Tips for a Very Merry Holiday (Travel) Season

‘Tis the season to be jolly, but don’t let travel woes spoil your holiday plans. Traveling with a loved one who has special needs can bring about a lot of anxiety but also a lot of joy!

Use these tips to increase the likelihood of travel success:

1) Visualize: Using social stories with pictures and scripts describing what to expect -- what is expected from the traveler, and what others would not expect from the traveler -- can help prepare an individual with special needs to engage in appropriate behaviors throughout the travel experience. Add pictures (preferably of the person the story is geared towards) to help the individual better relate the story to themselves. Be sure to include the following types of text in your social story with supporting pictures to illustrate the point:

• Descriptive: Making a truthful statement
• Perspective: Refers to the state of other people
• Directive: Suggests an appropriate response
• Affirmative: Expresses a commonly held value

Example: (Descriptive) When I go to the airport, it is loud, and I want to scream. (Perspective) When I scream, other people feel it is too loud too. (Directive) When it is too loud, I can ask mommy for my headphones. (Affirmative) If I wear my headphones and do not scream, mommy will be so proud, and it will not be too loud.

2) Practice makes perfect: While regular TSA regulations make a full role play experience impossible for all but a few passengers, there are some (pretend) measures that you can take to prepare nervous travelers for the voyage.

• Role play at home what to expect during the trip (noises, stages of travel, what will be seen/heard/smelled at various stage). Timers and checklists can be helpful in driving the special needs traveler through the required steps of getting from point A to point B.
• Show pictures or movies of others making similar voyages. Highlight positive outcomes that could only have been achieved through travel and be sure the outcomes are of interest to the person being encouraged.
• Set up a pretend plane, train, or automobile-scape in your home and practice how to spend long periods of travel time. Be sure to also practice what to do when encountering trigger situations (loud noises, needing to use the restroom, feeling hungry, etc.).
• On the day of travel, be prepared to remind the individual of the scenarios that were role played prior to travel. Be specific in details and if the individual is able, ask them to recall specific favorite events and outcomes.
• Organizations such as Autism Speaks partner with airlines to provide families opportunities to actually practice going through airport security and boarding a real airliner. Checkout autismspeaks.org for information on programs that may be offered in your area.

3) Seek support and be prepared: Reach out to others who are in or have been in your shoes. Don’t be afraid to ask other parents who have travelled with their children for tips on what worked for them. Is your child food motivated? Be prepared with a variety of snacks packed to pass airport security in small baggies. Does your child love “Baby Shark?” Charge up your tablet and be sure to de-sensitize them to headphones prior to departure. Does your child crave deep pressure? Bring a weighted blanket or favorite pillow for plenty of sensory input along the way. Little one loves to run? Be sure to visit a park prior to seated travel so the wiggles can be released. Others who have travelled with special needs individuals are a wealth of knowledge. Don’t be afraid to ask others for tips; parents of special needs children have developed valuable tools that they are more than happy to share!

Shawna Barrios, M.A., BCBA
Senior Clinical Director
Tuesday, December 17, 2019