Best Ideas? Disabled Combat Vet

[mommy2cooper]

My husband is a disabled combat vet with PTSD...along with a few other disabilities. I'm most concerned about his PTSD. He does ok if he knows certain sounds are on their way, but the crowds make him uncomfortable. I know it sounds insane going to Disney with such an issue...but our children really want to go so he's miraculously agreed. I'm wondering if any of you have any ideas on what I can do to make the long wait times more comfortable for him!?

 

[OurBigTrip]

I would absolutely go to Guest Services and request a DAS. If he can get one, it will allow your family to wait outside the line, so that he can either have a quiet place to wait, away from the biggest crowds, or he can experience other, shorter wait time attractions or shop while waiting.

The diagnosis isn't as important as how the diagnosis will affect him while in line. He needs to be able to explain why waiting for long periods in the actual line will negatively affect him, i.e., anxiety, panic, disorientation, physical pain from sensory overload, etc. It might be helpful to write it down ahead of time, so that he can more easily articulate his needs when he arrives at GS.

Good luck, and thanks to you both for your service!

 

[Schmeck]

My husband is a disabled combat vet with PTSD...along with a few other disabilities. I'm most concerned about his PTSD. He does ok if he knows certain sounds are on their way, but the crowds make him uncomfortable. I know it sounds insane going to Disney with such an issue...but our children really want to go so he's miraculously agreed. I'm wondering if any of you have any ideas on what I can do to make the long wait times more comfortable for him!?

Earplugs? There are loud sounds throughout the parks, not just in the queues. Know when the parades are scheduled, when the shows are scheduled, etc, so small fireworks explosions don't set him off.

Are you staying onsite? Use FP+ to have 3 attractions scheduled. Plan well, go at rope drop, leave when it gets crowded.

Avoid leaving the parks right after a show, parade, or fireworks. Huge crowds then, long queues for transportation, etc.

Honestly, we have seen bigger crowds outside of the attractions. Don't know how you are going to avoid those, but I wish you all a wonderful vacation.

 

[mommy2cooper]

Yeah, like I said horrible time to go. I wasn't going to force the issue of going, but my son wanted to go to Disney and I wanted his dream to come true, so I had planned on going alone. My husband decided he wanted to experience this with our son. I admire the fact he is putting aside his own fear (well trying too) for his son!! It's touching. I thank you for all of your kind words. I just don't want to seem unfair. I knew they did the options with guest services, but I've been reading around online and I hear people complain so much about it and how unfair it is and such...I felt really awkward using the service!! My husband is a very loving, gentle man... I am very proud he is trying to do this! Really shows fatherly love!

 

[OurBigTrip]

Yeah, like I said horrible time to go. I wasn't going to force the issue of going, but my son wanted to go to Disney and I wanted his dream to come true, so I had planned on going alone. My husband decided he wanted to experience this with our son. I admire the fact he is putting aside his own fear (well trying too) for his son!! It's touching. I thank you for all of your kind words. I just don't want to seem unfair. I knew they did the options with guest services, but I've been reading around online and I hear people complain so much about it and how unfair it is and such...I felt really awkward using the service!! My husband is a very loving, gentle man... I am very proud he is trying to do this! Really shows fatherly love!

It says everything about your husband that is willing to try this so that he can experience Disney with his son!!

And you shouldn't feel bad about utilizing the DAS - that's what it's there for! My guess is that when you read about the system being unfair, it is most likely referring to the previous system utilized by Disney, where guests basically had unlimited FastPass access, and rarely, if ever, had to wait the actual wait time for rides. The new system means that the guest waits, but he can wait outside of the line, and either do other things during the wait or ride other rides with short wait times.

 

[aaarcher86]

Is schedule,a break time during the afternoon, typically the busiest part of the day to give him a break. If possible, try to go at a slower time. I'd definitely x2 the earplugs. It's pretty loud all over, although most of it is music and things.

 

[mommy2cooper]

Can you guys tell me the most busiest time during the day time?? I actually agree on taking a break. I thought maybe we'd go to the parks for a while then go to the pool at the resort and take a nap and then we could go back and have dinner and hang out til later! Sound like a good plan?

 

[Gracie09]

I wouldn't concentrate so much on the busiest part of the day (although mornings are relatively light and then crowds build) but on the time of year. The crowds in September and late January are so much less overall than summer and spring break time. Also remember even getting out of parts of the parks can take a long time.
I know you said that your dh is ok when he expects certain sounds but if fireworks or gunfire is a trigger there are several attractions and shows that use them that you might not expect.
If I recall correctly there is (was) a castle show that ran several times a day that included fireworks at the end. Mickeys philharmonic I think has some firework or gun shot sound effects. Soaring has fireworks and one loud boom that shakes the seats. Indiana jones has gun fire. The muppets has a cannon fire.

There is a list somewhere on here of quiet places people can go in parks when overwhelmed. One was always first aid. They should let you just sit and collect yourself if you need to. They ask you to sign is may take some basic information just for record keeping purposes.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Can you guys tell me the most busiest time during the day time?? I actually agree on taking a break. I thought maybe we'd go to the parks for a while then go to the pool at the resort and take a nap and then we could go back and have dinner and hang out til later! Sound like a good plan?

That's exactly what we do.

 

[infopurposesonly]

I suggest familiarizing yourself with the parade routes and schedules. Not only will the parade route area be extremely crowded, but some areas will be roped off, making it difficult to navigate the crowds.

 

[buffettgirl]

I would also ask your husband what his feelings are for buses/cars.

When my husband returned from deployment his worst times were when we were in a car surrounded by buses, for instance, stopped at lights. He really had a terrible time dealing with that aspect, and he doesn't even have ptsd, just was so used to that situation being a very dangerous time (being in your vehicle and being surrounded).

So I would think about that situation with your husband - will you be relying on disney transport, or will you have a car that you can drive and possibly pull over if you need. Neither option is without problems but knowing that they might occur might help.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

It says everything about your husband that is willing to try this so that he can experience Disney with his son!!

I agree with a lot of the suggestions you've already gotten. Earplugs were the first thing that came to my mind. My DD has sensory issues and is especially sensitive to sound. She doesn't like the feel of earplugs in her ears so we use the noise reducing earmuffs, but your DH would probably be more comfortable with earplugs. We also use an mp3 player because DD loves music and it soothes her to listen to something she is familiar with rather than ambient noise.

Definitely stop by GS to see about a DAS card. Have your DH describe how his PTSD could affect his ability to wait in lines surrounded by so many other people.

Crowds are lowest for the first couple hours after park open. We usually take an afternoon break to avoid the busiest and hottest part of the day, then return around dinner time for a few hours in the evening.

 

[mommy2cooper]

you guys are awesome and surely think of everything. i'm so happy I found this board!! We were told we could drive and park for free. I'm not sure he'd do well with the buses. Cooper (my ds) wants to ride the monorail, but I haven't been able to find much info on the monorail honestly!! As for the fireworks I think dh would be ok, because we do go yearly to the one's here (july 4th) he gets shaken...and he squeezes me to death but he does ok. Now the next question would be is i'm not sure if he'd flip out with a crowd PLUS the fireworks and parades, would we be able to find a way to enjoy these things without being elbow to elbow with another family? That seems like a no to me, is this right? What are experiences with driving to the park? Is this complicated?

 

[aaarcher86]

you guys are awesome and surely think of everything. i'm so happy I found this board!! We were told we could drive and park for free. I'm not sure he'd do well with the buses. Cooper (my ds) wants to ride the monorail, but I haven't been able to find much info on the monorail honestly!! As for the fireworks I think dh would be ok, because we do go yearly to the one's here (july 4th) he gets shaken...and he squeezes me to death but he does ok. Now the next question would be is i'm not sure if he'd flip out with a crowd PLUS the fireworks and parades, would we be able to find a way to enjoy these things without being elbow to elbow with another family? That seems like a no to me, is this right? What are experiences with driving to the park? Is this complicated?

We always drive. It's pretty easy to navigate. It's like a little highway system but instead of highways and streets it's parks and resorts.

You could watch the fireworks at the Polynesian beach. Or you could make a reservation for the fireworks dessert party. It's got limited people and he could stay back at the table instead of going up to the railing to get some space.

Epcot is pretty spaced out. Never been overcrowded there.

Fantasmic, you could do the dining package and get in the reserved seating area. We didn't sit by anybody.

A lot of the crowd issues though will depend on the time you go. When are you thinking of traveling?

 

[disney david]

Never mind sorry bad suggestion

 

[Maggie'sMom]

you guys are awesome and surely think of everything. i'm so happy I found this board!! We were told we could drive and park for free. I'm not sure he'd do well with the buses. Cooper (my ds) wants to ride the monorail, but I haven't been able to find much info on the monorail honestly!! As for the fireworks I think dh would be ok, because we do go yearly to the one's here (july 4th) he gets shaken...and he squeezes me to death but he does ok. Now the next question would be is i'm not sure if he'd flip out with a crowd PLUS the fireworks and parades, would we be able to find a way to enjoy these things without being elbow to elbow with another family? That seems like a no to me, is this right? What are experiences with driving to the park? Is this complicated?

There are three monorail lines. One is an express route from the Ticket and Transportation Center (TTC) to the MK. If you drive to the MK, you park at the TTC and ride either the monorail or the ferry boat to the MK. There's another monorail line that runs from the TTC to Epcot and back. The third is the resort monorail which runs in a circle from the TTC to the Polynesian Resort, the Grand Floridian, the MK, the Contemporary, and back to the TTC. There are currently monorail shutdowns on the MK and Resort routes in the middle of the day. I haven't really paid attention since we won't be there until May but check out the Transportation board here for more info. (just checked... scheduled hours for monorail shut down are from 11:30am to 7:00pm from 1/21 until the end of March)

The beach at the Polynesian Resort is an excellent place to watch the MK fireworks. They pipe in the music, but the fireworks aren't as loud since you are a little further away. Plus, crowds are less than being in the MK watching. The Poly is walking distance from the TTC. If you park at the TTC, there is a walkway on the left as you walk towards the monorail station. It's on the left just before the ticket booths.

ETA: map of TTC and Poly

 

[mommy2cooper]

you guys are so great.....ty so much!!!

 

[Danadanes]

I hope you are staying at Shades of Green. If you look at the picture of the Poly/TTC above, the driveway on the left side that sort of runs into the top of the Poly parking lot is the driveway for SOG. The resort is so restful and they really take vet's needs into account. The resort is less "in your face Disney" so you can get away from the sensory overload. The rooms are large, and most have balconies looking over the golf course. It is wonderful! and you can walk easily to the monorail at the Polynesian - less than a 1/2 mile.

 

[mommy2cooper]

We originally had planned on staying at shades of green properties. Then my son seen the Disney video and was determined he was going to stay at the more "decorated" resorts so we compromised and we are now staying at the Disney All Star Sports. It actually isn't costing us too much more money in the long run. I've been reading every sticky I have come across in the planning section and so far I think everything is turning out just fine. I've been able to figure out exactly what I need to do. I was talking to DH today about the fire works as well as some of the rides that you guys mentioned and he is on Youtube searching the rides to see what they are like. I warned him the fire works are much different than they are here at 4th of July...ours are pitiful...he said he thinks he'd be ok. He mentioned he felt it'd put him a little on edge and he just didn't want to be surrounded by others because he wouldn't know how he'd react, so we are going to hang out at the resort you guys mentioned. I figured if we did this we could easily just leave if it became too much for him. If we sit outside at the resort will we be able to see the fireworks just as you can from the front of MK? I know someone mentioned tinkerbell at the top of the castle??

 

[Maggie'sMom]

We originally had planned on staying at shades of green properties. Then my son seen the Disney video and was determined he was going to stay at the more "decorated" resorts so we compromised and we are now staying at the Disney All Star Sports. It actually isn't costing us too much more money in the long run. I've been reading every sticky I have come across in the planning section and so far I think everything is turning out just fine. I've been able to figure out exactly what I need to do. I was talking to DH today about the fire works as well as some of the rides that you guys mentioned and he is on Youtube searching the rides to see what they are like. I warned him the fire works are much different than they are here at 4th of July...ours are pitiful...he said he thinks he'd be ok. He mentioned he felt it'd put him a little on edge and he just didn't want to be surrounded by others because he wouldn't know how he'd react, so we are going to hang out at the resort you guys mentioned. I figured if we did this we could easily just leave if it became too much for him. If we sit outside at the resort will we be able to see the fireworks just as you can from the front of MK? I know someone mentioned tinkerbell at the top of the castle??

The fireworks are a little further away, but it's still a great show at the Poly. You won't be able to see Tinkerbell's flight, or at least DD and I couldn't when we were on the beach at the Poly. But Tink doesn't fly every night. If there's too much wind, or it's too cold, she doesn't appear. I'd go with the plan that is less stressful for your DH than worrying about missing a small part of the show.