Exercise: Arrange physical activity every day, multiple times each day for some children if possible. Get to the park, take hikes, go rock climbing, check local facilities for holiday schedules for swimming. This will help reduce anxiety and stress, lessen the intensity of ritualistic or stimulatory behaviors, and improve sleep.

Provide escape options: during large gatherings, other events that may be overstimulating, provide a quiet, less-stimulating place for your child to go to, to do some calming activities (stringing beads/popcorn, quiet music, etc). Your child may need to take breaks throughout the gathering- perhaps every ½ hour. Your child may need a familiar person to go with him/her to this place, and help him/her to participate in the calming activities.

Maintain routines: Try to find multiple times throughout the day when your child can participate in parts or all of familiar routines, regardless of the changes surrounding him/her. For example, your child may need to follow his/her usual morning routine (toileting, dressing, eating breakfast) prior to holiday events such as opening gifts. While it may be an inconvenience, maintaining regular routines will likely to help your child to participate more fully in the special activities of the day- probably outweighing the inconvenience.

Maintain diet: for children who have restricted food preferences or food allergies/sensitivities, have plenty of healthful preferred and routine foods; keep sweets to a reasonable limit, and restrict chocolate and other foods with caffeine.

Photos and stories of who and what to expect: Print out some photos of the people your child will see, and photos or icons of the activities that will occur, and the places you will go. There are different ways to use these: prior to the holidays, to talk about things in advance; on the day of the event as picture schedule cards- to let your child know what is happening now and later (e.g. “first…then”, or as a schedule with multiple pictures); as a social story, with text. You can put these together as a holiday book, or keep them on a ring, or Velcro them to a picture schedule board. Try taking more photos this year, to be used in the future, or in a memory book, to facilitate communication with you and others about the holidays.