Three year old is scared

[izzystout]

So here is the situation, my three year old little boy is scared of everything. The vacuum, lawnmowers, scary movies, fireworks, dogs. You name it he is probably afraid of it. We are going to disneyland May 1st. We have been talking up the trip for months. He has been so excited, until now. His cousin told him about the big white monster with red eyes ( on the matterhorn). Now he is saying that he is scared of disneyland and does not want to go.
ARG!!!
Any ideas or thoughts? Obviously we are not canceling our trip because of the whim of our three year old.

 

[mouseymommy]

Has he ever seen Monster's Inc? My DS was scared of the same thing until I pointed out that it was the same guy from Monster's Inc. Also, the Matterhorn will be closed while you are there, so maybe that will help him.

 

[sonnyjane]

I'd suggest letting him "ride" everything first via YouTube. Every ride has dozens of "ride throughs" that guests have posted on YouTube.

 

[Mickey527]

my grandson is scared of everything too. If he thinks there might be a problem he gets upset even if there won't be any problem. He won't go upstairs even during the day because he is afraid of everything. He jumps in my lap if there is a noise outside, forget what happens when the dog barks for no reason.
I read about this hint on Parents magazine many years ago and remembered it for my grandson.
I bought a spray bottle and put water with a little men's cologne (not girly smelling) and he brings it when we go anyplace he might be afraid of. He can spray the "monster away" and nothing will bother him.
Print out a label with whatever name you want your spray to be, I used "monster away" you might want "brave spray" "ride saver" "strong boy" or all of the above. Make it say somethig like a small spritz of this spray will take away all monsters, make you stronger or braver, help you have a good time, take away the grumpies, etc... whatever you might think he will need to get througha few days at the parks.

 

[annadette]

If it's mainly noises that scare him, I would invest in a pair of children's noise reducing earphones- you can find them online - just search kids earmuffs hearing protection and they should come up. I just got 2 pair for my DD2, who really hates the loud noises from the fireworks. They fit from toddlers to 8-year-olds, so I'm sure they will help. I plan on bringing them on the louder rides and even slipping them on her when she sleeps in the stroller so she'll sleep better. They are lightweight and comfortable too, and they don't block out all noise, so he might really like them. You can call them his superhero ears or something. As for the yeti- Matterhorn Mtn is shut down right now- he's gone for a long long time! Good luck!

 

[scoker]

My DD5 is also a big chicken. She is utterly fearless when it comes to "carnival" style rides but anything with a story line and drama is too much for her. We took her to DL the first time for her 4th birthday. She didn't even like Winnie the Pooh or Peter Pan. On the other hand she would have gone on California Screamin if she was tall enough. I think she will be a tad braver this time (12 days ) but we will still start off slow and probably with some non "dark" rides. I've done the YouTube thing with her to gauge her reaction but if your son is really scared and you might just freak him out more if he doesn't like what he sees. Maybe just show him the kiddie rides from DCA, dumbo ect. My daughter has also watched a travel video about DL on netflix and I think disney will send you something similar in the mail. It might get him excited if he sees other happy smiling kids. If nothing else works just drag him in kicking and screaming the first day and head towards one of the play areas. I'm sure he'll get over himself quickly.

Good luck!!!

 

[LisainCalifornia]

I think that the noise cancelling headphones are a great idea--especially if your child is on the spectrum. I know this from personal experience.

 

[Pesky]

I'd suggest letting him "ride" everything first via YouTube. Every ride has dozens of "ride throughs" that guests have posted on YouTube.

This exactly. I'm already prepping my sometimes tentative DD for a trip a year and a half in advance. Okay, so I'm just a little excited about it. Anyway, showing him some non-scary rides like a youtube of the carousel or Dumbo or Casey Jr train or IaSW might be a great way to ease him back into "liking" the idea. Then maybe the parade and pics of treats DL has to offer. Then I'd start broaching the idea of some rides that occur partially in the dark like Peter Pan. Honestly, he may not be up for Haunted Mansion or the like but there are plenty of options he is likely to be excited about. And actually, for noise if you need it, there are also kids silicone earplugs sold in swim stores that can dampen but not eliminate the noise.

 

[brenda1966]

I would explain to him that you won't be going anywhere near that ride. Show him Dumbo and others online. Steer clear of Snow White ride, the Bug's Life movie. Ease into the rides, going on Dumbo, the Carousel. Maybe try Peter Pan. Try the Bug's Life rides over in CA. Those are very kid friendly!

When my DD was 3 we called the Haunted Mansion the "Halloween ride" and she liked Halloween so she went on it. She also went on the Pirates ride, but those came after other dark rides like Pooh and Peter Pan.

Try Buzz Lightyear if he likes video games. Try to show him video of what the characters look like -- how big they are. And tell him that they don't talk. My DD loved the characters. Would stand in long, slow moving lines just to see them.

Also maybe tell him cousin was teasing him.

 

[SunsetsOnTheBeach]

YouTube is a GREAT idea. My 4 yr old son is also scared of a lot of the rides, mostly the dark rides. He watched the Netflix special a zillion times before we went, so that helped prepare him for some of the rides. But, beware, they do actually show the big monster from the Matterhorn on the movie.

Tell him the Matterhorn will be closed, so he doesn't have to worry about that one!

We didn't want to push my son too hard, but we did force him to go on Toy Story, and that is now his favorite ride. He was also really pumped up for Small World after watching the Netflix special, but then started to chicken out while we were in line. We forced him on that too, and it's tied with Toy Story for his favorite, lol. We almost forced him on Pirate's, but ended up not pushing it. After I rode it with my daughter, I imagined what it would've been like for him and was REALLY glad I didn't force it. Anything that might be remotely scary, I'm not going to push. He will get there someday. But for silly things like Small World, I'm pushing

 

[jory29]

If it's mainly noises that scare him, I would invest in a pair of children's noise reducing earphones- you can find them online - just search kids earmuffs hearing protection and they should come up. I just got 2 pair for my DD2, who really hates the loud noises from the fireworks. They fit from toddlers to 8-year-olds, so I'm sure they will help. I plan on bringing them on the louder rides and even slipping them on her when she sleeps in the stroller so she'll sleep better. They are lightweight and comfortable too, and they don't block out all noise, so he might really like them. You can call them his superhero ears or something. As for the yeti- Matterhorn Mtn is shut down right now- he's gone for a long long time! Good luck!

Great idea for the headphones, but I'd like to mention something one step further - what about playing light, bright airy Disney tunes on an mp3 player for him, rather than the noise protection, to further help to drown out noises? Ha ha, the super hero ears sounds like a great idea, too!

 

[Jennifer2983]

Def. when you get there start small, carousel....dumbo...he may not like some of the rides cause they r dark like snow white and stuff, but poo in critter country is well worth it.... you tube is really good idea my girl is finally tall enough to ride the bigger rides and I have already shown them all to her

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[Mugglemama]

We took my godson to DL when he was 4 (DCA didn't exist yet..this was in 1996). My daughter was a newly-turned 5 at the time.

My godson was SO excited to go. He was the kind of kid who jumped out of trees and swung from ropeswings and daring things like that (daring for a 4 year old). He wasn't afraid of the dark OR loud noises at home. But he ended up hating most of the rides at Disneyland. I just repeatedly explained to him that there is NOTHING on the rides that could harm him, and that I would never allow him to be in danger, that the rides are meant to be fun, and that if he hated it, he NEVER had to ride it again.)...but at some point in every ride, he kind of screamed in fright. I think the only thing he actually cried on was Pirates, and only temporarily (I would have never dragged him onto a ride if he was frightened enough to cry in line - but he was a trooper and never cried in any of the queues.)

Poor little guy, lol. He really didn't have much fun that day.(although later he told everyone how great Disneyland was, lol!) He grew up to love extreme rollercoasters and anything scary (movies, stories, rides, etc.) he can get his hands on.

I'd start out with Bug's Land if I had a 3 year old who was very nervous about going. But you know...don't resign yourself to a battle just yet...my daughter (now 10) has suffered from severe phobias most of her life (to include puppies, butterflies, etc.), but she'll ride everything at DLR she can get on, and has willingly gone on things like Haunted Mansion since she was 2 and Tower of Terror since she was 6. Screamin' is now her favorite ride.

And all of my kids except my oldest were the kind of kids terrified of the vacuum cleaner (in fact, up until a couple of years ago, I used to have to yell down the hall.., "I'm turning on the vacuum, so don't freak out!" before vacuuming, lol....and every last one of them has been riding every DLR ride that height restrictions didn't ban them from since they were toddlers.

So sometimes, the fact that a preschooler acts afraid of everything at home, isn't necessarily an indicator that they won't really love Disneyland.

I hope your family has a GREAT time!

 

[Bungle]

Well I would tell him that he doesn't have to ride the matterhorn. There are a lot of other rides to enjoy. I've seen parents force their scared kids on rides and it almost never ends well. Then again you might get there and he could get caught up in the mood and be game for anything, just be prepared to skip it if he opts out.

 

[mooshka1]

Def. watch the youtube videos with him first. A lot of the dark rides are scary and LOUD! The earplugs are great. Maybe have him pick out a special little stuffed animal or soft toy before you leave, a hero character he likes, and have him hold it while riding. I was going to suggest bringing one of his favorite toys from home, but God forbid you lose it..... So I think it's better you buy him a "comfort" toy espeacially for this trip. And when he gets done riding ANYTHING, tell him how super brave he was. That might get him wanting to ride more.

 

[frijolefrito]

Am I a bad parent for using candy and toy bribes? For each ride the kids try that they normally don't I'll give a reward like a dollar to spend or a candy or something. I don't push too hard but my 4 yr old was pretty cool about riding stuff. He's done everything he is tall enough for but decided he didn't want to do some rides. I'm fine with that.

I would also have a plan of attack on the rides for instance:

Dumbo,peter Pan, Carrousel, small world, Nemo Beleive it or not starwars was an easy sell to my boy when he was 4, regular train, Heimlick, muppets, ariel, are all easy.

After that ramp it up try: Pirates, than I dunno stuff... lol. I would avoid haunted mansion and space mountain. Even though everyone does haunted/pirates.

For the first fast ride I'd pick big thunder and when he rides wrap one arm around his waste hugging him next to you to make him feel secure.

Good phrases I use:

"This is mickey's place and he wouldn't make anything unsafe."

For star tours I said.. you want to go in space?

 

[cgh]

I found the unofficial guide really helpful for determining scare factor. When we went with our DS at 2.5 he became scared after Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Didn't want any dark rides.

I'd suggest explaining you won't go anywhere anything like that monster and show videos of the rides. I showed DS the disney vacation planning video before we went and he got to see the big picture of the park. Then, some you tube. I would also start when you are in the park with rides that he could completely see and honor his concerns (and validate). Do you have a carousel you can take him to before hand? Or has he ridden one? You can talk that up.

We also let him drive rides for our first visit. We didn't do everything and I went on things my own. We did take him on some dark rides (ie. Winnie the pooh-and his enjoyment of that gave us more leeway to take him on Peter Pan (which he found too dark), Its a small world, etc.

We are going again this year at 3.5 and I'm planning on trying some rides we weren't able to take him on this year (Pirates)

 

[3monkeys4me]

My 2 1/2 year old is scared of everything too. We will be going in August, a few days before she turns 3. Our plan is to take it slow. We will probably take her on the Carousel first, since it is a ride she is used to and then try out some of the other rides like the storybook canal, casey jr, etc... Then the plan is IASW, followed by Peter Pan. If she does good with those then we will expand depending on how she is doing. She is terrified of characters so we will avoid those with her. I am hoping she will become comfortable like my older two did at that age but worst case Dh and I will take turns with her while the other takes the older two on rides and stuff.

 

[larina]

my grandson is scared of everything too. If he thinks there might be a problem he gets upset even if there won't be any problem. He won't go upstairs even during the day because he is afraid of everything. He jumps in my lap if there is a noise outside, forget what happens when the dog barks for no reason.
I read about this hint on Parents magazine many years ago and remembered it for my grandson.
I bought a spray bottle and put water with a little men's cologne (not girly smelling) and he brings it when we go anyplace he might be afraid of. He can spray the "monster away" and nothing will bother him.
Print out a label with whatever name you want your spray to be, I used "monster away" you might want "brave spray" "ride saver" "strong boy" or all of the above. Make it say somethig like a small spritz of this spray will take away all monsters, make you stronger or braver, help you have a good time, take away the grumpies, etc... whatever you might think he will need to get througha few days at the parks.

Umm, I would think about skipping the cologne and just using water or glitter water, even better. What if he gets scared in a restaurant? Or sprays near someone allergic to such things? I like the idea in theory, but I honestly believe that all perfume and cologne should be illegal so this ides scares me.

 

[Girimama33]

My brothers and I took our daughters for a day back in January. My DD was 3.5 and I had a niece there that was a few days shy of 3. It was their first trip. We went to Fantasyland and walked through the castle and SW. After that, my niece didn't want to go on Pinocchio...my DD got a little scared in there too. We went on the carousel and Casey Jr...all was right with the world.
The older girls wanted to go on POTC. My young niece screamed during the first half because she was so scared, and wouldn't really go on anything else. I agree with everyone that said to avoid the dark/inside rides first.
My DD was a trooper. She was a little scared when rides were dark, and would just hold on to me. She even went on ST and SM.