Planning a trip with my mom....

[Dragonfly_34]

My mom will be joining us for the first few days of our trip in October. She is completely unfamiliar with FP+ or the DAS so I will be doing all of the legwork for her, as well as making any necessary reservations, so I’m trying to get educated.

She is in her late 70’s and has several health conditions including COPD, Congestive Heart Failure and Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. Her doctors have encouraged her to walk regularly for exercise, but she has to be careful not to overdo it as she tires easily, needs to stay hydrated and being in the heat aggravates her conditions. She takes quite a bit of medication first thing in the morning, and it can take 3-4 hours for the side effects to pass enough so that she’s able to leave her house. During that 3-4 hour time frame she has to be near a bathroom because her medication causes severe intestinal issues and she has to find a bathroom immediately. She will be using an ECV because she won’t be able to handle all of the walking but I worry about how she will do with the heat. I’m hopeful that the heat won’t be quite as bad since we will be there in late October, but it’s still a concern since she’s becoming more and more sensitive to heat. Would she be eligible for a DAS card so she could wait in the shade or in an air-conditioned area rather than outdoors?

Also, we have several early morning ADRs scheduled and have included her in the headcount – my mom will be staying at a different resort so we will not be riding the same buses to the parks and have to coordinate when/how to meet. If she’s not well enough to make it to an ADR on time, will she still be allowed to join us? For example, we have an 8:20am ADR at Crystal Palace – if she is ill that morning and can’t make it until 9am, will they let her join us when she arrives?

I’m going to try and talk her into renting an ECV from an offsite company so she has it at all times, but if she opts to rent them from the parks, would she be able to rent one on the way to an ADR, even if the park isn’t officially open yet?

 

[anonymousegirl]

Not sure about the DAS. Only the CMs can tell whether they will issue one. Renting an off-site ECV is a good idea. As for renting at the parks, I think most of the rental palces are located just inside the turnstiles, which sometime open earlier than the official park opening (MK for example). I don't think EPCOT, AK or DHS do part openings though.

Also, if she doesn't already use one she should try practicing at home first at a Wal-Mart, Costco, etc.

You might want to schedule your FP+ for later in the day and have your mom join you in the parks in the latter part of the day to both accommodate her meds schedule and avoid the hottest part of the day.

As for the ADRs, restaurants usually require your entire party to be present before they seat you, so I think it is unlikely she will be allowed to join you later. Frankly, based on her meds schedule, I think a breakfast ADR is ill-advise. If you want to do a character meal and have your mom there, there perhaps consider a dinner option such as 1900 Park Fare, CRT, or Chef Mickey's.

 

[rubberbootbunny]

I went with my terminally ill mother in 2011 so I understand some of the problems you're facing.
definitely rent an ECV off site and you can also rent a canopy for them. These were a big help for mom.
My mother was very ill, but still quite active and we found that she did the better starting her day around 10:30, going until 3 resting some where quiet for a few hours, even somewhere quiet in the park in the shade then starting up again for a couple hours.
We met mom part way through a few meals, but we had contacted the restaurants individually ahead of time to make arrangements for this. Good luck with your trip I hope you all really enjoy it!