It is almost inevitable, the Christmas Day meltdown.
However there are some tips to help you through.
In my experience the most important thing:
Have a quiet place available for when everything gets too much. If you are at home this is easy, make bedrooms the chill out zone.
Out to lunch at a restaurant, if the weather is not too extreme the car can be a handy quiet spot, away from crowds, insulated. Otherwise a walk outside can do the trick. Headphones and electronic toy can help if you are unable to leave the room/table. Fidget toys are essential for calming overloaded auties.
Visiting family? Ask if they can set aside a room or a space for use as a chill out zone. If they are not receptive then use the restaurant tips.
We avoid new foods, there is enough new and different to deal with. If familiar foods, cutlery and crockery bring comfort then let it be so. Christmas after all is supposedly about spending time with those we love, not about trying new foods.
Things we pack to help with overload, and hopefully avoid that meltdown - I’ve done a more detailed post here.
- Snuggle toy
- Beads and bracelets, the favouriot fidget toy in our house.
- Headphones
- Hat
- Sunglasses
- A electronic toy, iPad for us
- Blankie, because even on 40C day there are times when you just have to have your blankie
- Water bottle
- Favourite snacks
Set a time limit – this is oh so important for my Aspie family, we need to know that there is a set time for leaving, this gathering of extended family has a limited duration and they wont be there forever. We’ve managed to calm Annie on several occasions by pointing out the clock to her and she is reassured that after x amount of time we will go home and she can be blessedly alone.
Present time!
I prefer to ask before hand that gifts be unboxed. My children do not cope well with all the little wires and bands that are used to trap toys these days.
If that is not possible have a little toolbox handy like this one.
If my girls don’t want to open all their gifts them I let them wait, the gifts are not going anywhere, although I do still get them to say thanks and once the gift is open we try to take a photo and send a thank you email.
What are your tips to avoiding or minimising the Christmas Day meltdown?
I’m linking up with Tina’s Christmas Linky.
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We stumbled over here different page and thought I might as well check things out. I like what I see so now im following you. Look forward to looking into your web page for a second time.
These tips are really, really good – practical ones that will reply help make Christmas Day easier. I’m really impressed xx
Thank you Marissa
A quiet room definitely works here for all sorts of occasions! Great tips!
Great tips. Thanks for linking up and for the link love to my Santa’s Helper post. Just reminded me that I need to update it with the new batteries. x
Thank you Tina. I thought the Santa’s Helper box was a genius idea when I read about it the first time. Still think so now.
i think these are all good tips.
From experience, I would ad the ‘NO lovely surprises’. while this is for me the essence of gift giving (chosing, finding or coming across that one little thing that just reminds me of someone / making something myself.. all that jazz) – or receiving (oh, wow you remembered i like this/ always wanted that/ needed one like this..?) it is totally lost on Nemo and will lead to great disappointment as he will be – only – looking for that ONE thing he wanted and that we talked about. To non initiated relatives this would frustrating too as yes, he would discard the ‘unwanted gift’ like a piece of garbage…
So, as we just shipped very successfully through his birthday with – finally – THE DS! (xl 3D..) where everyone chipped in for a few games as well, we will do the same collective and planned gift giving for Xmas.
Oh yes, unexpected surprises are very challenging to our girls. We had to have a discussion with Annie about just that last night after she over heard aunts talking about christmas and what they were planning to buy.
I love the idea of the de-boxing toolkit. I think that is a must for any celebration involving presents.
Yes indeed. I was gifted a special tool last christmas that cuts through all the pesky cable ties that toys are trapped in the box with… Yes trapped, Heidi gets upset that her toys are tied down in boxes and can’t escape.
I don’t think anyone would like being cable tied into a box, just imagining it makes me feel uncomfortable.
Yep, makes my skin crawl and I can see why Heidi with her claustrophobia would find it really distressing.
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