Holidays are the most suitable time to look forward to a vacation, break, and rests. But most of us living with inflammatory bowel disease, going off on a trip, can often have more fear or anxiety. But, don’t let your Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis stop you from going around the world.
Stressing out over travelling may worsen symptoms. According to research conducted in 2017 in current Pharmaceutical Design, anxiety and stress can enhance the severity of inflammatory bowel disease by negatively influencing the “brain-gut axis.”
Here are some useful tips that you must follow while Travelling with IBD to make your trip as pleasant as possible.
Plan Ahead And Pack Well
Planning your trip may decrease your travel-related stress. The specifics you need to prepare for will completely depend on your individual treatment needs and the particular nature of the disease.
It doesn’t matter where you are travelling to, make sure you pack wipes and a travel-sized container of hand sanitizer to deal with any incidents should they arise.
It would help if you always carried the below-mentioned things in your packing list.
- Extra underwear
- Oral solutions like Drip Drop to prevent dehydration
- Insect repellent
- Ostomy supplies
- Extra medications
- Probiotics to prevent traveler’s diarrhea
- Sunblock
- Pillbox to organize daily and “as-needed” medications for travel
Medication
Don’t forget to pack enough medications while Travelling With IBD. It is also best to have a copy of your medicines, a list of the prescription you’re on, and contact information for your doctor. You should also have information about what medical centre and clinics are in the area where you are going, in case you need medical care. Always pack more than enough of your required medication to last your entire trip in case of delays.
Scope Out The Food
Those people who are living with IBD usually have dietary constraints, and this is absolutely not something you want to try with when you’re away from home. If you are travelling to a new location, scope out restaurants as well as grocery stores in advance.
You can also consider staying somewhere with a kitchen so that you can always do your cooking if the food scene is not Crohn’ s-friendly.
Bring Your Own Snacks
Go shopping ahead of your trip and choose your beloved snacks. Often small airports and small convenience stores off highways don’t have a substantial snack selection. You don’t need to find yourself hangry or without food to take medications with if required.
Don’t Forget To Pace Yourself.
There is so much to view! We all want to experience as much as possible, but it is also essential to pace ourselves. It may feel fine at the time, but we don’t need to over-do it with all of our experiences at once! Instead of trying to fit a complete schedule within a short time frame, always try to spread out activities over a or two.
Contact To Your Physician
Early in your journey planning, consult your doctor. For travel insurance purposes, make sure that you are clear for a tour and discuss the completion of any testing and any changes to your medication or treatment. Go over your treatment plan with your doctor for your daily prescription schedule, including how to adjust in the event of time zone changes. If you’re Travelling With IBD, talk to your doctor about how to manage your diet.
Get Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is highly suggested for anyone travelling outside the country for any length of time. Make sure that you have a valid travel insurance policy when going to protect you in the event of a flare of your disease. When purchasing insurance, you should notify them that you have IBD. Otherwise, you will not be covered in the event of an emergency. A few insurers will charge a premium because you have IBD, so it is worth shopping around for a reasonable quote.
Get An Idea About How To Manage Flares
As we all know, IBD is a systemic disorder, and there is always a chance of flare even if you are taking your medications regularly. A flare is when your IBD signs return, sometimes more severe than before. Consult your physician or specialist to make a plan of action if your health worsens while travelling. Keep your physician’s phone number along with your travel insurance information in your purse at all times.
Well, if you are travelling to a country where people generally don’t speak any languages you know, learn some essential phrases in the local language for example “Where is the washroom?” so you can get help if an urgent situation occurs.
Enjoy Your Trip
Whether you are travelling for work or pleasure, proper planning can go a long way to prevent unnecessary stress. Take the benefit of the tips mentioned above to make your trip as worry-free as possible.
