Burn survivors

dunbarfamily

I'm a proud WDW-loving wife and mama to six
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Not sure if this is the right place for this...my dh isn't disabled per say, he does have a very pronounced foot drop, but he is a burn survivor.


He suffered burns on 52-570% of his body in May of '01. We are going to WDW September 21-30 of this year. Due to the extensive burns and graphing they had to do, he is unable to sweat, and as such, is sensitive to the heat and becomes overheated easily.

Are there any burn suvivors out there with any advice on how to keep cool? Just looking for ideas! We've never been there this time of year. Will the heat be absolutly unbearable?

Thanks in advance!
 
AS Bopper allready said; choose the coolest time of year if possible.

There are special cooling-vests out there that help keeping cool. Rest during the hottest time of the day and go to the park in the morning and evening instead. EMH are great for that if you're staying on site. Take enough time outs inside so he can profit from the airco.

Go to guest relations and explain his needs. He can get a GAC that will allow him to wait in a shaded place instead of in the full sun. It's not a "front of the row"-pass, it just takes care of his need to watch out with the sun and heat.

Read the sticky with the FAQ on top of the disABILITIES-section if you haven't allready. There are great tips on there. There's been a lot of tips on this part of the board about staying out of the sun, heat etc. Have a look round, use the search-option and you can use all the info to his benefit.
 
You've had some great advice already, I'll just add my tuppence to pot.

Firstly, look into the GAC, it could be a real life-saver for you guys (see the FAQ at the top of the disABILITIES board for more information).

Secondly, as has already been said, try to avoid being out and about in the middle of the day. If possible, head into the parks first thing in the morning, explore for a while, then when it starts to get too hot, head back to your hotel. You can swim, read, watch TV in your room, whatever you fancy, just stay cool. Then when mid-afternoon rolls around you can head back to the parks and play some more.

There's loads of air-con at WDW, so take time to enjoy it. Watch a show, stop in a restaurant for a drink or a snack, wander around the shops etc.

I think Animal Kingdom will be the hardest park for you guys as it's HUGE (it could apparently fit the other three parks within its borders comfortably) and doesn't have as much air-con as the others. Try to hit this one on a cooler day, and preferably at a cooler time (such as first thing in the morning or later afternoon). Be aware that the park closes fairly early in the evening (about 6ish if I remember correctly) so don't expect to do too much later in the day (unless you go to evening Extra Magic Hours).

One tip I've picked up from these boards is to carry a wash-cloth in a zip-lock bag, that way your husband can dowse down regularly to keep cool. Just remember to carry the suncream with you and to re-apply regularly if you're doing this.

Small battery operated fans might also help keep him cool. The misting fans are particularly useful and can be re-filled at any of the water fountains.

Also, be flexible with your plans, that way you can arrange your schedule according to the weather and temperature outside. I've known people who run their holidays like drill Sargents, but I find going with the flow to be a much easier way of doing things.

One last tip, when you're at the water parks, wear an old T-shirt (one that you don't mind getting bleached by the chlorine). We always do it to keep the sun off, but it's also very good at keeping you cool when your out of the water.

Other than that all I can think of is the normal stuff like take care of yourselves, drink lots of water, don't over-do it, etc.

Good luck and have a great trip! :goodvibes
 
As was suggested above, he might want to look into the cooling vest which may be covered under his health insurance. Alternately he could wear the cooling wraps that can be bought over the counter and are sold at certain locations at WDW also. My SD even has her own neck wraps as it can be extremely hot and muggy in September. It sounds like his burns were very extensive and I'm so glad to hear he survived such a painful and dangerous ordeal.---Kathy
 
www.Froggtoggs.com has a line of hats and cooling cloths that are very helpful. I'm very heat sensitive from thyroid disease and found thier ballcap very helpful you wet the inside of it and it stays cool for a few hours (just re wet) also their cooling cloths are nice! just wrap it around your neck...it really helps!!!!!!!!!!! and if possible...freeze water bottles to take into the parks!!!
 
Thank you for all the great advice. We've been to WDW twice before, but never during September. We were hoping that the end of the month might be cooler, but it appears that is not the case.

We will look into the cooling vests, and the cap sounds great! Thanks Djbl883for that idea...we hadn't heard of it. My dh wears hats all the time to keep the sun off his head. He has a lot of burns there, and some graphing too. The hat sounds perfect!

The wash cloth idea is excellent! We'll certainly do that!

Can anybody suggest a place to purchase cooling vests?

Thank you again everyone!
 
A hand towel would wrap around DH's shoulders and stay put easier than a wash cloth would he could also drape it over his whole head an let it hang down the back of his neck.

Not that much more expensive than a wash cloth not that much bigger than a wash cloth but almost twice the benefit I think.

I'd either pack old ones from home or buy some new cheap hand towels prolly the thinner ones better no so heavy when wet to carry around. Ya you got to wet them more frequently but that is easy enough to do.
 
Thank you for all the great advice. We've been to WDW twice before, but never during September. We were hoping that the end of the month might be cooler, but it appears that is not the case.

We will look into the cooling vests, and the cap sounds great! Thanks Djbl883for that idea...we hadn't heard of it. My dh wears hats all the time to keep the sun off his head. He has a lot of burns there, and some graphing too. The hat sounds perfect!

The wash cloth idea is excellent! We'll certainly do that!

Can anybody suggest a place to purchase cooling vests?

Thank you again everyone!




The company I told you about...FroggToggs could easily make you what you need..they are an Alabama Homegrown business that started out in a home and has grown by the year!!! Look them up and give them a call! I bet they can help you!!! The cooling cloths they have work great ...they are so big they could actually be cut in half...2 might make a vest like garment easily..
 
Cooling vests are considered a medical "device" and are often prescribed to people who are heat intolerant due to a disability, such as MS or for quadriplegics who also cannot perspire. You can check with his physical therapist or OT perhaps and it would likely be covered by his medical insurance. The cooling wraps can be easily found or even made by using the absorbent gel "pellets" which allows someone to also look a bit stylish with different colored wraps. Someone on the DIS was making them last year and made some matching ones for me and my service dog in Disney fabrics- they were very inexpensive and we'll use them for years to come.---Kathy
 

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