How do you handle MELTDOWNS!!!!

[jenn-n-okla]

10 hours of sleep at night, mid-day break, shady benches w/hydrating fluids to soothe them if they loose it. Calming voice will relax them much sooner.

I'm not so sure about the 10hrs of sleep at night thing but the mid-day break, lots of water, shady or ac areas, and snacks have always worked for me. AND that goes for not only toddlers but adults as well.
IF leaving the park completely is just NOT an option as you are staying OS then I would recommend having a schedule that spread out the activities with the shows where it is dark and cool. I have had my kids fall asleep in the Hall of Presidents, the American Experience, The Muppett show, AND even Bug's Life......once at Terminator over in Island of Adventure. The First Aide stations are good and so are many of the restaurants.

For immediate relief of the situation be prepared to "leave" the area. Find a bench, bathroom, something but get out of the lines, try not to ruin it for the rest of us.

I can remember my step-daughter at age 7.5yrs (now 17yrs old) throwing a fit in the Spiderman ride because she wasn't going to get to ride twice...they used to let the other kids in the party ride twice if you had to do the child swap thing. My husband gave her 2 warnings and then BAM out of the line they went. Sure she went screaming and crying. Sure she was mad at him for a while......over a year in fact as she just didn't get to ride Spiderman that year. But she did not thow a tissy fit for no reason the rest of the vacation.

With a toddler though most of the time isn't a fit for "no reason". I would be willing to bet that over 90% of them are dehydrated, hungry, or just plain worn completely out.

This reminds me I need to print out some of my "Caught you being good" cards I use at school. (I am a high school teacher but our elementary students are there on campus as well.) Kids love these. I have my daughter give them to kids so the parents don't think some weird crazy lady is giving their child something when we are out in public.

 

[robinsegg]

There are also odd places to sit back and watch old cartoons (like City Hall, I think in MK) that could give some good down-time.

 

[grandall]

I had to put DD (then 5, now 7) in the corner ironically enough at Casey's Corner. My no-tolerance policy seemed to work well and the rest of our trip went pretty well. Talk to me after our next trip with the 2 year old

 

[labdogs42]

The thing is, the GOOD parents (the ones actually setting some limits for their children) are often the ones seen with a child having a meltdown. That's because these parents have had the guts to tell their darling child "no" at Disney. We shouldn't be giving these parents the hairy eyeball. We should be helping them out. Saying things like, "good for you, you stuck to your guns" and "hang in there!" when we see them with their kids in the parks.

My kid has had meltdowns in the park. We deal with them as they come up. We always try to get him out of the crowd, sometimes we wait him out, sometimes we go for a nap, and sometimes we go for the redirect. It all depends. Just keep in mind that all parents have had a kid lose it at some time or another. Let's all try to support one another as best we can!

 

[scrappingizlife]

My 3 year old doesn't have the breakdowns, my 2 yr old though, is bad! I just let her do it. She starts crying and kicking and screamming. I just look at her, I don't try to stop her in anyway. About a minute into it, I'll look at her and say Are you done? and usually she'll say yes and we're on our way.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

At home, we would ignore them. At Disney, I think we would have left the park.

Although it should be noted that it might also be a good idea to see if you can figure out WHAT the meltdown is about (tired, hungry etc).

 

[DanG07]

The most important advice that alot of previous posters have mentioned, is to plan plenty of breaks and rest times to avoid the meltdown in the 1st place. Doing WDW commado style will most likely lead to meltdowns. However, even with the best-laid plans, meltdowns do happen and as a parent of four, I can sympathize with other parents when their child(ren) are going through a meltdown. My wife and I have tried everything from bribery (which doesn't work), to timeouts, to idle threats (we are leaving-but don't), to actual threats (we are leaving-and leave). I say, play it by ear, and do what is the best for your hild at that moment.

 

[brymolmom]

Lots of good advice...but I must say that OP - good for you for planning for the worst and having a plan of attack if it happens!

First day of our trip when dd was 2 we had gotten to hotel and first order of business was to take a 2 hour nap (we tried at that age to keep them on their schedule). After we all woke bright-eyed and ready to go, we headed to the line for the MK bus. While in line, trying to keep with the 'keep them hydrated' advice, I offered both kids some water. DD for some completely unknown reason had a fit and insisted on juice. My kids only drink juice like once a month and I NEVER kept juice in the backpack that I would carry - only EVER water. So I had no clue where she got the notion from. Anyway - after explaining there was only water and she continued to have a fit - dh and I ignored her completely. Since we weren't in a show or anything, it wasn't hurting anyone and I am POSITIVE that people in that line were thinking I was a HORRIBLE parent for pushiing this seemingly tired and hot and thirsty child to go to MK. Little did they know she was completely rested, hadn't been in the sun at all that day, and obviously wasn't thirsty or she would have had the offered water. Anyway- just goes to show that meltdowns can and do happen even if you try to avoid them.

I have been known to put my kids on a bench by themselves (while dh and other child go on next ride) in a 'timeout'. I stand nearby and inevitably some parents question why a child is upset and alone on a bench - I jump in to let them know he's with me and being punished.

I am way more lenient on vacation but certainly do not expect the kids to have as much say as dh and I - we're the parents so ultimately we decide what works best for the family. Although we do let them choose some things. One thing I'm not lenient about is behavior - that is expected to be good at all times.

Interesting theory from a pp about the kids expressing their wants. I think you would LOVE my dd in your family. There has never been ANY teaching involved - she has ALWAYS, ALWAYS let us know her wants. All the time - wanting EVERYTHING. Unfortunately, this is a behavior I wish she didn't have - it leads to multiple arguments as the answer 99% of the time is NO. But she doesn't seem to get used to that.

 

[Goofster18]

My mom always reminds me how we were in Disney, and planning to go on a ride, and my mom loves Disney and didn't want me to miss anything, but my dad had said many times that if I misbehaved 1 more time, we were leaving. So I misbehaved 1 more time. And my mom was upset, my dad was upset, and I was upset, but you have never seen a family leave a park quite so quickly as my dad took me out. Set the rules, and stick to them on matter how hard it is. Even allowing it to be pushed for a few days here can last much longer when you get home and the kids don't understand the difference between "Disney Rules" and "Home Rules".
Goofster18

 

[tricia]

Our daughter was 3.5 when we went to WDW last November and my only advice is: be prepared to leave. Mentally, emotionally prepared to just walk out if it is required.

We had warned our daughter ahead of time that if she was getting too tired and grouchy or if she was freaking out we would leave the park and not go back until the next day. We went to MK, had a nice couple of hours and then she started freaking out. We gave her a minute to calm herself (I personally think letting them "work it out" themselves for a few minutes is absolutely the best method, more attention to the fit just feeds it and draws it out) and warned her that if she couldn't calm down we were leaving. She didn't calm down. We left.

When she realized we were actually leaving the park she really lost it, total meltdown, but we went back to our campsite, gave her some lunch and a nap and stayed there the rest of the day. Later on we talked about what had happened and told her that any future freak outs would be met with the same result. She was an absolute angel for the rest of the week. She was cheerful, patient, and when she needed rest or food she asked for it instead of screaming. We sacrificed a day of fun which was disappointing for all of us but it totally paid off in the long run.

good luck.

Been there, done that, and with a 3.5 yr old too. My mom and DH were with me, and I put DS in the stroller, buckled him in, and walked straight to the park exit. Mom and DH just followed along like little ducks, not saying a word.