Our Horrible Disney Vacation - LONG

[wilderness01]

Our pediatrician told us that if you have a nasty stomach virus then the worse thing you could do is use an antiemetic or an antidiarrheal medicine because doing so just keeps your body from expelling the virus.

That is correct, unless you are like my son who ended up hemorrhaging due to a tear in his esphogaus and needed to be hospitalized. There are always exceptions to the rule.

The woman sitting directly behind us on the plane was hacking up a lung the entire time. She was so bad, she was turnng PURPLE!!! I can't say 100% that she is who spread the illness to my family, but she sure didn't help!!

My sons do this, they both sound like they have a terrible chest cold, but it is not from any kind of infection, but rather from their asthma, so maybe she wasn't sick at all.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

That is correct, unless you are like my son who ended up hemorrhaging due to a tear in his esphogaus and needed to be hospitalized. There are always exceptions to the rule.

Oh that poor baby. Did the vomiting cause the tear?

A doctor is always the best person to give advice regarding any medical issues. I just can't imagine a physician telling a parent to give her child that is sick with a stomach virus Zofran so that they can go on vacation. I would think if a child is that sick then they need to stay home in bed close to their family physician - not getting on a plane or in a car and heading to Disney where they could get hundreds of people sick!

I went to Disney while pregnant with HG (the non-Zofran pregnancy) and I was so sick that all I did was lay in bed the entire trip. Granted, what I had wasn't contagious...

 

[livie1205]

I would NEVER take a sick child on vacation...I saw tons of sick people in the parks ...lucky for us none of us got sick but to put others at risk of getting sick is just selfish!

 

[eeyoregon]

OP: I hope that you reported the illness (Norovirus) to the staff at all of the hotels that you stayed so that they could properly clean the rooms.

I am so sorry that this happened to you. My 2 sons got it the day after we disembarked off the Disney Magic and were at WDW. Our trip insurance covered things like the fee to change our airline tickets and extra night hotel and food costs, thank goodness.

 

[JessRabbit]

SharpMomOfTwo,
Don't listen to anyone who has harsh words for you. Having your family become ill, away from home, in a hotel room is horrible. You must have come home exhausted and frustrated. Of course you know that other things in life are much worse but right now your vacation was less than ideal and you feel bad. I am glad you are trying to focus on the magical moments. Two years ago my family went the week after Thanksgiving and I never thought not to go at that time because it was flu season. As a previous poster stated you will feel better about your trip over time.

I agree.
My DD fell ill on our 2nd day of our trip last year and ended up in intensive care at a local hospital. We missed the rest of our 7 day vacation. We just came home yesterday from WDW. Our 3rd day there, my uncle was ambulanced to the hospital and spent the rest of his 7 day vacation there.
2 years in a row for us. Hopefully next trip will be better for us and hope your next trip is better.

 

[Belle4mygrl]

oh I am so sorry. Here I have been whining and complaining about me being a victim of stroller theft. It did ruin my vacation somewhat but I shouldn't complain about something that can be replaced. Your family's health is the most important.

I hope your next vacation is the best!

 

[Lexxiefern]

I am so sorry this happened to you and your family! I have had the kids get sick before on vacation, thankfully it was only ever one per trip and it never spread to me or my DH. And I appreciate the heads up (with details!) because I am leaving soon and I like to know what is going on!

FYI, there are multiple other threads about this very same thing on the dis right now too. It does seem like tons of people are getting this - or witnessing people getting sick.

 

[wilderness01]

Oh that poor baby. Did the vomiting cause the tear?
A doctor is always the best person to give advice regarding any medical issues. I just can't imagine a physician telling a parent to give her child that is sick with a stomach virus Zofran so that they can go on vacation. I would think if a child is that sick then they need to stay home in bed close to their family physician - not getting on a plane or in a car and heading to Disney where they could get hundreds of people sick!

I went to Disney while pregnant with HG (the non-Zofran pregnancy) and I was so sick that all I did was lay in bed the entire trip. Granted, what I had wasn't contagious...

We think it did, but aren't quite sure, hence the Zofran.

I went to Epcot one time and threw up in every country due to my pregnancy. It was a miserable trip since I was so sick. I would have killed for Zofran actually! My next pregnancies, we didn't go anywhere since I had morning, afternoon and evening sickness most of the 9th months!

 

[mom2princessj]

My aunt and uncle were just at the world and my uncle got sick on the last day of their trip (same as everyone is posting). She luckily didn't get it but she said he was in very bad shape

 

[homeschoolmomof4]

I agree.
My DD fell ill on our 2nd day of our trip last year and ended up in intensive care at a local hospital. We missed the rest of our 7 day vacation. We just came home yesterday from WDW. Our 3rd day there, my uncle was ambulanced to the hospital and spent the rest of his 7 day vacation there.
2 years in a row for us. Hopefully next trip will be better for us and hope your next trip is better.

We always go during the January/February timeframe and it never fails that one or more of us gets sick. The first year my toddler had to be hospitalized because he was so sick. The next year he and my DH both got a tummy virus. Last year, I caught the flu and my hubby had a tummy virus. Unfortunately, it was too late for tamiflu by the time I sought medical treatment. I'm praying that this year(our 4th trip) we'll finally have a year without illness. Unfortunately, winter is the only time my hubby can take time away from our company or we would try another time of year.

OP, I'm so sorry your trip was so awful. I completely understand how disappointing that is. I hope your next trip is much more uneventful.

 

[GinnyFavers]

I've been to WDW with my son about ten times in ten years. He's been sick three times, once with an eye infection (eye drops for a two year old - try that!), once with unexplained vomiting that cleared up after a day, and once with a rather scary high fever and vomiting (I think it was strep).

Out of a couple dozen trips I've taken since 1996, with and without my son, I've been ill three times, too. Once with a bad cold that may have been a light dose of flu, once with horrid really serious food poisoning, and once with a chronic stomach issue that lasted for a month after we got home, that I believe was an H Pylori infection.

So, statistically, based on my data alone, there's a 30% chance kids will get sick on a Disney vacation, and a 13% chance adults will.

If you drive instead of fly, cook most of your own food at a home away from home Disney accomodation or an offsite rental condo or villa, and everyone is healthy to start with and your kids are over the age of 6, you'll probably have better odds.