Share your experience with taking your special needs child

[DrummerAlly]

I'm continuing to contemplate a trip in September with my husband, 10 month old daughter, 3 year old special needs daughter, and my mother to help with the kids. I'm so torn as to whether or not the chances are high enough for an enjoyable trip to try it. My 3 year old has sensory processing disorder among a few other things. Her occupational therapist doesn't think she will be able to handle it, but that's 9 months from now. WDW was our special vacation place and we all miss it. I also have learned that sometimes staying at home is more enjoyable for everyone.

Tell me about your experiences with your special needs child at WDW, good and bad. What would you have done the same or differently? Thanks!!

 

[40goingon7]

Our, now 7 yr old, son is on the Autism spectrum with some sensory issues and we always found that going early am, leaving around 1pm for some pool or quiet time in the hotel before returning helped us avoid the large crowd times but also gave him breathing room. Also allowed him to set the pace and point out some attractions he wanted to ride (TTA) giving us a chance to reacquaint with some old favorites we would have over looked.

He also loves all forms of transportation so the resort bus gets him very excited.

My advice would be to plan on crowd avoiding and letting her set the pace.

 

[NYwdwfan]

My friend's son has autism spectrum disorder and he did not enjoy the dark rides. At all. Especially those with the black light effects. I would also suggest avoiding Imagination - the journey through the senses for kids with sensory issues can be a very traumatic experience.

 

[deanaandrich]

I work in early intervention and I have found that for many of my clients with SPD and autism disney can be an extraordinary place for them. Is she a seeker or an avoider? Some rides would be great for her and others would be too much for her. Take frequent breaks, avoid going during peak times and let her set the pace. Since you have a baby going too you will definitely need to slow things down.

 

[LizC]

I have 3 year old twins and my daughter is on the spectrum. She is also non verbal. We have taken her to Disney twice so far, once when the kids were 15 mo. and again at 2 1/2. She had a great time on both trips, and we are planning another for Dec. of this year. We were also warned by a therapist that the trip (specifically the 2nd one) was a mistake. I'm not going to lie and say that it was all sunshine and roses, but our normal life isn't so... (Then again, who's life is!)

She enjoyed many of the rides and meeting the non face characters. Although, she wouldn't get as close as her brother. She LOVED the Disney Junior show at HS, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is a favorite of hers. We found that character meals worked great as well. I think bringing your Mom is a a great idea, we brought my parents. If you can swing it try and stay on site. It really makes the trip "home" in the evening easier. The first time we rented a house and the second (and for all future) we stayed at the BW Villas. It was so convenient being able to walk back from EP or HS on most nights, and not have to take her out of the stroller at all.

I hope you decide to go and you have a fabulous trip! Feel free to ask any other questions, or PM me.

 

[britdaw]

I am so happy to find this thread! I was going to post the same thing...

Our son is almost 2, and has autism and sensory processing disorder. He is non-verbal, but given his fixation on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Little Einsteins, and the Pooh characters, we thought he would love Disney and wanted to plan a surprise trip for our kids this spring if we can swing it.

He's a seeker, so he craves sensory stimulation, but I'm nervous that it will be TOO much stimulation. Last time we went our youngest daughter was 4, and we had to break halfway through each day 'cause it was too much for her, so I am just wondering how he will handle it...

 

[DrummerAlly]

I work in early intervention and I have found that for many of my clients with SPD and autism disney can be an extraordinary place for them. Is she a seeker or an avoider? Some rides would be great for her and others would be too much for her. Take frequent breaks, avoid going during peak times and let her set the pace. Since you have a baby going too you will definitely need to slow things down.

She's a major sensory avoider, so I'm pretty skeptical. We tried the town's Christmas parade last month and had some mixed results. She made it through it, but was a bit frantic and panic-y and faced away from the parade for a vast majority of it. That combined with her difficulty with Christmas excitement is making me think I might do something smaller this year and try WDW later. We took her when she was 3 months old thinking she would be a happy little baby who would sleep in the baby carrier and stroller and stuff - she cried the *entire* time... now we know why. On the other hand she's in love with a lot of the Disney Junior and Princess characters so that makes me want to try it.

I'm so glad to hear these stories from other parents who have been there through this - both good and bad. Thanks for sharing everybody!

 

[arko]

We have been going with our now 15 year old son since he was 4. At first she may not want to do much, but do not be discouraged.

Here are several tools that we used when he was younger

1.Get the DAS for the duration of your stay. the GAC was much better, but the DAS combined with FP+, will keep your waits to a minimum.The DAS allows you to schedule a return to a ride based on standby time, so you return and use the FP lane. This way you are not stuck in the standby line for an extended time.
2. Stay away from parks that have extra magic hours going that day
3. Go during a weekday, which will cut down on local traffic.
4. Noise reducing headphones were great. We used these (ours were blue)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001ET5XAS

Be prepared for at least one meltdown, its going to happen eventually. We found over time that the crowds helped him develop coping mechanisms and to tolerate crowds to a point where today they barely bother him.

 

[jlthomas81]

We will be going in May with my ASD son who will be 6. He was 3.5 the last time we went. At the time, we also used the GAC and it really made the difference in our trip. I think that he handles waiting better now, and we plan to bring distractions. When we went in 2012, we did deal with a few meltdowns based more on lack of routine and food options than anything else. Towards the end of our trip he was begging to go home....now what kid begs to leave Disney World!?!?! Of course I am sure you have thought of this, but bring lots of snacks that she likes. My son lived on goldfish crackers and fruit snacks while at Disney. I found the link at the bottom on Disney's site, and it explains their new pass for guests with cognitive abilities. We had a different experience than the last poster regarding EMH. We found less crowds and the ability to walk right onto rides during those times. And be prepared for the HEAT! That was the worst sensory thing for my son. He does not like to be too hot or too cold, and he really disliked the heat and sweating. Take advantage of the AC whenever possible! I was thoroughly impressed with how my son handled Disney as a whole. We tried to prepare ourselves as best as we could, but we really enjoyed himself, and now he is super excited to be talking about going back in May. He loved meeting characters, and that was one place we couldn't use the GAC. Waiting in line to meet Buzz and Woody (his favorites!) for an hour, sent that whole day into a tailspin. But seeing the awestruck expression when he finally met him, made the meltdown worth it! We also made a picture book for our son by printing off different pictures from the web of the park icons, our resort, the airplane and airports, certain rides, so that he could associate himself with those things beforehand and was able to flip through it all before each day. One more thing....if you are planning to fly, my son had a very difficult time on the airplane on the way there. He pretty much cried the whole last hour of our flight. We sat at the very back of the plane and spoke to the person who shared a section with us and the flight attendants, and all were very understanding. We made sure not to over schedule ourselves so that we could have some spontaneous moments, but at the same time my son really liked knowing what was coming next. Hope some of that helped!! I am hoping to pick up some new information from more experienced travelers as well!

https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/me...bilities-services/wdw_cognitive_guide_rev.pdf

 

[jlthomas81]

I am so happy to find this thread! I was going to post the same thing...

Our son is almost 2, and has autism and sensory processing disorder. He is non-verbal, but given his fixation on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Little Einsteins, and the Pooh characters, we thought he would love Disney and wanted to plan a surprise trip for our kids this spring if we can swing it.

He's a seeker, so he craves sensory stimulation, but I'm nervous that it will be TOO much stimulation. Last time we went our youngest daughter was 4, and we had to break halfway through each day 'cause it was too much for her, so I am just wondering how he will handle it...

My son is a seeker as well, and our biggest problem with him was all the waiting!! He actually loved the hustle and bustle of it all However, it also revs up his engine and makes for a worse crash later in the day!!

 

[arko]

We will be going in May with my ASD son who will be 6. He was 3.5 the last time we went. At the time, we also used the GAC and it really made the difference in our trip. I think that he handles waiting better now, and we plan to bring distractions. When we went in 2012, we did deal with a few meltdowns based more on lack of routine and food options than anything else. Towards the end of our trip he was begging to go home....now what kid begs to leave Disney World!?!?! Of course I am sure you have thought of this, but bring lots of snacks that she likes. My son lived on goldfish crackers and fruit snacks while at Disney. I found the link at the bottom on Disney's site, and it explains their new pass for guests with cognitive abilities. We had a different experience than the last poster regarding EMH. We found less crowds and the ability to walk right onto rides during those times. And be prepared for the HEAT! That was the worst sensory thing for my son. He does not like to be too hot or too cold, and he really disliked the heat and sweating. Take advantage of the AC whenever possible! I was thoroughly impressed with how my son handled Disney as a whole. We tried to prepare ourselves as best as we could, but we really enjoyed himself, and now he is super excited to be talking about going back in May. He loved meeting characters, and that was one place we couldn't use the GAC. Waiting in line to meet Buzz and Woody (his favorites!) for an hour, sent that whole day into a tailspin. But seeing the awestruck expression when he finally met him, made the meltdown worth it! We also made a picture book for our son by printing off different pictures from the web of the park icons, our resort, the airplane and airports, certain rides, so that he could associate himself with those things beforehand and was able to flip through it all before each day. One more thing....if you are planning to fly, my son had a very difficult time on the airplane on the way there. He pretty much cried the whole last hour of our flight. We sat at the very back of the plane and spoke to the person who shared a section with us and the flight attendants, and all were very understanding. We made sure not to over schedule ourselves so that we could have some spontaneous moments, but at the same time my son really liked knowing what was coming next. Hope some of that helped!! I am hoping to pick up some new information from more experienced travelers as well!

https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/me...bilities-services/wdw_cognitive_guide_rev.pdf

From an EMH perspective the actual hours of the EMH are better, its all the other hours that are the problem. Overall the park that has EMH that day tends to attract those staying at Disney plus regular traffic from those not staying at Disney. The DAS is a different animal than the GAC. It has a lot more limitations that were put in place to make it less attractive to those who would fake a disability to get one. We now use it in conjunction with FP+ to miminize park stay duration. We basically have to limit ourselves to the FP+ rides and one DAS ride that I run to get ahead of time. The one nice thing about the DAS that the GAC was spotty on is character visits. If the character visit has a FP+ option you can use the DAS.

 

[MichWolv]

I'm continuing to contemplate a trip in September with my husband, 10 month old daughter, 3 year old special needs daughter, and my mother to help with the kids. I'm so torn as to whether or not the chances are high enough for an enjoyable trip to try it. My 3 year old has sensory processing disorder among a few other things. Her occupational therapist doesn't think she will be able to handle it, but that's 9 months from now. WDW was our special vacation place and we all miss it. I also have learned that sometimes staying at home is more enjoyable for everyone.

Tell me about your experiences with your special needs child at WDW, good and bad. What would you have done the same or differently? Thanks!!

I have a now 11-year-old son that is hyperlexic and on the autism spectrum. When he was younger, he had expressive language problems, sensory processing issues (loud noises bothered him) and general anxiety problems, amongst other things. He has been to WDW about every year of his life. There was one trip when he was about 2 1/2 where he had a melt-down on every dark ride we took him on. He was overwhelmed by the effects. Other than that, every trip has been great. He is more relaxed at Disney than at most other places. He loves just about every type of attraction, and handles waiting in line like a champ, especially with an iPhone or other device to distract him if the line is really long. The only thing that troubled him (other than that one trip) were the crowds during busy times. For that reason, we used a stroller for him when he was 5, even though he could've handled the walking easily. Being in the stroller allowed him to not worry about the crowds. Sure, his obsessiveness used to affect what attractions we'd hit and in which order, and his pickiness about food affected where we ate, but his happiness made all of that worthwhile, even before the fact that my wife and I were having a great time as well.

So, given my experiences, I'd say go for it. Just be prepared to need to alter things. You'd be going with an almost 4 year old and a 1 1/2 year old. Even with no special needs, the trip would have a high potential for melt-downs. So play it by ear -- you know your special needs daughter well and will be able to figure out what she needs. Maybe there will be days she doesn't come to the parks, and somebody has to sit by the pool with her instead. Or maybe it'll mean riding the TTA Peoplemover over and over (we did that 4 times in a row once -- the look of joy and relaxation on my son's face made it worthwhile). And maybe you'll need to do the parks in 3-hour increments. Make good use of FP+ and you can get a lot done in that time.

We never did use GAC or DAS, so I can't give you any thoughts on that. Although we always knew we could "qualify", we never thought his needs were "special" enough to request it.

 

[DisneyJoe]

There are a few Disney fan sites that have articles on just this topic, Allears is one, I believe there are others too.

 

[jlthomas81]

There are a few Disney fan sites that have articles on just this topic, Allears is one, I believe there are others too.

Thanks for the information!

 

[britdaw]

This thread (and site) has some amazing info in it! Thank you, everyone, for sharing!!