With summer months just around the corner, vacations are being planned. In fact, I leave for Hawaii in just a few weeks, with a quick camping trip to Sedona, Arizona (my favorite place).
So, here are a few basic tips that I have found most important in my travels:
1. Pack enough supplies! While this is the most obvious tip, I feel the need to stress this after my own unexpected experiences. While I have never run out of supplies or have forgotten to pack enough supplies, I have had my van misplaced with everything I owned in it, including every single ostomy supply. As ostomates we can’t just go to the local pharmacy to pick up extra supplies, so you can imagine this was a very miserable experience. I had to wait several hours at the emergency room just to get one bag! Clearly, you do not want this to happen to you on vacation. So, not only pack enough supplies, but also …… (see number 2).
2. Have an Emergency Kit. We have probably all experienced an increase in symptoms while out in public, or we have eaten something that didn’t agree with us, which then leads to a blow out or leak. Keeping an extra pair of underwear, shorts or leggings and ostomy supplies on you at all times is imperative. Recently, I was driving to the airport on an unplanned trip to pick up a friend. While driving home my bag filled with fluid and gas. By the time I found a rest area to change it, well... you know …. the mix of gas and fluid caused my bag to blow up. As careful as I was taking it off, the bag was too full and of course it leaked on to the front on my jeans. I didn’t have any extra clothing with me because I was so used to driving my van with everything I owned in it. I didn’t think to keep an emergency kit in my new vehicle. After cleaning up as best I could, I went back to the car and apologized to my friend for the odor, so, be prepared and have spares in several spots (luggage, hotel, purse or back pack, etc.)
3. Hydration and nutrition. Vacations and travel are exciting but they take us out of our routines. Changes in routine can irregulate our digestive system. Keeping a water bottle and snacks like protein bars with you is also a great tip. You just never know when you might get delayed or stuck somewhere. While this is another obvious tip, it is easy to become complacent because we anticipate a restaurant or convenience store around the corner, but you just never know so be prepared.
4. Supportive Travel Companions. More than likely if you are going on vacation, the people you are traveling with know about your ostomy. However, if you are attending a retreat or traveling with people who don’t know, it’s probably a good idea to give them the heads up that you have an ostomy.
5. Get Comfortable.While in transit, be that by plane or vehicle, get comfortable. Wear comfortable clothing, and get out or up to stretch and move around.
6. Stop to use the restroom every chance you get. One thing I found while traveling around the country was that restrooms aren’t available everywhere you go. We saw this more recently in the pandemic and unfortunately, I still find many places that do not allow public use of the restroom. I myself have printed and used the Restroom Access Communication Card available on the UOAA web site at ostomy.org. This has helped me in a pinch.
7. Just do it! The most important tip I have learned over the last several years is to not let your ostomy or condition stop you from living, traveling or whatever it is that you want to do. If you want to take a trip across the ocean on a twelve-hour plane ride, do it. If you want to drive from the east coast to the west coast, do it. If you want to live in a van and travel the country, do it!