Shopping!

[Lena75]

So those of you with special needs kids, how do you handle shopping? Do you bring your special needs child out with you? Stay home with the special needs child while the spouse goes out?

We're finding that when we go grocery shopping (as a family) our autistic son does quite well, for the most part.

As for going to Walmart? Whooooweeeeeeee! I am talking claw marks from the electronics section (he LOVES video games and knows we won't buy them often) to the door along with screams and tears running down his face. Although tonight he decided it would be a good time to try spinning his frustrations out in the busy aisles!! Then he got mad when I tried to stop him.

Sometimes I really dread shopping. Not to mention the stares we get, no matter how hard I try to ignore them, it just gets SO irritating. It's just hard to be a "normal" family even though I know we'll always be a "special" family...

 

[RedTulipMom]

i guess so far i have been lucky. My PDD-NOS son has always been good in the store. He loves just lookign around at stuff. He does sometimes put stuff in the cart, but doesnt throw tantrums when i take it out either. SO FAR! knock on wood! i have noticed with each passing month some of his behaviors at home becoming more difficult for me to deal with, so who knows what the future holds. he is 3.5 yrs old right now.

 

[Lena75]

Ah, mine will be 12 next month. Yeah, 3.5 was a breeze compared to now.

 

[cobweb]

Mine is 8 1/2. Some days he does OK. Some days are really rough.

I've found that he does better if I take him early in the morning and bribe him like crazy. I've also found that things go smoother if my husband takes our 4 year old son and does the majority of the shopping while oldest son and I stick together like glue.

I'm getting better at ignoring the other shoppers on bad days.

Shopping we can handle. Church is another story.

 

[peace2usall]

I try to avoid it at all costs...........lol

 

[peace2usall]

truthfully there are good days for shopping & there are bad days i can usually tell when its going to be a problem before i attempt to go.

 

[homeschoolmama]

Could you avoid the electronics aisle? Even if it means doing a maze thing to get around that section?

Just trying to help.

 

[CaseyK]

Please forgive me I didn't read the other responses...

I hate shopping or going out to eat by myself with my special needs daughter. she gets overstimulated and just has meltdowns and is physically hard to control. IT is even hard when we go out as a family. Usually I will go shopping or sometimes my hubby will go after the kids are in bed. I have to say stores like Walmart or Target are the worse for DD. My dd is 3 and has sensory processing disorder and is being tested for autism

 

[LindyLouWho]

I go alone. My daughter shoplifts,yells,hits. No ,not putting myself ,her or anyone in harms way.

 

[Mayzoo]

I am with my 8.5 year old daughter pretty much 24/7. We homeschool, and daddy has a 60 hr work week. No sitters or family to take her for me to go anywhere, so she and I have to work it out as best as we can. Some days no issues what so ever . Other days it seems to be a race to see if another customer will say something so the rude that I topple over the edge, or will I topple from my kiddo attempting to knock everything off the shelf by hand or foot. We are working a lot with the sentences:

You are responsible for what your hands do.
You are responsible for what your little friends do (she carries a stuffed friend everywhere).
You have to behave responsibly (and I list many ways to behave responsibly).
You need to respect other people's belongings
And my all time favorite saying: Just because you can do something, does not mean you should do it (then explain why she should not do that particular behavior)

I try to make the trip as fun for her as possible, even reminding her to grab a friend to go with us if she appears to forget one. These friends can help a lot as they are great at "suggesting" proper behaviors and games for all "three" of us to play. I try to keep in the upper most part of my mind that one she is easily overstimulated, so I need to respond appropriately, or two she could be bored silly.

 

[mamawolf]

oh wow the store with my 5 yro who is pdd-nos is a nightmare most times