When Your Little Ones LOSE IT At The Parks

Dartha Stewart

Dartha Stewart

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Let's face it: With all the sights, sounds, smells, and surroundings to absorb during any day at the theme parks, it is easy for your little ones to eventually reach a breaking point & simply lose it! I'm sure many of you know what I'm referring to: Before you know it...a full-fledge fit is underway, and an afternoon nap is looong overdue.

But what is the best way to handle a situation when your young travel companions start to reach meltdown mode? What creative ways have you discovered that help ease the tension for everyone involved? Do you simply let them cry it out of their system? Do you take them back to the resort room for a powernap? What works best? Let me further explain my situation...

This upcoming May, my grandson Ben will be joining us for a week-long WDW vacation. It was a surprise planned several months ago that he would be joining us for the trip, but the boy has a talent for figuring things out. It's like he can sometimes read our minds. Needless to say, he now knows that he's going to Disney with us, and is beyond ecstatic in anticipation for what awaits. Ben adores me; idolizes me, if you will. As his grandfather I am excited too how it has worked out so that the he & the entire family can come along for the Disney trip. But here is what concerns me: As much as I love my grandson and am happy that he is going with us, part of me is worried. Over the years he has had some pretty bad temper blowups in public. His tantrums are not always common, but when they do occur, it can be quite startling for those around. A lot of his anger issues are a result of his father being practically nonexistent during much of Ben's life. His mother (my daughter), whom is more supportive, keeps busy with her job as a top official in the military. So a lot of this has boiled up over the years & caused my grandson to have sporadic temper issues when life gets stressful.

So given the stress that can come with a trip to even the most magical place on earth, I am a bit cautious with how the crowds, noise, and so on will impact our trip in May. Luckily we will be going before most schools let out for summer vacation, and hopefully the crowd levels won't reach the most severe summer levels by that point. But regardless, any advice on how to cope with quick tempers and sudden outbursts while in a place as massive as WDW can never hurt.

What are your tips, tricks, & other tidbits in calming the storm when your little ones reach a melting point?
 
NelleBelle

NelleBelle

Well-Known Member
How old is Ben? We've been taking our 2 sons since they were babies so we're endured the tempers at every age (they are 12 and 9 now). Before we enter the parks, we review what behavior is expected (as they were older). When they were younger (than 5), we made sure that unless we were prepared to buy something from a store, the kids never went "window" shopping with mom--otherwise I never heard the end of the "I want this." All of the tantrums came down to not getting food into their tummies in time (we were on a 3-hour time zone difference, which really seemed to screw with their internal clocks) and they seemed to always come when we were in line for a ride. My husband and I made the difficult choice that whichever son was having trouble one of us would step out of line with him until he could calm down (and miss the ride as a result). I think the heat plays into it as well, so just taking sometime to go back to the hotel and play in to pool to recharge for the evening might help, too. If he's old enough, looking for hidden Mickey's would sometimes snap my kids out of it (with some cold water). Just remember to be patient and that there will be outbursts of some kind (I even have them at times:oops:)
 
zurgandfriend

zurgandfriend

Well-Known Member
When our DS would "hit the wall" we would say "it's time for the pool." We stayed on property so we would head back to our resort and let him swim and 'chill." After we would head back to the room to get ready for dinner and our evening fun, while waiting for my DW to shower DS and I would lie down and he always fell asleep for his power nap followed by a shower. After that he was fine for the evening.
 
docdebbi

docdebbi

Well-Known Member
As the others have said an afternoon break for us is paramount. Does not matter the age. The young ones sleep and the Tweens and teens chill at the pool. The old ones and by that I mean 65 and over also tend to nap. You would be amazed the difference it makes
At animal kingdom since it closes at five or six(at least for now) we can't really go home but take time for a long air conditioned lunch usually tusker house
 
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Raineman

Raineman

Well-Known Member
At the risk of starting another debate on this, I wouldn't be taking babies, toddlers or young children to WDW in the first place (there are lost of older threads, I'm sure, where this is discussed ad nauseum). However, if you do, there is one thing I have noticed with kids at WDW, and that is the situation where the kids are tired and still over-stimulated, and definitely need a break, but the parents keep going commando style, if for nothing else than their own selfish interests. This is not right. If your child is starting to get cranky and needs a break, do it then-after they start throwing tantrums is too late for that break. The break might be a shorter one, like sitting at a QS and getting a cold drink, or sitting in the shade on a bench for a few minutes.
 
Princess Kaylee

Princess Kaylee

Well-Known Member
Dartha Stewart said:
Let's face it: With all the sights, sounds, smells, and surroundings to absorb during any day at the theme parks, it is easy for your little ones to eventually reach a breaking point & simply lose it! I'm sure many of you know what I'm referring to: Before you know it...a full-fledge fit is underway, and an afternoon nap is looong overdue.

But what is the best way to handle a situation when your young travel companions start to reach meltdown mode? What creative ways have you discovered that help ease the tension for everyone involved? Do you simply let them cry it out of their system? Do you take them back to the resort room for a powernap? What works best? Let me further explain my situation...

This upcoming May, my grandson Ben will be joining us for a week-long WDW vacation. It was a surprise planned several months ago that he would be joining us for the trip, but the boy has a talent for figuring things out. It's like he can sometimes read our minds. Needless to say, he now knows that he's going to Disney with us, and is beyond ecstatic in anticipation for what awaits. Ben adores me; idolizes me, if you will. As his grandfather I am excited too how it has worked out so that the he & the entire family can come along for the Disney trip. But here is what concerns me: As much as I love my grandson and am happy that he is going with us, part of me is worried. Over the years he has had some pretty bad temper blowups in public. His tantrums are not always common, but when they do occur, it can be quite startling for those around. A lot of his anger issues are a result of his father being practically nonexistent during much of Ben's life. His mother (my daughter), whom is more supportive, keeps busy with her job as a top official in the military. So a lot of this has boiled up over the years & caused my grandson to have sporadic temper issues when life gets stressful.

So given the stress that can come with a trip to even the most magical place on earth, I am a bit cautious with how the crowds, noise, and so on will impact our trip in May. Luckily we will be going before most schools let out for summer vacation, and hopefully the crowd levels won't reach the most severe summer levels by that point. But regardless, any advice on how to cope with quick tempers and sudden outbursts while in a place as massive as WDW can never hurt.

What are your tips, tricks, & other tidbits in calming the storm when your little ones reach a melting point?
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A cast member told us that when 3oClock hits all the kids throw tantrums. It's only the happiest place on earth going in. We also see so much child abuse in Disney. A few weeks ago we saw a little boy take a Star Wars toy from the toddler in their stroller and the father pushed his son to the ground and said "give it to me you little ". I would just threaten to leave, and maybe take a break and get a snack and a cool drink. They could be overheated and tired.
 
Goofyernmost

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
SyracuseDisneyFan said:
Definitely take a break mid-day. Also, if at possible, keeping up with the same routine that he has at home could potentially help.
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A lot of good advice has been given. I will repeat one from another thread. Slow down, we adults tend to forget that those little 5 year old legs have to make about two or more steps to keep up with one for an adult. Slow down and let it be a casual walk and they will last a lot longer then being on a run all day long just to keep up. Everything that is in the parks will still be there even if you arrive 5 minutes later then you would like. A visit to a park does not need to be a marathon, stop if he wants to see something, answer questions, explain ahead of time that some of the lines take a long time. Let him shuffle about in line, as long as what he is doing is not bothering other guests. (i.e. bumping into others, hanging from chains or rails, climbing on the details, etc.) It still is a treasure chest of over-stimulation of sounds, colors, lights and adventure for a child (sometimes even for adults) let him absorb the atmosphere at his own pace. Above all, if he starts to show signs of needing a break go back to the resort and change the scenery. That does wonders for me and I'm 68 years old. Even I need a break and always have since my first visit when I was 35.
 
Dartha Stewart

Dartha Stewart

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
NelleBelle said:
How old is Ben?
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He's in his young 30's. Before jumping to conclusions, know that he is an incredibly smart young man. He once attended a highly esteemed academy taught by my son before dropping out early due to being too advanced for the curriculum offered. He's very gifted at building machinery and psychology / interpreting what people are thinking. I know the whole tantrum thing sounds bad for his age, but a lot of that, like I mentioned before, is due to the fact his father (my son-in-law) became so distant & preoccupied with his own life. Soon after Ben left the academy, my own son left to retire on some remote island, and could care less about theme parks, etc...so I am pretty much all Ben has to turn to as far as a father figure goes. It's more of an emotional issue with him than a mental deficiency.

But there are still those moments which can lead to high stress, and knowing how the parks can be with all the planning, rushing, crowds, you name it...I was beginning to fear another breakdown in such an environment. It would be as embarrassing for me as it would be for him. Hopefully having me around will keep this from occurring.

Thanks to everyone for all the helpful tips & advice!
 
FigmentPigments

FigmentPigments

Well-Known Member
I agree with Princess Kaylee and SyracuseDisneyFan. The hardest part of taking young children to Disney is that we want them to have fun, and be a special time for them. However, we tend to forget that children need rules and guidelines, and very often (in all of the excitemint) we let our children get away with behavior that would be unacceptable in any other place. As mentioned above, routine will help prevent a meltdown. If you're driving to Disney World, make sure he knows that the same rules;)apply. This also holds true for stores and restaurants. This doesn't mean we need to have a rule for everything, but try to remind him that the same rules at home also are the same rules at Disney World. I can't tell how many times I hear a parent say "he/she knows better" but do children really when he or she is on vacation? All of a sudden children maybe eating food they don't normally eat at home, and getting a lot more gifts. (Please don't think I'm suggesting not to treat your child to special things. I know I would be hard pressed not to. ;)) But I think explaining this before you even leave the house, with reminders as needed, will be a big help. My mom also suggested that if a child misbehaves or has a meltdown, take them to a "quiet" spot like a park bench or any out of the way spot instead of punishing them. I think a lot of times children are tired, hungry, or just overwhelmed. My mom mentioned that having him or her write down or draw what he did wrong may help calm him or her down, and think about why he or she acted that way. Might even be a little break for the whole family. Regardless whether you use any of this advice or not, I appreciate and applaud your forethought. As fellow guests, we never want to see or hear a meltdown, and are grateful that you are trying to prevent bothering guests and keeping your family happy during this trip. I know I want to see happy, smiling kids at the most magical place on earth. :DKudos to you and have a great trip.
 
Dartha Stewart

Dartha Stewart

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Pumbas Nakasak said:
My children were so well raised they never lost it. If they did Id be a failure as a parent. Surely?
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I'm not one of these: "Blame the parents" types, but in this case, that is very correct.

Ben's father (my son-in-law) has always been the solo type throughout his life. Always doing his own thing, going his own way, and putting very little effort into providing for a family unit. This has caused a lot of tension between him & Ben. I am worried that their relationship is going to eventually topple off a bridge, so to speak, one of these days. Luckily Ben turns to me as a father figure and seems to admire me as a parent more than his own father. It is sad, but that is how life works sometimes. I am glad to be there for him.

I think the upcoming Disney trip in May will help him unwind & blow off steam. He can seem like a triple-edge sword so many times, I just hope the environment of packed theme parks and over-stimulation that Disney offers doesn't set him off. Time will tell.
 

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