My kid is afraid the ship will sink!

[Paxton's Mom]

Hi everyone-

We're doing a 4-day Wonder cruise in early March. Lately my DD7 has been expressing lots of concerns about being on the ship, especially on the "at sea" day. This is her first cruise and I'm blue in the face telling her that modern ships don't sink.

Anyone have any advice on how to help her feel more comfortable?

 

[MousseauMob]

Oh that's tough - maybe you can do a bit of research and tell her the last time of cruise/passenger ship sank - especially on your itinerary I would bet it either hasn't happened at all or hasn't been for decades! Right before our first cruise - we were studying the Titanic - went to the traveling exhibit and all! Caused some panic and concern for awhile. We talked alot about how where we were going had NO icebergs and the water was warm and there are lots of rescue boats. Improved safety etc. Plus of course Mickey Mouse is onboard - WAY too much magic on the ship!

 

[BuzzNutt]

Hi everyone-

We're doing a 4-day Wonder cruise in early March. Lately my DD7 has been expressing lots of concerns about being on the ship, especially on the "at sea" day. This is her first cruise and I'm blue in the face telling her that modern ships don't sink.

Anyone have any advice on how to help her feel more comfortable?

Not making fun here but I would make sure she had no idea of the movie, the poseidon (sp?). I wouls also maybe have her watch the beginning of the travel channe about Disney's ships being built. Maybe she will see how much work goes into assuring not sinkng.
Just an idea! Good Luck!

 

[MINNIE OF TWO MICE]

Back in December, my son shared the same fears. Once he got to the clubs he didnt care!!!!! We even had a balcony and he would go out and look at the beauty of it all. When she sees all the other children and excitement maybe she will forget about it all. Perhaps you can find or start a thread of other people going on the same cruise and find someone her age that will be in the same clubs and let them be pen pals or send supervised emails to one another. I pray her fears calm down. Have a great trip!!!!

 

[inkkognito]

Actually, rather than reassuring her that it never happens, I would take the opposite tack. I am a doctor of psychology and am big on cognitive techniques/reality testing. If you tell her ships "never" sink, she will know on some level that it's not true. It's better to stress that while there is a small, small chance, nowadays there are so many safety features in place that even if it happened, she would be fine. Prior to the cruise, you can talk to her about things like the lifeboats, life jackets, etc. and how they will make sure that everyone is fine in case of any emergency. You can tell her how there are so many cruise ships that some will be nearby to help even when you are way out at sea. And when you sail, the safety drill will reinforce all of that preparation.

 

[disneychic]

I think once you get in the terminal and she sees all the charecters in there, she'll be so excited that by the time they take your picture when you walk through the portal, she won't even remember what she was afraid of! But, the previous poster is right, they play the special on the Disney Cruiseline on the Travel Channel alot, and it may get her excited, have you ordered the Cruiseline planning video? That could also get her familiarized with the ship and the activities.

Have a great trip!

 

[homrjay]

Don't feel bad my wife asked me that a 1000 times before we went on the ship and then a 1000 more times on the ship. Now she can't wait to go back

 

[shelleyr25]

My 7 year old dd was sure that she was going to fall off the ship. I realized that her fear must have come from the fact that she did fall off our friend's small fishing boat out on the lake one day. She was absolutely fine but had a bit of a scare.
I think that the thought of simply being on a boat made her think that it was possible that she could fall off again.
What finally relaxed her was seeing the ship and realizing that it was huge, as opposed to our friends small boat and seeing the rails etc..she realized that it was impossible to fall off.
Perhaps when your child sees that the ship is not like a boat in a bathtub that can simply tip over all the anxieties will subside.
Good luck and have a great trip!!!

 

[tvguy]

DD was 11 on our first cruise. She didn't want to go when we first talked about the cruise, and was unhappy when we went ahead and booked the trip because she was "afraid of the ship". This was on an Alaskan cruise on HAL's Amsterdam. You should have seen her EYES when we got off the bus in Seattle.......when she realized the 13 story "building" behind the two story cruise terminal building was the ship. Needless to say, she had a great time, and was happy as a clam the next year on the Magic.

 

[drumbumswife]

I'm with inkkognito onthis. That is a real fear, I wouldn't dismiss it with the logic once she gets on the boat it will be fine.
A 7 year old can grasp a lot of information, including why a boat would sink. So, why not show her why hers shouldn't. The documentary is a great idea and I am sure there are plenty of books on boat building, etc. A simple physics project could work. How about talking to other children who have cruised before? Have she seen pictures of the boat?
It might help if you knew where or what this fear was based on.
Good Luck to all of you!

 

[Corryn]

Inkognito, Love the siggy!!! Heatmeiser is an all-time favorite...want me to bust out in song?

My two daughters were also very apprehensive. We go on my FIL's boat often, and I think they were thinking of His boat, the size, on the ocean. We just showed them lots and lots of pictures here on these boards, but nothing eased their fears until we were actually on board, like TV Guy said.
If you live by a port, a naval shipyard, something like that, you can take your child down to see the ships. Rent videos from the library on different cruises or even get the free DVD from DCL. The more they're exposed to it, the better. When your kids see nothing but smiling faces having fun on a cruise ship, how can they stay upset?

I was tortured as a child and of course, the cycle continues and I torture my children. One of the movies we did watch before our first cruise was the Poseidon Adventure; how could we not?
The kids were apalled at me and DH, but we said we wanted to watch it and they were welcome to join us. So every once in a while they would come into the room and when the bad parts would hit, they would leave. After the newer one came out, they were so used to being tortured by me and DH it was no biggie. Now when it comes on HBO, we sit and watch the Good Parts together!

But that's our family and those stupid things have worked for us. I'm not saying it will work for you. Maybe if you were raised by a schizophrenic grandmother and a wacky father, you'd understand Thank God for my Grampa!

Good Luck and I guarantee you, your kids will have a great time!!!!!

 

[HooKooDooKu]

I was thinking right along the lines for Inkognito.

Tell her that yes, it is possible for a cruise ship to sink. Then show her a picture of the Disney ship and point out to her about the "spare" boats they carry with them just in case something like that happens.

 

[graygables]

My now 8yo was also terrifed, only didn't verbalize it well. I'm sure she was picking up on some of my own fears (I'm teased as being a leviathanophobic). We talked about (and pointed out in photos) the lifeboats, watched the travel Channel show, and talked in great depth about the safety drill and how important it was (and how the Coast Guard keeps it straight). There had also been a fire aboard the Magic a few years earlier and we were able to explain that even though you can't see the other ships, there are LOTS of them nearby to come help out quickly if there is a problem. That eased her mind, but she was still very nervous and as we sailed away from the port, actually had a mini-panic attack and my oldest DD had to take her to the stateroom for a little break to calm down. She was very apprehensive for most of the cruise and the clubs did NOT help. What DID help was the bridge tour (they don't offer it anymore, which is a shame) and the CM showing how everything worked and talked in great detail about the fire safety standards on board. She relaxed quite a bit after that. I'm hoping that those 3 nights on the Wonder and 2 years will have calmed her enough that our 7 nighter in November is smoother sailing!

 

[scottishwee35]

What about DVD of Disney Cruise? Any thought of it.

My son have dyparaxia and he hate the rides in Florida at MGM, Magic Kingdom and my husband and I was worrying that disney cruise might put him off. We had drag him in MGM, Magic Kingdom, terrible and we don't want to drag him in disney cruise but when he saw the Disney Wonder Cruise and he said oh that cruise and we said yes then it turn out that he was looking forward to!! While when we went on the Disney Cruise and my son loved it very much and he thought we go for a week and he didn't realised it was 3 days. On last day, he was burst crying and he told me that how enjoyable that he had fun in Cruise with club well. (He made me lump in my throat).

Next holiday - He beg me to booking again on the Disney Cruise, finally, we did it and we are going to Med. Cruise!!

Paxton Mum

I think it quite normal to have worry when first time go on Cruise - think something happen, turn out love it and want to go back again!! Also I am sure that your dd7 will love club as I was difficult to take my son (9) out of club!!


Scottishwee35

 

[Paxton's Mom]

I really appreciate all of the good ideas and the caring advice from all of you. I'm confident that once we're on board she will relax and have a great time. In the meantime I will use some of your tips and try to raise her comfort level.

This is our first Disney cruise (we're theme park regulars!) but if it is half as good as everyone says it's going to be awesome. I can't wait!