I hope this is the right subreddit to ask this, but uh, I’m planning to travel to Japan in a year or two, depending on how fast I can save, lol. I have autism and a few other issues so I’m wondering if anyone has tips or advice? My special interest is Japan and Japanese language, I’ve been doing a lot of research but I know I don’t know everything. And I’m getting a fair bit of anxiety. I’m really excited to go to Japan, and I won’t be alone. But still, I stim a lot and it’s quite visible, jumping and shaking my hands and stuff like that. I don’t know if it’s see as rude in Japan. I also have tics, no diagnosis yet but we think it’s Tourette’s. I feel like a bit of that may be seen as rude as well. I don’t know the terms for these in Japanese so I don’t know how to explain it to people if asked. And I can’t mask it all for the entire time I’m in Japan. I also wear headphones just about 24/7, I don’t know if that’s rude either but they block out a lot of overwhelming sounds. My mom, who I’m traveling with, wants to make a vlog about our trip to Japan and how we go about traveling there with my disabilities, which I’m okay with I guess, but I want to know what I can actually do in Japan to help with my disabilities, and what people may think of them. Cus, I will be very excited in Japan, which would basically be me uncontrollably bouncing and jumping and giggling and squealing and shaking my arms hapilly and all the happy stims, lol. I don’t know if that’s seen as rude. And it probably is, but I can’t do anything about it. So, anyone gotvany info that may be helpful?
So, does anyone have any tips about traveling to Japan with disabilities? Specifically invisible disabilities? Such as Autism, ADHD and Tourette’s? And anxiety. I have been teaching myself Japanese with textbooks for a long time now, so I should be able to communicate well enough. I know how to use chopsticks I think, I’ll have to double check I’m using them properly. I know some rules, like you can’t jaywalk, bowing is like handshakes I think? We’re planning to go to Tokyo disney and I’m excited, it’ll be my first time at any disney park and it’ll be in Japan!! Does Tokyo disney have similar disability supports as what I’ve heard other parks have? Or is it gonna be different? We were planning to go to Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo, and somewhere near Tokyo that has skiing, so if there’s any specific information about the places we’re going that would be helpful too. I think I’m rambling. I have no real idea what I’m asking about here, just a lot of anxiety about going to a place I’ve always wanted to go. Dunno what to do about my disabilities. Oh, also, what would people in Japan think of an adult carrying around a baby doll everywhere? I have a baby doll that helps with my disabilities a lot and so I take her everywhere. And I don’t know how people will react to that in Japan. Around here, where I live, I get people staring and whispering and laughing at times, but mostly people ignore me. Is it gonna be about the same in Japan?
6 comments
You will be fine. Especially in the touristy areas like Pokemon Centers, things like carrying around a doll won’t really be a problem.
People tend to overthink what will be considered rude. Honestly, most people won’t care. And even if they think you are a bit odd, they will likely not do anything. Is it possible that some people will stare or talk about you… maybe, but that can be the case for about anybody that is not visibly Japanese.
How to explain it if people ask, just say that you you have an illness, no need to try to explain in detail.
Going to Japan is for sure a good way to use an practice your Japanese, but do not expect it to be easy. I took class in university for over a year and when I went to Japan for the first time, communication with people was not that easy, yes I could understand things, but there is a lot I did not understand. So just so you know, it might not be as easy as you think, but that is normal.
Don’t worry about those things, just be yourself. If you learned some Japanese, try it! If you want to use chopsticks, do it! If you want to carry around your doll, who cares! Tokyo Disney is awesome! Enjoy your time in Japan.
I would be more concerned about your mother videoing everything, that could possibly tick off some people.
It’s very easy to blend in and keep to yourself. The culture kinda thrives on everyone keeping to themselves. It’s uncommon for strangers to talk to each other, and everything has rules, there are systems. If anything it’s a paradise in a way for us autistic folk. The difficult parts may be navigating train tickets or maybe sensory overload in crowds but people give space, people will go out of their way to help if you ask, and it’s okay to wear headphones and keep your head down.
Feel free to DM me with questions and for specifics. I’ve been 10+ times.
I would read this thread in the T[DR subreddit about visiting TDR with invisible disabilities.](https://www.reddit.com/r/TokyoDisneySea/comments/124bgq0/autism_at_tokyo_disney/)
Jump to the bottom and you can read about someone who went in the last few months. I found that most sit down restaurants do take walk-ups, you just might need to wait. (I got into Ristorante Canaletto that way 2x in the last 9 months.)
If you’re hoping to go skiing, make sure you know when the various ski resorts open up.
So, there is something called ヘルプマーク (help mark) that you could wear like a tag on your bag to let people around you know that you have an invisible disability. You can read the article that I linked:
[https://en.japantravel.com/tokyo/what-is-a-help-mark-badge-in-japan/70029#:~:text=The%20Help%20Mark%20is%20a,the%20early%20stages%20of%20pregnancy](https://en.japantravel.com/tokyo/what-is-a-help-mark-badge-in-japan/70029#:~:text=The%20Help%20Mark%20is%20a,the%20early%20stages%20of%20pregnancy).
Now, this is technically only for residents, but there is an emergency one that you could print out and put it in a card case and wear it. You can find the document on this website where it says, “(3) If you are in a hurry”:
[https://translation2.j-server.com/LUCAIFUKUS/ns/tl.cgi/https://www.fukushi.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/shougai/shougai_shisaku/helpmark.html?SLANG=ja&TLANG=en&XMODE=0&XCHARSET=utf-8&XJSID=0](https://translation2.j-server.com/LUCAIFUKUS/ns/tl.cgi/https://www.fukushi.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/shougai/shougai_shisaku/helpmark.html?SLANG=ja&TLANG=en&XMODE=0&XCHARSET=utf-8&XJSID=0)
Cheers and I hope you have a great time in Japan!