Stomach issues are nothing to mess with, as some can be severely life-altering. In the case of gastroparesis, damaged nerves in the stomach slow the movement of food into the small intestine. The pain and effects from this can be unimaginable. Even though gastroparesis can be disabling, the restrictions caused by the disorder probably aren’t going to get you special accommodations at a restaurant. One woman visiting Disney World in Florida was shocked when a restaurant wouldn’t accommodate her. She turned to the internet for help, but it didn’t work out as she might have expected.
Deana (@missdeana71) shared a TikTok video captioned, “TikTok do your thing!” Apparently, Deana believes she wasn’t treated well after visiting a buffet-style restaurant at Disney World. With her gastroparesis diagnosis, she claims she can’t eat physically at the restaurant. Instead, she told a worker named Rick that she had to take her food to go because eating at the restaurant could make her sick. However, because the restaurant is “family style,” Rick told her she wasn’t permitted to do this.
At family-style services, these restaurants are considered to be all-you-can-eat. This means, when you’re finished eating, you typically can’t take your food to go. Rick simply followed the restaurant’s rules and told Deana so. Unfortunately, Deana says that she was unable “to eat at Disney” and could only consume drinks for her meal. She goes on to say, “I guess people with gastroparesis, a paralyzed stomach, are not allowed to eat at Disney.”
Deana points to the worker and says, “This is Rick” in the hopes that the internet will call him out. Deana tries to appeal to her viewers by saying, “My daughter is here eating by herself” after Rick said “no.” She pans over to show her daughter in the middle of her meal.
Now, this may not seem like a big ask to bend the rules a little for somebody. But how does Deana know that doing so wouldn’t cost this man his job? Even if her gastroparesis presents on a disabling level, this is one of those situations where they have strict rules in place that they adhere to. She would really have no other choice but to have food from another Disney World restaurant or stand that suits her needs.
Other commenters immediately rushed in to take Rick’s side on this matter. One commenter pointed out, “Because RICK is responsible for making the rules at Disney.” Another commenter said, “I’m on Rick’s side. They have policies for a reason.” When another commenter asks what policy she’s referring to, she prompts, “Go ask Disney what the reason for the policy is. Disney owns the restaurant and they make the rules. Customers can follow them or leave. It’s that easy.”
