Tips for Celebrating New Year’s Eve with Neurodivergent Kids
The holiday season is known to be a joyous time of year, but it can also be a stressful time for many families. With routines being disrupted by new schedules and outings, it can take a long time for children to adjust and recover, often well into the new year.
Families with neurodivergent children typically find New Year’s Eve celebrations to be especially stressful, as their children may thrive on routine or have some rigidity. To help with these celebrations, here are some tips on how to get through New Year’s Eve without the disruptive effects lingering through the new year.
Watch a Pre-Filmed Ball Drop Countdown
Many of you have likely already heard of the pre-filmed “ball drop” for New Year’s Eve. This can be a really fun way to give your child/ren the opportunity to celebrate the New Year at a time of your choosing without disrupting their regular routine, including bed time. Here are some past and present examples of this:
Use Routines as a Tool to Celebrate
Consider which elements of your child’s built-in routine can be included in the day, or can be used as a tool to celebrate. This could include:
Choose a favorite snack or two to incorporate into the spread of options, served exactly as you typically would. This allows a lifeline to their routine, and may also give them the opportunity to eat something without being overwhelmed by a new item or new presentation of an item.
Go through the motions of routine at the same time. If you’re choosing to allow your child to stay up, still engage in the elements of their routine at their usual time. Brush their teeth, put on their PJs, take a bath, etc. This also prevents the bed time routine from making the night even later.
Celebrate in an area they don’t normally spend much time in, if you can. They may be more able to adjust to a new activity in that different space, and it also gives them the opportunity to “escape” to their comfortable space should they need to.
Give Your Child Options
Providing options can go a long way in keeping the party going before any behaviors start to arise. Provide paired choices between only two items or activities. This gives your child the opportunity to make some decisions about the celebration. For example:
“Do you want to watch in the living room, or listen from the kitchen?”
“Do you want the green cup or the red cup?”
“Should we cheers when the ball drops or not?”
Choices like this provide the opportunity for your child to both feel some control in the situation, as well as allow them to communicate effectively with you about their preferences.
Communicate the Order of Events
Finally, with any countdown comes anticipation. A useful tool when there is an “order of events” is to use “first, then” language. Be clear and concise about the order in which everything will occur. For example, you could tell your child, “First we need to eat, and then we can go watch the ball drop.” You can do this with any two sequenced activities, or even add in a “last” for three step activities if your child can tolerate the delay to the final item. The most effective use of “first, then” should start with the less preferred activity, so they know that when that activity is over, the next thing on the list is something they are excited about.
However you choose to ring in the new year, the Dashi Rivers team wishes you a happy, healthy, and fun 2023!
