Tips on dealing with sensory issues as well as GERD?

[Bonniec]

I was looking at another thread about GACs and it got me thinking about my son and the term hidden disabilities. I don't believe my son has a disability (nor do we need a GAC). But he does have some hidden issues. We have seasonal passes and have really struggled at the parks. He is 6 and lately things have been rougher. I just thought maybe some of you might have advice on better ways for me to deal with it at the parks.


First, I think he has some mild sensory issues. He is a very shy, quiet child. At times the parks are wonderful for him. When a CM takes time to talk to him, his hands go in his pockets and he looks down and shyly mumbles. But he's getting better so sometimes the attention is great! He generally does okay in most lines too.

But when areas are very crowded and noisy, he shuts down. He will cry, get scared, and want to go home. I try to go on slower days, but this last year, even slower days have been crazy busy! During a week long stay there last week, we were watching the mid day parade where all the characters dance in the streets in front of the castle...it was just way too much. If there is any sort of crowd and loud noises, he can't take it. He LOVES parades but only from afar.

I don't understand how he can become so afraid of a crowd and some noise....yet ride Thundermountain or Everest with no problems. I'd have thought if he had sensory problems he would have that all the time. It's like he's selective with what freaks him out.




The other thing is his GERD/stomach. I don't really know of any easier ways to deal with things. He often gets extremely nauseated or needs to go like NOW with no warning. He's on quite a bit of medication for his stomach which I think brings out a lot of this. He's also completely terrified of most bathrooms. The combo of the noise and the auto-flushing toilets causes major trauma to him. He's desperate to go but terrified to do so.

I keep a list of where the companion bathrooms are, and I save the Mickey stickers we get to cover the sensors. These help...when I can find one unoccupied. More often than not, they have someone in them and he's desperate. I've tried everything I can to time it and such, but nothing is working. I'm guessing there's not much we can do other than just not go to the parks anymore. But I thought someone might have suggestions.

Do they make GAC cards for toilets?

Sorry for the long ramble. I guess this is just my need to vent. It's difficult when your kid isn't disabled but yet has hidden issues that cause so much trouble.

 

[livndisney]

I was looking at another thread about GACs and it got me thinking about my son and the term hidden disabilities. I don't believe my son has a disability (nor do we need a GAC). But he does have some hidden issues. We have seasonal passes and have really struggled at the parks. He is 6 and lately things have been rougher. I just thought maybe some of you might have advice on better ways for me to deal with it at the parks.


First, I think he has some mild sensory issues. He is a very shy, quiet child. At times the parks are wonderful for him. When a CM takes time to talk to him, his hands go in his pockets and he looks down and shyly mumbles. But he's getting better so sometimes the attention is great! He generally does okay in most lines too.

But when areas are very crowded and noisy, he shuts down. He will cry, get scared, and want to go home. I try to go on slower days, but this last year, even slower days have been crazy busy! During a week long stay there last week, we were watching the mid day parade where all the characters dance in the streets in front of the castle...it was just way too much. If there is any sort of crowd and loud noises, he can't take it. He LOVES parades but only from afar.

I don't understand how he can become so afraid of a crowd and some noise....yet ride Thundermountain or Everest with no problems. I'd have thought if he had sensory problems he would have that all the time. It's like he's selective with what freaks him out.




The other thing is his GERD/stomach. I don't really know of any easier ways to deal with things. He often gets extremely nauseated or needs to go like NOW with no warning. He's on quite a bit of medication for his stomach which I think brings out a lot of this. He's also completely terrified of most bathrooms. The combo of the noise and the auto-flushing toilets causes major trauma to him. He's desperate to go but terrified to do so.

I keep a list of where the companion bathrooms are, and I save the Mickey stickers we get to cover the sensors. These help...when I can find one unoccupied. More often than not, they have someone in them and he's desperate. I've tried everything I can to time it and such, but nothing is working. I'm guessing there's not much we can do other than just not go to the parks anymore. But I thought someone might have suggestions.

Do they make GAC cards for toilets?

Sorry for the long ramble. I guess this is just my need to vent. It's difficult when your kid isn't disabled but yet has hidden issues that cause so much trouble.

No, there is not a GAC for the toilet.

 

[Bonniec]

I was kidding

 

[deegack]

My DD is easily overwhelmed in crowds and with loud noises. Even when our family gets together (she is one of 8 grandkids) she can shutdown after a while and need to go somewhere quiet. So I get that part of it. She's only two but I imagine she will be one of those kids running from roller coaster to roller coaster, just based on her reaction to Hershey Park this summer.

In addition to companion bathrooms have you tried the child care centers? It might help for the next trip. Although I don't know how long they will let him use the bathrooms in there. The toilets are suppose to be smaller, more kid size. I personally haven't used them but it may be worth a glance. Also first aid. It could give you son a place to lay down if he feels sick.

 

[clanmcculloch]

My DD14 gets overwhelmed in crowds and with lots of commotion and noise yet she also loves rides like BTMRR and EE. These are VERY different sensory inputs. The fast rides provide gross sensory inputs which my DD craves. At the same time, she's an auditory sensory avoider so lots of different kinds of sounds will completely overwhelm her and she will completely shut down if she's bumped unexpectedly, especially by strangers so we just don't do parades. We really aren't every in the park during the peak part of the day because it's just too crowded and she can't handle it. Luckily we're early birds who can make it to RD every day without an alarm so touring first thing before the crowds hit means we can accomplish a lot without swarms of people. I also build detailed touring plans using info from planning sites that have us at attractions at times to best avoid crowds and then we use our GAC for the few attractions where you just can't avoid mobs. The rare time we do decide to try for a parade, we sit where the view really isn't the best and is from a bit of a distance but it's just what we have to do. Luckily, nobody in my family really cares much about parades. Shows where they pack everybody in to a holding area are much more difficult for us than parades because there just isn't a good place to wait. We do use our GAC to wait in the accessible holding area but it's still loud with lots of "people" stimulae since there's just a rope or chain separating us from the mob and it does mean we get some of the worst seats in the house because we have to move to the end of the row when going through (we don't sit in accessible seats because we don't need those; we follow the rules and go to the end of the row). At least this means we can have a quick exit if we start having problems but luckily we've gotten to the point where that's no longer necessary. It does stink for DD11 though who doesn't have these issues and hates always getting poor views but at least we can go into the shows which we wouldn't be able to do otherwise.

 

[SueM in MN]

Only time to write a little bit about restrooms for now - getting ready for work.

In your situation, where he needs to go quickly, I would probably try not to use the Companion Restrooms because there are few of them and as you mentioned, they tend to be busy and the person using them may be in there for a long time.

You need the flexibility of being able to use any restroom and you don't have the luxury of time to walk a long way or wait for that one. Trying to get to a specific one can also cause anxiety, and will come back to bite you in the butt (pun intended).

So, I would not add anything that could become a bathroom ritual unless it is something totally in your control. Things that are the same become comfort items and you want only ones you can always provide.
So, no specific type of bathroom (he may start to think he needs that specific type in the park).
No specific thing to cover the auto flush unless you will always have that ( so I would transition to Post It notes from the Mickey Stickers).

I don't know if you have tried ear coverings/noise protectors, but they can be very, very helpful in situations like this where sound is an issue. Many small kids have sound sensitivity that they outgrow as they get more used to being out in the world.
You can find noise protecting ear muffs or in ear plugs in hardware or home improvement stores - people use them when running machinery to protect themselves from the noise. You can also find ones meant for gun sports in sporting goods stores. Those are very good for sharp sounds like fireworks.
You can also find ones sized and meant for children on the Internet (I have not checked Amazon lately, but expect they would have them).

Putting them on in the bathroom would help damp any sounds from other stalls or the electric hand dryers. They would also help with the other issues you mentioned with noise, crowd noise and noise from things like parades. They may be the single thing that is going to help your child most.

As for quick need to use the bathroom - bowel problems are not part of GERD (it's higher up), but can be a side effect of some of the medications used to treat GERD. I would mention that problem to his doctor because they may be able to deal with it in other ways, such as changing medication, diet or prescribing a stool regulator ( you may have heard of Miralax, which is one). It would be nice to improve the bowel issue, which is probably not helping his other issues (being in a crowd starts people worrying about needing to get to a bathroom). Anxiety in a crowd can also lead to upset stomach, etc.

An explanation of why it is so long a wait for Companion Restrooms -
They are the only restrooms we can use because of DD's wheelchair and other issues that make the regular ladies room not work for us. We usually do have to wait for one - often, it's a family with multiple children. Families tend to underestimate the time they are in, but with 3 children, plus mom or dad using the toilet, it's usually going to be 15 minutes.

Sometimes a person who is visibly disabled. Many of those people do take a long time - a typical restroom stop for us is 20-30 minutes. A couple to check out the bathroom for hazards like wet floor or seat, 5 to transfer DD out of her wheelchair and remove clothing, a few minutes for her to relax enough to go (and a few to relax again if someone knocks or pounds on the door), a few to get her ready to pull clothes back up and be transferred and positioned back in her wheelchair. Then wash hands for both of us. So, easy 20-30 minutes for someone like my DD who needs assistance.
And there are people with invisible needs who may be needing the Companion Restroom for things like catheterization or ostomy care. They will need a few minutes to get out supplies and set themselves up for the procedure, then a few to do it and another few to clean up and put everything away. So, again, more than a few minutes.

 

[SDSorority]

Eliminating gluten often remedies GERD and Acid Reflux

As far as sensory... I have that problem too. PP have given some good tips. Earplugs have helped me immensely, as has an ipod with earphones. Slower times of the year, as said, do help as well. It's September for us!

 

[Bonniec]

Thank you all for your information!

Mason sees a ped GI for his stomach issues. We've already done most of the testing and dietary testings. He takes 2 adult prevacid's per day for his Gerd and an adult dose of Miralax daily. The Miralax is wonderful because he can't go at all without it. But when he has to go, he as to go! He will likely need a fundo but I have been putting that off as long as possible. I don't know anyone who has been happy with the procedure.

You are so right about running to a companion restroom causing stressful situations. It's awful. But in the regular restrooms, he is just so terrified of the toilets. I have seriously considered just not going anymore.

But now that I just found out we are moving there next month, I may do the opposite and go more! We won't have to spend as long at the parks and maybe I can slowly get him more used to those toilets.

I'm just glad to see people who understand what it's like. Sometimes it feels like we are lost in the middle.