not block out all sounds, but will reduce sharp and very loud noises. That may assist with some of the stimulation.

 

[Selket]

Noise cancelling headphones could work too - if you like listening to an mp3 player (ipod), etc. They are rather bulky though - except for very expensive versions like the Bose3.

I was thinking that rather than the bathroom or store you could always go to First Aid in the parks and ask for a quiet place to rest.

I wonder if there is a previous post somewhere that mentions good quiet areas in the parks? I'm sure that is a thread somewhere.

 

[bookwormde]

Welcome from a fellow Aspie, and a father of an AS DS9. You did not indicate your age so I will try to be general. Whoever you are touring with make sure they are not trying to get you to “commando tour” (trying to make as rides etc as possible in 1 day). Avoid getting overtired and stressed since that is almost guaranteed to create problems. If you are staying on site, take a break in the middle of the day and go back to the resort to rest, swim, recharge and get some quality sensory down time.

WDW is such an amazing place for us with all the visuals (I have always assumed that a lot of the creative minds behind WDW had at least a few characteristics).

It sounds like you have been to the parks before so repetition will make it easier. As other have said hearing protectors or even ear plugs can be very helpful for auditory sensory sensitivity, just finding a place to sit (or lay) down and close your eyes is best for visual and vestibular sensitivities. There is at least one thread that lists places to decompress (probably back many pages). For crowd and olfactory issues it is just a matter of getting away from the source.

Again welcome and feel free to join us on the community sub board where there are lots of conversations about AS issues beyond WDW.

bookwormde

 

[MegKate]

As someone with severe ADHD, I can speak to the stimulation more so than the overstimulation. But I agree with the headphones, and Bose makes a pair that are earbuds that are just fantastic and do take away much of the noise due to their construction. It might be easier for you to use those. I use mine with an IPOD Shuffle and the size of those might be a bit easier to take on and off as you go through the park.

http://www.bose.com/controller?url=.../audio_headphones/in_ear_headphones/index.jsp

I cannot stand waiting in line. I completely lose my mind. What I do in line is bring a clipboard or maybe a tour guide, a pen and postcards. I spend that time writing out my postcards. This keeps my mind stimulated and allows me to focus on something not so... stimulating?

 

[kaffinito]

Hi and WELCOME to the DIS!

Here are some of my strategies. I use them for myself and my two ASD kids.

When we get over stimulated we go hide in out of the way places. The DSA's in MK are somewhat quiet, and I also go hide in the bathrooms myself. I hadn't thought about the First Aid area! There is also a walkway behind Toontown going towards the Speedway that tends to be quiet. AK is really quiet and relaxing for us so no problems there, and there are a lot of fairly out of the way places to go to in EPCOT as well. I do not like DHS because there aren't enough hidey-holes for me to go to. We also go back to the resort every day to swim and de stress like bookwormde suggested.

I also pick the resort based on colors and amount of landscaping. Dark colors and a lot of landscaping really helps us calm down.

I find it helps to take the "back" ways as much as possible, and to do other events in small doses. We only see Spectromagic once, Wishes once, and Illuminations once.

I kind of enjoy all of the stimulation, but my kids say it makes me really cranky, so I have to make sure I don't have another "magical" meltdown there like I did in '07. I just try to make sure that none of us gets too much of anything and that seems to work best for us.

 

[Sleepy]

My 16 year old son is still extremely ADHD. Even on meds, there is only so much they can do. A theme park is actually not too bad for him. We just avoid lines with a lot of waiting (this is where Universal is handy since we stay onsite and have unlimited express pass).

We have found he does well when he has had sufficient sleep. He gets very moody if he starts the day tired. All he wants to do is argue when he is tired. As for the rest, when he is stimulated, we just repeatedly remind him to calm down and watch his volume. When he is excited, he speaks loud enough that people a mile away could probably hear him .

 

[bookwormde]

I would suggest in MK that Tom Sawyer Island is good place to “get way” as is small side trail at AK which opposite where the African drums are. In EPCOT going out the back gate and sitting at the open building overlooking the lake on the way to BW is also good, I have yet to find a similar place at DHS. My observations are the being in a natural area (with limited people) provides a lot of input but requires very little effort for reply and they by is very relaxing.

bookwormde