Travel

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy Forums

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy forums - a peer support community for folks dealing (directly or indirectly) with seizure disorders. You can visit the forum page to see the list of forum nodes (categories/rooms) for topics.

Please have a look around and if you like what you see, please consider registering an account and joining the discussions. When you register an account and log in, you may enjoy additional benefits including no ads, access to members only (ie. private) forum nodes and more. Registering an account is free - you have nothing to lose!

juzzyk

New
Messages
50
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Does anyone else feel fearful to travel with epilepsy? My biggest fears are, will I be well enough/have enough energy, what if I have seizures, how will I cope on the plane etc. It was on our last overseas trip to the USA (coming from Australia), where the seizures heightened (I was diagnosed a month after returning). On the plane over I had to have oxygen due to nausea and dizziness. I then didn't cope very well in the heat in Las Vegas and felt constantly sick. I only have partial seizures/TLE but it can really knock me out at times. We were hoping to go to Europe this year, but I honestly wonder whether I will cope.

Just wondering if anyone can relate to this. I don't want E to rule my life but I guess I need to be realistic. Am I being to cautious/negative?
 
I went to Birmingham, Alabama with my 8 year old grandson in July. In Sept. a friend of mine and I went to Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales.
The only thing I can tell you is to take your meds on time. I only had one little episode in Ireland with my friend and it was due to the fact that I had taken my dose late. Luckily, she is a teacher and knew something was wrong but didn't make a big deal about it. Didn't even tell me until we returned that she noticed I was a little off but then I came back.
This summer my daughter-in-law's mom and I (2 granmas) are going to be going to Hungary with the 2 grandsons.
I am well controlled with my meds and take them religiously!
Good Luck!
M
 
I can relate. I went to Honduras over the holidays and was worried about the lack of control over my diet (avoidance of food allergy triggers), the need to use DEET insect repellant 24/7, dehydration while flying, etc. I bought my own water for the flight, and did deep breathing/relaxation on the flight--no problems there. I'd give those a try. I did have problems on the trip itself but it was probably (almost certainly) because I took my last dose of a benzo on the trip (I was going off it forever). I ended up up-dosing, which helped, until I got home. I did several trips last year by necessity when I just wasn't ready--I was really not well due to a number of factors, and had lots of problems. And I've done some since I was better, and was surprised and gained confidence in how much better I did. Maybe you can realistically assess how you are doing, and only go when you feel you are up to the trip. Then, do whatever you can to improve your chances of a successful trip, like take the foods, water, supplements that help, and do relaxation exercises on the trip--and don't do too much, find time to rest and relax while you are there. Make your health important no matter where you are.
 
Hi juzzyk,

I had just posted in another forum about traveling. I've had E for over 30 years, CP and TC seizures. When I first started having seizures, I was in the airline industry and I met and married a pilot. I ended up not being able to work anymore, but we still did a lot of traveling. In all the times I have flown across the states and several times across the "pond", I've never had a seizure or needed oxygen during flight. But even if I did have a seizure, the flight attendants are trained in what to do. When I was in school to become a ticket agent, the teacher told us that once she witnessed someone die right in front of her, in flight. Things can and do happen so, it's all a state of mind. If you think it's gonna be a bad experience, then it probably will be. Make sure you DO get your rest, take your meds as prescribed, get a letter from your dr., and tell those at the ticket counter if you need any extra help. That is what they are there for!
And get to the airport way ahead of departure time, just for peace of mind and safety.
 
Thanks all. I think I've built up anxiety after having such a bad experience in 2012 and not having travelled since, so that has made it worse. I think in the initial planning for this trip I got excited and bit off more than I could chew, so to speak. We were planning a 6 week trip but I think it would be best to pare it down and allow time for rest and breaks. Perhaps make it a shorter period this time and see how we go.

Unfortunately I got pneumonia last year and was struck down with that for 3 months, which of course worsened the E again. I'm going to have a flu shot this year and hoping to be better. I agree about the relaxation techniques. I'm about to see a health psychologist so might raise that with her. She specialises in managing chronic illness. I'm also seeing a dietician/naturopath in a few weeks so that might help with a plan to maintain my health.

Cint, I agree that it is largely in my mind and I have developed a fear of flying over the last few years. I'm not sure if it is related to E as I never had it before. The other factor last time was that I was travelling alone with my son, and was anxious and couldn't rest as I was watching him. And my E was undiagnosed so I wasn't on the proper medications. I also took valium and then had 2 large glasses of wine, so that would not have helped matters. My husband will be with us next time for the flight too.

The trouble with coming from Australia is the jet lag and change in times for taking medication. Would you take it at the same time you would normally take it in Australia or slowly adjust the time to fit in with the new time zone?
 
The trouble with coming from Australia is the jet lag and change in times for taking medication. Would you take it at the same time you would normally take it in Australia or slowly adjust the time to fit in with the new time zone?

That shouldn't be a problem, regardless of the changes in the time zones. Stay on the same schedule for taking your meds as you always do while traveling. When you arrive at your destination, you can adjust appropriately to the different time zone.

Often times, I traveled alone with my two children when they were small and I was still married. My husband at the time would fly to places several time zones away. The kids and I would fly there and meet him. So I stayed on the same schedule for me taking my meds.
 
Last edited:
Would you take it at the same time you would normally take it in Australia or slowly adjust the time to fit in with the new time zone?
Since I have my medication in 25mg pills (5 in the morning and 4 at night), I split the difference over the course of the flight. So if I'm arriving somewhere that's 6 hours behind my "normal" time, I might take some of my pills at the three-hour mark, rather than waiting the full 6 hours.

But it depends on what's easiest for you. If you take a medication with a relatively short half-life (like keppra), you might want to take it sooner rather than later if you'll be going "backwards" timewise.
 
Back
Top Bottom