Can You Ride Roller Coasters if You Have Vertigo

Written By azserted Friday, November 19, 2021 Add Comment Edit

I get vertigo (dizzy) easy and I know not to get on some rides (tea cups lol) but what about the roller coasters? Anyone out there have experience with vertigo can tell me how it affects them?

My husband has bouts of vertigo, and the only 2 rides he cant do is the tea cups and rockin' rollercoaster. We still bring his antivert along on vacation... just in case. I can honestly say he has never needed it while at Disney.

For some reason I experience a little vertigo when gong backwards on Expidition Everest. But not enought o keep me off the ride. I cannot ride Mission Space in EPCOT.

I can handle the roller coasters just fine (including Misson Space... but I only do the green team). Tea Cups do me in. I can't handle those at all. The motion that I don't do well... and find surprising... Ellen's Energy Adventure and the Garden Grill Restaurant. Something about the movement on those 2 just have me feeling ill for hours afterwards.

I have serious inner ear problems and I know a lot about vertigo and dizziness, so feel free to PM me if you like. You can have vertigo and/or dizziness (they are not the same thing) for a number of reasons, so it's not really possible for anyone to predict what will or won't bother you. It's a bit of trial and error.

For me, teacups, Dumbo, and any other spinning ride is a huge no-no. I also had problems on Big Thunder Mountain (before the refurb) as I found that it really jostled my head around (anyone who has BPPV, a common vertigo disorder, might want to avoid really bumpy rides). I simply don't go on Space Mountain anymore, nor do I go on Tower of Terror or RNR Coaster or Mission to Mars. It's possible that these rides wouldn't bother me, but I'm just not willing to take the chance as I have enough trouble with my health already.

These examples aren't vertigo, since vertigo is getting dizzy when looking down from a great height. What you people are experiencing is Motion Sickness. I get this a lot at theme parks.

These examples aren't vertigo, since vertigo is getting dizzy when looking down from a great height. What you people are experiencing is Motion Sickness. I get this a lot at theme parks.

Sorry, but you are incorrect. The medical definition of vertigo is perceived motion when there in reality there is no motion: either you feel that you yourself are moving when you are not, or you feel that things around you are moving when in reality they are not (the best example of this would be feeling that the room is spinning around you). http://www.emedicinehealth.com/vertigo/article_em.htm

The misuse of the term "vertigo" to describe a fear of heights probably came from the Alfred Hitchcock movie of the same name, but it is inaccurate. Height has nothing to do with true vertigo: just ask someone who has BPPV or meniere's disease.

Avoid Mission: Space at all costs.

My uncle has vertigo quite badly and he doesn't do are Teacups, Dumbo (and other spinners), Mission: Space Orange (he won't even try green so who knows), Buzz, Toy Story and RnR coaster though he has never tried most of those so he may be OK but it's kind of risky for him since it's due to a head injury.

Vertigo is not the same as dizziness. It's not a light headed feeling like when you stand up too fast. I get that a lot because of my low blood pressure. With vertigo it feels like everything is moving around you while you are standing still. Vertigo is more severe than beaing unsteady from light headedness or being dizzy and they often stumble or cannot move because their balance is affected. There is also the chance of earraches, blurred vision and nausea to the point of vomiting.

Vertigo is not the same as acrophobia which is more associated with heights as vertigo can occur while standing still on the ground and symptoms can last for days or even weeks. Acrophobia only occurs when the person is high up and looking down. (I blame Hitchcock for the confusion)

The only reason I point all of that out is because I get dizzy due to very low blood pressure but I do not have vertigo. I can do almost every ride except for Teacups and Mission: Space orange. My dizzyness occurs when I stand up too fast, when I get overheated, when I have a shower that's too hot (I have to take a glass of ice water in the shower with me to prevent me from passing out and tearing down yet another shower curtain.)

If it's just dizziness you can likely do most rides except really spinny ones, if it's actually vertigo I would be more careful as there are many rides that have motion that can trigger a strong reaction.

Regardless, have fun! there are plenty of attractions to choose from that will be fine for you.

Vertigo is not the same as dizziness. It's not a light headed feeling like when you stand up too fast. I get that a lot because of my low blood pressure. With vertigo it feels like everything is moving around you while you are standing still. Vertigo is more severe than being unsteady from light headedness or being dizzy and they often stumble or cannot move because their balance is affected. There is also the chance of earraches, blurred vision and nausea to the point of vomiting.

Regardless, have fun! there are plenty of attractions to choose from that will be fine for you.

Very good description of the difference between vertigo and dizziness.

the last part is true too! What's so great about Disney is that there are so many rides that you can do even if you have health problems.

It depends on the day, or the trip.
On the days when my vertigo is particularly bad, just getting up from bed makes the world spin.

I usually have no problems with most of the coasters, though Space Mountain makes my neck hurt, and often leaves me dizzy and/or nauseous for a bit afterwords.
Tea cups, Primeval whirl, Soarin' and Kali Rapids have all affected me adversely in the past.
And Mission Space Green made me green.

But usually my vertigo comes and goes, and hasn't appeared on my past Disney trips.
I have had minor dizziness, and motion sickness (from the buses, more than the rides!) in the past, but vertigo hasn't cropped up ...yet!

Any kind of motion simulator is a no-no for me. I cannot do any of those rides. M:S ruined a whole day for me. I would love to ride the new Star Tours but not at the cost of feeling sick for hours...

I actually see a physiotherapist as part of my treatment for my inner ear problems. At my last session we started talking about Disney and the different rides and the effect that they can have on people who suffer from vertigo or dizziness. She suggested that I would probably have big problems on Soarin!

I get sick on Country Bear Jamboree, It's A Small World and the Tiki Room. I think it's caused mostly by the music and the odiferous themes. After I leave each of those attractions, I feel fine again.

Sorry, but you are incorrect. The medical definition of vertigo is perceived motion when there in reality there is no motion: either you feel that you yourself are moving when you are not, or you feel that things around you are moving when in reality they are not (the best example of this would be feeling that the room is spinning around you). http://www.emedicinehealth.com/vertigo/article_em.htm

The misuse of the term "vertigo" to describe a fear of heights probably came from the Alfred Hitchcock movie of the same name, but it is inaccurate. Height has nothing to do with true vertigo: just ask someone who has BPPV or meniere's disease.

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Vertigo/Pages/Introduction.aspx

I stand corrected.

Any kind of motion simulator is a no-no for me. I cannot do any of those rides. M:S ruined a whole day for me. I would love to ride the new Star Tours but not at the cost of feeling sick for hours...

Have you tried sitting in the back? The last time we rode we got to sit up front. I was really sick to my stomach afterwards. But sitting in the back doesn't make me ill. No more front for me.

Oh the teacups...My worst enemy of sick to stomach and dizziness. Rode it in Dec because my kids insisted on me joining even though they had a perfectly other parent (my wife) to go on with them. We all rode it. I found it best to not look around but to focus on the person across from me. I would not ride it again imediately following the ride but made it through non the less. Mission space does spin to give the effect of leaving the atmosphere but as long as I don't think about it as spinning and just believe what is displayed on the screen is real I am fine.

Can You Ride Roller Coasters if You Have Vertigo

Source: https://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/vertigo-rides.862655/#:~:text=If%20it's%20just%20dizziness%20you,will%20be%20fine%20for%20you.