Nervous about Norovirus

[Anna Chassereau]

Ok so disclaimer...I'm a total germ freak and a hypochondriac. And also terrified of throwing up.

So that said I just read online that the Wonder just had a Norovirus outbreak. We cruise on August...4 day to the Bahamas with our 5 year old son. I'm just so nervous about us catching this on our cruise!!We wash our hands all the time...like I'm obsessive over hand washing. Someone tell me to stop worrying about this. I know I can't let a fear like this hold me back from being excited and having a good time! Ugh where's my anxiety medicine...lol

 

[wilkeliza]

If you are obsessive about washing hands you should be fine. Also make sure your son knows to wash his hands when he is in the club. They have great hand washing and drying stations there!

It may be an old wives tale not sure but I've heard if you drink 100% grape juice (has to be real 100% grape juice) you are less likely to get a stomach bug. Something about grape juice making the gut inhabitable for the most common viruses. I will tell you I've had people in my inner circle that I live with or see daily get nasty stomach bugs and I've not gotten it. I say it is the grape juice.

Also know Disney's ships are some of the cleanest on the seas. Their between ship cleanings are far above what the CDC requires as a minimum and when things like the out break on the Magic happen they do even more to ensure the next sailing doesn't get sick as well.

 

[Bryan6868]

Don't be nervous, just be prepared.

We were on the Wonder 4/27-5/1/16 (the affected cruise) and did not get it.

With what you posted about your habits the odds of getting it even if you cruise has an outbreak is very, very, very low.

Disney has only had one event (greater than 3%) in the last 10 plus years and that was on our trip.

the best time to travel is actually after an even because everyone will be on higher alert, they will be crossing the t's and dotting the i's so to speak. I.e. check-in staff, crew, customs, etc...

I'm so confident in Disney Cruise Line that I have a placeholder already for my next cruise

Enjoy your trip.

 

[Jess_S]

I don't know if this will make you feel better or worse, but:

My family all caught norovirus on our last land-based vacation (friend's son got it at daycare and my husband caught it helping take out the diaper genie and it spread from there) and have never gotten it on a cruise (I've taken 6). When I got sick, I researched norovirus and learned that most "stomach flu" in the US is caused by norovirus. That underscored for me that it's something you can really catch anywhere -- so I don't think there's a reason to be extra paranoid about cruises. In the unlikely event you do get norovirus, it is certainly awful -- but it's over in about 24 hours.

I think it's okay to stop worrying. And feel free to be extra obsessive with hand-washing to help prevent illness (and make you feel like you are being proactive).

 

[SpaceSquirrel]

1) some people (including one of my children, my brother and myself ) are immune to norovirus, we found out through genome mapping, so not everyone gets it
2) DCL is awesome about keeping things people touch clean. From constant cleaning of handrails to handing out hand wipes at each meal it is easy to see that this is one of their priorities.
3) this was the first DCL outbreak in over 10 years and will only serve to make them more paranoid, so look at it as a good thing it happened before your cruise so their minds are still fresh on prevention
4) wash your hands, a lot. not sanitizer but actual warm water and soap. double time for the little guys.
5) enjoy your vacation, you're way more likely to pick up a bug during an excursion than on the ship

 

[apathetic]

This is one of those things that when it happens people lose perspective on the odds. I think this is the first outbreak since 2002, so almost 15 years. There were 97 people out of 2000 on the ship affected. Disney probably has well over 100,000 passengers per year. You figure 100,000 people over 15 years means 97 people out of 1-2 million people were part of a major outbreak. I'm good with those odds. Now, if the Wonder has another outbreak in the near future, I would be a bit concerned about that ship. But, that hasn't happened and the odds are still in your favor.

That's not to say people don't get sick on a cruise. I think the bigger worry is the common cold virus. If you aren't used to being around a lot of people (big city vs country living), you could be more vulnerable to that. Wash your hands and take proper precautions and you should be ok. Make sure the kids do the same and you will be ok. In the end, it is vacation. Better to focus on the good things that can happen to you than something that has less than a .0001% chance. If you avoid stuff because of the bad that could happen, you'll never experience anything.

 

[Markonefive]

Are you sure it's the Wonder you're talking about? In August, it's on the Pacific ocean . . .
A lot of people get mild Norovirus, but people call it "stomach flu." You can get it anywhere from public places -- malls, theatres, shopping, buses, schools etc. Good handwashing all the time, not just on cruises, is your best defense. I agree with the points above. The ship is going to be cleanest and on high alert after an event, with greater staff awareness. Cruise ships are at higher risk because of the enclosed population in a smaller space, sharing common facilities, so it does spread quickly and noticeably when it occurs. For our upcoming Wonder cruise on May 18th from San Diego to Vancouver, I"m bringing along some hydrogen peroxide Chlorox wipes, hand sanitizer, wet wipes, and just plan to wash my hands a lot and have a great time. Noro thread below has lots of info. I also agree that Disney sets a high standard and reputation, so if something does happen, I trust them to deal with it better than any other cruise line.

 

[darnheather]

Ha! I got it from the pediatrician's office a few years ago. Just wash hands you'll be fine.

 

[GWS]

5) enjoy your vacation, you're way more likely to pick up a bug during an excursion than on the ship

Hahaha, that will make the OP feel real good about going on any excursions!

 

[Anna Chassereau]

Thank you all so much...I appreciate all the calming words!! @Markonefive @apathetic @SpaceSquirrel @Jess_S @Bryan6868 @wilkeliza @darnheather

I know freaking out over this is silly and I just need to go enjoy my vacation!!

 

[Anna Chassereau]

It's crazy too bc I've been on two cruises in the past...one week long Alaskan cruise with Princess and one 17 day long European cruise with Holland America. I was never nervous about this with either one of those bc I had no idea about Norovirus outbreaks on cruise ships! I feel like it's been all over the news in the past several years and there's a lot more awareness about it. Ignorance is bliss I tell you!!

 

[Maggie'sMom]

It's crazy too bc I've been on two cruises in the past...one week long Alaskan cruise with Princess and one 17 day long European cruise with Holland America. I was never nervous about this with either one of those bc I had no idea about Norovirus outbreaks on cruise ships! I feel like it's been all over the news in the past several years and there's a lot more awareness about it. Ignorance is bliss I tell you!!

Noro outbreaks happen all the time and many places other than on cruise ships, but the cruise ships are what make for great headlines. So in this age of constant internet news, websites are always looking for splashy headlines that will get people to click.

 

[wilkeliza]

Noro outbreaks happen all the time and many places other than on cruise ships, but the cruise ships are what make for great headlines. So in this age of constant internet news, websites are always looking for splashy headlines that will get people to click.

Yep Noro is actually really common in day cares and school. My college got it on semester and I remember the college provided doctor going on a rant when I came in for it saying how it seems everyone was getting it because nobody washed their darn hands. The doc was located in the freshman dorms and he was just going on and on about how he saw kids go straight out of his office and touch the elevator buttons or throw up in a trash can and then just go about their day. It was so bad the school put the freshman dorms on lock down while it was disinfected and then they disinfected the entire school over the weekend. I think that is the only time I've actually had noro and it was miserable. I was so dehydrated by the end of it.

 

[Anna Chassereau]

Very good point @Maggie'sMom!!

 

[MUN]

Ok so disclaimer...I'm a total germ freak and a hypochondriac. And also terrified of throwing up.

So that said I just read online that the Wonder just had a Norovirus outbreak. We cruise on August...4 day to the Bahamas with our 5 year old son. I'm just so nervous about us catching this on our cruise!!We wash our hands all the time...like I'm obsessive over hand washing. Someone tell me to stop worrying about this. I know I can't let a fear like this hold me back from being excited and having a good time! Ugh where's my anxiety medicine...lol

Stop worrying about this. Don't let a fear like this hold you back from being excited and having a good time! Don't forget to take you anxiety medicine.

 

[bumbershoot]

Wash hands AND keep hands out of your mouth!

Actually, if you just keep your hands out of your mouth YOU shouldn't catch it at all. Washing hands, if you're already keeping your hands out of your mouth, is so that others don't catch what YOU might have. Of course, if those people kept their hands out of their mouths they wouldn't have to worry about it, either.

DS and I both have a hands-in-mouth problem. I used to bite my nails, was bribed heavily to stop as a child, but over time I've developed a non-biting, but still a fingernail-against-teeth habit. It's horrible. And my son sort of copies me. When I see him doing it, I generally am doing the same thing, so telling him to stop it gets my hands away from my face, too.

DH only rarely puts his hands near his mouth.

It was no surprise when DS and I got noro (I got a weird variation that actually felt like real influenza, after one bout of throwing up, but DS, who had it first, had full on noro), given our awful habits. We had all been in the same places the two days beforehand, so we were all exposed to the same surfaces. But one of us got a gold star by not putting his hands in his mouth, and two of us failed.

Ever since then, we really realized that it's our own darned fault when we get it.

 

[monarchsfan16]

I was on the affected cruise. I couldn't be more impressed with how Disney handled the situation. Yes, a decent percentage of people got sick, but a MUCH larger percentage did not get sick. Even having been on an affected cruise, I booked a placeholder. Seeing Disney's response made me MORE willing to cruise again. Use common sense and have a great cruise.

 

[Ofinn]

Ok so disclaimer...I'm a total germ freak and a hypochondriac. And also terrified of throwing up.

So that said I just read online that the Wonder just had a Norovirus outbreak. We cruise on August...4 day to the Bahamas with our 5 year old son. I'm just so nervous about us catching this on our cruise!!We wash our hands all the time...like I'm obsessive over hand washing. Someone tell me to stop worrying about this. I know I can't let a fear like this hold me back from being excited and having a good time! Ugh where's my anxiety medicine...lol

You could get noro anywhere its not exclusive to cruise ships. I think you need to address the bigger issue so you can enjoy yourself.

 

[Disneyteachers]

Ok so disclaimer...I'm a total germ freak and a hypochondriac. And also terrified of throwing up.

So that said I just read online that the Wonder just had a Norovirus outbreak. We cruise on August...4 day to the Bahamas with our 5 year old son. I'm just so nervous about us catching this on our cruise!!We wash our hands all the time...like I'm obsessive over hand washing. Someone tell me to stop worrying about this. I know I can't let a fear like this hold me back from being excited and having a good time! Ugh where's my anxiety medicine...lol

I hear you. My son needs to be hospitalized if he gets noroviros due to a type of hypoglycemia so I'm germaphobic too. I being anti nausea meds everywhere we go just in case and am obsessive about sanitation.

 

[Anna Chassereau]

You could get noro anywhere its not exclusive to cruise ships. I think you need to address the bigger issue so you can enjoy yourself.

I couldn't agree more! I do need to face the bigger issue here which is my serious phobia of germs/throwing up! It's gotten so out of hand!