When you imagine a trip to Walt Disney World, what pictures pop into your mind? Do you see "The Happiest Place on Earth" or do you picture headaches and frustrations?

Walt Disney's vision included a sensory- rich environment with sights, sounds, smells, tastes and textures to excite and enchant. Yet, the parks are often full of over-stimulated or exhausted children. Even well-balanced children (and adults!) can suddenly have "too much."

First, consider how fatigue, disrupted sleep, altered routines, hunger, dietary changes, lack of home comforts and sharing a hotel room can test resources. Now, imagine a child with emotional reactivity due to sensory-processing, attention or behavioral issues in a super-charged theme-park setting while adapting to these challenges!

Successful sensory modulation requires the ability to take in environmental information, process through the senses, and react within a reasonable emotional, behavioral and physical range. If even guests with well-integrated sensory-processing, emotional-stability, or attention-regulation systems can find themselves in Disney overload, guests with sensory or attention sensitivities need to be extra careful.

Parents of children with sensory processing issues, behavioral concerns, emotional difficulties or attention deficit disorder often come to me with concerns about vacations. As an occupational therapy consultant with experience in travel and leisure, I recommend a plan combining knowledge of cruise ships or resorts with awareness of a child's needs. When the destination is Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL, helping families to find their "laughing place" is, as they say, a walk in the park.

Disney for the Sensory Sensitive
While reactions to motion and loud, scary or dark environments are common, Disney's vivid detail can be extreme for sensory-sensitive guests who experience life as louder, brighter, busier, scarier or more intense. Disney responds to problems with certain attractions by posting warnings. Consider these cautions seriously.

Spaceship Earth now contains a video warning that the car will turn and move backwards, a terrifying surprise for many. Snow White's Scary Adventure warns of intense images. Other attractions carry warnings of total darkness, loud sounds or spinning. Many joke that "it's a small world" needs a warning about a song that you can't get out of your head all day!

For those who are prone to headaches or nausea from scents, the musty, smoky prehistoric smell in "Ellen's Energy Adventure," the smell of pine trees or oranges in "Soarin'," and the intentionally offensive odors in "It's Tough to Be a Bug!®" or "Stitch's Great Escape" can be a shock. When the entire audience screams together, this can add to the stress. A parent can laugh or react in a lighthearted way to show that there is nothing to worry about. Offering a mint scent or favorite candy may help strongly reactive children re-set their systems.

Some children have touch sensitivities. Aversions to light touch can be set off when the skin is brushed lightly by a hand, fabric or even a breeze. The many attractions with water misting, cool fogging, shooting water and gentle breezes can feel less than refreshing on the skin of these children. The surprise silly touches simulating "critters" brushing across the feet or moving on the backs of chairs can add a dose of shocking imagery to the sensation. Parents can hold sensitive children on their laps or give a good firm calming hug. While preparing the child for surprises, present the information as something fun rather than something to be concerned with.

The reaction parents have to any of the challenges in the parks can influence how the child reacts. Many children fall and move on as if nothing happened if they see no negative reaction, but put on a dramatic show when the parent makes a fuss. A soft, lighthearted tone can be one of the most calming tools. Acknowledging the experience and offering a calming solution helps re-set the sensory system. Try saying, "Oh, what a nice breeze that was," or, "Now quick, rub your arm hard!" after a light touch. When noticing sensitivity to noise from fireworks, try saying, "Listen how different it sounds if you cover your ears. It's more fun that way."

The formula here is to identify the stimulation that is causing the reaction, think of a way to help the child organize or manage the stimulation, then offer the solution.

I*Managing and the 4 R's
A technique I like to call "I*Managing," a combination of the words imagining and managing, is easily adapted for travel solutions. To briefly summarize, the primary goal is to empower with self-awareness, meta-cognitive skills and confidence in the use of self-management strategies. Strategies for managing behavior and reactions are applied and explored to improve confidence and use of skills. This technique is strongly influenced by Joan Toglia, PhD, OTR, and her Multicontext Cognitive Framework and Dynamic Interactional Approach, as well as traditional psychoanalytic and cognitive behavioral techniques.

"I*Managing" activities can be designed specifically by the therapist or can be client-driven, with the client determining the language, imagery and methods for exploring the issues at hand. Of course, with a young child's limited vocabulary, reasoning skills and abilities to abstract, the communication forms will be more symbolic or experiential. Sometimes the terminology already being used in a school or classroom behavior program is used for consistency.

"I*Managing" is a task-related process, often using play, creative arts, music, visual arts, writing or movement to bring non-verbal or hidden issues to light. After a variety of experiences, the client is asked to imagine a variety of future challenges where the skills would be helpful. Long-term learning projects, routine activities, leisure pursuits and games help translate skills into daily life.

The 4 R's, the backbone of "I*Managing" programs for children and adults, follow the sequence of research, rehearse, reflect and reward.

Research
A new environment requires new problem-solving challenges and a higher level of thinking and attention, which can lead to a lower tolerance threshold. Without the structure and comfort of routines, more demands are placed on sensory integration skills and frustration tolerance. Vacations can also challenge a sensory system for surprising and subtle reasons like the feel of newly purchased vacation clothing, a climate change or barely audible background music.

Researching the reactions to new situations at home can give valuable clues as to what may be expected on vacation. For example, one little boy with tactile defensiveness became so uncomfortable by the way his new shorts hit his legs, that he walked slowly with a pained expression and held the shorts almost up to his thighs for relief. Luckily, this was in his hometown, with the demands of a half-day preschool session; but on vacation, this could have caused a big problem.

Research into the parks before visiting can be critical to understanding the environmental demands and feeling prepared and comfortable with the vacation plan. Even the best parents have been surprised at how easy it is to lose a child in the crowds and winding roads or gift shops of a theme park. Carrying walkie-talkies and cell phones has thankfully replaced the era of parents screaming a child's name at the tops of their lungs.

Research will help you anticipate how the theme park will combine with a child's personality traits and avoid problems. For example, the fascinating territory can entice the child who "overdoes it" to explore without rest, causing a sudden exhausted tantrum. A visually stimulating display can distract those with limited attention, impaired coordination or decreased safety awareness while climbing stairs or stepping up a curb, causing a fall. Some sensations, often subtle and unrecognized, like music, exotic cooking smells or breezes can cause sensitive children to have a melt-down (screaming and tantrums) or shut-down (withdrawal and decreased responsiveness).

Don't forget to consider internal factors like blood level fluctuations from foods or missed medications. Think about how long medication takes to work and when it tends to wear off while planning the day. Many parents time medication to peak for certain activities or times of day. When medication wears off, impulsive behaviors and a tendency to appear out-of-control often results. This can not only be stressful in public, but can be less tolerable in the close quarters of a hotel room after spending all day together. [For more information on researching the parks and planning specific strategies for children with sensory needs, visit www.advanceweb.com/OT.]

Rehearse
Rehearsing refines the list of strategies and helps the child use them efficiently. Self-management tools include the thinking processes, activities and objects that make daily demands more tolerable. Practice settings can be during meals, crafts, academics, role playing, music lessons or games which involve structure, problem solving and a challenge. The process of helping children explore their beliefs and feelings during challenges encourages growth and insight and builds confidence.

Learn warning signs of trouble, such as a sudden increase or decrease in activity, stereotypical actions or whining. Avoid the "point of no return," which leads to melt-down. Threatening or being quick to punish may aggravate a child's overloaded system by adding an additional stressor or demand.

Remember that sensory overload is not a choice. Prevention, rather than punishment, works best. Distracting with an alternative activity can be helpful. For example, a game of I-Spy to help pass the time while waiting at the airport or standing in a crowd builds on past success and suggests an alternative activity. Children are often relieved to learn that they can keep busy with activities other than complaining or acting out.

Reflect
Reflecting or exploring strategies for deeper awareness and self-confidence is a continuation of the first two stages. Discussing the process during a variety of activities can help make connections, see patterns and transfer learning from one situation to another. Many of the activities above are continued during this stage with higher-level challenges or with less assistance for development of higher-level problem-solving skills.

Creative expression of feelings can provide insights into thinking patterns and how they change over time. Journaling can involve words, or can be adapted to create a picture book in which children are the star of their own success story.

A personalized book can be carried into the parks to reinforce skills. Many children will enjoy adding drawings or writing in their journal during the vacation, which can lead to a treasured family vacation scrapbook. One structured format, Social StoriesT, created by Carol Gray (www.thegraycenter.org), is designed for children with autism spectrum disorders, but can be adapted as a useful resource for sensory integration, behavior or attention disorders.

Rewards
Who hasn't been able to work harder or put up with more aggravation when a favorite reward was in reach? The reward process starts at home and should include a description of the behavior that earned the praise.

Saying, "I love the way you decided to keep working instead of stopping when you got tired!" reinforces the skill clearly and encourages repeat performance.

Prizes directly related to a trip can be motivating, such as character meals or free play time in the parks. Disney dollars, purchased in neighborhood Disney Stores, can be earned at home for use later in the parks or resorts.

This token system can continue during the vacation to earn additional dollars.

Rewards during vacation can also take the form of an activity, such as a visit to the food court for a nighttime treat, a visit to the hotel play area, dinner at a special restaurant or an evening swim. Choose the day's reward in advance, set a realistic target goal with behaviors, and watch how hard the child will work to achieve it.

Be careful when setting those goals to make the expectations and the consequences realistic, though. Also, consequences should be fair to everyone.

For example, taking away evening fireworks would not be a fair consequence if it means that siblings will have to miss them also.

Using Existing Tools
All the existing programs which can assist this process could not possibly be covered in this discussion. The relationship between therapist and child, the choice of activities, the intuition needed to "read between the lines," and a trusting, supportive environment for drawing out the child's "personal truths" is really the primary tool in the process.

Supporting frameworks can include the Alert Program (www.alertprogram.com) and Diana Henry's Sensory Tools workbooks. [Visit our website at www.advanceweb.com/OT for a case example of using Diana Henry's workbooks to develop a strategy for a child going to Disney World.]

Sensory evaluation tools can give important information for programming. OTs can administer the Sensory Profile, a checklist which reveals strengths and weaknesses in sensory processing, to help identify patterns with sensory modulation. The Sensory Processing Measure (www.sensoryprocessingmeasure.com), available in December 2006, contains checklists for a variety of environments which reveal strengths and weaknesses in sensory processing to help create personalized sensory diets or a behavior plan for travel.

Parent Survival
Parents need to plan ahead to take care of themselves, too! Those who ignore their own needs may find themselves worn out and low on energy or patience. This is especially true when children require a high level of attention or care.

Parents who are aware of their own stress triggers can avoid those moods or angry moments that seem to sneak up and lead to less than "grown-up" behavior.

Asking for "alone time" should start at home, especially when dealing with needy or demanding children. A request such as "I'd like you to play quietly until Mommy finishes reading this article," helps the child understand what is expected. When children understand that a parent's need for alone time does not need to be in response to anger or frustration, they are less likely feel rejection.

Considering Others
Unless one has had experience with a highly sensitive or emotionally reactive child, it is impossible to understand the stress and vigilance required of the parents to keep order. Those who understand will usually be the last to pass judgment, but sometimes a little common sense is needed while considering the rights of others. Once, while sitting at a group table in a Japanese restaurant, a parent's strategy for ignoring a child's screaming tantrums created a miserable time for everyone.

I once found my own auditory sensitivities rattled while I was trying to enjoy the beautiful bonfire outside Disney's Animal Kingdom Resort while a teen was amusing himself with a hand-held computer game. The beeps and bells were irritating to all the adults as we tried to immerse ourselves in the crackling sounds of the fire, while the parents of the teen were obviously used to tuning out the sound and could not see the circle of angry glares in the firelight.

Planning for Success
We've only touched the surface of the "I*Managing" process, the available occupational therapy programs and resources, and the many ways an occupational therapist can assist with planning a vacation for a variety of sensory, attention and behavioral needs. As Walt Disney once said "We're just getting started, so if any of you starts to rest on your laurels, just forget it."

My wish for you is that, with the proper planning, and a little research, the keys to The Kingdom will be yours for your next vacation.

References available at www.advanceweb.com/OT or upon request.

Sandra Bostwick MA, OTR/L, RMT, is owner of Creative Learning Studios, LLC, in Morris County, NJ, offering private practice OT and music therapy consulting services. She has worked in schools, hospitals, and residential facilities and is an adjunct professor at County College of Morris.