ASD son broke his arm last night

[monkeysmamma]

We leave for WDW in 2 weeks. We've been planning and discussing all the things he could do, and now.... Good grief!

He's still in a half cast, and the break is in his elbow. We'll talk to the ortho. about waterproof and all that, but I'm wondering what rides he'll be restricted from because of the cast. It's holding his arm at a ninety degree angle across his chest. I'm thinking that any ride where the harness goes over his head and down, is out. Would he be restricted from anything else?

Thanks!

Julia

 

[SueM in MN]

Hugs to you!
I have to get my DD up right now so I can't post much right now.
This site - allearsnet ride car page may be helpful since you can see what rides have harnesses.

Some that don't have harnesses - like Dinosaur, Space Tours, Primeval Whirl - can really bounce you around, so you might want to avoid those. In general, the CMs won't stop anyone from riding unless they feel it would be a danger to others, so it will mostly be up to you to look at attractions and decide what is OK. One good thing is that the 'wild' rides are pretty well identified with a red triangle icon on the park maps and signs in front of the attraction.
Are there any specific attractions he wanted to see? Posters here can help you with those.

Does he have a sling? You will probably want one because having an unsupported arm will be more tiring. Also, carry along some pain medication. Even if he is not having pain, you don't want to get half way thru the day and then find you need it.

hope you have a great tour despite your little 'detour'

 

[monkeysmamma]

Thanks Sue. I'm off to study your link. As for big wishes, he was planning on going to the Jedi Training Academy as many times as he could to hopefully get picked to fight Darth Vader. That's probably the biggest thing he wants out of the trip. He was talking about Test Track and Buzz Lightyear while we were at the ER last night. He loves roller coasters too.

 

[Crazy Kanga]

The upside is he might get some special tratment for having a cast. My ds had a broken big toe that caused him to wear a boot cast and he got a few free pins when he was pin trading because they felt sorry for him.

 

[Schmeck]

Thanks Sue. I'm off to study your link. As for big wishes, he was planning on going to the Jedi Training Academy as many times as he could to hopefully get picked to fight Darth Vader. That's probably the biggest thing he wants out of the trip.

They might avoid picking him for anything to do with this because of the cast - liability issues, so I'd be prepared for that. I hope that even with the cast you all have a wonderful trip!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

In addition, you might want to talk to the person who will be removing the cast. Have a line drawn on the cast where it will be cut for removal. Then bring along some "Sharpies" and have the characters autograph the cast, asking them to make sure their signature does not directly cross the line.

Once the cast is removed and fully dried out, you will then have a very unusual souvenir of the trip.

 

[monkeysmamma]

I had the same idea about having characters sign the cast! Thank goodness I got a deal on Sharpies a while back, lol...

Oh, I hope they don't refuse him at the Jedi thing because of the cast. We've prepped a lot that he might not be picked, but I'm gonna keep my fingers crossed.

Thanks everyone!

 

[mechurchlady]

Talk to the CM in private and explain the situation. Sometimes they can arrange something but not always. Worth a try.

 

[monkeysmamma]

Talk to the CM in private and explain the situation. Sometimes they can arrange something but not always. Worth a try.

Yeah, I'm going to ask if he doesn't get picked the first day. He was Darth Vader for the last two Halloweens and one Christmas (it was an autism thing) and today he picked out a black cast so he'd be like Vader. I'm hoping they'll be able to give him a little bit of magic, one way or another.

 

[SueM in MN]

Talk to the CM in private and explain the situation. Sometimes they can arrange something but not always. Worth a try.

Yeah, I'm going to ask if he doesn't get picked the first day. He was Darth Vader for the last two Halloweens and one Christmas (it was an autism thing) and today he picked out a black cast so he'd be like Vader. I'm hoping they'll be able to give him a little bit of magic, one way or another.

You need some pens that will sign on black then. I think there are some gel pens (like special ones you would find in a stationary department) that will sign on black cards).

 

[monkeysmamma]

Ooh, I like the gell pen idea! The doctor's office said silver sharpies look great on the black, but the gell pens would perk up the black and silver.

 

[bzzymom]

One thing to keep in mind if it gets hot and your son sweats a lot, is that that the wrap under the cast may get rotten. When my brother was 14, he had a broken bone in his base of his hand that required him to wear a cast up to his elbow for several weeks. He was allowed to go to soccer camp in June, and it was wrapped and as required for safety, but when he got home, it smelled bad. I mean really bad. They had to cut off the cast and put on a new one.

 

[mechurchlady]

One thing to keep in mind if it gets hot and your son sweats a lot, is that that the wrap under the cast may get rotten. When my brother was 14, he had a broken bone in his base of his hand that required him to wear a cast up to his elbow for several weeks. He was allowed to go to soccer camp in June, and it was wrapped and as required for safety, but when he got home, it smelled bad. I mean really bad. They had to cut off the cast and put on a new one.

1976 and the doctor drilled a little hole in my leg cast, he sniffed it, lol. What a memory to bring back, been so long. Said it was fine. If you smell something funky then have it checked out.

 

[SueM in MN]

One thing to keep in mind if it gets hot and your son sweats a lot, is that that the wrap under the cast may get rotten. When my brother was 14, he had a broken bone in his base of his hand that required him to wear a cast up to his elbow for several weeks. He was allowed to go to soccer camp in June, and it was wrapped and as required for safety, but when he got home, it smelled bad. I mean really bad. They had to cut off the cast and put on a new one.

the waterproof ones don't have that problem (luckily)

This does bring up the idea that he may get sweaty, itchy and hot under the cast. No matter how much it itches, don't put anything into or under the cast. That can cause skin breakdown and actually an infection. Some things you can safely use are a hairdryer on cool or if the doctor says it's fully waterproof, water.

 

[Ms_Butterfly]

Make sure those gel pens can actually write on the texture of the cast before you go to Disney and get disappointed.

Try using those paint pens - they look like pens but have paint inside. Don't forget to bring a pad of paper to get the pens started on first (you shake them, press on the tip with the cap while they're facing the sky, and then hold the tip down on paper until the ink flows - do the latter on scratch paper/cardboard so the paint ink doesn't blob out and mess up the signature/look of the cast). They come in metallic as well as colors. You can get them at craft stores like Michael's.

 

[monkeysmamma]

Thanks everyone! We have metallic sharpies and they're working great on the cast. So far mom, dad, brother and the dog have all signed the cast, and he's thinking about letting the characters sign it. I'm not sure if he really understands that part yet, though.

The cast is fully waterproof, but we're trying to keep it dry for the time being. He's not thrilled with hairdryers, so we're working on getting used to it blowing on cool. Once I think he'll let me dry the cast, we'll let him get wet. So far it hasn't started itching, but it's only been a few days. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that between being able to get it wet, and the blow dryer on cool, that the itching won't be too bad. Otherwise, I worry he'll start breaking down the cast.

His pain is getting a lot better and he doesn't have to wear the sling unless he wants to. (I'll bring it with us to the parks.) I'm also hunting for a hook he can wear at the pirates and princess party. The doctor said he's free to do whatever he wants, and there are only a couple of rides that I think will be completely out of the question. So all in all, this has got to be the easiest medical crisis we've ever dealt with.

 

[dzorn]

The hooks are available WDW i saw them several places, especially the gift shop by pirates. Good luck.

Denise in MI

 

[monkeysmamma]

The hooks are available WDW i saw them several places, especially the gift shop by pirates. Good luck.

Denise in MI

Thanks! I just finished sewing skull caps for the boys and their stuffed buddies, and DH brought home pirate swords the other day.

 

[goofy0626]

My son, who is autistic, broke him arm right at the beginning of summer vacation last year. The cast covered from his wrist all the way up to almost his shoulder. It was at an angle and he used a sling for some of the time. The Dr. told us about a place to get a totally waterproof cover for the cast and it was like a miracle. He was able to go swimming in the pool all summer. He swam underwater and everything and it stayed dry. The website is drycast.com Or call 1-888-379-2278.