Autism on the 4th of July

I have always loved the 4th of July. Going to my parents’ cottage, camp fires, cook outs, the lake, and fireworks. I loved it all. Now, with a child on the spectrum, I am not nearly as excited. I wouldn’t say dread, but its close.

Nolan is terrified of fireworks. No matter how we prepare, how we try to watch them they just aren’t happening. He doesn’t like the unpredictability of them, he doesn’t like the sound, he doesn’t like sitting still and looking up. They are a hard no.

We have tried…

We tried the sound canceling headphones (toddler/child or child/adult) but he does not like the feel of them and they only help with sound not the other factors. We tried watching from the patio door so they sound was muted and we were safe inside. We have tried on laps, with weighted blanket, in his carseat, etc. All no gos. This year’s plan? Be in bed before the fireworks start.

We can prepare…

We can prepare for the fourth. We believe the fireworks and the 4th of July are important. We don’t believe everyone needs to work around it. We can prepare and we know how to prepare best we can. We can make sure that Nolan is in bed on time, ask my family not to start fireworks until then. We can make sure the sound machine is on when he goes to bed to drown out the noise as well as get him in a deeper sleep so he doesn’t wake up to them. We can spend a day on tip toes making sure to avoid it at all costs. We can, and we will to help our son.

When/Why it gets hard:

It gets hard when there are fireworks when it is light outside–and the fact that those are often the dynamite and a huge boom makes it harder. It is hard when there are fireworks at dusk from mid-June through mid-July. It is hard when we have no idea they are coming, when we have no idea if there are more, or how many days we have to tip toe.

A recent post on a neighborhood facebook page was a dog mom posting that she has to medicate her dog on the 4th because he is so stressed by the sound. A commenter noted that those with PTSD and veterans also struggle with the sounds. I commented on our sensory sensitive kiddos. It got the attention of the local news station-Firework concerns.

How you can help…

We are not asking that the 4th be cancelled, nor are we asking that fireworks be eliminated. We are asking you are courteous with your firework lighting. Do it on the 4th (or the Saturday closest to the 4th as we know that celebrations happen on those days). Do them in the dark. Do them in big areas, or better yet go see them at big shows so we know what areas to avoid. We don’t want to be fun suckers, we just want others to take a second and think about the others who struggle.