greetings from a newbie mom of autistic son

[tkd eeyore girl]

Hello Everyone!

I am truly enjoying reading this board!

I am the mom of a 13 year old awesome 7th grader son diagnosed "high functioning autistic (asperger's/adhd);

We are driving from Webster Texas to WDW starting Oct. 16 and arriving Oct. 17. I am a 2degree black belt and my son is a recommended black belt in Taekwondo and we will be at Wide World of Sports on Saturday Oct. 19. My son will be competing and I will be judging. I am the Regional Chief of Special Abilities for our Region (all of Texas and part of Oklahoma) - I coordinate the competiion rings at Texas Regional tournaments and national tournaments for competitors with special abilities (adults and children) including competitors that use wheelchairs, walkers, have cerebal palsy, downs, autism etc.

this will be the first time I have decided to use the Guest Assistance Card/pass for my son. the last few times we have been to wdw, he has become more anxious and frustrated about lines, noises and overstimulation, so I hope this pass will help him enjoy his wdw experience more. We always carry his game boy and have found headphones useful too. Always carry a waterbottle as dehydration (undetected) can lead to huge issues; I always talk about our touring plan so he knows what to expect but I also realize that if he is having a rough day all plans can go out the window at a moment's notice. I have never hesitated to use a "handicapped" bathroom stall in any public place if my son was stressing or feeling very anxious. In most instances I do allow him to use the men's room unassisted while I wait just outside the entrance.

The most stressful thing for me is when my son is having a time of extreme anxiety or frustration, i hate the stares etc. from the general public. I try at times like these to find a quiet spot for strong hugging and so we can regroup, but that is not always possible.

I look forward to "meeting" more of you and reading your posts.

 

[SueM in MN]

Welcome to disABILITIES.
Hope you have an awesome trip.

 

[Poohnatic]

tkd,

Good strategies for the trip. I have a 6 yo AS son, and we had one major meltdown in a park and two that were redirected. Honestly, while I worry about people staring, too, I was so focused on redirecting my son out of the meltdown, I didn't even notice people staring.

The big meltdown of this trip, I made him walk with me from Dinoland back to the Tree of Life(I told him we were leaving because his behavior was unacceptable)...this combined with strong discussion and firmness, he got back in control.

I'd also suggest that you get some unstructured time relaxing at your resort/hotel. We did a 'no alarm morning' the third day of our trip, and we had a change in a scheduled activity the fifth day and the pool time we had was probably why we had so little drama.

Good luck. Hope your son does well at the competition.

Suzanne

 

[s&k'smom]

Welcome! We are planning our first WDW trip with our 6 y.o. PDD son. Actually we leave in 3 weeks! I'm really only nervous about the plane ride but we are bringing his knapsack and cramming all his favorites in. We've been watching the travel channel program on the GF so he's really excited about the pool area. I think any kids could have a meltdown at WDW because it can be so overwhelming. I'm sure we'll have our share but I think this will be well worth the planning. We too are getting the GAC and planning lots of down time. We are just gonna play the parks day to day.

 

[nadine cordova]

I have a 30 year old brother w/Downs Syndrome, he's receiving a trip from a wish granting foundation because he is terminally ill. Enjoy every minute w/your special angel, we do, even the meltdowns!!! We are leaving for our trip Oct 17th!!!

 

[adisneyfan2]

We returned last week from WDW with our Asperger's DS -- our third trip using a GAC. We try to use the card judiciously. When lines are tolerable (for DS), we wait like everyone else. We also try to hit the popular rides early in the morning, so we don't have the issue with the waiting. We used FPs constantly, and where they weren't offered, always offered to get a "blue card" and wait (elsewhere) for the ride. (The "blue cards" we were given on occasion are like a FP with a date & time on it, but for attractions that don't offer FPs. Not sure if they are all blue, or even if they are used everywhere.) We made it clear that we didn't consider the GAC to be some kind of free-front-of-the-line-with-no-waiting pass, and we NEVER use it if DS isn't going on the ride. (We actually didn't use it even once during our first two days at the parks!) We found that CMs were kind, accomodating, and understanding. The only rude remarks and stares we got were from people in line, who implied that we were somehow "cutting" or "cheating" (and these were few and far between.)

A little planning can go a long way toward making your trip more pleasant for everyone. When planning isn't enough, the GAC can really help out. Have a great time!