Child with Down Syndrome

[SueM in MN]

The MacLaren Special Needs stroller is under 600.00, I believe. If you contact your insurance company thru your physical therapist you may be able to get funding for a Convaid chair . The wheelchair/strollers are not made to last a short time, rather they are made to fit your child for many years. ... Rachel rides on hers on the bus at WDW but we also use it everyday when we go places. It is a wonderful thing!!!

The Maclaren Major is on sale at adaptivemall.com for $466. Expensive, yes, but it will hold a child up from toddler age thru primary school. It is not crash tested or approved for use on buses, but it is a good special needs stroller. There are places that rent them in Orlando (there are links to some companies in the disABILITIES FAQs thread). All the companies I found list the Maclaren Major as the special needs stroller they rent. If anyone knows a company that rents one that is approved for the bus, I'd appreciate knowing so I can add it to the FAQs thread.

Adaptivemall.com has a nice cross section of special needs strollers, even if you don't end up buying one you can see a good selection of what is available. They have a page that shows the ones that are appropriate for bus travel. Those are quite a bit more expensive because they need to be sturdy enough to tie down and ride in during a bus ride. This is the least expensive of the 'bus transportable ones'.

If you can get a good therapist who knows how to really explain/interpret the need for the insurance company, you may be able to get much of the cost covered.

 

[ashleypmo]

Thank you both, Rachelsmom & SueM for the info! I'm going to look into it. We have an appointment to get Mason fitted for his orthotics tomorrow, and his PT will be there, so I'll ask her.

I am so thankful for this community!

 

[RACHELSMOM1]

Thank you both, Rachelsmom & SueM for the info! I'm going to look into it. We have an appointment to get Mason fitted for his orthotics tomorrow, and his PT will be there, so I'll ask her.

I am so thankful for this community!

Sending best wishes and lots of pixie dust your way ..... Please let us know how everything goes!!!!

 

[suepmcc]

Hi,
Thought I'd share our experiences. We have three children. Our middle child (5.5 yr DD) has Down's. She has been to WDW 4 times. The only time we got a GAC card was the last trip, Thanksgiving 06, when she was 5 yrs old. The last trip, she was too big to fit comfortably in a regular stroller so we borrowed a Maclaren Major from her school. (We are in the process of purchasing one now!) We started out the first day without the GAC because it was a more crowded time of year and I wanted to go straight to rides at opening before heavier crowds hit. Once wait times got above 10-15 minutes, I discovered a few difficulties with her in lines:

• She would get tired and just sit down even if the line was moving, and the floor was wet or dirty.
• She would reach for/touch whatever sparkly or shiny objects/decorations the people around us had on their clothes or accessories. (she loves jewelry)
• She would touch and/or taste the ropes or chains that formed the lines, and manipulate any of them she could, even after I told her about "germs" or "yucky"
• She would duck under barriers/ bolt if I let go of her hand at all, with no comprehension of "danger", even when explained to her.

So, I learned that for longer waits it was better to keep her in the stroller for her safety and my peace of mind. I got the GAC to use the stoller as a wheelchair, using alternate entrances where appropriate. As previous posters have said, each child is different. If you find an unanticipated difficulty you can always go back to guest services.

Sue