DD has special needs...question.

dfluvsmick

Earning My Ears
Joined
Feb 13, 2009
Messages
69
Hi there. I have a ds 12 who has ADHD and also a dd (will be turning 4 on the trip) who has DandyWalker variant. It is mostly a motor skills disability, but she has a lot of sensory issues as well. For school, she doesn't wait in the halls like other children, she is automatically brought into a classroom. One of the moms in my special needs support group just told me today about going to guest relations and explaining her issues and they will give me something to get her in faster. She will not do good being still for so long in a line. To look at her, you would never know she has disabilities. My questions are:
What can they do for me? Will people look at us funny if we are brought to a special waiting area? So I need dr documentation to show them? Any advice would be great. I didn;t even know this exsisted.
Thank you so much.
 
I haven't used the GAC-guest assistance pass myself. But my understanding is that you don't need to provide documentation. You go to Guest Services, and describe what type of accomodations are needed. Also, I don't think it speeds up the wait time, but you may be able to wait in a more quiet spot. There are so many more knowledgeable people here, they will be able to give you more exact info.
 
There are 2 things you should think about.

1. She might do best being able to stay in her stroller even in waiting areas. At Guest Relations, they can mark your Guest Assistance Card (GAC) or give you a hang tag for the stroller indicating that you can use your stroller as a wheelchair meaning that you can bring the stroller anywhere that a wheelchair can go. The stroller will allow her a safe place to retreat from the noise and lights and motion of the people, especially if you have some kind of canopy. In addition, it can keep her from suddenly bolting from you or from going down on the ground and refusing to move. I strongly recommend this.

2. Because many lines are wheelchair accessible, this will not be the only accomodation that you need. Explain to the CM at Guest Relations exactly what you explained here about waiting and sensory needs. I would include the fact that even at school she doesn't wait in the hall with the other children. The "standard" accomodation for kids with sensory needs who have trouble waiting still do have some wait time and typically can handle this. I'm not sure if there might be another level of accomodation that would be possible for faster access to rides since it sounds as though she has a much shorter meltdown point than most with these kinds of difficulties.

As the other person said, you do not need any kind of doctor's letter. In fact, the person at Guest Relations really doesn't want to see it since a diagnosis doesn't tell him anything about the actual need plus they are not allowed to ask for one I believe due to HIIPA laws. You need to be able to explain to the person at Guest Relations exactly what kinds of difficulties she has and he will give you a GAC which provides for her needs. GACs are for people who have invisible types of disabilities. Cast Members all over the parks are used to seeing them and in no way question the validity of the need based on appearances. They're trained to understand that GACs are given to people with invisible disabilities.

If your son has his own special needs, get a separate card for him. For rides that your daughter won't ride, you can't use her GAC. It's only applicable for the person who is on the card and up to 5 guests. If he doesn't have any particular special needs then ignore this advice. I can't tell if he does or doesn't based on his diagnosis because each child with ADHD will have his/her own unique needs (again, this is why the doctor letter stating a diagnosis is useless for the people at Guest Relations).

Even with the GAC and stroller as wheelchair option, don't plan to do commando type tours of the parks. Try to go when it is slowest (rope drop at the parks and Extra Magic Hours are great) so there won't be so many people around and waits are going to be shorter. Try to eat at off times so there won't be so many people in the restaurants. Watch her closely for early warning signs of meltdown because it does take a while to get back to your hotel and you want to be able to head out long before full meltdowns happen.
 
A GAC will not shorten any wait times. What it can possibly provide for you is an alternate place to wait that may have less sensory input. Your best bet truly is to get a good strategy going, use fastpass and get a stroller as wheelchair tag. Have a good time! :)
 

Thank you all so much... I wasn't looking for shorter wait times, just really don't want to experience to many meltdowns. This is a vacation, you know. LOL!
 
If you look in the disABILITIES FAQs thread, you will find a long set of Frequntly asked questions about the GAC in post #6.
There is a link in my signature that will take you right to that thread.

One thing that potentially help you even more than a GAC is to have a good touring plan and to use Fastpasses. Each park has certain times and certain areas that are more quiet than others. Knowing where and when to go can help you to avoid the general busy-ness of the parks. Having a GAC will give you a quieter place to wait for attractions, but if that park is busy, it will be busy all over.
 
ITA with fast passes:) there are times going in through a WC/ECV line will NOT be faster

I did some looking this past Sunday and made some observations:

Get a fast pass for Jungle cruise- we had a 15 minute wait and we really wanted to use Fast passes for other rides and we waited. the lines are SO close together. I hated waiting with all those people so close to me . I really felt trapped and we moved faily fast but it was really tight.
I also Noticed that when we got on a boat there was a LONG line for the EVC/WC entrance. The same people were still waiting after we rode. I counted and 26 people were in line for that ride. not everyone was in a WC but there were many people with the EVC/WC people.

the parks were not all that busy - (it started to rain around 4ish) but in fantasy land it is always crowded:)
Fast passes are really a good way to go:)
 





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