Flares on airplane trips

[jredwitz]

Hi folks--Wanted to know if anyone has any good tips for airplane travel. I have a flight tomorrow and am dreading it as I had a brutal flare the last time I was on an airplane. The flight is relatively short, which is good in that there's less bumpy air time, but bad in that the plane is smaller (ie less bathroom access). I am unfortunately prone to stress/exhaustion flares and have been having a bad last couple of months due to work and holiday stress.

I plan on taking Uristat and trying one of those heating pads you can wear under your clothes. And will sit as close to the bathroom as possible!

Thanks for any advice. J.

[MelissaJ]

Hey. I agree flights are no fun. I think you have the right idea with the heating pad, etc. Usually what I do (and you can do this next time) is when you book your flight, etc tell them that you have a disability that requires you to be close to a bathroom. Most airlines want to be accomodating to your needs in order to keep your business. One trick I have that works well is while you are waiting for your plane listen to relaxing music, read a book etc or something to reduce stress. And what I do is when they call everyone for the flight you are on, I sneak off to the bathroom quickly. Everyone else is just lining up and you will have to wait in line anyhow. This way you don't have to go to the bathroom during take-off (I've had that experience and it is not fun)
Also, unless you are on a long flight, don't take advantage of the free juice, etc as most of what they serve on planes is not IC friendly
IN terms of bathroom acces, my experience has been on a shorter flight less people are getting up to go to the bathroom anyways.
I hope this helps
melissa

[Katrina]

http://www.ic-network.com/handbook/selfhelp0202.html

I also recommend doing a search here on this message board because this subject has come up before. Also http://www.ic-network.com/forum/showthread.php?t=12374 may help.

:grouphug: I hope this one is a good one!!

[Betsie]

When I fly, I bring bottled water with me. I hate relying on anything they might serve. I especially hate the food and bring a snack if needed....just drink during the whole flight and keep tabs on the occupied/empty light....use it as needed, chances are that a short flight people won't be as needy for the bathroom. I always offer someone the window seat and explain I will be up and down a lot. As for stressing....don't bother, I learned that not stressing over things i couldn't control helped immensley with things like travel...if I think too much about the what ifs they happen....like a flare. Have a good flight and Happy holidays! Don't forget the water..........:)

[Sarojini]

I agree with all of the advice you got already. I usually use the bathroom in the terminal just before boarding. Then, as I board, I pull the nicest looking stewardess aside and explain to her that I have a disability -- a bladder disorder that causes pain and frequent urination -- and that I may need the restroom often during the flight. I also show her my restroom access card I got from the ICN. They are usually very accomodating. One stewardess actually asked a man sitting next to the bathroom to switch seats with me because I had this problem, and he agreed quite cheerfully.

In addition, I make sure to take my pain medication and my anti-anxiety pills (Klonopin) before boarding the flight (with bottled water I brought from home, of course) so they are in my system by the time my plane begins taxing to the runway. In addition, I always wear a big Poise pad. I never ever have had to make use of this, but it gives me the extra peace of mind that if I were ever trapped there would be some protection :)

Then, I use the rest of the flight to do things like read a good book, read "chick" magazines, or do whatever I find relaxing... once I wrote a love poem to my husband on the barf bag because I was feeling creative ;)

My best advice is, have your meds accessible, try not to stress, and eat food and water from home, so you don't accidentally eat something that does not agree :)

[kadi]

I just got back from my first plane trip since I got IC. Here's what worked & didn't, (for me)...
What worked...
...sitting in aisle seat near bathroom
...carrying snacks (pear pear bars from ICN store, turkey sandwich on pita bread)
...bringing my own bottled water (the airline only supplied Dasani which has minerals)
...keeping the restroom access card handy (for peace of mind, didn't use it)
...taking Pyridium the whole day of the flight
...taking a Ditropan before the flight (I usually only take it at night, but will occasionally take one during the day if flaring or special circumstance where restrooms limited)
...asking for milk from the beverage cart
...lumbar cushion for my low back (left over from car accident long long time ago)

What didn't work... (for me)
...overpacking (packed too much stuff due to nervousness, was very hard to handle, triggered mini-flare til family members carried it for me)
...heat pad (seemed to draw more of my attention to my discomfort)

Overall, it was a pretty successful plane trip. The only thing that I'm bothered about is realizing how out of shape I am....and I'm looking at this as a challenge to see how much I can do to improve that before the next trip!

[SharonA]

Kati...It's a good sign that you are talking about the next trip. Glad things worked out so well for you. Good for you... :)

[LooGirl]

Hi,
Has anyone experienced any problems with cabin pressure on planes? I am flying next week for the first time since being diagnosed and my doc warned me that many ICers experience flares just from the cabin presure alone! She said it usually manifests a day or two after the flight. Ok, so now I'm scared to death and will probably stress myself right into a flare over this! Help!

I already have a seat by the bathroom, an access card, Evian, etc...

[kadi]

I did not have that experience at all. No more IC symptoms than usual while flying or after flying... Have never seen anything about that in any of the 3 IC books I own either...

Wishing you a great trip!

[Betsie]

Cabin pressure, nor anything flight related has produced a flare.
Even a very bumpy flight is fine...not my favorite activity, but no IC problems. I look at it this way, how much more comfortable if I drove for the same trip. ;) Your Dr. is likely meaning well, but now has you stressing over a symptom I have never heard of....you will be fine...enjoy!

[dyno]

I have had a few flares from flying but here is the way I look at it. I just completed an 800 mile one way road trip and had a terrible flare on the way there. I was miserable and if it were not for my caring husband it would have been a nightmare. Had we flown, it would have been a 2 hour flight. Much easier to deal with and you have a bathroom right there on the plane.