How do you handle child who freaks out on rides?

[daffidyll]

This will be DD4's first trip to DL. She is quite likely to get scared on even the tamest of rides but probably not until she is actually on it.....always LOVES the idea of doing things until she is actually doing it iykwim. So, I'm a bit nervous about how she will go (or perhaps nervous how others will react if she's screaming her head off and crying and carrying on...don't want to ruin the ride for them). Has anyone else's child every 'lost the plot' on a ride and if so, how do you handle it??? OR if we are in the line for a ride and she decides she doesn't want to go how do you get back out of the line (if you're in between all the twisty turn bars?

 

[bumbershoot]

When the screaming adults scared DS in the Haunted Mansion's stretching room, I tried to comfort him as best I could. When we reached the vehicles he couldn't do it, so I told the CM we needed to exit. He pointed to where the exit door was.

In December, for some reason DS just did NOT want to go on Roger Rabbit. He loved it in September! I thought he would calm down, and we went through the line (loud, hectic, has some dark areas, big noises), but it didin't work. A family behind us tried to help, but it was no use. When we got to the vehicles I saw a gate that looked like it opened the right way (I think it was for wheelchair entrance and exit), and I just left with DS.

The next day he vehemently told us how much he HATED Peter Pan and he did NOT want to go on it. Well, I'd had enough. He loves loves LOVES Peter Pan. The ride, the movie, the everything. So we just talked to him throughout the line (short line, we were there first thing on a non-MM day), reminded him (and told the strangers listening in wondering why we were forcing this on him) how much he LOVED the ride, and that we were going to have fun.

He did like the ride (didn't want to go again, though) and didn't cry or yelp at all once we were ON the ride.


So that's three instances of how we dealt with it.

And if she's just having a bad time but no one wants to go back to the hotel, find a ride she DOES like, and take turns going on it. A good place for DS was Heimlich's Chew Chew Train in DCA. At one point in December he and I went on it EIGHT times in a row. He liked it, it was relaxing for him, once I got the stick out of somewhere it was stuck (he was wasting my time! BAD molly BAD molly) I could relax a bit, and it was nice down-time. And when there's more than one adult, one can stay with the kid needing to ride something a gazillion times while the other runs off and rides CA Screamin', then they can switch.

 

[bumbershoot]

Oh. How to get the kiddo through the line to an exit...just keep talking to them, show them where the exit is (or where you think it is, or just where the CM is so they can show you the exit). Or if you're trim enough to scoot back through the line (or tall enough to somehow climb over the barrier things) with the child, you can do that, but I won't do that.

 

[Corpsebride]

...there are sooo many fun things to do and see at Dland and DCA that she may not even need to decide wheather she wants to"try" to go on a ride that might upset her.
My suggestion is that you go to the Princess Fantasy Faire. She can meet the Princesses and get her face painted. There is this store in Fantasyland that has all the Princess gowns and crowns and little shoes, oh so cute. I say just dress her up like her fav. Princess. There is King Arthurs Carosel which is pretty tame. And there is lots to do and see in Toon Town. Dont worry Mommy, she will be fine. And if she attempts to go on a ride and then changes her mind, all you have to do is turn around and walk out. People will understand. You all are going to have a great time! Oh, plus there are character meals where you can meet the characters and get their autographs, they have these little autograp books you can buy too. A good idea to is get her her own disposable camera and have her take pics of things she likes in the park and of her with the characters. That way, it is very interactive for her and she wont be stressed out thinking about the pressure of if a ride is scary. The cinema on Mainstreet has cartoons of Steamboat Willie, she can get her characature (sp?) drawn in New Orleans square. The Mark Twain boat ride is very fun, and so is the Jungle cruise. In Tomorrrowland there is The NEMO ride and the autopia where she can drive a car!! Oh, so much to do! It will be great! I am excited for you and her

 

[tkitty]

On another thread, someone suggested to show your child videos of the rides that are on UTube. Great idea, I showed my grandson some of the rides that he was afraid to try, and he says that he thinks he'll try them...like Splash Mtn!

 

[Vanvmom]

The ride most likely to cause "freak out" in children is TOT, as the "movie" they show as part of the cue can be scarier to them than the ups and downs of the ride itself.

 

[daffidyll]

Thanks everyone! Well, no way I will be able to 'squeeze' myself back through the line so guess we'll just be stuck there until we can find a way out. I have shown DD the You Tube videos and also bought a Disney Sing Along Songs DVD so she can see everything and that has helped a bit but that still doesn't help her with the reality of it and she is just so sensitive I really worry that she will say yes she wants to go on Dumbo and then be flying around and around screaming she wants it to stop in a complete meltdown. I will just suss everything out and always look out for exits and CMs then! Anyway, I'm more than prepared that we might just do alot of sightseeing of the park and alot of people/ride watching so we're okay with that and if we go on 20 train rides in a row that's okay too. It's all about the experience. Will definitely get her a camera too!

 

[Mrs. Bee]

I would say to definitely avoid rides that could even be a little bit scary - mr. toads, for sure. But if she screams on something like Dumbo...don't worry about other people in the park. It's outdoors and it's not a big deal. And as some mentioned, you can just ask a castmember how to get out of line.

It's Disneyland. If your child cries/screams...it's not a HUGE deal. It's expected that if you go to a Disney park you will encounter that kind of thing. It only annoys me if it's a more "adult" ride. But even then...I'm not too bothered with it. But I also love kids....haha.

I'm only truly annoyed when I see parents force their screaming children onto rides. But I'm not annoyed with the child at all.

 

[arliepooh68]

I've walked through the rest of the line while reassuring my dd that we would not ride it, while the rest did and she was fine with that. have yet to complete hista, always prepared though and sit nearest the exist cuz I know once the mice start coming she is gonna freak. . . even at 11 she still freaks! however she loves all the scary rides now like california screamin, she even likes the evil sunwheel. .

 

[Mrs. Bee]

I've walked through the rest of the line while reassuring my dd that we would not ride it, while the rest did and she was fine with that. have yet to complete hista, always prepared though and sit nearest the exist cuz I know once the mice start coming she is gonna freak. . . even at 11 she still freaks! however she loves all the scary rides now like california screamin, she even likes the evil sunwheel. .

i'm drawing a blank. what is "hista?"

 

[fairycat]

I dealt with this first hand and let me tell you, how the adults handle the things makes a huge deal how the kid deals with the situation.

We did a trip to celebrate my friends, Granddaughters 7th b-day. She was at that fun "everything is terrifying" stage many kids have. Her grandmother HATES most every ride so the rest of our group (all adults) did many rides without grandma and she rode with us and grandpa. She did fine on most of the rides and the ones she wasn't sure of, grandpa talked to her, telling her what was going to happen next, did some "hey isn't that ____ from _____ cartoon, you like that movie don't you?" kind of chatting and she seemed to mellow.

Well when Grandma decided to go GR with all of us, things went well at first. But Grandma was nervous about the ride and her grandbaby, and all the nerves built to the little one actually trying to unbuckle her belt and jump out of the raft. Thank goodness Grandpas quick or it could have been bad. She literally fed off her Grandmother's nerves. She did the same thing on Hemlich with Grandma too.

My advice is be calm, explain things to her as they happen. I saw a little girl go from panic to calm just by her Mom telling her when the drops would happen on POTC and her Mom talking her through them. Also don't push her, every ride has a emergency leave point, just ask a CM. You are not the first or the last parent to have to use one.

One last thing, besides watching the rides on You-tube, use parent swap if you can, ride the ride first to see what to expect and so you can help her. Seeing you ride without her also might make her more curious and want to try it more.

And don't go on Snow White if you have a nervous child. This was designed in the old school style for adults. It says "Scary" in the title for a reason.

 

[Silly Little Pixie]

Oooh, been there, done that. LOL. DD, total adventurous soul. Went on SM at 3 years old with DSIL and DBIL (they were sure she would chicken out). Hasn't looked back on anything since. But my DS? Not so much. He's always done all the Fantasyland rides with no worries at all. Ever. But once he got tall enough for the height requirement rides, he got a little testy. Chickened out of SM the first time in line, and I bribed him with buying him a little car from Autopia gift shop once we were off. It worked- but bad idea, the next trip he tried (unsuccessfully, I might add) to blackmail me into this same "deal" again! Dude, I know you're not scared this time. LOL.

TOT was another story. For 3 years we would get in line only to get out. Sometimes he would insist all the way there how much he wanted to ride it, only to tug my hand away once we got to the entrance. He took pictures of TOT. He watched the stupid Disney Channel TOT movie with Steve Guttenberg, and analyzed the differences in the exterior of the WDW version vs. DCA's. When he finally rode it, he was all confident, until we started to go into the video room. Then he freaked. The CM tried to tell me that perhaps he shouldn't ride...I told him if he did it this once, then he could get that "I survived TOT" t-shirt he always admired in the hours of our life spent waiting in there while the rest of the fam rode TOT. Hmmm, again that worked. Once he got on, he just clutched my shoulder- but no tears and no drama! Now he's been on several times. He proudly wore that shirt to school the next week! While Indy is his favorite, he doesn't fuss about going on TOT since he knows how much his sis and I love it. Now he's watched YouTube of DLP and Tokyo DL TOT and professes he wants to try those out too!

I did feel badly about bribing him to get on rides... but I knew him, and knew that his worry about the unknown was the real fear. He's not afraid of the dark or going fast at all. And I was right- but I'm sure it looked bad to bystanders. I wouldn't force a kid onto a dark ride if they were afraid of the dark, or if they were afraid of going fast. These were the only times I have ever bribed DS! Thank goodness I was able to convince him that those were very special occasions.

 

[Mrs. Bee]

Oh....and added onto my previous post...I would like to say that screaming babies on rides is a whole other thing. I cannot stand when someone brings a crying baby onto rides like the haunted mansion.

 

[Quest4fun]

Idle threats work when formulated properly. Here is my method for keeping the kids well behaved. You can customize this to fit your scenario. I believe HydroGuy also has a similar method outlined in his "Child Punishment Guidlines."

(Child name), if you are very good on this trip we won't have to call (Fake uncle) and have them shoot (pet name) and make them dead. We don't want that now do we (Child name). I don't want (Fake uncle) to shoot (Pet name) but he doesn't it like it when you misbehave.

I guarantee this method will work. If your child starts to get fussy just grab your cell phone and start dialing. I check my voicemail to make it look like I'm calling. "Hey Uncle Jim. You're going to have to shoot Muffin because Owen is crying." Watch the kid shut up. Uncle Jim is actually made up. I even have a fake photo of him in my office just in case they get suspicious. It's a picture of some guy who likes to hunt. Also if you don't have a pet you can substitute Dora the Explorer or any other cartoon character they adore.

Children do not embarass easily at a young age so you cannot put them on the spot. I also do not support spanking or yelling at your children. You don't want your children to fear you. It's okay if they fear a family member they never see. They will love you because you're looking out for them and their pet (or Dora).

I hope this method is helpful and you're able to enjoy your visit to Disneyland. This will allow you to go on rides and visit the Blue Bayou tear free.

/Satire
//I would never do this.
///I have to put this here but some people don't have a sense of humor.

 

[rockstargeisha]

Thanks everyone! Well, no way I will be able to 'squeeze' myself back through the line so guess we'll just be stuck there until we can find a way out. I have shown DD the You Tube videos and also bought a Disney Sing Along Songs DVD so she can see everything and that has helped a bit but that still doesn't help her with the reality of it and she is just so sensitive I really worry that she will say yes she wants to go on Dumbo and then be flying around and around screaming she wants it to stop in a complete meltdown. I will just suss everything out and always look out for exits and CMs then! Anyway, I'm more than prepared that we might just do alot of sightseeing of the park and alot of people/ride watching so we're okay with that and if we go on 20 train rides in a row that's okay too. It's all about the experience. Will definitely get her a camera too!

I wouldn't worry too much about getting out of line. There are usually breaks in the lines that you can exit through. I'm sure if you let a cast member know you'd like to leave the line they will be happy to help you.

The sing a long video is a great idea, I think I have a VHS tape of that. I highly advise the Storybook boats and Casey Jr. train. They are both outdoors so there is little, if anything to be frightened of, same goes for Dumbo.

Have fun!

 

[trodrigue]

hista= Honey I Shrunk The Audience
I knew because of the mice. Eew..

I have never taken the time to do this in DL, but last fall did it when at Epcott, or MK, can't remember which, but those mice freaked me out.

Only to be out grossed by the Stitch burping and spitting experience...

 

[Alex2kMommy]

My kids had never even been to a carnival before we took our first trip to DL, so I had no idea what to expect from them on rides. I wanted to take them on Winnie the Pooh or something similarly gentle for the first ride, but my DS(6 at the time) had other plans. He saw the big drop of Splash Mountain and begged to go on it!

He did just fine, and so recently when my DS3 was tall enough, he insisted on going. He MUST do everything that big brother does! I was really nervous about that, too, and just asked DH to sit behind him and hold on! In the ride photo DS3 looks scared out of his mind (pretty much like ), but of course as soon as we hit the ground again he wanted to go back on it.

He also talked me into taking him on Matterhorn (but then freaked out when the Abominable Snowman growled at him), so I snuggled him tight and just kept talking to him. He also wanted to go on that one again.

And I was dubious when he wanted to go into the Haunted Mansion, because on our previous trip (holiday overlay) he was scared by the stretching room. (More so the booming thunder than anything else, I think.) But I also caved in on that one, and when he snuggled up to my leg in the stretching room I picked him up and held him tight. He was fine through the rest of the ride.

So basically I hold him close on pretty much all the rides (BTMRR, POTC, HM, Matterhorn, etc.), and if he gets scared I hold him tight and talk him through the part that scares him.

If he ever wanted to bail on the ride before getting on, I would definitely find the exit, no problem there.

 

[tortugaverde]

Idle threats work when formulated properly. Here is my method for keeping the kids well behaved. You can customize this to fit your scenario. I believe HydroGuy also has a similar method outlined in his "Child Punishment Guidlines."

(Child name), if you are very good on this trip we won't have to call (Fake uncle) and have them shoot (pet name) and make them dead. We don't want that now do we (Child name). I don't want (Fake uncle) to shoot (Pet name) but he doesn't it like it when you misbehave.

I guarantee this method will work. If your child starts to get fussy just grab your cell phone and start dialing. I check my voicemail to make it look like I'm calling. "Hey Uncle Jim. You're going to have to shoot Muffin because Owen is crying." Watch the kid shut up. Uncle Jim is actually made up. I even have a fake photo of him in my office just in case they get suspicious. It's a picture of some guy who likes to hunt. Also if you don't have a pet you can substitute Dora the Explorer or any other cartoon character they adore.

Children do not embarass easily at a young age so you cannot put them on the spot. I also do not support spanking or yelling at your children. You don't want your children to fear you. It's okay if they fear a family member they never see. They will love you because you're looking out for them and their pet (or Dora).

I hope this method is helpful and you're able to enjoy your visit to Disneyland. This will allow you to go on rides and visit the Blue Bayou tear free.

/Satire
//I would never do this.
///I have to put this here but some people don't have a sense of humor.

Thanks, I got a real kick out of that!!!!!! I might even have to share your tips with my parent friends

 

[Dobie]

When I was five and my sister was three, my grandfather took us to a parking lot carnival. We went on the Octopus. My sister started to scream and my grandfather put his fingers to his mouth and whistled very loudly and the carny stopped the ride and we got off. I was very impressed. But then, my grandfather was a heroic figure, larger than life--I don't know if this strategy would work for everyone.

Seriously, though, if you are worried about your child managing the rides, maybe you should put the trip off for a year or two? Small children actually prefer very simple things, like digging in warm sand or throwing rocks in a creek or rolling in the mud. If the trip is going to be stressful, then it isn't really a vacation. I think DL is better with slightly older children.

 

[ptlycloudy]

We have a few tricks that have worked well for us. I have a cd of park music which alot of music from the rides. The scariest part of rides is the music so for my girls that made a big difference . They also cover their ears not eyes if they get scared. Much more effective. For the dark rides my 4 year old wore her light up shoes. She liked being able to stomp on them when on a ride and just focusing on the lights when she didn't care for something in the ride. On many of the dark rides the CM have special flashlight to give kids that kids can use. My dd carried it through the pooh ride but decided she didn't need to turn it on.

This last trip my 4 yr dd decided it was time to go on pirates. She asked what would happen in the ride so I gave her a blow by blow, and she did great. She sang along to the music since she had heard it before.

We have always just taken things at the girls' pace. My oldest is afraid of everything , but there is so much at disney besides rides. When you take rides out of the equation your creativity can kick in and you can discover new things.

Have a great time and don't stress. Kids sense it if you are worried!.