CP Questions

[DeeDee]

I'm sure I'll have more in the future, but after reading through some old posts I have questions about how breaks work on your shift. I've been debating whether or not I should have my doctor fill out one of those medical accomedation forms. I've suffered from hypoglycemia pretty much my whole life. It's completely controlled by diet. If I don't eat at regular intervals (every 2-3) hours, I get very sick. All the classic low blood sugar symptoms manifest themselves...fatigue, headache, irritability, faintness, blurred vision, nausea, vomitting, and most common with me is uncontrollable shaking/trembling. I've worked food service/retail almost my whole life and I'm pretty good at working through whatever, but with the addition of the heat and humidity...I'm a little nervous. All I need between real meals is a couple of pieces of cheese and some crackers, or peanut butter and crackers or bread, or a couple of handfulls of nuts. However, it seems that Disney is pretty strick w/ the no food on stage policy (can't blame them.) So, my questions are, how are breaks scheduled? How many per shift? How long are they? Is there somewhere to keep food at your work location if you bring a lunch? Are there refrigerators/microwaves? Or should I invest in some advance lunch packing gear? My check-in date is in May, so i'm starting to really think about all the day to day stuff. Any help would be greatly appreciated. ;)

Dee

[IndyandMarion]

IDEALLY, they should come every two hours.

There are some cases, based on the number of hours you work in a day when it could come after around three hours. Sometimes, it could come an hour and a half into your shift.

Best advice is when you arrive at your location for training, talk to them.

[tenprincess]

Worst case you could go almost 4 hours with out a break, which has happened to me before and I could not wait to eat. Opperations is hard work esp if you are in attractions with a lot of walking involved (ex. tta, or buzz with moving platforms) so your energy is used quickly, combined with the heat, you'll be wanting to eat a lot. I didn't have any medical conditions, but I found myself eating at every break and eating full meals a day, and I still lost weight while I was working down there, I started at 145, and went down to 120, and being 5'10, that's a significant weight loss. I would fill out the medical forms so you have them, your work location may add in more breaks to accomidate for you. You can have water on stage, and in your case I would suggest having something like powerade with you. Good luck, being a CP is a great experience, I loved it so much I'm still working with the company! :D:

[Main Streeter]

Any/all med forms should be in place before you hire in. I work with CMs who have restrictions & needs. Two said they presented paper work after they were offered position, one had to take time off work for a walking restriction given by Dr. All these med forms must be turned into CFA first, then they go to your area manager, scheduling, & whoever else needs info. Keep copy of form with you - just in case. At DLR there is water & a small frig in back of most stores. All break areas have the same. CMs are usually able to ask for a quick bump & get their needed food. Once CMs realize you need food & drink for med reasons they cooperate with you - at least in my dept. I give breaks for med reasons. Think management & most CMs will be more than willing to help in this situation. Smile, thank them everytime you return. Don't worry & :luckirish

[DeeDee]

Thank you everyone for your feedback. I hate to make it out like I'm a feeble person. I am hearty and like I said, I've worked through almost everything. I just know that it seems worse in different conditions. Also, I've had to work through things because I've worked in understaffed environments and even though breaks should ideally be every 2 hrs, I wouldn't get a break or lunch for 4-5 hours. So, I was wondering how it worked. I feel less stupid about getting the med form filled out, I guess. I hate being "needy." But I really want to enjoy my full stay at WDW.

I hear ya tenprincess, I'm 5'11" and at my heaviest I've ever been at 150. When I was working on my feet I was usually 15-20 pounds lighter. I'm actually looking forward to getting back on my feet after spending the past 9 months in an office. I'm ready to start interacting with the public again too... I thrive on the guests. All of them. The nice ones and the stupid ones. The entertainment is never ending.

And Main Streeter-Great Advice. I promise to always remember to express gratitude to fellow CMs for helping me out. It goes a long way! And it makes people resent you less (a big fear when you may need an *extra* or *early* break.)

Dee