if you have asthma and sailed????need help..

[huckster]

i have asthma very bad take lots of stuff. but dont want to bring my nebulizer. on a plane.. security and all.. so i am going to ask DR. to get me a prednisone refill for the jsut in case. but what i was wondering is..
the rooms we have a cat 11 inside this time .. will i feel stuffy can the air go up high? chilly?
and is there alot of smoke.. in dinning areas and around deck and clubs?
did the sea air seam to bother you?i know everyones triggers are different. but just wondered. hate to have big attack on this wonderful vacation!! ºoº

 

[Stimpy]

I have mild asthma, so I can't really help you with the medication advice. But I can tell you I have never had a problem on the ship. I never really noticed any smoke anywhere, I think there is designated smoking areas now. (Smoke is one of my biggest triggers)

The cabins are individually climate controlled and I remember them being very chilly sometimes. The sea air never bothered me, but we live very close to the ocean, so I'm probably used to it.

Have a great trip!

 

[4cruisin]

Hi,
I have asthma and have sailed twice on DCL. I have only been in staterooms with a verandah, so I cannot advise you about the inside rooms, but the a/c seemed adequate as long as we kept the verandah door closed. We cruised in Dec. & Jan so the air temps were not brutally warm anyway. The sea air did not bother me at all, in fact, I think I breathed better with the sea air.

Smoke is a big trigger for my attacks. There was no smoking in the dining rooms. I did notice smoke on the adult pool and upper decks which was pretty annoying to me. People were allowed to smoke during the deck parties which I was unhappy about but I moved as soon as someone lit up.

The night clubs were another story. Way too much smoke for me, therefore we never bothered to go to them. On our first cruise, we went to the 70's disco night and by the end of the evening, I was very uncomfortable with all the smoke. Off Beat is a non-smoking club which fortunately had the BEST entertainment in Jeff and Fidelio=Dueling Pianos. That is where we spent the evenings on our last cruise. My advice would be to bring your neb if you feel you need it. Better to be safe.

Nancy

 

[ReadyForDisney2003]

I have taken my DD's nebulizer on the plane with no problems. I was glad to have it -- this was for a trip to WDW, not the cruise. But, anyway, I packed it in the box it came in and just checked it through with the rest of my luggage.

 

[ducklite]

Bring the nebulizer. You aren't the only person with asthma, the security people see them all the time and know what they are, it won't trigger any alarms, and they don't have one on the ship. If you have a really bad attack and have to be medivacced off it's going to ruin your vacation a lot more than a security person glancing at your nebulizer in the airport.

The dining rooms are smoke free. The clubs can get smokey. We only went to one show in a club, and it wasn't bad at all (smoke triggers my asthma as well).


We didn't spend much time by the pools either, the one afternoon we did there were very few people around (in Ste. Maarten in the middle of teh afternoon.)

Anne

 

[maps]

you can also buy an ultrasonic nebulizer that's really compact and quiet. i think ours cost about $125 but it's worth it's weight in gold. the whole thing breaks down into a carrying case that's less than the size of a video tape.
we actually used this on my son at cinderella's breakfast at the castle when he had an asthma flare up. just stuck it in my backpack and gave him a neb every 4 hrs. if it wasn't for that, we would have been stuck at the hotel room or some walk in clinic

 

[Grady]

We have sailed twice in cat 11 and never experienced any trouble. My DD7 has moderate asthma and takes several medications daily. I did bring her nebulizer as well as an entire carryon of medications. Her doctor had us bring liquid orapred just in case, but thankfully we never needed it.

The cabin NEVER had any stale smoke smell in it. Smoke is definately one of her big triggers but we only came across it once while on deck 10. Instantly a CM approached the man and had him move to the designated smoking area. We didn't go into any bars, so I can't comment on the smoke there.

I prefer to bring the nebulizer, although its bulky, it made me feel better knowing we had it.

Also I inquired about the medical facility, and they are equipped to handle severe asthma attacks. But thankfully we never ended up there.

Enjoy your cruise.

Allison

Oh, Disney does not allow smoking in their cabins, which I know doesn't garantee anything. But, we have sailed on other cruise lines and found they do not have this policy. We had to switch cabins because one was full of stale smoke. My daughter couldn't last in there for five minutes. Disney really impressed me.

Allison

 

[gdulaney]

This is a little off the subject...but I'm going next week for a PFT test to determine if I have asthma. Is traveling (in general) difficult for folks who have asthma?

Thanks!!
Ginny

 

[dizmomof2]

gdulaney: Travelling with asthma isn't really that bad. You make sure that you have all of your meds before you go. After a while you will learn what triggers your asthma and then avoid those situations.

huckster: Both my daughter and I have asthma and we were in a cat. 11. No problems there. Humidity is a huge trigger for her but we found that the A/C in the cabin was great. She actually had no problems on the ship at all! (This is suprising since we have visited every first aid station in WDW as well as walk in clinics and emerg. in the area!) She took Servent everyday and found that it really helped.

I know that DCL doesn't have a nebulizer on board because I checked before our last cruise but I really think that they should look into that. Asthma is becoming more and more common. Most doctors offices have them, so many children use them, you would think that Disney would get one. If you use one at home I'd bring it with you. Better to be safe then sorry!

 

[hawkrn]

My dad went on a 3 day Wonder cruise last December with us and we stayed in Cat. 11. The cabin didn't bother him (although I thought it got warmer in the cabin when we were docked), but going from the low 60's in Orlando to the mid 80's in Nassau in less than 24 hours did! Bring the nebulizer!!! You don't want to be sorry. Put it in your carry-on. They didn't even blink at the airport over my dad's.

 

[vgaskin]

I have mild to moderate asthma but don't use a Nebulizor. I use Advair, Servent & Flovent, and Albuterol. We were not in a category 11 but I did not have any problems even though I had a severe sinus infection. But my asthma stayed at bay. Mine is triggered by my allergies with is almost every tree known to woman, pollens, dust, molds, just about everything and a few foods. My mother moved to Florida because of her allergies and doesn't have any problems there but when she comes to visit us, she gets really sick. It doesn't help that we live in the Allergy capital of the world(Louisville). I did not have any problems with smoke at all. I did have to go to the medic on board because of the sinus infection and they were very good and they get you out quick. If I wouldn't have went, I would have ruined our vacation. I didn't have any problems with my medications on the planes.

Tiffany

 

[Camping Disney]

HUCKSTER......

My daughter has very severy respiratory problems, she was a 32 week preemie. We sailed last May and are going again in 2 weeks. Bring your nebulizer. The change in air, your fellow cruisers smoking where they shouldn't and whatever other possibilites may come up. We flew the first time and are driving this time. There was no problem at all with the neb nor with the 20+ medications we had to take with us. If you never use it, that is fantastic. If you have to, you will be glad you had it. We also were shocked the med. facility had no portable nebulizer. They do have the capability to give nebs in the facility.

Hope this helps. Have an awesome trip!

Michele

 

[huckster]

thanks every one should i pack in carru on checked?

 

[trishy]

My dd7 and I both have asthma and we bring our meds in carry ons definitely. Never had any problem through security. Biggest downfall on the ship is that the clubs (where all of the fun adult stuff is) are really smokey after 9 pm. I've been on 3 DCL cruises now and have not been able to sit through an entire show because of the amount of thick smoke. The rooms have never bothered me or my daughter and I have yet to see someone light up around the pool area (thank my lucky stars for that). Deck 4 is off limits to me and my dd7 because that's where all of the Cat 7 and lower go to get their habit satisfied during the day - very thick at times. Anyway, it's still a very fun cruise.

 

[sandygirl]

My DD5 has asthma, allergies, had pneumonia, inflammed lungs, and is scheduled to have her huge adenoids surgically removed. We travel extensively, mostly by air. I take her neb and all her medications in a carry on wherever we go. Better safe than sorry.

We have not experienced a problem onboard ship. We did not encounter any smoke (but didn't go to clubs after 9PM) and the air quality was very good. We sailed in Jan. It all depends on your triggers. DD seems to have more of a problem with cold winter air than with warm air.

Never had a problem with our bags and security. No one even questioned the neb.

My doctor did recommend giving DD a dose of a decongestant before getting on the plane. He said it would help to keep her open. But again, I suggest you consult your physician on your particular case.

Have a wonderful cruise, I know you will love it!

 

[ADisneygirl]

I have asthma and only use a nebulizer occasionally when I get bronchitis. I take daily meds and carry inhaler everywhere I go.

Smoke is a major irritant to me, and luckily we did not encounter much of it aboard on our two cruises. I was bothered on the deck with the beautiful wooden chaises, and had to get up and move myself twice to get away from smokers, but that was it. We never went to adult only clubs, so I can't offer an opinion on them, but one thing no one here has mentioned is the Hercules - The Muse-ical show put on the second evening. It is a wonderful show, as all of them were. But -- at one point in the show when Hades appears from beneath the stage area, he arrives in a big pouf of smoke make from dry ice. It meant nothing to me the first time we cruised, since we were sitting higher up, but last week, we got a seat in the second row. When that smoke covered me, I had to leave the auditorium coughing furiously and use my inhaler.

Don't know if dry ice triggers it for you, but thought you'd like a heads up about its' use.

And definitely take the nebulizer. Better to be safe than sorry. No one will look at it sideways -- they are very common these days.

Enjoy your cruise! You will love it!

 

[ducklite]

Originally posted by huckster
thanks every one should i pack in carru on checked?

Carry it on!!!!

Anne