DS9 ASD no longer needs DAS

airplane

DIS Veteran
Joined
Mar 31, 2004
Hi!
I just got back from a 7 night stay at AKL. DH, myself, DS9, DS8, DD4, mom mom and pop pop. We had an absolutely amazing trip. It would have been a bit nicer if the parks were not so crowded but what can you do! We try to get to Disney World every year. We have skipped some years and have gone twice in other years. It has been one of my life‘s greatest pleasures watching DS9 grow through the years at WDW. In his early years he wanted to go on the rides but waiting around people was simply not an option. The DAS did not work well for us because I could not get him to understand that we still had to wait to go on the ride and the tantrum would be awful. We would go on our designated fast pass rides and then go back to our resort (Always SOG). The last couple of years I could barely get him to go on anything. He just liked walking around and taking in all the sites. He loved sitting on benches and looking at everything going on around him. He enjoyed watching the street shows, parades and he absolutely loved meeting all of the characters. We went this past August and had a stroller as a wheelchair for the first time and that was the best thing we had ever done. It allowed him to go in all of the movie type rides/ attractions. Halfway through the trip he started going on some rides. We went to TL and BB and he wanted to go on everything. Of course safety became an issue because he would want to go on the bigger slides and sit up instead of laydown. He had a tantrum because we wouldn’t let him go on Summit Plummet but he was easily distracted by using “a first this then that scenario”.
This trip he wanted to go on everything except for the living seas ride which we waited 45 minutes for and is soon as we got to the clamshells he broke free of the stroller and took off! Luckily my mom super powers kicked in and I was able to catch up to him. He also did not want to go on the figment ride and I told him let’s go in and see it and then you can decide if you want to go on it or not. He has few words but he was able to say to me I love the purple dragon ride and then he went on it with no problem.
I wanted to share my experiences with everyone who might be in a similar situation to me. As a sidenote I did not know that anybody in our group could’ve went up to the rides to use the DAS. I just read that on another thread and that would have saved me a lot of aggravation in the earlier years! But now I don’t have to worry about that anymore! Of course this could all change again but I wanted to share my experiences and if anyone has any questions I would be more than happy to answer them. I would also love to hear of others experiences with your ASD children. I’m always looking for new advice and ideas! I can’t wait for our next trip.
 
Wonderful!!!! Hugs to one ASD mom from another. When our daughter was younger stroller as a wheelchair was worth pure gold to us. DAS is still very helpful for her but we don’t always have to use it everyday. Little steps. Start planning that next WDW vacation!
 
Title of your post made me cry *happy tears* as I hope to be able to make the same post some day! My son is 7, and has "graduated" from needing a stroller in the FP lines, and only needs it for the shows, and maneuvering through the park itself. He actually does better in a line than he does not being in a line, if that makes sense. He will wander if he's just standing in open areas, but with a line, he doesn't try to escape. A physical line also helps him to see what's going on and helps him wait his turn. I often joke that if we are in a waiting room for a haircut or other appointment, that he would be better if there was a physical line so he could see how many people were in front of him.

DAS and FP are our keys to the rides right now, but if he continues to progress, I definitely see him being able to tolerate a regular line when he's your son's age!!
 

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