Another family member of theirs has a son, Peyton, who was recently diagnosed with autism. Mark's Mom got some questions from me to ask them about how they deal with this when it comes to their travels. Peyton just turned 6 last month and has come a long way already with his autism. The thought that concerned me the most was how they dealt with the routines. I know how important routines are to people with certain disabilities, such as autism. It would obviously be a hard transition for the child to be in an unfamiliar environment and to not have familiar things around them. Below is a description of what it is like to travel with a young boy with autism that is direct from the Mother.
"Well when Peyton was younger, he was more sensitive. So we couldn't really go anywhere with lots of people or noise. But the only thing we have to really plan for now it his food. Whenever we are traveling we have to pack an entire bag of Peyton's food. If we are going to eat at a restaurant, we always have to check the menu. I will always look at the website to see if they offer gluten free food......or other food that would work for him. If we are unsure about him eating at the place then we will have to pack a meal to bring along for him. Thats really the only major issue we have with traveling with him. Oh, I guess we also have to take some kind of media device. He still tends to get a little overwhelmed in places with lots of things going on. So in order to sooth him and make him tune out all the commotion, we will give him his iPad or Leapster video game. So I guess I would say that we never leave the house without food & entertainment for him. Till about a year ago he did have issues with constipation. So we always had to bring his meds with us. We had to bring tons of diapers, wipes, juice, his meds, and suppositories."
This sounds like an awful lot of work that can be quite stressful on the family. I can only imagine the ordeal it must be getting everything ready. I wonder what would happen if you forget something? How does this affect the child? There are so many more things to consider on top of the normal level of stress that can be involved in planning a vacation for your family.
I never knew that much had to be considered for a child with autisum. I wonder if there is a certain time that Peyton's family likes to go out to eat, such as right after the restaurant opens or right before it closes. I noticed the many restaurants tend to have less distractions going on and this could relieve some of the stress that Peyton my be experiencing.
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