Airline Flight to Disney - Autism -

[zstyles]

We are about a week away from our trip to Disney World with two typical kids and one girl with PDD/NOS. We would love to know some tips, experiences with airlines, or other ways that you have dealt with the flight in. We have a 4 hour flight in and 6 hour flight out..we have an IPAD loaded up with her fav. show, a helper coming along with us who has special needs training...but this is our first time to take her on a trip this long let alone a FLIGHT!

Thanks!

 

[SueM in MN]

It's late, so I don't have lots of ideas, but a couple of suggestions came to my tired mind.

1) check out the disABILITIES FAQs thread near the top of this board or follow the link in my signature. One of the posts is about air travel and includes links to the Orlando airport's website, which has some pictures.
There are also some links to the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) website, which has some pictures and some videos designed for children to help them get an idea of what happens at security at the airport.

2) if you live close to the airport, check if you might be able to make a visit. Some people have reported that the security people at their airport actually let them see what it was like to be screened. If nothing else, you can at least look at the airline check in and watch the screening lines from a distance.

3) many kids on the autism spectrum like social stories. You can make them on the computer and print them out, or there are some apps for making stories on the iPad. Pictello is a very nice app for that.
I saw one story on it that someone made for a medical procedure their son would be going thru. They covered each step and then repeated the page "and it was all right". You could do something similar for the flight, covering what each part will sound like and feel like, that you need to stay seated during the flight with the seat belt on, etc.
You can probably find pictures of many things online - like the inside and outside of the plane, what the tiny bathroom is like, etc.

 

[cogero]

My son is almost 4 has PDD-NOS and is non-verbal. For us I start a week before telling him we are going to go on an airplane and go through security. I constantly remind him

IE Jimmy in 5 days we are going on an airplane to see Mickey Mouse. Jimmy in 4 days we are going to the airport and on an airplane to see Mickey Mouse.

I will tell him this 5-6 times a day. I also make sure I have things he likes for the plane.

I also mention to security he is on the Autism Spectrum so they are aware.

We have no problems once we are on the plane J loves to fly.

I find the most important thing to let him know what we are doing. We generally find early flights out are better and we try to fly direct everywhere.

Hope this helps.

 

[jmartinez1895]

Who are you flying with? Some airlines will allow people like your son to preboard. Southwest is one of the best about htis, but others do it as well. You can call your airline and ask and they will make a note on your sons reservation as well. For some people this helps because they are not walking down with a group of people and they get a few moments on the plane to get settled and can look around and get adjusted to the environment before a "herd" of people get on board.

 

[brown1442]

My son has a classic autism dx... he's now 6... and was 4 (almost 5 the last time we went). He was nonverbal.

We made a "book" (paper printouts in page protectors) for my son complete with pictures of everything he'd see and read it frequently beforehand so that he'd know what to expect. My bil flies often so he just snapped shots with his iphone. I think it helped. Honestly my son is pretty laid back as long as he's in his stroller (huge safety place for him) and has his electronic of choice (ds, ipad, etc) to play with.

We did board first... which definitely helped. Crowded places and lines do NOT go over well for my son.

Then on the plane brought tons of entertainment... at that time he was into calculators and played the entire 2 hour way down with one whatever works right!! LOL

If you have 3 adults and 3 kids going with you make sure you communicate ahead of time who's responsible for what (who's taking care of which child, the luggage, etc)... it will really help make things go more smoothly that day... especially if there are meltdowns with the ASD child.

 

[zstyles]

Thanks everyone, she is non-verbal, around the level of a one year old, she is 6 while she understands commands somewhat, eat, drink, she is very dependent on us for most things and would not understand alot of suggestions here (but all helpful to others perhaps)..I have called southwest to advise them of her status and they are offering preboarding which will help for sure in getting us all situated and the list of things to do is helpful also..thanks!

 

[jmartinez1895]

As I said, Southwest has always been great to work with. Be sure to get to the airport early because you may take longer to get through TSA ( meds, strollers, ect) and be sure that as soon as you get to the boarding area you go to the desk and get your pre boarding slip.

 

[brown1442]

Thanks everyone, she is non-verbal, around the level of a one year old, she is 6 while she understands commands somewhat, eat, drink, she is very dependent on us for most things and would not understand alot of suggestions here (but all helpful to others perhaps)..I have called southwest to advise them of her status and they are offering preboarding which will help for sure in getting us all situated and the list of things to do is helpful also..thanks!

Hugs... I hear ya! Its hard to know what nonverbal kids really understand. I like to believe my son understands more then we think he does... but perhaps I am one of the delusional kind

Bring what you think would comfort her. Airports are big and scary places even for typical children (and some adults... lol) let alone a child with processing delays and sensory issues. So anything that you have that might help her feel more relaxed and comfortable with the situation would be huge. For us its his stroller and his electronics... for others kids it might be a security blanket or a stuffed animal... whatever you know works for her.

Next make sure you have entertainment for her. It doesn't matter what her functioning level is... she needs something to keep her occupied on that plane!!

My other piece of advice to you... and I hope I am not crossing a line here... but I know a number of people always recommend medicating kids with ASDs on planes. Not debating that decision here... just encouraging you to do a trial run at home first if you chose that route. I have witnessed a DISASTROUS outcome on a plane once when a child had the opposite reaction to Benadryl (he went bonkers hyper instead of getting sleepy) and the parents weren't prepared cause he'd never had it before). Like I said not encouraging medicating one way or another... just saying... don't try it on the plane for the first time.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

make sure not to give her stuffed animal or blanket to carry before check point as it will have to go in ben can not be carried thru with the child. also no liquid in sippycup, put in after check point. we had no problems with any meds, even a bottle of orange juice that could be med needed. even got gel ice block to keep what needed to be cold in small bag.

 

[disney-akj]

My son is nonverbal and has a tendency to be loud at times with out realizing it (squeals, small noises, etc.) When he would get a little noisy, I made sure I had snacks on hand. This helped stop his overstimulation with the noises. I also made sure I had suckers to let him suck on to help his ears with popping with the change in altitude. Gum works too if you daughter chews gum.

I would just echo what everyone else has said with lots of activities. We had books, coloring books, portable DVD player.

 

[Rayvnn]

This info was helpful. My son has flown before, but he was under 18 months old and did well. I am really afraid to get on a plane with him now. He hates loud and sudden noises.

Leslie

 

[brettgirl]

My son has autism. We have flown with him since he was a new born, but to help him when he was about 4 he saw a Cailou show where they went on a plane-he spoke about it on the plane and was comfortable about the issue because of that show.

One plane was a smaller one and the pilot actually let my son turn off the plane and put his cap on (my son HATES things on his head!)-I was almost in tears as there were so many unexpected firsts in those few moments.

Definately use a Social Story-use stick people if you cant draw, keep it VERY simple. Bring all your "tricks" in your carry on (I still do!)

 

[SueM in MN]

I don’t think I posted this link before, but a poster named Marie S made a simple social story book for her son before they traveled to WDW that could be used for ideas for making a social story.
Hers was very simple, but could be made fancier by typing and printing it and finding actual pictures of things.
If you have an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, there are apps that can be used to make social stories. The one I am most familiar with is Pictello, but you can find more by searching the app store using the word “autism”.

If you lose this thread, there is a link to Marie’s social story book in post about air travel in the disABILITIES FAQs thread.

 

[persimmondeb]

Someone linked an airline social story somewhere in these boards, but I can't remember where. I used it for my son before his first flight. It was pretty simple (mostly too simple, since he was 15) but there was a noise feature, and I was able to play the engine noises for him since I was a bit worried about that.

It turns out that he LOVES the engine noise (and loves to fly), so I was worried about nothing. I'm wondering if it could be on the "welcome to schmolland" thread.

 

[SueM in MN]

Someone linked an airline social story somewhere in these boards, but I can't remember where. I used it for my son before his first flight. It was pretty simple (mostly too simple, since he was 15) but there was a noise feature, and I was able to play the engine noises for him since I was a bit worried about that.

It turns out that he LOVES the engine noise (and loves to fly), so I was worried about nothing. I'm wondering if it could be on the "welcome to schmolland" thread.

Information about the book is in my post right above your ( unless there is another post about a book that I am not aware of).

 

[persimmondeb]

It wasn't that one, actually. It was more like an online photo picture book. The clickable noises were a really nice feature. We didn't need to bring it with us, but just had him go through it once. It was pretty simple, but he did find it helpful, and may have contributed to his enjoying flying.