#51 | Autistic Child Emergency Plan: 72 Hours Without Power

The government says every household should be ready to look after itself for 72 hours. No power, no water, no shops. Easy enough, until you've got a non-verbal autistic child, a very short list of safe foods and an iPad that's about to die.
Gaz and Andy got back from holiday to a "be ready" plan that wasn't written with autistic families in mind, so they've written their own. Fill the bath the second the power goes, before anyone climbs in it. Download the shows now, not when the Wi-Fi's gone. Screenshot the AAC keyboard, print it and laminate it on cardboard, because when Mish tried it at home it got picked up first time. Get the safe foods in, because "suck it up" doesn't work here. Think of it as an EHCP for prepping: plan for the worst day.
Then they run the 72-hour challenge together, from Friday 6pm when the lights go out to Monday when they come back on. Water, nappies and wipes, medication, sleeping in one warm room, what you can cook on and what you never bring indoors, with a carbon monoxide story that'll have you checking your alarms tonight. Plus a one-page emergency profile for your child, a chat with school about pick-up, and why writing down one normal day shows you just how much you do that other families don't.
Whether you call it a power cut or a power outage, this isn't about panic. It's about not wishing you'd done something. The stakes are too high not to.
Timestamps
0:00 Cold open
0:36 Intro
0:44 Back from holiday to a 72-hour warning
5:27 The government's be ready plan vs real life
7:28 Communication when the devices die
11:11 Fill the bath first
17:05 Why suck it up doesn't work here
21:53 Medication you can't run out of
25:33 No heating, living in one room
30:36 The 72-hour challenge, hour by hour
48:00 Camping stoves and carbon monoxide
55:01 The cardboard AAC keyboard
1:03:14 A one-page emergency profile
1:07:37 Write down one normal day
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Watch: https://bit.ly/ep51-youtube
Listen: https://bit.ly/ep51-listen
Gaz and Andy are two dads raising autistic children, talking about the bits nobody else says out loud.
Link tree in bio.
#autism #nonverbalautism #autismparents #specialneeds #powercut