Back pain and carrying a toddler

[oceanwave]

We have trip scheduled this summer with our son (will be 19months), our 2 nieces, my husband, my dad and myself. When we go to Disney it's usually just my husband and I and our son, so this has never been an issue. I suffer from chronic back and knee pain and cannot carry my son for extended periods of time. There will be times when my husband will have to take one niece on a ride and I take the other on a different ride. My problem is I won't be able to hold my son through the line as strollers are not allowed in the line. There is no way I can stand in a 30 minute line holding my son. I can barely carry him for 5-10 minutes before the pain gets really bad. I am not sure what to do and I don't know what a solution would be? Am I just going to have to wait until my husband is able to join us in line? My dad will not be of any help as he will be using an ECV. Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[SirDuff]

There is such a thing as a "stroller as a wheelchair" tag. As the name suggests, it is for times when a child needs to stay in his/her stroller because of his/her needs. However, I *think* that I've read of people in your situation also getting one. That way, when you are alone, you can keep your son in the stroller through the line.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

You could talk to guest services about getting a stroller as a wheelchair tag. I can't say whether or not they would give you one, but there's no harm in asking.

How old is your niece? Could she help?

 

[oceanwave]

There is such a thing as a "stroller as a wheelchair" tag. As the name suggests, it is for times when a child needs to stay in his/her stroller because of his/her needs. However, I *think* that I've read of people in your situation also getting one. That way, when you are alone, you can keep your son in the stroller through the line.

This would definitely be ideal and would make life easier.

You could talk to guest services about getting a stroller as a wheelchair tag. I can't say whether or not they would give you one, but there's no harm in asking.

How old is your niece? Could she help?

I will definitely ask. All they can do is tell me no. My nieces are 8 & 5, so still too young to help carry my son.

 

[SirDuff]

Could you swap which of you takes which children? So, your DH takes your son and one niece and you take the other? In case you cannot get the tag.

 

[oceanwave]

Could you swap which of you takes which children? So, your DH takes your son and one niece and you take the other? In case you cannot get the tag.

We could definitely do that for some of the rides. But I do not ride the rollercoasters so it will be my husband taking them on those rides.

 

[gap2368]

I know someone that got a stroller as a wheel char for this region so I would go to GR and talk to them.

 

[DisneyOma]

We have trip scheduled this summer with our son (will be 19months), our 2 nieces, my husband, my dad and myself. When we go to Disney it's usually just my husband and I and our son, so this has never been an issue. I suffer from chronic back and knee pain and cannot carry my son for extended periods of time. There will be times when my husband will have to take one niece on a ride and I take the other on a different ride. My problem is I won't be able to hold my son through the line as strollers are not allowed in the line. There is no way I can stand in a 30 minute line holding my son. I can barely carry him for 5-10 minutes before the pain gets really bad. I am not sure what to do and I don't know what a solution would be? Am I just going to have to wait until my husband is able to join us in line? My dad will not be of any help as he will be using an ECV. Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

I don't understand why you are splitting up - why aren't you staying together? Also, your 19 month old doesn't have to be carried - unless he can't walk yet?

 

[oceanwave]

I know someone that got a stroller as a wheel char for this region so I would go to GR and talk to them.

That is good to know, so hopefully they will be able to accommodate me.

I don't understand why you are splitting up - why aren't you staying together? Also, your 19 month old doesn't have to be carried - unless he can't walk yet?

There will be times where my husband will be riding with my nieces, either both at the same time or one at a time depending on the ride seat configuration. Also there will be times where our son will not be allowed to ride, so if my husband wants to enjoy these rides as well then I will have to stay behind with our son. For example it would be nice to take him on Dumbo while my husband rides Mine train with our nieces. My son is not walking yet, hopefully by the time we go he will. Even if he is walking by then, I doubt he would be able to stand for 20-30 minutes without wanting to be held. A line with lots of people in a tight area can be intimidating for a little kid.

 

[Mom2FiveKidz]

I don't understand why you are splitting up - why aren't you staying together? Also, your 19 month old doesn't have to be carried - unless he can't walk yet?

You must know some exceptional 19 month olds. I thought my sons were well behaved at 19 months, but I still would have needed me to bend down and hold their hand the whole time (which can be as painful as carrying him if you have a bad back, especially if they're wiggly), or I would have been chasing him up and down the line, and under the ropes.

OP, I have no experience to share, but I hope you get the stroller as wheelchair pass. If not, maybe take him to one of the play areas instead?

 

[Selket]

One of my sons couldn't stand at all until he was about 18 months old. We took him to WDW around that time (he was just starting to be able to pull himself up but couldn't really stand long and had to hold onto something). He was NOT a tiny toddler either. My back was fine but no way could I have carried him through the parks and the lines- it was no problem to get the stroller as WC tag for that trip. It was obvious to the CM that he couldn't stand or walk and was too big to carry around at that point.

 

[oceanwave]

You must know some exceptional 19 month olds. I thought my sons were well behaved at 19 months, but I still would have needed me to bend down and hold their hand the whole time (which can be as painful as carrying him if you have a bad back, especially if they're wiggly), or I would have been chasing him up and down the line, and under the ropes.

OP, I have no experience to share, but I hope you get the stroller as wheelchair pass. If not, maybe take him to one of the play areas instead?

Great idea about the play areas. If I can't get a stroller tag I am sure we will find other things to do besides rides.

One of my sons couldn't stand at all until he was about 18 months old. We took him to WDW around that time (he was just starting to be able to pull himself up but couldn't really stand long and had to hold onto something). He was NOT a tiny toddler either. My back was fine but no way could I have carried him through the parks and the lines- it was no problem to get the stroller as WC tag for that trip. It was obvious to the CM that he couldn't stand or walk and was too big to carry around at that point.

This is encouraging to hear. What we will do is go to MK on our arrival day and see if we can get the tag. We are not planning a park day that day so if we don't get the tag we can plan accordingly for the next day.

 

[oceanwave]

This brings me to another question about strollers. We will need a double stroller as my youngest niece will at time need a break from walking. I was planning on bringing our Baby Jogger city select that has the 2 seats, one in front of the other. But then I started thinking I may rent one of the double side by side strollers as they would be far easier to fold down and carry as we will be using Disney transportation. Is one better than the other for lines? Will a double side by side stroller fit?

 

[Maggie'sMom]

This is encouraging to hear. What we will do is go to MK on our arrival day and see if we can get the tag. We are not planning a park day that day so if we don't get the tag we can plan accordingly for the next day.

I know guest services outside the park aren't always able to issue the DAS. I don't know if they are able to issue the stroller as a wheelchair tag. Those are usually handled by the guest services inside the park. Maybe someone who has tried to get the stroller tag outside the park can chime in and confirm. Otherwise, you may need to just try on your first park morning.

 

[DisneyOma]

You must know some exceptional 19 month olds. I thought my sons were well behaved at 19 months, but I still would have needed me to bend down and hold their hand the whole time (which can be as painful as carrying him if you have a bad back, especially if they're wiggly), or I would have been chasing him up and down the line, and under the ropes.

OP, I have no experience to share, but I hope you get the stroller as wheelchair pass. If not, maybe take him to one of the play areas instead?

Most children walk by 14-15 months. You can get a harness or wrist leash to keep them close by in the queue if bending hurts the back.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

Most children walk by 14-15 months. You can get a harness or wrist leash to keep them close by in the queue if bending hurts the back.

I thought about offering this advice, but a lot of 19 months old are still a little unsteady on their feet. In a queue environment, they could get accidentally bumped into and knocked over. Then the OP would have a crying 19 month old to pick up. Since others have been able to get the stroller as a wheelchair tag for this situation, I still think that is the OP's best bet.

 

[oceanwave]

I know guest services outside the park aren't always able to issue the DAS. I don't know if they are able to issue the stroller as a wheelchair tag. Those are usually handled by the guest services inside the park. Maybe someone who has tried to get the stroller tag outside the park can chime in and confirm. Otherwise, you may need to just try on your first park morning.

My husband and I have AP's so we will probably try to get it sorted before our first park day. That way we don't have to waste time in the morning as guest services can get busy.

Most children walk by 14-15 months. You can get a harness or wrist leash to keep them close by in the queue if bending hurts the back.

Except my son isn't walking. Even if my son could walk, a harness/leash are designed to stop kids from running off. They don't stop them from getting on the floor, going under ropes, touching and getting into everything. I still would be bending over constantly as my son never stays still.

I thought about offering this advice, but a lot of 19 months old are still a little unsteady on their feet. In a queue environment, they could get accidentally bumped into and knocked over. Then the OP would have a crying 19 month old to pick up. Since others have been able to get the stroller as a wheelchair tag for this situation, I still think that is the OP's best bet.

I agree, even if my son could walk, I don't know how happy he would be in a line where he had to stand and couldn't be picked up. I think a lot of 19month olds would find a crowded line full of strangers intimidating.

 

[mamabunny]

This brings me to another question about strollers. We will need a double stroller as my youngest niece will at time need a break from walking. I was planning on bringing our Baby Jogger city select that has the 2 seats, one in front of the other. But then I started thinking I may rent one of the double side by side strollers as they would be far easier to fold down and carry as we will be using Disney transportation. Is one better than the other for lines? Will a double side by side stroller fit?

An inline stroller *should* fit through the queues, as long it fits inside the "Disney box" of 30 inches wide by 48 inches long. That's the largest size mobility device that can be taken on the Disney buses.

Many of the queues tend to be narrow, with fairly tight turns. That's one reason why Disney has that mandatory sizing in place; it ensures that any device that fits in that box (that is painted on the concrete at every Resort bus stop) should be able to manage any queues within the Parks.

The double wide strollers won't fit through most of the queues, so you will have to park it outside and carry the kids through the lines.

 

[lanejudy]

Will a double side by side stroller fit?

It depends on the stroller but many side-by-side doubles will fit through the queues. To be considered a stroller-as-wheelchair it cannot be bigger than 30" wide x48" long. Many front-back doubles are too long. The park rentals are very low so may not be a good option if you would need to buckle the child in to keep him from roaming.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[WantToGoNow]

Just go to guest services and ask for a stroller as a wheelchair tag. Tell them your child doesn't walk and due to medical reasons of your own you can't carry him for long periods. Then you can just push your stroller through the lines.

My grandson has some delays due to many medical issues and is 26 months now and doesn't yet walk or crawl ( he does butt scoot). He will be in an adaptive stroller in September.