Child on autism spectrum

[jvz82]

So, my oldest child (6.5) is on the autism spectrum, very high functioning. Most people are surprised when they hear he has autism. However, it becomes more obvious when he gets really excited, or there is tons of noise and then he gets really disregulated and has more frequent tantrums. Anyway, we went to Disney when he was 4.5 and at the time he had not been diagnosed so the way we handled things may have been different at that time. But he had a lot of meltdowns and at one point my husband had to leave in the middle of a long line with him out a backdoor because he just couldn't get it together. It was after that trip that I started wondering if there was more going on with him than just being a difficult child. There were lots of GREAT moments as well and lots of times when he did really well. And he's gained some emotional maturity since then. But I want to be more prepared this time.

Just wondering if other parents have a child on the spectrum and if you have any tips or things that worked well for you!

 

[chris31997]

Check out the DISabilities board. I'm sure they will have lots of great advice for you.

A friend of mine takes her son all the time to Disney. It is their fav place to go. Anyway, for them she always has things for him to do. Quick things. She is also watching to make sure that he does not get tired, hungry or bored. She tries very hard to avoid his meltdown triggers. If needed, the family will split up so the the thrill junkies can get those rides in BUT they meet right back up because her son would melt down. She is also will let certain things in the normal diet go but she will watch other things like a hawk. Friend and son have to avoid gluten. But son gets his soda and other food splurges cause it is a treat.

The big thing is to know your kiddo how to entertain him in line, know his triggers(avoid them is possible),watch diet if medically needed, and take things at his pace

 

[msmama]

My son is not on the spectrum but he can be...challenging.

What works for us is having a plan and my being VERY clear on behavior expectations. Sometimes he wants to ride a certain ride at a certain time but that's not possible. I have to make sure to stop and explain WHY and then what we are going to do about it. I also make sure I have a plan in mind for lines. He's outgrown most of his sensory issues, but we used to do jumping jacks in line (if room) or squeeze hands or press hard against one another to get the wiggles out.

By that age my son was out of stroller which we used to use for his breaks so we can't do full days. It's just too much sensory overload for him. Generally we do RD to around an early dinner time. This trip in 2 weeks we'll do afternoons/evenings (which I'm nervous about).

Like the above poster said, know your child's triggers and have a plan of how to handle them. I find that if I explain myself (A LOT) everything goes smoother, but YMMV! Good luck and have fun!

 

[kohlby]

I don't have kids on the spectrum but I have two with some issues that could also effect kids on the spectrum. (One with sensory issues and one with OCD and anxiety). We have some noise cancelling head phone that are very helpful. Also, having the stroller as a safe place for the child with sensory issues to use to hide out helped quite a bit. He was 5.5 on our last trip and though he was perfectly capable of walking, it was nice to have a place for him to escape to. We will be taking the stroller on our next trip too.

Another one of my children is scared of the automatic toilets at Disney. We've fixed this by taking post-it notes with us and having the child put it over the sensor.

As for rides, our last trip went better with the CM's, but on the trip before, they wouldn't let us use rider swap if the child hit the height minimum even if he was scared to ride. This happened several times. So, make sure to say something along the lines of "my child has sensory issues/autism/etc and can't handle riding." If you think he can't handle waiting in the rides, then Disney can help you out with that. My child did fine with that, so we didn't get the GAC. (Or whatever it's currently called). BUT - had we had that, then we wouldn't have run into the issue of some CM's not allowing us to do rider swap.

One of my children needs to know exactly what is going to happen - as in, what rides we'll do when, where we are going to eat, and even what she's going to eat for lunch. This meant doing a lot of planning ahead of time. It helped her quite a bit though. We still had some notable meltdowns - sometimes with supportive people around us, sometimes with rude people around us. So, also have a tough skin and know when to ignore ignorant people who don't know your child and what your child is struggling with.

And then there's always my advice for NT kids as well - pace and plan to your child and be flexible. We have always had to change some plans as we go.

 

[caretothepeople]

On their website, Disney has a page that explains all about the accommodations available for children with Autism so it may be helpful to take a peek at that. Things like break areas or advanced tickets can go a long way to maintaining the calm and making it a happy trip for everyone.

This Mom also gives lots of good tips for how to prep ahead of time on her blog: http://atypicalfamilia.com/12-tips-for-autism-families-planning/

Best of luck!
-MW

 

[dancef150]

My son is 10 on spectrum... also high functioning....I have found that
1> watching videos on youtube about walk-throughs and line ques were very helpful.
Knowing what is coming tends to make things so much easier for ASD kids.
2> Headphones!
All the noise can get very overwhelming. My son would hook them on his cargo shorts and just put them on before rides and when ever he felt overwhelmed by the noises. Sometimes he used them and other times he would just hook them on shorts ( i think knowing it was an option was soothing to him )
3> DAS helps with the long waits in lines. My son can physically wait in lines, but being crowded can and usually stresses him out and either a meltdown or breakdown will usually occur. We also as a family have learned to kind of make a buffer zone for him where we will be in front and behind him so we can create a "personal bubble" for him when in shorter lines.
4> Did i mention the videos?
5> Let him know the plan.
ASD kids often get stressed from surprises or unexpected situations. Not all can be avoided, but letting them know what can and will go on as well as preparing him for the possibility of changes helps
6> Allow for quiet time... In the parks and/or at the hotel. It makes a difference to let them "settle down" a bit. I usually had quiet time before we left the hotel, before lunch, before dinner, and sometimes at the hotel when we got back. (makes meals calmer too) It doesn't have to be a long time, you can just tell when.

Hope that helps!

 

[Baklava]

I also have a high functioning, "but she doesn't LOOK autistic" kiddo. (I HATE that people think autism always looks one way.) Our plan for our first WDW trip is based on DL experience and advice from the DIS and other parents of spectrum kids.

We had a GAC our last trip at DL. Actually we had two- one for DD and one for me for coping with acute anxiety. I found that she really didn't need hers. Either the moments she might have needed it were covered by mine or it simply wasn't the tool that worked for us. That being the case, we're going with a DAS for me and not for her.

We ARE getting a stroller as wheelchair tag. We don't generally hold with strollers for school aged kids but what she really needs is a place to retreat from sensory overload and it's worth the $130 to rent her a safe haven. We'll be handling the airports without one, but I think she can cope with that. We've already started talking about TSA and how that will go down.

We're taking her ear coverings. The difference between a happy moment and a meltdown is often the presence or absence of her ear protection. Best $20 we ever spent.

There has been a lot of pre-planning and watching you tube videos. We've looked at maps and talked about menus and we're doing very little seat-of-the-pants this first trip. We're not planning ride order or specifics to that extreme but we're on the DxDDP and our break times are planned as meals and we'll be able to give her a basic order of the day between that and FP+.

We find that the grown ups having a plan but not telling her all the details works best. If you say "we're riding Small World and then Peter Pan" you cannot then go ride PP first because the line is short. We're better off with, "we'll be doing a couple rides" or "we're doing Small World and Peter Pan but we don't know which one will be first."

We're also going for long enough that if we need to ditch part of a day or even a whole day, we'll do it. We have 10 days and 2 non-park days and while it would not be ideal we can afford to lose our ADRs and our FP+ in order to shift things to keep her steady. We have the advantage of our other kid being older. He turns 18 just before our trip and he'll either be understanding of her needs or go do stuff on his own. He'd be perfectly content with a day at DHS, keeping the ADRs for himself and riding Star Tours over and over. With multiple little ones I'd say be prepared to split the party. Sometimes one parent needs to suck it up and deal with the special needs while the other makes sure the other kids aren't getting shorted.

 

[lanejudy]

WDW has a "Guide for Guests with Cognitive Disabilities" that you might find helpful: https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/me...bilities-services/wdw_cognitive_guide_rev.pdf

There are several threads on the disABILITIES Forum with tips for managing autism on a Disney vacation. Several good suggestions in this thread as well.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[jvz82]

Thank you all!! Some great tips.

I totally didn't see the disabilities forum, I'll check that out.

And thanks so much for the reminder about the headphones. We tend not to use them at home, BUT he uses them at school like in the gym where it gets really loud so I will definitely need to remember to find some to bring!

We watched a youtube video someone made about the tower of terror last night. The best part was it even showed the person as they were standing in line and going through all the parts of the ride. I think that kind of thing will help him, because he'll know what to expect. We also need to remember to give him breaks just away from everything. We tend to want to go, go, go at Disney and he just can't do that.

 

[lanejudy]

There are some great YouTube videos posted by someone under the name Big Fat Panda. Those should be very helpful in preparation.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[Tara1988]

My brother has Asperger's and I see signs for my nephew being high functioning autistic, but my sister doesn't want to accept it or have him labeled. They went to Universal once without me and it was a nightmare for them. My sister is used to the way we grew up, just getting in the car and driving to disney when we wanted to. She has thankfully figured out the importance of my over planning. She called me last year when she took my nephew for his birthday. I ended up driving 5 hours, 8 months pregnant to save the day. My nephew and I stayed up for a few hours that night going over the map, and making plans. He hates surprises. Another important thing was having distractions in the line. My brother can't eat in a restaurant if he sees or smells ketchup. You have to know all of their triggers and do everything you can to avoid them and have an escape or distraction plan for when they can't be avoided.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

My DS8 has ASD and we have gone to WDW multiple times. In addition to the great suggestions on this thread, I would just say, keep your expectations of how much you can do in a day on the low side. My DS really is a half-day park kind of kid. We get the DAS, but typically only get one ride time on it per day. We combine that with the 3 FP+ available with our tickets (which I let him choose). We go to the parks in the morning, do our four rides, get snacks, take breaks and meander as needed, typically grab some lunch and we are done around 1 - 2 pm. You child may be different, but I would suggest going at his pace.

After we leave the park, we typically take a break at our resort and then discuss what we will do later that evening (it usually includes taking a swim, going for a walk, maybe walking around WS).

I always show him videos and pictures of any new thing we will be experiencing on the trip (hotels, rides, etc.) and even type out a schedule of the trip (time we are leaving, mode of transport to airport, time of flight, etc.)

 

[jvz82]

Thank you thank you! I feel silly because I went to the disABILITIES board and found a bunch of posts similar to this one, lol. Whoops! I need to look around more before I post stuff!