A TikTok creator says a childhood trip to Great Wolf Lodge marked the beginning of years of anxiety after what she describes as her first panic attack left her vomiting in a restaurant and begging her parents to take her home. The video, posted by Kristina, has drawn widespread attention as viewers shared similar experiences and theories in the comments.
Kristina said she decided to tell her story after her For You Page became flooded with people discussing their own experiences at Great Wolf Lodge.
“I thought it was just me,” she said, adding that hearing others describe similar feelings left her “flabbergasted.” She added that her family has referred to that vacation as the moment her anxiety began for the past 15 years.
Khristina said she was 10 years old when her family visited the indoor water park with several other families from her soccer team. Before that trip, she described herself as someone who “never had one anxiety attack” and “wasn’t scared of anything.” She says that changed within hours of arriving at the resort.
She still remembers the smell that started it all
Kristina said she first noticed something was wrong while walking past a concession stand after spending the afternoon in the water park. “As soon as I smelled it, it went right to my stomach and I was like, ‘Oh… I don’t feel good,'” she recalled.
She said the uneasy feeling continued through dinner, where she experienced dizziness, nausea and what she now believes was her first panic attack.
After taking Pepto-Bismol from the hotel’s gift shop, she said she vomited what she described as “hot pink” vomit onto a waitress, a moment she says she still vividly remembers. “I threw up on the waitress. I was so embarrassed. I was so mortified,” she said.
According to Kristina, the panic continued throughout the night as she repeatedly asked her parents to leave. “I don’t feel good here. I don’t feel safe here. I don’t feel comfortable here. I want to go home,” she recalled telling them. She said every symptom disappeared once her family checked out the following morning, leading her to believe, “That was the start of my anxiety. That was the start of my emetophobia.”
Kristina’s video is not the only story to emerge from the resort. It follows another incident in which a toddler screamed and tried to flee a Great Wolf Lodge room the moment she walked inside.
The comments filled with people relating to Kristina’s experience rather than debating the resort itself. One of the responses read, “Emetaphobia is no joke. People in the comments don’t understand the extent to which this can actually ruin your life,” while others shared stories about developing similar fears after traumatic illnesses.
Other viewers focused on how her parents initially responded. “Let’s normalize parents believing in their children the first time they say they don’t feel well,” one commenter wrote, a sentiment that drew thousands of likes from users who said childhood panic attacks are often mistaken for ordinary stomach bugs.
Some commenters speculated that environmental factors, including mold, could explain why multiple people claimed to have become ill at indoor water parks, although no evidence was presented to support those claims. The discussion mirrors other viral travel stories, including one where a woman booked an Airbnb and believed to have walked into a murder room.
Not every viewer searched for an explanation. Others kept the conversation lighthearted, with one popular response joking, “Growing up poor saves me again lmao.”
While Kristina believes the trip changed her life, her account remains a personal anecdote rather than evidence that Great Wolf Lodge caused her anxiety. Looking back on the vacation, she still sums it up the same way: “That was the start of my anxiety. That was the start of my emetophobia.”
Published: Jul 24, 2026 09:49 am