Air Cast - What are my options?

[Efrank]

I just found out last monday that I have a stress fracture in my foot. I've been wearing an aircast since then, and have a temporary handicapped parking tag for the car etc. We're going to the parks in 3 weeks :eek:. Basically I'm supposed to limit the length of time on my feet, and I refuse to cancel this trip. Anyone have suggestions. Dr says I don't have to have a wheelchair, the cast will be sufficient. Can I get a guest assistance pass for this injury? Should I get a wheelchair? Or are there ways that I can sit on a bench while the rest of my party stands in line and meet with them when they get up close. Help please?!:(

[dolphinmickey9170]

I would suggest staying off of your foot as much as possible while in the World. You can do the w/c thing and still stay with your party. This way, no one gets lost. CM will assist where necessary. Have a great trip and becareful!!:mickey:

[BelleBeauty]

From what I have heard from friends who have gone to the parks with broken legs/feet before, if you are in a wheelchair you alert the CM and you board through a special entrance. Your party gets to go with you. Essentially, if you are in the wheelchair, there is the potential to skip the line entirely. I believe you board separately so that you will have more time to get yourself into the ride vehicle. Pretty nice perk!

[Efrank]

Thanks for the replies so far. Thanks for the well wishes!
I may very well have to have a wheelchair, but if Dr says its ok and I choose to not use a wheelchair for all or part of the trip, is there any way to bypass the lines, or do you have to be in a wheelchair. Would a note from the Dr. work or are my only two choices 1) stand in line no matter what or 2) be in the wheelchair for the trip?

I'm not trying trick anyone into me skipping lines. I just don't know if we will want to pay the additional cost of the wheelchair rental if the dr doesn't think its absolutely necessary. I also don't want to be ignoring dr recommendations.:unsure:

[GiltterDisneyGirl]

Get a wheelchair, you need to stay off of your foot as much as you can. I broke my growth plate in both of my akles, and after a few falls in the past years I had to wear an air cast.

(If you are staying onsite at a Disney hotel they have discounts on wheelchairs for onsite guest.)


You can try and get a guest assistance card if you can, but I don't know if they will, but you can try at least. They might just give you the one stamp though if they do. (Maybe a doctors note will work!?:secret:)

With a guest assistance card you won't really need a wheel chair because it takes you through fastpasses, and wheelchair entrances. Some rides have stairs in there fastpass lines and you might want to tell the cast member @ the ride you can't do stairs and they will help you.

If your temporary handicapped parking tag is still good I would take that with you, if you are going to have a car on your trip.

[Efrank]

Thanks for the info all! Last question, since this is a new issue, is it going to be possible to request ground floor at SSR on our reservations or are there elevators there?

[dolphinmickey9170]

There should be elevators there for ADA reasons. But, yes, you can request a ground floor room.

And again, stay OFF the foot. Don't mess with it. Have a great time and best wishes.

[DisneyGiant]

Personally - I'd get the scooter. The wheelchair is going to be very hard on your arms (especially if you aren't used to it) - or your companion if you need to be pushed. They are very slow speed, so you can "scoot" as your group walks along side you.

Your only hardship is going to be having to walk to the entrances of each theme park - which could be tiring and painful in and of itself.

Good luck and have a great vacation!!!!

[Donald A]

I do not know how WDW handles the situation with different ride entrances and stuff. I imagine you would qualify.

As a podiatrist, I would say the stress fracture should be safe in the aircast in terms of not causing any damage. I think in 3 weeks the bone will mend quite well as bone takes 6-8 weeks to heal if completely broken. In fact, many of my patients with a subtle non-displaced stress fracture will be out of the walking boot in less than one month.

I think a wheelchair would be too much, but I do worry about the walking boot bothering your knees, hips, and back as WDW is a lot of walking and you do not walk in good alignment in the boot. It will probably be a play it by ear thing. Try to walk and rent a wheelchair if you need to. I think I have written a note for patients before and you could get one just saying you have a broken foot.

Finally, and this is most important, your foot will swell at the end of the day. ICE, ICE, ICE!!!!!!!!

[LudwigVonDrake]

Another thing to consider (besides all the great ideas previous listed) is to take a break in the middle to either hang out by the pool at your resort or your hotel room. You'll be "fresher" for the late nights and it will enable you to rest the foot. Good luck :wave:

[Here we go again...]

From what I have heard from friends who have gone to the parks with broken legs/feet before, if you are in a wheelchair you alert the CM and you board through a special entrance. Your party gets to go with you. Essentially, if you are in the wheelchair, there is the potential to skip the line entirely. I believe you board separately so that you will have more time to get yourself into the ride vehicle. Pretty nice perk!

Disney no longer lets people go to the front of the line in wheelchairs.
Disney is very good about making sure people with a handicap do not feel out of place. Many people do not want a seperate entrance because they do not want people to know they have a handicap. So, Disney has done a wonderful job of making all new rides and attractions handicap accessible. So now handicap people and people in wheelchairs can go through the regular line at most attractions in Epcot and MGM, and all attractions in Animal Kingdom. Most of the rides and attractions in Magic Kingdom were built before the new laws so they do have seperate entrances.
The wheelchair would be a good idea for this reason alone. If you are going at a busy time you will still end up in a line quite often.
As others have suggested you might want an EVC. You can rent one from an outside company and it is much cheaper than renting by the day at the park. It also helps getting you back to the bus at the end of the day...

[auntfrannie]

Don't push yourself! I've had 4 stress fractures in the same bone and they seem to take forever to heal and when you start feeling pretty good about walking on them, it's sometimes too much, too soon! As was stated earlier, wearing the boot will throw off how you normally walk, which can tiring but also can cause back & hip pain. Good luck!!!

[SallyfromDE]

I've had 2 stress fractures. One was treated with a boot. They are heavy, and they are hot. But I work in retail, a easy 8 hour day on my feet all day, and walking. I thought it was easy to walk with, I made sure my other shoe was a sneaker that had the higher foot. So I was pretty balanced. You can get a good "swing" out of them to. But the heat with that thing might get to you. I wore it for about a month. Othen the heat, you probably won't have trouble. The other fracture was stress type fracture. My foot was sort of crushed when a large wood shelf fell on my foot. The Dr. just had me wear comfortable sneakers. But that took months to heal. Remember, I walk on my feet for 8 or more hours a day. Ask your Dr. if there are temp. alternatives for you, if you want to walk around the pool, or take the heavy thing off for awhile. Just be lucky your dealing with a Jones fracture. That's what I have now. I tripped over a mop!! It's desplaced and should have had a pin, but you can't force the Dr. to do what he won't. Anyway, it's non weight bearing and I'm 6 months in a wheelchair. Good luck.

[biodtl]

On our last trip, DH was recovering from a work accident (fell from a roof and shattered both heels). By the time we went, he was out of the wheelchair, but he still had pain. he insisted he didn't need a chair (since his handicap wasn't "visible" and he felt weird about it), but after a few hours, he really hurt. The next day, he got an electic "scooter" and it was a godsend.

Also - at the resorts, you can request a room close to the lobby/entrance/buses because of your injury and they will generally accomodate you (they dd it for us no problem)