Top Five Tips for Traveling Spoonies

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by Brittney |

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travel tips for spoonies

Living Life with CP
It feels so good to be writing my column again. I had been unable to write for about a month, unexpectedly. I was on a two-week vacation during and was ill the entire time. Even though I’ve been home for two weeks now, my recovery is still in full swing.

I have traveled a lot and I always have prided myself in my ability to do so successfully. But this trip taught me quite a few things, and I would like to share what I’ve learned. I hope these tips are helpful for anyone who has a chronic illness and also enjoys traveling.

Spoonie Travel Tips

  1. Find the best and easiest way to travel for you. (It may not be the cheapest.) My family is notorious for road trips and I’ve always enjoyed them. However, the two-day long, trapped-in-our-car trip from Pennsylvania to Colorado proved too much for me. I joked about flying before we left on the trip, and now I wish I would have done just that. Traveling is stressful no matter what, and you need to prepare yourself for that stress with any sort of buffer you can. If I had flown to Colorado I think I would have been a lot less sick. After all, between driving to our destination and then back home, we spent about five days on the road.
  2. Stick to your diet (for the most part). It’s an incredibly popular idea for people who are going on vacation to eat things they wouldn’t normally eat. They often eat in excess and drink more than normal. Once in a while, that’s fine. But on a two-week vacation? I admit I needed to get my life together. Don’t be like me.
  3. Please, please, please make sure you have an accessible room! TripAdvisor can help you find accommodations, but there is a great website I wish I had known about before traveling called mobility adviser that also can help you book an accessible room. I learned on this trip how important it is to book accessible rooms in advance. I also learned that not every hotel has accessibility options, which is baffling to me in the year 2017.
  4. PLAN. Seriously, research your trip. I had been to Colorado a handful of times and I must admit that this time I was lazy. I thought I was familiar enough with where I was going and didn’t bother making note of everywhere I wanted to go, or mapping all the possible routes I could take.
  5. Know your limits. At the top of this list, I said that traveling is stressful no matter what, and you need to prepare for that stress. I did not prepare at all for this trip, and it cost me. I spent 12 of the 14 days that we were on vacation, sick and hotel-bound. Even now, two weeks later, I’m still settling in and riding various waves of illness. Don’t get lazy when you’re about to travel, no matter how many times you’ve done it before. Research, plan, and know your limits. Know when to say “no.”

Most importantly, remember to rest, relax enjoy your trip.

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Note: Cerebral Palsy News Today is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of Cerebral Palsy News Today, or its parent company, BioNews Services, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to cerebral palsy.

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