Has anyone used a picture board to decrease anxiety?

[casjen]

Thanks for the feedback on Pal Mickey. I am leaning towards getting one b/c I would like him too! : ) My ds has sensory issues and gets anxious if he thinks something will be loud, or scary etc and in turn just refuses to do much of anything.

I saw on the theme board a great intinerary a Mom made there with each park and ADR listed for her kids. This got me to thinking about how this would help my ds feel more in control when we go to the Parks.

I put all the ride pics from allearsnet onto a word doc and shrunk them. I am going to mount them onto oaktag and laminate them, and the put velcro on the back. Then I'll make a laminated oaktage strip for him to put the rides/events/restaurants on. Each morning (or night before) my ds can help load up our day. Then he can be in charge of our day. I am thinking some control in such a chaotic place will help him feel calmer.

I did this for potty training b/c he was so resistant to letting go of the security of his diaper. It worked incredibly well b/c he was in charge of the day (it said eat, potty, play, potty, tv, potty, play, potty, eat etc...)
He is flexible enough to deal if we change the order b/c of long lines so that is not an issue. He may even be willing to try a ride if he puts it on our daily plan board. He will also be fine knowing that some rides on there will be for his brother to ride (he hates the carousel but the little guy loves it!)

What do you think? I was thinking this would really help ASD kids unless they would have a hard time if the schedule had to change.

 

[SueM in MN]

If you check out the disABILITIES FAqs thread, in post 3 there are some links to past threads that might help you. Some are about autism, but there are some about communication. One of those is about PECs, which is what it sounds like you are describing.

I think if your son has responded well to doing something like that in the past, it should work well at WDW.

 

[brenalexacamp]

yes my son uses an augmentative communication device-a mt4 it's called-too much to take on all the rides-we left at hotel and made a 8 1/2x11 board with some main items on it and attached it to his chair-he used it as needed and quickly called the hotel-home/house

 

[MisMikiNikiLynne]

We did that for DD (TBI) and it was a lifesaver! She knew what to expect and when to expect it, she also had a laminated map to show us what she would like to do next. We took the same itinerary/pec sheet and printed it (On regular paper) and put one next to her bed in the motel and another on the door.

 

[mamacate]

I know people have done this and it seems like a great idea. We did something much simpler with my son (NVLD, ADHD, Sensory seeking, GAD) last year. We got the Birnbaum's book by kids for kids and we read through it in some detail to decide which rides we would and wouldn't go on. We also watched YouTube videos of all the rides we weren't sure about. We'll do that again this year, though of course now we know what he wants. We also got the PassPorter book for disabilities which has really detailed information.

My only caution about the Birnbaum book is that it's a little conservative. It rates rides as dark, scary, wet, and bumpy, and it really scared me off of, for example, the Snow White ride. While it might be tough for a two-year-old, my just turned five guy didn't even blink on it. I could see that for some kids, reading that a ride was scary might make them refuse to go on it for the next decade. For us, the advantage of the book was that it put him in control of what rides were too scary or not for him, and he made those choices in advance so we weren't trying to negotiate them in the park when he already had too much input. And in the end, dude took me along on his fourth or fifth ride (the rest were with dear spouse) on Splash and it scared the jeepers out of me! That's what you get for hanging out with a sensory seeker!

HTH.

Cate