A family took a Disney cruise to Maui, only for everything that could go wrong to go wrong. TikTok content creator The Mom Lady (@themomladytm) posted an urgent message on TikTok to her audience of 42,000 followers, saying that the cruise line had actively trapped her and her family in the suite after her daughter had taken a fall while playing in the Oceaneer Club.
Her post garnered 5.8 million views, with thousands of commenters sharing their opinions, ultimately ending up divided on the situation after subsequent updates. Some viewers expressed concerns that the Disney Wonder did not follow practical guidelines in reporting the incident to The Mom Lady, while others expressed concerns regarding the medication a doctor on board gave her daughter when she developed a mild fever. Then, there were those who said Disney was justified in putting the family in isolation based on a suspected contagious disease.
What Happened in the Disney Wonder Oceaneer Club?
Everything was relatively normal onboard before The Mom Lady’s daughter went to the Oceaneer Club. Then, she found out that her daughter wanted to get picked up early. Her daughter’s godmother, who was onboard with the family, offered to take her for the day after seeing a message that she wanted to leave Oceaneers, as The Mom Lady and her husband were on an excursion during the daytime.
The Mom Lady and her husband saw the child later that evening, who told them about a fall she had while playing in the Oceaneer Club. They proceeded to take a look at her face and make sure she was alright before going to bed that night.
Then, in the middle of the night, they woke up to her “screaming in agony.”
The Family Wakes Up to Something Terrifying
At around 2:00 a.m., The Mom Lady and her husband heard something terrifying. Her daughter had woken up in considerable pain, so they decided to take her to a doctor who was on call that night.
The Mom Lady tried to get her younger child to sleep while her husband raced her daughter to the medical bay. The woman then asked the children’s godmother to step in and watch her youngest while the couple attended the emergency visit.
When they arrived, the medical team began to ask what happened to her daughter, so The Mom Lady explained the day’s events—including the visit to the Oceaneer’s club that ended with a fall and pickup.
“We tell him she had a fall in kids’ club and she, you know, she’s not feeling well,” The Mom Lady recalled. “I also mentioned to him that the fall wasn’t reported to us. So, we didn’t get any information from the kids’ club.”
The Mom Lady emphasized that they didn’t really know what had happened because the fall hadn’t been reported to them earlier in the day. From there, a doctor came in to assess her daughter, who had a slight fever at the time.
A Doctor Makes a Quick Diagnosis
The doctor concluded that her daughter may be experiencing a “viral thing.” So, she prescribed the woman’s daughter antibiotics, along with Motrin and Tylenol.
The family already had Motrin and Tylenol onboard, so they rejected additional offers for those medications. Instead, they received syringes with medication inside them.
Before heading back to their suite for the night, The Mom Lady decided to make a detour. She wanted to speak with guest services and let them know about the incident with her daughter. She then asked whether or not she could speak to someone who was working in the club at the time, which made everything turn for the worse.
Disney Responds With a New Diagnosis
When The Mom Lady returned to her hotel room, she may have thought that she would get some form of resolution for her daughter. Instead, she got a call between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. The medical team wanted them to come downstairs as soon as possible.
The family couldn’t get downstairs immediately. They had two extremely young children with them, and they couldn’t trust The Mom Lady’s younger child in the Oceaneers Club anymore. For that reason, they ended up downstairs later in the day at around 8:00 a.m.
When they arrived, they received a completely different diagnosis for their daughter. She didn’t have a “viral infection,” according to the medical team. She had another highly contagious illness.
The Mom Lady recalled that they didn’t take any swabs at 2:00 a.m., nor did they necessarily run any specific tests that she was aware of. But Disney’s medical team concluded that they had an illness that was severe enough to quarantine the entire group.
“I was like, ‘Well, how did you guys determine that? Because you didn’t take any swabs. Like, you guys just determined that we need to be in isolation.’ And the first thing they start saying is, ‘You guys can exit the ship and fly home,'” The Mom Lady described.
Confused, she asked about the rest of their trip. The family had paid a large sum to be on the Disney Wonder. There were flights and other previous travel fees on top of the cruise itself.
Plus, The Mom Lady was incredibly confused as to how they concluded her daughter needed five days of isolation with no apparent tests or additional inquiry.
Sitting in Isolation for Days—With No End in Sight
For multiple days, the family was completely isolated from other guests. They had no excursions, outside fun, or activities. Instead, they remained in their cabin trying to reach out to doctors and officials onboard for more answers.
According to The Mom Lady, Disney’s staff made little attempt to follow up with the guests regarding the situation. They ended up speaking to two doctors onboard, who pushed them to send immunization records for her child. They stated that travel insurance would cover any additional expenses.
But the travel costs to get back home would be tens of thousands. For two tickets to San Diego, the family would pay $10,000+. And with no real assurances that they would get refunded, they were hesitant to travel.
The Disney Wonder staff, however, pushed them to leave the ship. They continued emphasizing that the family needed to leave “as soon as possible,” giving them no real options and forcing them to plan their own travel back home. All in all, the experience weighed on The Mom Lady and her family. Her husband, who was in the Navy for 17 years, struggled in the hotel room’s isolation.
Subsequent Updates—What Was the Mystery Diagnosis?
The Mom Lady provided multiple updates to her story, but commenters also filled in the gaps regarding some missing information in her story. Some pointed out that the story wasn’t adding up. For one, she did not confirm what diagnosis her child received. Disney is also well-known for having generally superb customer service and “documenting everything,” something that viewers pointed out.
“If something isn’t making sense, it’s probably because we’re not getting the full picture,” one commenter said. “Disney cruises are known for having the best customer service. I don’t think they’re quarantining an entire family unless the evidence is compelling.”
Eventually, someone else on board left a comment alleging that The Mom Lady’s daughter was diagnosed with mumps and showed signs of illness while in the Oceaneers Club. For many viewers, that painted a much clearer picture of the situation.
Generally, a mumps diagnosis requires laboratory testing to confirm and fully diagnose. However, a “probable diagnosis may be made based on clinical findings alone.” Doctors also check immunizations for individuals who may be experiencing mumps. This matches The Mom Lady’s original description of the medical team’s actions.
But commenters’ descriptions are still alleged. The Mom Lady has not confirmed what the Disney Wonder’s medical team diagnosed her daughter with after the “general viral infection.” She specifically stated she was withholding her daughter’s medical information from social media, as it was private and only a suspected diagnosis.
What Ended Up Happening to the Family?
Finally, after multiple days, they were released from their rooms and allowed to join the cruise’s general population. The Mom Lady addressed those who doubted her experience in a final update, saying, “I hope that this never happens to you. This has been one of the worst experiences of my life.”
In her update, she also stated that they only offered to swab their daughter after an extended quarantine. They did not allow her to get off the ship to get second opinions, tests, or any other documentation to prove their daughter did not have a contagious illness.
The family got off the ship in Canada. The Disney medical team confirmed they would send documentation regarding the situation and subsequent quarantine. The Mom Lady said that when they got on land, the manager of Disney’s shoreline team expressed that she was not aware of the incident. She had no documentation for the family.
The Mom Lady emphasized that her family would continue trying to get documentation, but the experience was incredibly fatiguing. She added that certain passengers onboard would be able to attest to the family’s experience and describe the fall. But she felt her daughter was medically dismissed by the company.
We’ve reached out to The Mom Lady for more updates via TikTok direct message and TikTok comment. We’ve also sent an inquiry to Disney’s press email for comment. We’ll let you know if either party responds.
@themomladytm A very unmagical time on the #disneywonder ♬ original sound – The Mom Lady
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