ADHD & queuing

[21jlb]

My son is 9 and has ADHD. He hasn’t been diagnosed, but it has been pretty clear from a young age that he has. His school has made numerous referrals but we don’t seem to be getting anywhere.
We are travelling to Orlando and I am concerned about queuing. I want to try and apply for the DAS pass but I don’t know what to say.
He has the attention span of Dory causing him to get bored and frustrated very quickly. He will then either try to make his own fun which includes running around, climbing, rolling on the floor or becoming argumentative and walking off.
It doesn’t sound like a lot but it causes him stress from being bored, he describes it like his head goes pop, and stress to us trying to calm him and not annoy others.
Will this be enough for them to understand?

As far as I'm aware you need proof of diagnoses for any queue jumping passes at WDW, otherwise they'd have everyone claiming they have this or that 🤷‍♀️
If you know in advance that you DS can't queue why are you going to the place with the longest queues in the world?

When we went to Disney with my autistic daughter she hadn't been diagnosed and so we couldn't use the disability pass for queues etc. They are very strict on it, you need an official letter detailing the diagnosis etc.

One thing I will add, is that the queues are interesting for the most part- especially the queues for the themed rides etc. For example, waiting for the Winnie the Pooh ride had various Pooh-themed pictures/ things to read/ twiddly 'busy board' type things on the walls. The Finding Nemo queue had things to see, Pirates of the Caribean ditto. It wasn't hard queueing because it wasn't like going to e.g. Alton Towers where the queue is just people in a penned in line with a wooden fence keepign you in place.

@Mommabear20 So because he has adhd then I shouldn’t allow him to go to Disney? What child doesn’t want to go.
I’m asking for a bit of advice from others who have been in a similar situation not a cunty comment.

You generally need to prove disability, otherwise we could all show up and say 'he can't queue'.

Have you considered a private assessment if you are getting nowhere with the NHS? I know this is costly, but I mention it because you're also talking about an expensive holiday, which suggests it might be an option for you. Whatever happens, I hope you and your DS have a lovely time at WDW.

Can you buy a VIP queue skip type thing? Not the one you're talking about, but one open to anyone with ££££? Could be worth it.

It's not a cunty comment, I have ADHD (diagnosed) and really struggle in queues. Some places are just not suitable for everyone.

As someone who has actually used a DAS numerous times at Disneyworld they do not ask to see any proof of diagnoses - it is illegal to ask for this in the US. What they will ask is for you to explain why queuing is difficult for you - just tell them what you said above. Tell them about the school referrals and that you are waiting for an outcome there. ADHD is a pretty standard reason for needing a DAS pass.

Why don't you just email Disneyworld and ask them?

They don’t let you skip
the queue per se what they do is they give you a return time. (Unless the current wait time is 30 mins or less)

The queues can be torture especially if you are going when it’s super hot.
My 9 year old wanted to go on the big thrill rides rather than the whinny the poo types as they are “boring” apparently!
There were queues of 3 hours for those rides.
We bought fast passes but still had to join queues and the fast passes were an absolute arm & a leg in cost.

At Magic kingdom we booked to go some weeks before as you can’t just turn up. It was at capacity which I believe is 100,000 people.
It was absolutely horrendous. You can’t walk in a straight line, you are feet deep in people.
There were big queues even just to use the toilet.
We we’re in traffic for up to 1.5 hours to just exit the parks.

I wouldn’t go again and feel disappointed actually in the way they just want your money hand over fist and just packed the people in.
My ADHD child was fairly miserable for the holiday, much preferred pool days to the Disney “magic”.

Good luck OP and prepare yourself for a bumpy holiday.

Are you sure he wants to go? Does he understand what he is going to experience? My kids didn't want to go.They heard about the queues and knew it would be too stressful.

Yes, it is a virtual queue with the DAS pass rather than cutting the queue - it’s very easy to use through the Disney app. There are no fast passes anymore but they do have genie plus which you buy on the day and which costs a maximum of $22 per person per day but you can only use it once per ride. I don’t recognise the horror story of a trip that one of the posters above had but we do go at Autumn half-term and Christmas and it is quite pleasant then - only park that we thought busy was Magic Kingdom on the weekends.

You’ve added your own context not necessarily the poster. Of course you can take your child to WDW but if you know that queues are stressful for him, why would you subject him to that? It’s not just the rides you queue for it’s getting in, guest services to sort his passes, the rides will still involve some queues, food, snacks, drinks, toilets, gift shops. Having ADHD doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go but I would ask the question, sincerely and in as non cunty a way as is possible: Does he want to go or is it the rest of your family want to go there?

I'd just charge your phone and let him watch stuff in the queue, but if you plan your days well and play the slots your queue times shouldn't be more than 15 mins.

Ok .. My Ds has adhd .. He finds standing still tricky..

We have always used techniques to cope with queues. We know a few finger games eye spy. The alphabet game, simon says.

I have never been to disney world to comment but do still believe we need to look at coping skills and it may be doing that at a smaller theme park.

We went when fast passes existed and they worked pretty well.
It may well be that at the moment somewhere with smaller lines would be more successful for your holiday.
I have read quite a few recent negative reviews about the changes at Disney.

Apologies, to clarify, we got fast passes for the Universal parks but only for one day as for our family of 4, it was $700!
Genie + were just way to much!

What I said about capacity is true though.

I sounded extremely negative in my post, but it is my honest opinion & experience of being there in recent weeks. I hope it helps OP.

Personally if i was in your position op and my son was struggling I would be using my money to pay for a private diagnosis so that he can access the help he needs not spending it on an expensive holiday that could prove highly stressful for someone with ADHD.

Maybe you could wait for diagnosis so you can get the disabled access pass. Alternatively there are fast passes. Either way there will be some sort of queuing involved.

This is what's putting me off going. Both kids have suspected adhd. Youngest worse than oldest.neither can queue. I'd love to take them to Disney land but I just don't think it's something they will enjoy. If we go to a theme park in the uk they won't queue for even half an hour, they both refuse to go on the ride and we usually end up spending most of the time at a park or soft play. They are 10 and 8.

There is some incorrect information on this post.
To be clear- you do NOT need proof of a disability to get a DAS pass in Disney Florida- or indeed in Universal. Your child absolutely will qualify.
My daughter is awaiting a likely diagnosis of Autism and has ADD traits too. All I had to do was explain why she found queuing difficult. You do not need to have any or off whatsoever- you just explain the difficulties. You are then on the app allowed to book return times for rides. It is very easy.
I went in August this year.

Please do not let this put you off- you only need to get one DAS pass and if you describe what you have described here - your child would be eligible.

Also my daughter gets extremely stressed in queues - but she was desperate to go and the DAS pass was wonderful and she had the absolute time of her life. I find the implication that a parent is in the wrong for wanting to give their child an experience of a lifetime just because they have a disability quite insulting. As parents, you weigh these things up- with your child- and find ways to modify experiences to make them enjoyable.