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PT International travel can be daunting in the best of times
When we contemplated travel to Japan and India over a period of 6 weeks – a plan that included 6 international flights, more than 50 hours of air time, several hours of airport and transit times, it looked impossible. Especially after 6 years of no travel anywhere and with a neurodiverse, nonspeaking 11 year old that uses spelling to communicate . But as you probably guessed already, I am here to tell you how this pipe dream actually became a reality.
To begin with, there is absolutely no substitute for solid preparation. We leaned heavily on other neurodiverse families, through Facebook groups and otherwise, for best practices on what worked for them. This, along with our own past travel experiences, helped us come up with a solid list of things to do.
The first step was researching the right flights/timings, asking for accommodations such as adding the DPNA code to the reservation and wheelchairs where necessary, permission to carry any medication that may not typically be allowed and actually booking the travel. Some of the other key items included researching and downloading books/podcasts/music for the day of travel, selecting the right body engagers as well as ensuring there were sufficient dry food options available if the food on the flights did not work out. And packing strategically of course so you knew where to find stuff when needed.
The huge masterstroke, as it turned out, from my pre-travel prep were the thank you cards written by Swarit for co-passengers/crew with a message about his mind-body disconnect and possible dysregulation due to sensory overload. This was extremely helpful on the day of travel and was received warmly by passengers and crew alike. There was an overwhelming reception to the card from everyone that read it. Awareness and advocacy efforts started right there.
On the day of the travel, all of us decided to wear shirts that said something about neurodiversity to share the message right away. This helped a big deal as well and there were many people noticing it and initiating conversations about it that helped ease into more awareness conversations. We also leaned into each other to stay regulated and just focus on controlling what we were able to. For example, while Swarit was able to regulate his body from doing something very disruptive to passengers, he was still allowed the space to stim that was so essential to him to stay together with such a huge sensory overload.
We also spelled everywhere – to the flight crew about Swarit’s choices, to airport crew about accommodations as well as about their own lives and to passengers about questions they had or feedback they provided. The most powerful experience of the trip was Swarit spelling to a wheelchair attendant in Singapore, while we were in transit. This attendant had a 21-yr old autistic son and his face was transformed seeing Swarit spell like about his son.
We did have a few mins of dysregulation, a couple of impulsive food grabs from others, loud stimming but the cards made all the difference. We did not have even one unpleasant interaction during the entire trip. The crew in all the flights addressed Swarit by name and treated him for his age and reassured that he was not a disturbance to any.
A few acts of kindness in the middle of an intense dysregulation made me tear up and we as a family are so grateful for having done this trip with ease and grace. It is best to sum up in Swarit’s own words – “Fear and apprehension about travel would be positively upstaged by a celebration of humanity”
While Jenny Padma physically lives in Tampa with her son Swarit Gopalan and husband Arun Gopalan, it is fair to say she is a permanent resident of the spellverse where she spends a lot of her waking hours. She is fully committed to the cause of the nonspeakers and their families that have broadened her horizons and enriched her life over the last two years!
