disney rides while pregnant?

[LiLStar]

I think I may be going to disneyworld in august. Yeah, not when I'd choose to go, but sil will be back from overseas then, where she'd been 2 years, and she'll be on a teacher's schedule, so must be before school starts! It occured to me last night, oh crap, if I want to have any fun on that trip, I'd better be really careful with prevention. And then I got sad :( Waiting that long to conceive..I'm already getting the baby bug! But then I thought, well.. a lot of disney rides are really gentle and tame. So surely, as long as I was early enough to not be showing, it'd be harmless. Then I thought more..lets say a hypothetical 1st trimester pregnancy on even a rollercoaster. Can that REALLY cause problems, in a healthy pregnancy with a very very sticky baby? Our bodies are amazing, and do so awesome at protecting and growing our babies. Is a rollercoaster really enough to shake an embryo loose? 

What if I prevented until june, then quit preventing but didn't ttc.. and if it happened it happened. something like splash mountain in the 1st tri.. would you do it? (morning sicknesses allowing..lol) 

[dejagerw]

I personally wouldn't go on any rollercoasters pregnant.  While our bodies are amazing, nature didn't really intend for us to be riding rollercoasters.  While nothing bad may happen, I personally would feel beyond awful if something did happen.  I'd stick to any rides safe to bring a baby on, and skip the coasters and other thrill rides.

[Jenne]

Um, you couldn't *PAY* me enough money to walk around FLORIDA in AUGUST pregnant. I would not have fun. I realize that wasn't your question but it was my first thought!

Almost every ride in an amusement park has a sign saying something like "Do Not Ride While Pregnant". DH and I went to Disneyworld for our honeymoon and were surprised by how many rides were for adults aka not pregnant women or children. Certainly the shows would be okay to sit and watch but lots of rides have abrupt stops and starts or shake. I'm not claiming that abrupt starts/stops/shaking will cause a miscarriage but just wouldn't be that swell on an ongoing (several times a day for several days) basis.

*BUT* Disney has amazing customer service...you are certainly not the only woman in the world to be pregnant (or might be!) at Disney. I'd call and ask. I'm sure they have a list of acceptable rides or information for pregnant guests about accomodations and such. (If you do call, please post any answers! )

Jenne

[Smokering]

I feel your pain. We actually put off a Disneyland trip (from NZ, so a pretty major event!) for a year and a half so I could have a baby. It'll mean taking a six-month-old around Disneyland, but I'd rather do that than go pregnant. It may be the only time I ever go to Disneyland, and I don't want to miss any of the rides!

There are differing opinions on going on "scary" rides at DL/DW. I know of people who do Splash, and others who won't do POTC (which has two pretty minor drops). It's generally agreed that most of the "pregnant women shouldn't ride" signs are CYA signs, but still. Indiana Jones is pretty jerky and bumpy. With rides that whip you around, my concern would be placental abruption - although I guess that wouldn't be an issue in a *very* early pregnancy. I've heard the cast members aren't actually allowed to refuse you entry to rides if you're pregnant (even heavily, visibly pregnant) - they can strongly caution you against it, but they can't actually stop you (for reasons of discrimination or something). So... I dunno. I'm an err-on-the-side-of-caution girl, which is why we postponed our trip. You'd probably get a LOT of judgment if you chose to ride certain rides while pregnant, but from my research it seems like the medical evidence for harm is pretty slim. (Not that there'd be an ethical way to really study that sort of thing!)

Perhaps more to the point, though, do you really want to do Disney in your first trimester?? Some of those rides makes people nauseated at the best of times. :p If you're prone to morning sickness, pregnancy fatigue and so on, you could have a VERY miserable trip. Heck, going to Disneyland is kind of an obsession of mine at the moment, but at 15 weeks pregnant there's just no way I could really enjoy it - I'd have to sit down every ten minutes to prevent myself fainting, and avoid all the swirly, jerky, fast, G-forcey or otherwise motion-related rides - ie, pretty much all of them.

[kawa kamuri]

I've never so much as had a threat of miscarriage or a single pregnancy complication and no, I would absolutely not do it. I feel comfortable doing my daily chores, don't believe myself to be a precious and delicate gestating flower but I wouldn't beg for trouble either. 

[skimmilf]

There is a ton of things to do there other then roller coasters/fast rides. Those a very small part of the park. I know several people who have gone while pregnant and while they did not ride the intense rides, had a great time.

The last time I went was with my scardy-cat son, then 11, who wont go on so much as a log ride, and another adult and child who don't do any kind of rollercoasters either. We stayed a week, had plenty to do, and did not go a single roller coaster.Didn't even go on the log ride.

All the rides are pretty well marked. Some that are slow moving, enjoyable and not intense are: The haunted mansion, almost anything in Fantasyland (Peter Pan's flight, Snow White's Scary Adventures, It's a Small World etc), The Jungle Cruise, and Pirates of the Carribean (has a slight hill on the ride...14 feet I think? It's about as intense as going down a slide at the playground). You can always ask or opt out if you have your doubts. & there are a ton of shows and other things to see at all the parks.

I think you should go. You wont regret it.

[LiLStar]

In thinking more, dd (almost 4, would be 4.5 when we go) scares pretty easy on rides. I tried her on the tilt a whirl at the fair, and they had to stop the ride for her. I'm sure if I just stuck to rides that are tame enough to go on with the kids, it'd be fine. Thats the real fun of going to disney as an adult.. watching the magic through the kids' eyes! I will make SURE to not get pregnant before June, and after that.. eh.. leave it up to fate. We went to florida in august when I was around..hmm.. 12 weeks or so with dd. we did discovery cove seaworld, and then headed out to sanibel island. which was pretty much heaven on earth. 

[kawa kamuri]

http://www.wdwinfo.com/pregnancy.htm

http://www.talkdisney.com/forums/wdw-theme-parks/41420-pregnant-walt-disney-world-what-rides-can-i-enjoy.html#axzz18PmNPgVM

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081130112530AAT56mz

http://www.themeparkinsider.com/news/response.cfm?id=3328

[Stayseeliz]

I wouldn't chance it personally. There's a reason why they give those warnings. Even if you've had no problems I'll just warn you that I had two normal pregnancies then had two m/c's within a few months so you never know who is at risk unfortunately. I just wouldn't chance it. We're going to Sea World in a few weeks and I'm just going to do the shows-none of the roller coasters or even the tame kiddie rides. Of course they'd laugh me right out of line if I even tried it with my big ole belly. :)

TTC when you want to but just be prepared to take the necessary precautions later. I know it's not fun to go to a theme park pregnant but I think it's worth it. I'm going to have a hard time not riding my favorite roller coaster at Sea World but it's just part of the process.

[philomom]

DDC crashing to say, "Heck no". That seems like it would invite trouble.

[mclisa]

I've been to Disney World twice- both while pg. 

I wouldn't ride any of the rollercoasters.  Not worth it to me.  Not even the kiddie roller coaster: Goofy's barnstormer.

I did ride Pirates, Peter Pan, carousel, Snow White.

At Epcot I did ride the water ride in Norway.  It was very slow moving and not a problem. 

The beauty of Disney is that there is so many other things to do that don't involve rides.  There were parades and characters.  Shows like the Philharmagic.

[Monkey Keeper]

We went to WDW this past July when I was 33w pg.  I actually coped with the heat just fine, and I did ride some of the tame rides mentioned above.  They weren't any worse than riding in a car in terms of jerking or bumpiness.  I think I'd rather be more heavily pregnant at WDW in the summer than dealing with the heat and walking and lines and rides during the first tri!

[I Need Coffee]

I went to an amusement park when I was about 4-5 weeks pregnant and I didn't know. I went on a bunch of rollercoasters and other types of rides. Everything is okay, but if I KNEW I was pregnant, I probably wouldn't, just because I am a worry wart.

[Sunflower223]

I went at 7 months and had a pretty good time.  All the rides that are not OK for pregnancy are marked.  However, the first trimester is so exhausting.  If I knew I was pregnant I wouldn't ride Splash Mountain but there are plenty of other things that I would be comfortable.  Most of the rides at Disney are so calm.  

[Tamera]

I went to Disneyland when I was around 33 weeks pregnant with my daughter. They have a symbol on the map next to the rides that they have deemed safe for pregnant women. I still used my judgment and didn't go on every single ride that had the symbol next to it. I can tell you that Pirates of the Caribbean seemed safe, but there is a drop near the end and I felt some pretty intense pressure in my lower abs. I wouldn't go on that one again. 

[WifeofAnt]

I would personally compare it to things I already know I'm allowed to do like car rides and DTD.  Really how many kiddie coasters are going to be more jarring than what you can experience in you own bedroom?

[soccerchic21]

We went to disneyland this past summer. I was 13 weeks pregnant. I discussed what to and not to do with my then OB before the trip. Her advice was to avoid rides with a high g-force. So that cut out a lot of the serious roller coasters. Which worked out anyway because we had our 7 and 5 year old with us and they can't go on most of those anyway. Bumpy rides weren't a problem. She said that my baby wasn't sticking out enough and was pretty protected inside my pelvis at the time. She also said that if something were to happen who would know if it was going to happen anyway or if it was the ride I went on. She reminded me that if something did happen I might feel very guilty. I felt comfortable with the rides I chose to go on.

We had a fun a trip. I didn't spot or anything and went on a good amount of rides despite not going on others. 

My advice would be to have a conversation with your provider. I am sure each woman's provider would say something different depending on the person. 

[MacroMama]

I'd be more concerned with how you do during your first trimester with morning sickness. There is no way I would have wanted to go to Disney during this pregnancy at that time.

Good luck!