Share Stories of Progress at WDW?

[aimeebarb]

I've heard others say their special needs kids made tons of progress or did unexpected things while at Disney. Does anyone have any stories to share? I'd love to hear them.

We are going to Disney for the first time this weekend! One of our 6 1/2 yo twin daughters is on the autism spectrum.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

My DD has expanded her list of foods she will eat thanks to our WDW trips. A major breakthrough for us was when she decided before our 2012 trip that she was going to try steak at LeCellier. She had stopped eating beef in all forms before she turned 2 and that held until she was 7 when she finally started eating limited amounts of ground beef in spaghetti, occasional meatballs and hamburgers. But I still couldn't get her to try steak. Then suddenly in the course of planning for our ADRs for our 2012 trip, she announced that she would eat steak at LeCellier. I was skeptical, thinking that we'd get there and she'd change her mind, or that she would order it and then refuse to eat it. But nope, she ordered it, ate it all, and decided it was pretty tasty. Now, she eats steak at home ...when I buy it, that is.

There have been other foods she's tried at WDW that she wouldn't eat anywhere else, but the steak was the most interesting story since she announced it ahead of time and followed through.

 

[Gracie09]

I'm going to give it to you straight, don't get your hopes up that there will be a big break through, you will only set yourself up for disappointment. DD1 is delayed. She has been in physical therapy since she was 6 months. She is 5 now. We went when she was 16 months and not walking, close but not there. So we (my husband, PT, mom, myself) all were like how great would it be if she took her first steps to meet Mickey! She just needs motivation and Disney would provide. It is the most Magical Place on Earth!. Yeah a week later, no walking. We had a great time, but every character greeting we thought this was it! Especially Jessie she loved Jessie.

So go Enjoy. but don't hope for a big break through.


I think of it like when we decided we were done with fertility treatments and would adopt. Everyone knew of someone who adopted and ended up pregnant. Yeah it doesn't really happen.

 

[ladyjubilee]

My son has been twice, and we've seen progress each time ... that lasts for weeks. I guess I should mention my son is on the severely impacted side of autism, and some other dx. He came back calmer, more focused. He didn't suddenly start speaking, but made more sounds. With characters, he bravely approached and interacted. For example, in one of our photos, Mr. Incredible had my nephew do a super hero pose. None of us noticed that my son did the pose too until the photo. The is a kid who doesn't mimic. During Turtle Talk he immediately went to sit with the other kids... and kept his hands to himself. We also saw less aggression, and less sensory related hard (painful to the receiver) touches. He quickly learned to navigate the stiles, fingerprint scanners, interactive rides.... doing actions that he couldn't grasp in therapy and school.

WDW trips taught my family techniques too. We now use the stroller every time we go in crowds. We always start with activities/rides with transiting endings (not hard stops), then build to activities with defined stops.

I would also add that my non-verbal kid told his speech therapist 'lightsaber' and 'Disney' when she asked him where he went after we went to Star Wars Weekends. Lightsaber was completely clear. I thought she was going to fall out of her chair she was so shocked. Disney is still one of his words.

At one point we'd hoped to go every year, because he made as much progress in a week of WDW as months in therapy. WDW just seems to move at his speed.

 

[pampam]

DD is much more alert when at WDW. I first noticed this on our first trip. We were at DTD, and Dd was eating french fries. She picked up a curved one. And decided it was an "r". Then she turned it upside down and she realized it was a "j". She looked at it some more, decided it was a chip and ate it. I know in the grand scheme of things it doesn't sound like much, but for her to use her imagination and "see "things, I was thrilled. We have been going for a good many years, now, and every time we go DD opens up just a little bit more. Here we have someone who rarely initiates conversation, but as we are walking to the food court every morning, she is saying "hello" to this one, 'good morning' to that one. Sometimes they reply, sometimes they look at her wondering why she is talking to them, and sometimes they don't speak English. But most smile, and that makes me very happy. It's difficult to explain. She opens up, and becomes somewhat 'normal'. And it doesn't last, but it will linger on for a couple of weeks after we get home. Now, don't get me wrong. She still talks to herself, and introverts into herself when we are there, but while there, many many times she will blossom and to me, that is worth every cent I've paid to get her there.

 

[Kellykins1218]

Three of our 4 boys are autistic. Our youngest, who is now seven was mostly non-verbal (He only repeated random phrases and songs..echolalia) when we went to DW two years ago. It was right before he turned 5 and I was starting to think he'd never just "talk." We went on It's a Small World and it was like someone flipped a switch and he got it. He started pointing at things and naming them. First elephant, then giraffe, then balloon. It was the 1st time he'd ever made a solid connection between what he was seeing and what he was saying. It was amazing and I tell everyone that it's proof that Disney magic is real.