Autism and Disney ride anxiety

[SueM in MN]

Wow, amazing information. Thank you very much for posting this. Dis boards/mods area simply AMAZING here, something new learned each time I visit!

Thanks
Thanks to someone else for posting it in the first place.
I kind of flit around everywhere looking for information that might be helpful to people with disabilities and found it.

Don't know if just ear protectors will do the trick. Especialy ones you find for $15. I could be wrong though. My DH works for a defense company. When he goes on a business trip to one of the bases they wear noise canceling headphones because of the noise from the big jets. They one most of them use is by BOSE. They can be pricey but are well worth the expense. DS is 24. He is on the spectrum. He is considered a low functioning adult. Basicaly I have a permanent 16 to 17 yr old. He does not do fireworks, fire alarms and sirens freak him out. He is alright with thunderstorms as long as he is inside. If he is outside and hears it in the distance we have to grab his arm immediatly. He will otherwise run to get inside. Unfortunatly he will plow into people without looking if left to himself. It has gotten better over the years. However whenever viewing fireworks he wears the headphones. This way he can watch them from a safe distance without running in fear. As far as the rides there is u tube and the site Sue mentioned but I would also get one of the disney vaction planning videos. This has helped others we know. I would also get a copy of Open Mouse by Passporter. This is a Disney guide for those with disABILITIES of ANY kind. It is a bilble to us since we have 2 kids with issues. I will not go to Disney without it. As far as where you stay either stay as close as possible to the park you will spend the most time in. Cuts down on meltdowns or one with a slower pace such as OKW or AKL. You can visibly see them relax while ther. Resorts like the values are to in your face and frantic for mine. It makes them tense up. Lastly plan plenty of down time and figure out where the first aid and child care facilites in each park ahead of time. If you need a quiet place to get away from it all for a few minutes these are great.

The ones people use for shooting are the ones that work well for fireworks and other sharp sounds like that. Since they are designed for gunshots, they work quite well for any sounds that are similar.

Some other ones, like noise canceling earphones might work better for other sounds, like too loud show sounds that are not in the same frequency as gunshots.

Also wanted to point out that First Aid and Child Care are well marked on the park maps - as this poster mentioned, they are a great place to get away in a calm, quiet place.

 

[lovethattink]

This got posted by mistake in the general part of the board, so I moved it to the WDW trip part of disABILITIES for you.

Many people find that their special needs kids have problems with the sound at WDW - it’s just too noisy and overwhelming. If you decide on ear protectors/headphones, your child will not be the only one with them. People generally recommend the type of ear protectors that are used for people shooting guns for target practice. Those are fairly inexpensive and are made to drown out noises, particularly sudden sharp noises like gun. They are especially good for fireworks.

Something that might work really well for your child to used to the idea of going in attractions is this Interactive Video Tour: Someone posted a link to this video on the Theme Parks Board and I thought it would be great for people with various disabilities: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yanxLYu8dto
It starts out entering MK, so you can see the entrance turnstiles, how to put in the ticket and do a finger scan. Children don’t need to do the finger scan until they are old enough for an adult ticket. Even if he is too young to do it, the adults in your party will need to do it, so it may be helpful for him to see what you will do.

The video goes on thru MK, filmed as though you are walking through the park. The interactive part is that when you get to an attraction, the tour
guide shows you the outside and tells a little about it. Then you can click the video and will actually be transported to a video of that attraction. Many of the attraction videos show part of the queue and a ‘taste’ of the attraction. Some actually show the whole thing. There are not videos of any of the 3D movies, but most other things have at least part of the ride.
I thought it would be great for people with physical disabilities who might be concerned about what the ride car looks like and how you board. For kids with autism or other special needs, they could decide whether to ‘ride’ or walk past to the next attraction.
Even though it might look at first like it will just be one park, it actually hits all the parks.

That's is a great video! It's like a social story of touring WDW!

My son walked away once I started it, but ran back when he heard PUSH! Walked away again, and was back when he heard tarantula and madascar cockroaches. Then was gone again.

 

[SueM in MN]

That's is a great video! It's like a social story of touring WDW!

My son walked away once I started it, but ran back when he heard PUSH! Walked away again, and was back when he heard tarantula and madascar cockroaches. Then was gone again.

That’s exactly what I thought of when I saw it the first time.
And, it’s so cool. If your child wants to just ‘walk on by’ an attraction and not try it, he can.
And, if he wants to do the same attraction over and over again, he can do it as many times as he wants.

 

[Redheaded Sunshine]

I would DEFINITELY recommend the the headphones for the fireworks. My DS (7..HFA) LOVES fireworks, but the noise gets to him sometimes. Noise can be a major stimulator for him and not in a good way. I would also say that finding him "his own space" to watch the fireworks is a good idea. This might be far away at CR or Poly. (this might actually be a really good idea for him..he won't hear the booms.) We have found on the platform just down from the old Noodle station in Tomorrowland tends to be a good spot, nice viewing but far enough from the crowds.

Just follow his lead, but don't be afraid to push the envelope just a tiny bit, particularly at Disney, your little guy might surprise you. Just a little bit being the key though

 

[SueM in MN]

I would DEFINITELY recommend the the headphones for the fireworks. My DS (7..HFA) LOVES fireworks, but the noise gets to him sometimes. Noise can be a major stimulator for him and not in a good way. I would also say that finding him "his own space" to watch the fireworks is a good idea. This might be far away at CR or Poly. (this might actually be a really good idea for him..he won't hear the booms.) We have found on the platform just down from the old Noodle station in Tomorrowland tends to be a good spot, nice viewing but far enough from the crowds.

Just follow his lead, but don't be afraid to push the envelope just a tiny bit, particularly at Disney, your little guy might surprise you. Just a little bit being the key though

I'm not positive if this is the space you are talking about, but if it is the covered seating platform just down from the Tomorrowland Noodle Station, that is no longer available as a viewing area unless you have paid for the Fireworks Dessert Party.
We used it before that and found it was a very good spot.

 

[mandylou6]

Do you have an MP3 player that can store videos? You could download videos of the rides and have your son watch two or three in the car each day to become familiar with them.

could you explain how i would download videos to my iphone im not good at that sort of thing lol...

 

[lucigo]

Just wanted to update and say the headphones were a huge success!!! My son was able to watch Wishes for the first time!!! He even used my phone to take videos of the fireworks so he could watch again later.

He also asked for them whenever things were loud, in the Little Mermaid, in Maelstrom, and he even wore them on Splash Mountain just so he could feel "safe".

Thank you so much!!!

 

[Marleen2]

Just wanted to update and say the headphones were a huge success!!! My son was able to watch Wishes for the first time!!! He even used my phone to take videos of the fireworks so he could watch again later.

He also asked for them whenever things were loud, in the Little Mermaid, in Maelstrom, and he even wore them on Splash Mountain just so he could feel "safe".

Thank you so much!!!

Great for you guys it worked out fine!
The use of the headphones (or maybe just his i-pod) could work for my 17y old son with ASD as well. It wasn't until our last (disastrous) vacation with him that I found out about this board. I found so many good tips in here so far! Wish I found out about it sooner! Could have saved us a lot of hassle

 

[mandylou6]

So glad the earphones worked we have recently brought a pair of noise cancelling lindy headphones as well which we plug into an ipod these seem to be working great around shopping malls etc ony 6 weeks to go heres wishing with fingers and toes crossed that these make the diff between a bad or excellent holiday !!!