Did you have a problem in a single room? (2 kids with autism)

[Gaia]

Hello everyone -

I have two kids, ages 6 and 3, and they both have PDD-NOS on the autism spectrum. This will be our first trip to Disney and I am SO excited.

I have a question for those who have been there. My kids are used to sleeping in their own beds in their own rooms at home. I'm concerned about all of us fitting in a single room for a week. DH and I will share a bed, DS(6) will take the other bed, and I will put DD(3) on a little toddler air mattress on the floor. We're staying at POFQ. Am I asking for disaster here? Do you think that they'll be so tired that it won't matter? What do you think?

Thanks!

 

[ireland_nicole]

Because we are a little worried about issues between the kids or someone trying to "elope", we put an alarm on the door, and each take one bed w/ one of the kids. It usually works ok. One of us leaves when the kids are ready for bed each night, (out for a walk, to the food court, etc.) and the other sits in a dark room (usually on the computer lol) with one kid in each bed until they're asleep.

 

[AJKMOM]

They might be tired, but not enough if they ride in a stroller. I think the alarm sounds like a good idea.

 

[Gaia]

I was thinking more along the lines of whether my kids would be okay going from sleeping in their own rooms to all sharing one room. Do you think it would be worth it to stay off site in a suite with a bedroom?

 

[AJKMOM]

I was worried that my autistic son would try to leave, so we stayed in one room until he got older. With all the new stuff going on, maybe your kids will accept that they don't have separate rooms. Perhaps you could try allowing them to sleep in the same room, one in a sleeping bag? Every kid is different, I doubt anyone here will get the right answer anyway. That's the beauty of autistic kids, you never know, and they surprise you all the time.

 

[blondietink]

My 2 children with disabilities, both of which have Autism along with other things have had no problem sleeping in the same bed and in the same room as us. They are usually exhausted at the end of a WDW day, even though they get pushed around in travel chairs. Just the added stimulation of lights, sounds, characters, rides, fireworks, parades all wears them out. They are usually on their best behavior, and the spoken language that comes out of them is unbelievable. I don't think you will have a problem, but the door alarm sounds like a good idea if you have elopers.

 

[fausz4]

My 12 yr old DS has Aspergers and the key to our life is - no surprises. So before our trip we try to tell him what to expect...like - you will be sleeping with your brother this trip and Mom and Dad will be in their own room (we are staying at OKW 1 BR Villa. If the boys didnt slept together on occasion then I would allow them to sleep together to get used to it...

We decided to stay at OKW again because of our son...(and we really liked it!) The 1 BR Villa gives us lots of room and feels more like home.

Good Luck to you - I am sure it will all go well.

 

[Brightsy]

The first time my family went to WDW my boys were 3 and 5 1/2yrs. My DH took one child and I took the other to sleep in bed with me. The kids normally would have had problems w/ this but it was such an adventure for them to sleep w/ Mommy and Daddy like that that they didn't care about the room.

Once I took the boys by myself to the World. I had gotten us a room w/ two beds and the first night they both decided to crowd around me, it got a little snug! Once they fell asleep I gently wriggled out of bed and went to the other. The next night they settled into bed together with no problems.

 

[lucigo]

We ended up not having a problem, but I did bring benadryl and melatonin just in case!

 

[koolaidmoms]

We also have children who are no surprises children. They need full information and understanding of what is going to happen up front. If you can you may want to do a "test" run before hand.

Go to a local hotel for a night or two with the kids. Swim, go out to dinner and then see how it works and what may make it work better in WDW. Do they need to be on separate sides of the room? The same side? Lights on or lights off? Radio on or radio off? Do they need a fan? Just things that you may need to think of.

We add an extra night at the beginning of each trip because it takes DS, especially, until the second night of the trip to settle in and feel comfortable enough to sleep. Usually the first night he is keeping us up all night and we are so exhausted we can't function so now we add an extra night to get everyone settled.

Hope this helps some.

 

[cccdisney]

Because we are a little worried about issues between the kids or someone trying to "elope", we put an alarm on the door, and each take one bed w/ one of the kids. It usually works ok. One of us leaves when the kids are ready for bed each night, (out for a walk, to the food court, etc.) and the other sits in a dark room (usually on the computer lol) with one kid in each bed until they're asleep.

Which alarm do you use? I didn't know you could get one that didn't leave marks on the walls/doors. Our 5 yr old has autism and likes to go "exploring". I don't know why hotels don't put their locks higher on the door!

 

[berries]

I found a hotel room door stop alarm. No marks are left. It goes at the bottom of the door and if moved or tampered with, it goes off! I bought it specifically for hotel stays as dd had gotten tall enough to reach ALL hotel room deadbolts, etc.

I brought it along for WDW but for some reason, the thing would go off when turned on. I don't know what the problem was and havent investigated yet since being home. But it was malfunctioning! It had worked perfectly at home while I was testing it out!

This alarm is small and effective. I turned it off and still used it at the bottom of the door anyway. Dd not once tried to go out the door as she hates the noise it makes!

 

[berries]

My dd never gets tired, always fights going to sleep. She just doesn't need as much sleep as other children her age. At WDW, she fell asleep numerous times in themiddle of the day (what is this called? Oh yea naps!!). THEN at the end of the day, she was falliing asleep before even being put into bed!!!! At times she fell asleep eating supper!!

So you never know, the beds issue may not be a problem. They will be too tired to notice that much!

 

[clanmcculloch]

My 11 year old has Asperger Syndrome. When she was younger, she had no problems with the 4 of us (my youngest is 8) sharing a room and her having to share a bed. In the past year, she has started objecting to sharing with anybody besides me because my husband and my youngest both breathe heavily at night and the noise bothers her. In the past year we've also found that us adults need to go to bed at the same time as the kids or else the lights or noise of the TV will bother her and make it hard for her to fall asleep.

She's one of those kids that frequently has trouble falling asleep at home as well. She sleeps with her light off and door closed to block out other sights and sounds.

We've shared a single room with double beds when travelling since our kids were very young so we've never had to explain the expected sleeping arrangements. If hotel rooms weren't such a regular thing for us then I would definitely need to go over the expectations with her or else it wouldn't work.

 

[cccdisney]

I found a hotel room door stop alarm. No marks are left. It goes at the bottom of the door and if moved or tampered with, it goes off! I bought it specifically for hotel stays as dd had gotten tall enough to reach ALL hotel room deadbolts, etc.

I brought it along for WDW but for some reason, the thing would go off when turned on. I don't know what the problem was and havent investigated yet since being home. But it was malfunctioning! It had worked perfectly at home while I was testing it out!

This alarm is small and effective. I turned it off and still used it at the bottom of the door anyway. Dd not once tried to go out the door as she hates the noise it makes!

Thanks for the info! I will have to look into those!