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Airport assistance for uni trip

Fibonacci Squid
4 hours ago

I find airports extremely overwhelming, and I avoid them as much as possible. The last time I used them I was travelling alone and my parents encouraged me to book assistance, so I did, and it was revolutionary. It still sucked, but the support was there to prevent me from having a shut down, and it involved things like a shorter route that didn't go through the 'perfume alley' (I'm extremely sensitive to smells) as well as not standing in overwhelmingly noisy lines which are real melt down risks for me.

I have a trip this December for my degree. It will require travelling by plane. I don't yet know if we're in charge of booking travel or if the department does that (they haven't told us yet) but I'm conflicted on whether to get assistance again.

The department does know that I'm autistic, and for previous trips I've been given loan rooms to accommodate this and prevent social shut downs, but I'm good at managing it. So other than not doing a lot of social things with the rest of the department (i.e. managing it by avoiding unnecessary stressors), it's not always obvious how much of a struggle things are.  

There are a few options here:

  1. If I'm supposed to book it:
    1. Assume that going with a close friend (only close friend in the department) will be enough to manage it and don't book assistance
    2. Go it alone but book assistance, you will have to explain it to other people on same plane though which might be awkward
    3. I think with assistance you can also have a companion?  So ask my close friend if they feel okay with coming with me with me still booking assistance and preventing me from walking into walls when I'm overwhelmed. Again may have to explain to other people in the department
  2. If the department books it:
    1. Go with the big group and hope that's enough buffer to help
    2. Have to talk to the department about booking assistance. And still have to explain to all other students

What do people think? I'm just looking for opinions as I think it would be helpful, but I possibly could do without, it would just be much more unpleasant and risk a meltdown or shutdown in the airport which would really suck. It will be a particularly big risk on the way back, as I'll be socially exhausted from being with loads of people for over a week. 

  • 3 hours ago

    In my experience university students nowadays are some of the most understanding of additional needs, so I wouldn’t worry about being judged/singled out.

    In both options I think it’s better to book assistance, as you don’t want your trip to start off badly. At the same time, I would plan to take ‘my own’ accommodations to account for the fact you struggle more than normal in airports. 

    For me this looks like: wearing sunglasses to cope with the lights, noise reducing headphones, bringing extra fidget/stim toys (and a bit more ‘diversity’ in those than I take with me everyday), and arriving at the airport early so I can find a secluded spot by the gate and have more time to be on the edges of things like security lines.