Anyone have experience with anxiety disorder and WDW?

[BayouMouseketeer]

I can't believe I am sharing this much information about myself but I honestly don't know where else to look for information.

I have severe, disabling anxiety disorder including OCD (germaphobia, hand-wringing), panic attacks, social anxiety (agoraphobia) and generalized anxiety. There are times when I am unable to leave my home, at all, for weeks at a time.

Yet, I am determined to take my kids to WDW. Both have chronic medical issues and my DS has undergone 5 surgeries, facing the possibility of another, and has had serious health issues for which he has been hospitalized many times, so I want to do this for them as my own little "Make a Wish" program for them!

But, I am freaking out about the whole thing! My brother and SIL are going with us to help with the kids and because, if I have a panic attacks, they can split up and one stay with the kids while the other stays with me.

I plan to avoid DQ because of the reviews I have read here about it being loud and crowded so my brother will take the kids while SIL and I shop the Marketplace.

Has anyone else actually survived WDW with anxiety disorder? If you don't want to post about it, I totally understand, but would you please PM me? I am looking for helpful tips on how best to control my anxiety (besides carrying extra meds which my doctor suggested.)

 

[pcparamedics01]

My son has Autism and he does have OCD at times as well. He has at times ritualistic routines. Not exactly the same with some of your disorders but some similarities. As I would tell anyone else, go with the flow and see what happens. Take it as it comes. Try to avoid places were you think you may have an attack. Perhaps bring earplugs if you run into a situation noisy. Do everything you can do to ensure that your child has a great trip. I would take frequent breaks. Go back to the room and reorganize yourself. Perhaps eat in your resort where it is less busy or eat in your hotel. Take it easy and slow! You will be fine and he will have a great time! Just keep telling yourself that and it will happen!!!!

 

[spotdog]

I am an adult living with anxiety and panic disorder who loves Disney. Try searching the forum with the words "anxiety" or "panic". You will find there are quite a few of us.

 

[Forevryoung]

I've had my own panic attacks in the parks... feel free to PM me with any more specific concerns if you don't want to discuss it out in the open.

 

[JulieWent]

Avoid the fireworks / Illuminations / Fantasmic / parade crowds. They can be panic attack-inducing even to those who don't have anxiety.

If possible, go during a time of the year that is not a peak season. (Check various publications, but fall, early December, some of January and February, early May, etc. Avoid three-day weekends and Spring Break.)

Tour in the early mornings if you're able. When you start getting tired, go back to your resort and take a break. (We like to go play miniature golf at one of the two miniature golf sites on WDW property. Sometimes we rent a little mouse boat and ride around on one of the lakes. We swim or sleep or just go from resort to resort to see what's going on.)

In the late afternoons or evenings, sometimes we go back into the parks, but we take it really low key and don't expect to go on anything. If we get on anything, it's like a perk.

We carry hand wipes for those times when we're in line and our child with OCD has a germ-induced panic attack.

Make ADRs for restaurants early (like eating at 5:30) so that you don't end up waiting a long time to eat. (Being hungry isn't a great way to stay okay, at least in our family.) The restaurants are less likely to be crowded then, too. If it's possible budget-wise, think about staying at a home-away-from-home resort (like Old Key West). That way you can have a washing machine and dryer and you can cook for yourself some.

If I think of anything else, I'll post again. We've been to WDW about a dozen times with our family, and we've dealt with panic attacks and OCD each time. (And we've had loads of fun!)

Julie

 

[dclfun]

I just wanted to mention that another guest posted in the past that they received an emotional support dog to help them with anxiety and panic attacks. They brought the dog, who was small, into the queue lines to stroke the dog, etc. to aid in calming and refocusing, plus the dog learned to alert to the persons upcoming attack. I don't know if this would be something to look into in the future to allow you to leave your home or have a less stressful experience but I share it as a "thought". I agree with others who have said to avoid exiting the park at the end of the day or after a parade. You can also speak with someone at guest services to circle less crowded places or places to get away from crowds on your park map. Do you have plans yet for which resort you will be staying at? Is it helpful for you to be in a smaller or larger space? Does view location make a difference? I would suggest a relaxing resort, such as the Poly, if your budget allows for that. You can take a boat back to the resort which is less crowded than the monorail and the grounds themselves are very relaxing. I hope you have a great trip and I commend you for doing something that personally is so difficult so that your children can visit WDW.---Kathy

 

[Ms_Butterfly]

I just wanted to mention that another guest posted in the past that they received an emotional support dog to help them with anxiety and panic attacks.

I don't think Disney allows any type of pets, emotional support or not, in for any reason. Only service animals are allowed. But you could always bring a stress ball to squeeze or fuzzy piece of material/stuffed animal to rub (you can keep them in your pocket if you don't want others to see them).


To the OP: Purell!! Go at a time of year when the crowds are less. If you can afford to, go for a longer stay than may be necessary so you can have time to go back to your resort (do stay on-site) for a mid-day break yet still get all the attractions you want done. (You could also take a mid-day break at the First Aid stations - they have private rooms you can lay down in.) Choose a quiet resort. Bring anything you need with you (liquid soap, paper towels, etc. for the room and Purell for the parks) and don't feel foolish to use it. Since you're going with three or more ppl, in lines they can buffer you by having one in front of you and one behind you and they can leave enough space (as much as you need) in between them for you to feel comfortable.

You'll have a great time at Disney! You may very well find that your fear about your health problems affecting the trip is fairly unfounded.

 

[BayouMouseketeer]

Thank you all! Your ideas are wonderful! I want this to be a magical time for my kids (and myself ) so I will try all I can to avoid my triggers. I am so thankful for my brother and SIL who will be able to relieve me if I need to step away and gather myself. I know I could never ever do this without someone else along for the ride!

 

[dclfun]

I realize that legally Disney does not have to allow ESD's into the parks. However....in severe cases of anxiety that are disabling enough to qualify a person under the ADA as "disabled", then that person has public access rights if they are accompanied by a dog that does a trained task or alert to mitigate that person's disability. In the case of a dog that does alert to an impending anxiety attack and/or offers mitigation of that person's anxiety and panic disorder, then they are considered a medical alert ESD who would have public access rights. Of course such a dog would have to be trained for this task and otherwise exhibit exemplary behavior. While attending a few foster puppy raiser events for PWAC, Disney has also allowed the families to bring their puppies into the park with advance notification. If a puppy can survive Disney, then they should eventually make a great SD! Foster puppies are not normally given public access either so the raisers are very grateful for this opportunity as a foster puppy is not a SD and is still considered a pet. I have often seen training puppies in the parks. I was thinking for the OP that if germs are a problem, a dog might not be the best solution but since it has helped others, it was just a suggestion.---Kathy

 

[Ms_Butterfly]

I realize that legally Disney does not have to allow ESD's into the parks. However....in severe cases of anxiety that are disabling enough to qualify a person under the ADA as "disabled", then that person has public access rights if they are accompanied by a dog that does a trained task or alert to mitigate that person's disability. In the case of a dog that does alert to an impending anxiety attack and/or offers mitigation of that person's anxiety and panic disorder, then they are considered a medical alert ESD who would have public access rights.

No person with an emotional support dog has access rights for that dog. However, if the person is legally disabled and the dog is trained to do tasks that help them (plus has public access skills), then that dog is a service dog. But a dog that is just for comfort or petting or whatnot is not a service dog and that dog cannot go into no-pets-allowed places (except housing and airplanes, with a letter from the person's doctor stating specific things) like Disney World. Emotional support animals are pets. Service dogs, who are all task-trained, are not pets.

Of course such a dog would have to be trained for this task and otherwise exhibit exemplary behavior. While attending a few foster puppy raiser events for PWAC, Disney has also allowed the families to bring their puppies into the park with advance notification. If a puppy can survive Disney, then they should eventually make a great SD! Foster puppies are not normally given public access either so the raisers are very grateful for this opportunity as a foster puppy is not a SD and is still considered a pet. I have often seen training puppies in the parks. I was thinking for the OP that if germs are a problem, a dog might not be the best solution but since it has helped others, it was just a suggestion.---Kathy

In Florida, the law gives as much public access to service dogs in training as the law (which matches the ADA [plus adds great consequences upon a person who hurts/kills or allows a dog to hurt/kill an SD]) gives to trained service dogs. (The in-training law only applies to dogs being trained for physical disabilities, however.)

 

[dclfun]

I'm really sorry...I didn't want this to turn into a discussion of SD laws, but it is important for anyone considering whether their disability could be helped by a SD. Regarding dogs in training, from what I know the law for service dogs in training though allows for dogs with a trainer, not a foster family raising a puppy unless they are entering a place of business to work on training a task ( pretty hard to prove though). A puppy that is in the parks during one of our outings is not in the parks to train to assist a disabled person or to learn a task, but rather is there to learn social skills. Florida does have some of the best protection for SD's and trainers and laws do vary by state. In cases of "issues" state law trumps federal law and vice versa. I have read reports on this board and others which makes me personally feel that Disney is too lax about asking questions regarding dogs who are brought in. I had a conversation this past month with a security guard who had a dog with him to screen guests who said they do get guests with "comfort dogs". When I tried to explain the difference to him about SD's, vs. "comfort dogs" which legally unless trained, are considered as pets, he just shrugged it off. To see a dog in a covered stroller with an apparently able bodied person while dressed in a doggie princess dress vs. a SD vest has to make me wonder? However it's not my place to challenge those guests who could have an invisible disability and potentially using a medical alert dog. Perhaps, like the OP, their disability is so debilitating that they cannot function, leave their home, etc. without the support they receive from their dog. I am assuming, hopefully, that people who bring a dog into the parks are qualified to do so. For someone who is able to be independent by receiving a dog that assists with an "emotional" or mental disability, I think it's great that they can be helped by a dog vs. medications, and able to live a more full live. Just my opinion- I know there is controversy regarding the use of dogs for emotional disorders and my original post was to help the OP to consider if such a dog would be helpful to her. To me a dog that relieves anxiety, lowers heart rate during a panic attack, etc. is performing a "medical" function which is relieving that person's medical condition and such a dog can learn to alert to an impending attack, thus sparing the person from additional stress. It is not a "comfort dog" in this case. Perhaps I should not have used the term "emotional support" because such a dog is actually mitigating a disability which can be as debilitating as a physical disability.---Kathy

 

[Ms_Butterfly]

Unless the dog does an actual task, it is a pet, regardless of if the person is disabled or not. That's the law.

Yes, I, too, think Disney is too lax in what animals they let in. I haven't heard of any in carriages dressed as princesses (oh my!!!), but one CM that was talking to my friend and I one night as we were the only ones waiting for our resort bus (we were some of the last ppl out of MK's evening EMH) told us of the array of animals he'd seen in Disney, everything from cats to birds to other animals (I forget specifically which ones, but ones that it is very hard to believe they can do any tasks, like hamsters or snakes or something).

Most programs I know of count the puppy raisers as trainers, since they are training the dogs in the basic commands and public access skills. Puppy raisers usually take the dogs with them everywhere to get them used to public places, noises, sights, people, surfaces, etc. (Puppies that are trained by inmates are taken by non-jailed folks on the weekends and those folks take them in public.)

As for the OP, there's no way she'd be able to get an SD (or even an SDIT) in time for her trip in two months. For an owner-trained or privately-trained dog, it takes a long time (one to two years depending on age of dog) to find the right dog, train, and test it - and since she'd need an alert dog, it might take going through multiple dogs to find one that alerts or can be trained to alert. For a program dog, there are usually waiting lists that are incredibly long (but I don't know of programs that train anxiety alert dogs, so she'd prob'ly have to train the dog herself or get a private trainer to do it for her). Just getting a dog and taking it with her would be illegal.

Too many ppl are sneaking their pets in places (and "Dog Fancy" even just told people in an article to do that!!!) or saying their pet is a service dog when it isn't (I even know of a lady who is disabled with a pet dog and she brings her pet everywhere 'cause nobody questions a person in a wheelchair if her dog is an SD or not, grr) just to get their pet into places. I've seen a family sneak their two dogs into a restaurant before (the dogs were in those pet bags that look like ordinary bags except for the mesh ends). And then those of us with real SDs get the backlash, being harrassed about access sometimes even though an impeccably well behaved/invisible dog with an obvious mobility harness and pack that says "SERVICE DOG" in big letters should be tell-tale enough.

 

[spotdog]

BayouMouseketeer OP, I hope you haven't become discouraged by the passionate "service animal" debate. I know that the posters are well-meaning and don't want to see ANYONE turned away or discriminated against just because they have a well trained service animal who is helping them to cope with their disability.

We all try to be supportive and encouraging on this forum, but most of us have experienced some kind of discrimination (in addition to our daily struggles with our mental or physical challenges) and sometimes this makes us rather passionate about accommodations...

Feel free to send me a personal message. I do agree with posters who have suggested avoiding the parade and firework crowds. When I traveled with family, I told the kids to come back to the hotel and tell me all about the parade.

 

[dclfun]

I wanted to add that you might visit Guest Services and request a GAC to skip the pre-shows since sometimes they are in a dark room with lots of guests packed in- of course sometimes there are just a few guests but it would be helpful to be able to choose to avoid something if it is a problem. Most GAC's have stamps that are pre-printed however something like this can still be written in by hand. As for the SD issue, I apologize for even bringing it up, but others with your medical condition have been helped. A dog that can interrupt the cycle of OCD or nudging you to "ask" you to pet him/her instead of hand-wringing or repeating a movement, alerting to an impending panic attack, or even allowing you the ability to leave your home is certainly performing a task and thus would be allowed to accompany someone who is disabled into places where pets are not allowed. There are people who use medical alert dogs for many reasons, including diabetics, those with seizures, etc. Whatever solution you come up with, I hope that your trip to Disney allows you a time of enjoyment and I hope you realize we're all really wishing to support you in any way we can.---Kathy

 

[SueM in MN]

Please - NO MORE ABOUT SERVICE ANIMALS
I'm going to put one final post about Service Animals into this thread and if there is any more discussion, it will be deleted.

Here is a link to the ADA FAQs for businesses about access for Service Animals.
The definition of a Service Animal from that FAQ includes:
The ADA defines a service animal as any guide dog, signal dog, or other animal individually trained to provide assistance to an individual with a disability.

It does include 'alert' dogs for people with a disability if the dog is alerting the person to and protecting them to a medical event, such as a seizure.

That does fit someone who has such a severe anxiety disorder that they can't leave their house without having a panic attack; a panic attack is not just being uncomfortable or nervous, it is a recognized medical event. I used to have reasonably severe panic attacks before I started Inderal for a heart problem. I don't have them as often or as severely as I did at one point, but I remember well what a panic attack feels like - heart racing - heart pounding - I need to get out of here right away - something bad will happen if I can't leave right now!

My panic attacks never rose to the level of a disability that would have required accomodation. If someone without a severe disability has a dog that they pet to relax them, that is a companion animal, a pet and is not a service animal. So, if I had brought my cat along to calm me, she would have been a companion pet, not a service animal.

Someone who can't leave their house because of panic attacks or who has a panic attack every time they go out the door is another situation entirely. A dog that recognizes and alerts them to their rising panic and/or OC 'cycle', protects them while they are having a panic attack and helps to calm them or interupt the cycle would qualify as a service animal because they are performin a service and/or task for a person with a severe disability.

Air travel doesn't come under the ADA, the airlines are covered by the Air carriers Act, which states that the airlines may:
Require documentation for emotional support animals: With respect to an animal used for emotional support (which need not have specific training for that function), airline personnel may require current documentation (i.e., not more than one year old) on letterhead from a mental health professional stating (1) that the passenger has a mental health-related disability; (2) that having the animal accompany the passenger is necessary to the passenger’s mental health or treatment or to assist the passenger (with his or her disability); and (3) that the individual providing the assessment of the passenger is a licensed mental health professional and the passenger is under his or her professional care. Airline personnel may require this documentation as a condition of permitting the animal to accompany the passenger in the cabin. The purpose of this provision is to prevent abuse by passengers that do not have a medical need for an emotional support animal and to ensure that passengers who have a legitimate need for emotional support animals are permitted to travel with their service animals on the aircraft. Airlines are not permitted to require the documentation to specify the type of mental health disability, e.g., panic attacks.

(my bold) - someone with those needs could make a case in other situations that their dog is a bona fide Service Animal.

States can have different laws, as long as they allow at least as much as the Federal Law allows (so whichever allows more is the law that applies).
There is no federal law that allows Service Animals in Training to be treated like full-fledged Service Animals, but many states do have something in their laws that require it (how else can you train a service animal?).
I don't know what Florida law allows. If Florida doesn't require animals in training to have access, whether or not Disney decides to allow puppies or service animals in training into their parks would be up to Disney.

Someone with a severe anxiety disorder may want to investigate whether a Service Animal could provide assistance to them. That would not be something that could happen quickly, so it would not help the OP for a trip in the near future, but might be something to look into.

 

[SueM in MN]

Regarding GAC (Guest Assistance Cards).
There is information in the disABILITIES FAQs thread near the top of the board that should give you most of the information you need about GACs.

 

[Captain_Hook]

If crowds bother you, I would imagine tight spaces might as well -- if that is the case, I would suggest avoiding the caves on Tom Sawyer's Island. I don't have an anxiety disorder, but I felt fairly panicky going through them -- just a heads up....

 

[jillfelice]

My diagnosis is panic disorder with agoraphobia. We live in Las Vegas and have APs for Disneyland and are planning our first trip to WDW in December. I applaud the woman for bringing her young kids in spite of her anxieties. Let us know how it goes.
Question-One of my triggers is the huge parking lot at Disneyland if I am not on the ground floor. We try to get there WAY before opening to get to be the first ones in, but sometimes they only open that up to people with ADA stickers. Is there a way I can ask Disney if I can get a pass to park on the ground floor?
Xanax has been my friend at Disneyland and has gotten me through just about everything.
Jill

 

[Shorty82]

My diagnosis is panic disorder with agoraphobia. We live in Las Vegas and have APs for Disneyland and are planning our first trip to WDW in December. I applaud the woman for bringing her young kids in spite of her anxieties. Let us know how it goes.
Question-One of my triggers is the huge parking lot at Disneyland if I am not on the ground floor. We try to get there WAY before opening to get to be the first ones in, but sometimes they only open that up to people with ADA stickers. Is there a way I can ask Disney if I can get a pass to park on the ground floor?
Xanax has been my friend at Disneyland and has gotten me through just about everything.
Jill

WDW does not have parking garages, all of the lots are surface lots so that won't be a problem.

 

[nanadeb]

My 28 year old daughter has had anxiety and panic attacks since she was a child. For many years, she could not even order in a restaurant because the number of choices literally immobilized her.
ALthough she can not stand crowds, she loves disney World. Of course, we go in shoulder season and favorite time is May.
What helps her is preparation. She explores disney sites, plans her partof the trip, and brings evrything she might need in a given situation.
This past September we took a chance and did the free DDP. Back in April, even before we made our reservations, we haunted the food porn on the Dis board restaurant reviews. We perused the menus for each restaurant, looked at the pictures of food items, and she made tentative choices. She chose more than one of each item in case the menu changed, and was all set when we dined out. She took off one morning to chill out at the villa (Old Key West) and another two partial days to shop at Downtown Disney during regular park hours to avoid the crowds. She had hand wipes, headache remedies, bandaids, and all sorts of thing "just in case" in her backpack. She likes to do the penny press machines, so she had a tube of quarters and pennies ready to use.
We have found over many trips that she does better in a situation where she has a place to destress. We now own 3 timeshares (non-Disney) and do exchanges most of the time so that we are not all packed into one room. Having a kitchen and laundry facilities also makes it feel more homelike and safer for her. She brings pillows and other things from home to make her safe place in either our van or the timeshare room.
It is the familiar that makes her feel less anxious, so you might want to try to think of what you can bring from home that will add to your comfort zone.
HTH. Enjoy Disney Worlld!