In this week’s episode of The Autism Mums Podcast, we’re diving into the reality of summer holidays when your autistic child thrives on school routine. Natalie shares how her son, who has been doing brilliantly during term time, has found the transition to the long break unexpectedly tough - from meltdowns and aggressive behaviours to disrupted sleep during a melatonin break. We talk about pacing activities, managing sensory needs, and finding that fine balance between structure and rest.

Key Takeaways

How losing the school routine can trigger heightened anxiety and challenging behaviours and why this is so common for autistic children.

How disrupted sleep, including during a melatonin break, can ripple through the day and impact mood, patience, and coping ability.

How favourite activities and special interests like metal detecting, magnet fishing, and trampoline time can help regulate emotions.

Pacing social interaction and physical activity to avoid sensory overload or burnout during the holidays.

How visual tools like Google Maps and travel timers can reduce anxiety during car journeys and transitions.

Managing expectations around events and invitations from saying 'no' to busy festivals to choosing carefully between activities that may or may not be accessible.

How preparation can help make big days out go more smoothly.

Mentioned in This Episode

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Transcript

[00:00:00 ] Hello and welcome to

the Autism Mums podcast. I'm Victoria. And I'm Natalie. We are two sisters

raising autistic children who know the joy, the challenges, and the everyday

moments. This is a supportive space for honest conversations, practical tips,

shared strength and expert advice. Whether you are celebrating a win, surviving

a meltdown, or just trying to make it through the day, we are right here with

you.

Join us as we share the ups, the downs, and everything in

between parenting autistic children.

Victoria Bennion:

Today, we're talking about something that so many parents of autistic children

will understand, and that's why the summer holidays can feel like the hardest

part of the year. We're gonna talk about what's been going on in our homes this

summer, from unexpected meltdowns to sleep struggles, and the ripple effect of

losing that familiar school routine.

Victoria Bennion:

We'll be sharing our real life [00:01:00 ]

stories, the strategies that have helped, and the moments that have truly

tested us. If you are navigating the ups and downs of the school holidays, you

are absolutely not alone. We are right here in it with you.

Natalie Tealdi: One

thing that's come up for us is our son has been coping so well. During term

time, so well at school, absolutely loving school. He's been doing so well and

it's been quite surprising how tricky he's finding the holidays.

Natalie Tealdi: It's

always a time of year that he struggles with, but he's gone from being able to

cope quite well when he's stressed to. Not coping so well and we're seeing

aggressive behaviors again, which we haven't seen for months. So it is taken me

by surprise a little bit.

Victoria Bennion:

What's he reacting to? What do you think is causing him the problem?

Natalie Tealdi: It's

being out of his routine. He just wants to be at school all the time. He likes

it. , He just feels comfortable there. That's his routine. That's [00:02:00 ] what we do Monday to Friday, and because

we're out of that, it's upsetting for him.

Victoria Bennion:

What do the summers look like in terms of structure?

Natalie Tealdi: We

haven't got a lot of structure. It can vary because some days he needs a lot of

rest. In the mornings he can be quite tired. We're going through a melatonin

break at the moment, so sleep is becoming difficult. He's not going to sleep

till really late now because he hasn't got anything to help him.

Victoria Bennion: Can

you talk about why you're having a melatonin break while we're on that?

Natalie Tealdi: Yeah,

so that was recommended by his pediatrician because we were noticing it wasn't

having such an effect anymore, which isn't apparently your, body gets used to

it, so. You do need to take breaks now and again for, for it to become

effective again. So we were at that point where bedtime was taking a long time

anyway, so we needed to have the break really, but now they're taking even

longer.

Natalie Tealdi: So he

is not really going to bed until we go to bed, which [00:03:00 ]

is really quite late. So he's more tired.

Victoria Bennion:

There'll be a lot of parents in the same position as you. I mean, we will be in

a couple of weeks. With the melatonin break, it's the most natural time to try

to do that if it's something that your child takes regularly. And we are

definitely gonna be planning a melatonin break as well.

Victoria Bennion: But

I'm gonna wait until I'm having a week where I'm not working because. I'm still

needed usually to sit there till he goes to sleep and I can't work early. I

usually get up quite early to get my work done so that I can take the

afternoons or a lot of the afternoons with the children in the holidays.

Victoria Bennion: I

want it to be the week that I don't have to get up early if I take that stress

off. But as you say, it adds to their sleep deprivation.

Natalie Tealdi: Yeah.

Victoria Bennion: So

what kind of things have you been doing with your son?

Natalie Tealdi: We

have to sort of gauge it. We are doing his special interests. So he likes to

metal detect, he likes to see magnet fishing, he likes water sports, like

paddle boarding, [00:04:00 ] kayaking.

Natalie Tealdi: So we

are doing all those sorts of things, but we're having to really gauge what he

can cope with during the day. Sometimes it's one activity. Sometimes he wants

to be doing activities all day and all night. He's gone back to so. It used to

be a daily routine of having pillow fights. When he feels hyper, he likes to

have a pillow fight.

Natalie Tealdi: It

helps him to regulate and calm down. And we've gone back to that, which can be

quite exhausting for us as the parents 'cause he needs someone to do it with. ,

He's on the trampoline an awful lot again. That needs a lot of supervision

'cause his sister likes to go on with him, but sometimes it, he can get a bit

too overexcited.

Natalie Tealdi: So it

needs a lot of monitoring.

Victoria Bennion:

It's good that he's got those outlets.

Natalie Tealdi: Oh,

definitely. Yeah. I mean he's, it's nothing like it was two years ago, don't

get me wrong. But it's just, it's just that he was doing so well. I thought

actually generally he was coping. Quite well overall, but it, [00:05:00 ] it's the holidays that we struggle with.

And I've noticed also, so we do have play dates with friends, but I think the

age that we're getting to now is some of his friends go off for play dates

without their parents there.

Natalie Tealdi: A

play date with my son? Requires parents to be present I definitely have to be

there. So I think we're at that stage where perhaps we are not gonna be the

first choice because other parents have a bit more flexibility and a bit more

freedom. Now there

Natalie Tealdi: kids

are getting older.

Victoria Bennion:

Yeah, so they have maybe friends over and then they're working or doing other

things, whereas it's entertaining you. It's, it's their time I suppose. It gets

tricky, doesn't it?

Natalie Tealdi: Yeah.

Yeah, I think so.

Natalie Tealdi: We've

looked into activities before and he is booked on a couple, just two, I think

in August. But again, we have to be very careful with that because he will

refuse to go to them. We have to choose really [00:06:00 ]

carefully.

Natalie Tealdi: And

it could be we get to the day on the ones that I've booked and paid for, that

he can't cope and