Health and roller coaster questions

[disneyplanner76]

Okay first of all I'm not asking for any medical advice; I realize every person and their situation is different.

However my dad recently had a major heart attack. He had no risk factors (doesn't smoke, drink, eats right, exercises), his doctors blamed genetics. They were able to remove blockage by cath, and placed two stents.

But I'm wondering if he'll still be able to ride any of the "tame" roller coasters at WDW - the Mountains, Test Track, I saw even that Soarin has a heart condition warning! My daughter is finally tall enough to ride the big rides and my dad is a roller coaster enthusiast. He's wondering if he'll have to miss out on my daughter's first rides.

Has anyone had a similar health condition- to offer any thoughts from their own experiences? Again I know ultimately we need to get clearance from his doctor that's specific to his situation - but since his next visit is a month away- I'm just wondering if others could tell what their experiences have been; so I can manage my expectations.

 

[all4disney98]

I am absolutely not giving any medical advice and there are so many warnings before the rides for heart conditions that you need to take into consideration. Just a story to let you know that my Dad had a triple bypass in November '01 and was riding the roller coasters when we went to WDW September '02. There wasn't anything that was going to stop him from his normal routines. One of my biggest regrets in life is not buying the picture of us on RnRC together a few years back. Makes me sad to think about it.

Have your Dad talk to his doctor to get his advice. Give your Dad a big hug too, I miss mine so much! (Don't want to freak you out, my Dad passing away had nothing to do with his heart. It was cancer. )

 

[jec13]

I have 5 stents and I have been on every rollercoaster at WDW after having them inserted. I know that Soarin' also has warnings and I have been on that ride many times also. I have even gone on Mission Space Orange with no problems. I go to Disney to enjoy myself and even with my heart condition I still can.

 

[cm8]

I am absolutely not giving any medical advice and there are so many warnings before the rides for heart conditions that you need to take into consideration. Just a story to let you know that my Dad had a triple bypass in November '01 and was riding the roller coasters when we went to WDW September '02. There wasn't anything that was going to stop him from his normal routines. One of my biggest regrets in life is not buying the picture of us on RnRC together a few years back. Makes me sad to think about it.

Have your Dad talk to his doctor to get his advice. Give your Dad a big hug too, I miss mine so much! (Don't want to freak you out, my Dad passing away had nothing to do with his heart. It was cancer. )

 

[SueM in MN]

Just wanted to point out that Soarin' does NOT have any health warnings. They do mention fear of heights and motion sickness in the preshow as a caution, but there are no other warnings.
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/parks/epcot/attractions/soarin/

Disney does put warnings on certain attractions; no one will stop you from boarding. I've got a list of those attractions, but not on this computer so can't post it now.

 

[Wild4Walt]

My mom always makes an appt with her Dr. the month before we leave for our trip. She asks him his thoughts and he tells her if he feels it would be a good idea or not - that may give your dad and you a little piece of mind.

My mom has been given the green light on most trips to ride BTMRR, Test Track and Soarin. She was discouraged from riding Mission Mars. The pressure on that ride is tough for many heart patients.

I recommend he speak to his doctor to maximize his enjoyment on the trip!

Have fun!

 

[SueM in MN]

Here's the list from the park maps.
You can look at the park maps for the attractions with warnings - they are marked with a red triangle on the map and also on a sign at the entrance to the queue.
The wording for the general warning is:
WARNING! For safety, you should be in good health and free from high blood pressure, heart, back or neck problems, motion sickness, or other conditions that could be aggravated by this adventure. Expectant mothers should not ride.
WDW puts the warnings on these attractions and it's up to you and your doctor to decide which warnings apply to you.

For Epcot here are the attractions with warnings:

• Mission Space the more tame (green side) and the more wild (orange side) both jerk riders around quite a bit. The orange side is more 'problem' because it also includes the spinning of a centrifuge along with the other motions.
• Test Track

For Magic Kingdom:

• Splash Mountain
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
• Tomorrowland Indy Speedway - your ride car can get bumped hard from behind; the warning may be more for back issues.
• Space Mountain
• Goofy's Barnstormer (this doesn't have a triangle warning sign on the map, but does say that pregnant women should not ride, so it's not exactly tame)

For Disney Studio

• Star Tours
• Rock N Roller Coaster
• Tower of Terror

For Animal Kingdom:

• Kilimanjaro Safari
• Kali River Rapids
• Expedition Everest
• Primeval Whirl
• Dinosaur

Soarin' doesn't have any warnings for health; just heights and possible motion sickness.

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

After seeing my dad almost have a heart attack after riding a rollar coaster several years ago (in Dollywood, TN) I won't let him on anything halfway stressful. He had been seeing a doctor for heart pains and issues the year before but had cleared up and no issues in the last 8 months or so, being a super dad he just had to ride with us. Seeing someone gasphing for air, clutching thier chest and eating nitrogen pills, and thinking my daddy is going to die right here as we rushed to get paramedics isn't a happy vacation memory that I like to relive no matter what ride I want him to see.

BTW he is ok now.

 

[disnut8]

I have a broken neck and have looked at all the Disney warnings signs that relate to that. Most of them also related to heart conditions. Using Sue's wonderful list for a previous post, here's my thoughts on why I chose to ride or not to ride attractions with the warning:

I ride the green side of Mission:Space and I ride Test Track. I will not do the orange side of Mission:Space (I rode that before my accident) because I feel the green side is just as good. I ride Test Track because I feel it's not worse than riding in a car in Atlanta traffic on any given day.

I don't ride any of the mountains at Magic Kingdom. I also do not attempt the Teacups since they spin.

I ride Star Tours for the same reasons as Test Track. I do not ride Rock and Roller Coaster or Twilight Zone. However, I do the preshow at Twilight Zone since I love the build up for it.

I do Safari for the same reasons as Test Track. Same with Kali River Rapids. I do not do Primeval Whirl because it spins. I don't do Dinosaur because I feel it's the jerkiest of all the "motion simulators" at Disney World. It's also very loud and I couldn't get my husband back on it even with a bribe. I don't do Expedition Everest either.

According to my doctor when I first broke my neck, all those attractions were off limits to me. However, it's been four years and between my past experiences of the attractions and my husband's current experience, we've made decisions together on what I should and should not ride. For example, I thought I could do Expedition Everest because it is a smooth roller coaster. He did it after my accident (and a few more times since) and has deemed the drop too much for me.

 

[Swimalie]

My dad had triple bypass in 2004. His was genetic as well. He has no contributing factors (smoking, over weight, etc). In fact, he just did 3 triathlons and took first in his age group in 2 of them and 2nd in the other. We went to Disney in March and he rode everything with us. The faster the better! Oh, and my dad is also battling cancer right now but none of that was going to stop him from taking his grandson on a trip of a lifetime.

So as long as your dad's doctor says its okay, go for it and enjoy! Love every minute of it, too. I know I did.

 

[leeh1530]

My father has had three angioplastes and had stents inserted as well. Since then, we've been to WDW three or four times and he has had no problems at all. He's also a big fan of the intense version of MS, won't ride the mild version. We do worry about our health since I've had two brain surgeries and his heart problems and neither of us have had issues in the past. The only problem I have ever seen is when we were on Soarin' and I could tell something was up with him. Turns out, he didn't realize that it would go that high and he was uncomfortable with the height. Let's ignore the fact I had described the ride to him prior to riding.
I would check with your doctors first, but I imagine you should be good.

 

[luvthemouse71]

My Dad had his heart attack about 20 years ago, in his early 40's. Had angioplasty and quit smoking. He's on meds for cholesterol and BP but basically is doing well. When I took him to WDW in 2008, he rode BTMRR, Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, EE(3 times), Soarin and Mission Space-Green.

Being that your dad is just recovering, I think I'd play it safe. I think Soarin would be fine, BTMRR(bumpy, but no big hills) and probably Splash. But, I would also give his doctor the final say. HTH!

 

[jlder72]

I am not giving medical advice but................ I think Disney posts a lot of those signs to protect itself from litigation (which is rampant in today's society). I would recommend speaking with your doctor but I think he/she would be fine with it (then again due to the litigeous society they may recommend against it, lol.....)

 

[disneyplanner76]

These personal stories have been just want I needed. This is all so new to us still it was easy to keep falling into the thought that nothing was ever going to be the same and his quality of life would be so diminished.

Sounds like (of course if doctor gives okay) that after some much needed taking it easy these rides could be in his future once again!

Thanks!

 

[mfd25wife]

I have a broken neck and have looked at all the Disney warnings signs that relate to that. Most of them also related to heart conditions. Using Sue's wonderful list for a previous post, here's my thoughts on why I chose to ride or not to ride attractions with the warning:

I ride the green side of Mission:Space and I ride Test Track. I will not do the orange side of Mission:Space (I rode that before my accident) because I feel the green side is just as good. I ride Test Track because I feel it's not worse than riding in a car in Atlanta traffic on any given day.

I don't ride any of the mountains at Magic Kingdom. I also do not attempt the Teacups since they spin.

I ride Star Tours for the same reasons as Test Track. I do not ride Rock and Roller Coaster or Twilight Zone. However, I do the preshow at Twilight Zone since I love the build up for it.

I do Safari for the same reasons as Test Track. Same with Kali River Rapids. I do not do Primeval Whirl because it spins. I don't do Dinosaur because I feel it's the jerkiest of all the "motion simulators" at Disney World. It's also very loud and I couldn't get my husband back on it even with a bribe. I don't do Expedition Everest either.

According to my doctor when I first broke my neck, all those attractions were off limits to me. However, it's been four years and between my past experiences of the attractions and my husband's current experience, we've made decisions together on what I should and should not ride. For example, I thought I could do Expedition Everest because it is a smooth roller coaster. He did it after my accident (and a few more times since) and has deemed the drop too much for me.

It's been a year since I broke mine (6/14/09). I was scared to ride either of the Mission Space options. I did ride Tower of Terror labout 10 days ago because it is just a drop and not jerky. It didn't hurt me. I did ride RnR. it hurt and kept hurting all day. I will not do it again. It made me sad, though because it is one of my favorites. I did some at MK without a problem-Pooh, Aladin, POTC, BTMRR, etc. I walked through the line with DH for Space Mountain, but took the exit. I did get on Test track, but it freaked me out a little. That wasn't pain, it was because I broke mine when our anti lock brakes locked up and we slid sideways into a semi. I had to calm myself down a little. The outside part was better. I haven't tried EE and may not. It was just too soon.

I am glad you are doing well. It's not often I hear someone else say they broke their neck and are not paralyzed. The neurosurgeon kept telling me how lucky I was. He said he had never had someone have 4 separate injuries that could have killed them, but they were just right to not do so.

 

[torinsmom]

I don't understand why anyone would say BTMRR was okay, but SM was not? SM is a lot smoother than BTMRR IMHO. I have had a brain surgery and the rides I cannot do are the ones with the high G forces, so RnRC and MS-red are definitely out. I did Revenge of the Mummy at Universal and got really dizzy afterwards, so I think that one is out now too. I can do the simulators and spinning though. I don't like any real drops (bigger than SM) because they make me feel like I can't breathe. Don't know if that's physical or emotional, but I avoid them either way.

Marsha

 

[mfd25wife]

I don't understand why anyone would say BTMRR was okay, but SM was not? SM is a lot smoother than BTMRR IMHO. I have had a brain surgery and the rides I cannot do are the ones with the high G forces, so RnRC and MS-red are definitely out. I did Revenge of the Mummy at Universal and got really dizzy afterwards, so I think that one is out now too. I can do the simulators and spinning though. I don't like any real drops (bigger than SM) because they make me feel like I can't breathe. Don't know if that's physical or emotional, but I avoid them either way.

Marsha

BTMRR wasn't rough to me. Who knows? DH rode SM to see if I could and said it was actually more jerky now than before and there is no support for the head so I didn't chance it.

But, now you've made me wonder. I didn't ahve brain surgery, but I had a brain injury (not a bad bleed, just enough to kill my memory)from the wreck. Maybe, I should make my last ride on BTMRR the last one I do.

 

[carrie1626]

If my loved one had just suffered from a major medical event, I would want that person to ask the advice of their DR. The Dr. should be the one to ask/answer what your loved one's limitations are, if any.

 

[Christy1964]

I'm recovering from Lyme disease that manifested neurololgically, and I have wondered what roller coasters I can ride. It's good to hear that other people with health scares have gone on to fully enjoy all the rides.

 

[mfd25wife]

I'm recovering from Lyme disease that manifested neurololgically, and I have wondered what roller coasters I can ride. It's good to hear that other people with health scares have gone on to fully enjoy all the rides.

I hope you fully recover soon. My brother had that and it still crops up occasionally. As for the rides, I was terrified of the drive down to FL so it only got better from there. Even though I can't do everything I did before, there is so much as WDW to enjoy. Last year, I recouperated at AKV. They told me they wanted me to stay but suregery wouldn't be needed so we left to enjoy what was left of my vacation. The wheelchair slowed us down and my lack of being able to ride. But, we loved it. DH wouldn't ride anything without me but we got to enjoy all the things that people usually rush past to get to an attraction.