Open Letter to the Guy Who *Purposefully and Gratuitously* Screamed in the Haunted Mansion Elevator

[Piglet99645]

I am sorry you and your son had to go through that. It makes me think how differently we are all affected and how some of use aren't aware of the impact our actions might have on others.

I was in line for incredicoaster saying that it felt odd not having at least one person scream in the stretching room on one of my times through. I chalked it up to the lowered capacity at that point, but was saying how I missed that sort of carefree energy. I have never been one to do that sort of thing, but I also never would have thought about how that might have a negative impact on others on the ride.

As for the pirates experience, I don't think you need to be too empathetic to know that you are just running over other peoples' experiences when you do that sort of thing.

Thank you for taking a moment to learn from our experience.

 

[Piglet99645]

So I just watched several you tube videos and tons of people scream each time after the hanging scene scream. Was this guys scream just insanely loud or something? Its seems like screaming in haunted houses is something people do. Not discounting, just curious.

The hanging scene happens. There is a long pause as we wait in the dark for the door to open. Then a bloodcurdling 5 second shriek from somebody almost next to us. It wasn’t a reaction. It was a performance. Louder than the one from the ride. I’m not delicate and it hurt my ears.

 

[Brett Wyman]

The hanging scene happens. There is a long pause as we wait in the dark for the door to open. Then a bloodcurdling 5 second shriek from somebody almost next to us. It wasn’t a reaction. It was a performance. Louder than the one from the ride. I’m not delicate and it hurt my ears.

Got it. Thanks.

 

[Piglet99645]

I appreciated all the encouraging words I immediately after this experience yesterday. Thank you.

Every single moment of taking a person on the spectrum out into public is a teaching moment. I’ve been doing it for a long time.

I don’t owe anyone an explanation for my kid, his age, his disability, or my parenting. Nor do I owe a play by play of how I managed this teaching moment. I have learned not to do the HM with my kid since this behavior is apparently common, and I’ve just been lucky having ridden the ride dozens of times.

I also don’t think I should have to explain what kind of scream is inappropriate in a dark crowded elevator, but I have done so. If you are someone who does this, hopefully this entire thread will you to reconsider. Clearly I’m not the only one who hates it and finds it outside the bounds of acceptable behavior. After talking to CMs yesterday it sounds like the only reason it can happen is because of the anonymity of darkness.

These forums are invaluable for advice and support. I needed support yesterday in real time. I got it. Thank you for that.

I’m Unwatching my own thread now because I have what I need. My hope is that the arguing will end. The last thing I wanted or expected was to start an argument.

Who knew that gratuitous screaming in a dark crowded elevator would be a point of contention among reasonable people??

 

[Piglet99645]

Got it. Thanks.

Thank you for asking and allowing me to clarify. I had no idea the type and timing of the scream would be relevant to this story.

 

[disneyseniors]

The Pirates one drives me crazy. Why do people ride if they are just going to loudly chat about other stuff the entire time? You don’t need to wait in line to do that! Just find a bench or table and talk away!

What is it with the POC ride? Do people think it is just a place to talk?
One time, my husband and I were first to the POC one morning. Another family got in behind us. The Mom talked loudly on the cell phone the whole time about insurance that the other person on the phone was wanting! The son sat behind us and kicked the seat constantly and yelled. The dad just sat looking anywhere but at them and didn't say a word! Not one word to the kid or Mom. I turned around and gave them the "look" but it didn't seem to bother them. I didn't want a verbal confrontation with them. But it was very annoying and ruined the ride for us. We could have told the CM when we got out I guess, but we never thought of it and were just glad to get away from them.

 

[kimmar067]

Wow. Just.....wow. The lesson to be learned here:

Be mindful of others around you.

 

[katmigordon]

Ok, I have to reference the TOT issue, when I rode the hellavator at six flags (similar concept) the guy strapping us in told us to scream - all the way down... it's supposed to help you control your breath so you don't lose it with the drop. I tried it and for the first time, I got to be pain free on that ride.

So you bet I'm going to scream when I get to ride Guardians, otherwise I'm going to end up feeling like I got punched in the chest.

The worst ride for over screaming seems to be Guardians. I think people go on that ride with an intent to scream the entire time. I've had my ears ring for long periods afterward, which is a shame because it's my favorite ride. I did eventually learn that if I sat in the back row, there wouldn't be anyone directly behind me screaming into my ear. Still, it would be nice if they had a posted non-screaming elevator. If people screamed on it, at least it would be legit vs. dramatic overscreaming.

 

[KPeterso]

Our worst experience with screaming was on Star Tours. Riding with my nephew for the first time and he was only 4 at the time. He was very nervous about riding due to it being too dark or scary (after taking him on Big Thunder at night another time to the point at 8, he still talks about it --- big Mom and Auntie fail there). We had a group of probably 8-10 tween girls on the ride with us that screamed at the top of their lungs from the doors closing until the end. It was miserable for the adults and we super worried about my nephew being badly affected (become more scared as a result) by it. Thankfully, he liked it and was laughing and I guess tuning the obnoxious girls out. We were all still super annoyed by it.

 

[Piglet99645]

OP here. Edited the thread title for clarity so people will stop being hateful.

 

[Piglet99645]

Belated thank you to the many kind words I received in this thread while I was in the park last week. Our next day after this was a day off, and we had two more lovely days in the park after that. Several hours of debriefing were required to deconstruct the meltdown and learn from it. Ah, parenthood.

A trip with only one meltdown is a net win for our family. To the person who made reference to my “adult son,” you know nothing about my situation. And no, the man who screamed was not special needs. He was just inconsiderate of everyone trapped with him in the dark. Finally, if you think my first post was “inciting violence,” here’s a link to the definition of hyperbole.

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/hyperbole
I love and appreciate these boards. Be kind to each other, here and in the park. Until next time....

P.

 

[katmigordon]

I forgot to say thank you for having the grace to let your son alone when it was obvious he needed space. I'm on the high functioning end of the spectrum (what used to be called Aspersers) and I know when I need to decompress the last thing I need is anyone trying to make me feel better. If I'm that close to a melt down anything might be the trigger that pushes me over the edge.

Belated thank you to the many kind words I received in this thread while I was in the park last week. Our next day after this was a day off, and we had two more lovely days in the park after that. Several hours of debriefing were required to deconstruct the meltdown and learn from it. Ah, parenthood.

 

[Piglet99645]

I forgot to say thank you for having the grace to let your son alone when it was obvious he needed space. I'm on the high functioning end of the spectrum (what used to be called Aspersers) and I know when I need to decompress the last thing I need is anyone trying to make me feel better. If I'm that close to a melt down anything might be the trigger that pushes me over the edge.

Thank you for this.

 

[kimmar067]

OP here. Edited the thread title for clarity so people will stop being hateful.

OP ~

Just for the record, we were at MK last week on the HM ride, and guess what? SOMEONE LET OUT A GRATUITOUS SCREAM when the lights went out in the stretching room....I immediately thought of you.

 

[kimmar067]

....The son sat behind us and kicked the seat constantly and yelled....

....must have been the same folks who sat behind us on the flight down to WDW last week!

 

[Piglet99645]

OP ~

Just for the record, we were at MK last week on the HM ride, and guess what? SOMEONE LET OUT A GRATUITOUS SCREAM when the lights went out in the stretching room....I immediately thought of you.

Ugh I’m sorry. Nice to know somebody thinks of me though. Lol

 

[sjmac42]

Late to this thread but love that ride, hate that behaviour. More than once I’ve wanted to yell out “hey, what’s wrong with you?” to the gratuitous screamer. But I don’t because I can excercise self restraint, been an adult and all .
It’s so sad that people have zero concern for how their behaviour affects others. There’s a whole thread on these boards about that. Also glad to see that many of the critical or argumentative posts, which I didn’t see, seem to have been deleted.
All the best to you OP, hope your next trip doesn’t have those issues. What’s the old saying, walk softly and carry a big stick
Maybe not, just stay with the walking softly bit . . . . .

 

[LoriLovesMickey]

I am really happy that I read this thread. I have been guilty of screaming (not super loud) and reciting the words in the stretching room. I don't consider myself to be inconsiderate and would never want to ruin someone else's experience. This thread definitely puts a different spin on it. I will make sure that in the future I recite the lines to myself and no screaming! Thanks for making some of us more aware.

 

[kbelle8995]

East Coaster here, I used to be afraid of HM as a young girl and people like the screamer you had was not helpful. I've become a huge fan now and often mouth part of the words. But I love the extra sound effects Disney added in our HM room so much that I'm usually try to catch every single thing. The worst was when some guests decided that they wanted out, forced the door open and stopped the show pretty much, I was miffed to say the least. Also guest on the east coast are bad about flash photography in both HM and POC. I hate it.

 

[Boopuff]

Do adults really think it's ok to scream unnecessarily in enclosed places? I feel for the small kids that are affected by it. Imagine being a little kid and a grown man screams bloody murder. If the ride didn't scare the kid then the idiot screaming probably did! I love to hear the entire HM spiel from the "ghost host". Not some regular AP holder.