Hello!
Sorry for the brief hiatus, we were on vacation, driving to the east coast to see grandchildren. What a lovely vacation is was too! Which brings up another adapting subject:
How do you travel when handicapped?
There are so many possibilities because of disability level, ability level, and just flat desire to do things.
Today, lets concentrate on flying. I can state, from experience, that flying is NOT a good option for me. Sounds silly, doesn’t it? The quickest means is usually the best means as it limits the time of discomfort, right? No, not for me. I do it frequently, however, out of necessity.
Flying- oh you devil you, making it appear to be so easy and convenient. Appearances can be deceiving! Horror stories abound regarding people taking their powered wheelchairs with them. Because of the batteries, they cannot be simply driven up into the cargo area and strapped down. Federal regulations mean the batteries must be removed and stored separately. That means that someone with very little or no experience in the machinations of a power chair is going to be disassembling and reassembling it. No worry there at all. I’ve heard of cases where the chairs have been dropped out of the cargo area, falling 20 feet to the concrete below and smashing beyond repair. That poor child was on vacation with her family 2,000 miles from home. There is simply no way to get another chair, especially in the two week time frame of their vacation. The airline’s insurance did pay for a new chair, which is good, but not helpful for an enjoyable vacation.
Manual wheelchairs can be more easily used. Mine is a life saver. If I am traveling alone. I simply request an aid from the airline I am using. They have people who do nothing but aid the elderly and disabled. The aid then does the hard work of pushing my chair, which is vital because pushing it myself causes wrist, elbow, and shoulder dislocations. I get escorted to the gate and usually they have me board first giving me plenty of time to make my way to my seat without falling on other passengers. Yes, that has happened. Nothing like those narrow little isles when your hip dislocates and sends you sprawling. They usually make you wait until the very last to deplane, however, which gives them time to retrieve your chair from cargo and have it waiting for you at the door. There was one incident where I was on a flight with 3 very elderly nuns. (no joke!) who were going to a convent to retire the eldest of the 3. I believe she was in her 90’s. She had requested an airport wheelchair to get her from plane to baggage area. In their haste, and because of a lack of communication, they gave her MY wheelchair instead of the generic airport chair. Have you any idea of what it’s like to have to track down an 90 year old NUN and explain that she’s in your wheelchair?
The chair has other benefits, also. You get side tracked on security checks which decreases the waiting line to none most of the time. I have a backpack that is specifically designed to be a ‘travelers’ pack. Travel Pro Luggage 9 It was expensive and I had to save up for months to afford it, but it is a lifesaver. The straps are sturdy enough to slide over the handles on my chair, leaving my hands free to do other things like handing over my ID and boarding pass. The back and straps are padded so that if you do have to carry it as a backpack, it remains comfortable. It is so roomy that I can comfortably carry my tablet; cables, plugins, and backup battery sticks; drawing pads & pencils/pens: my DSLR camera with the extra lens; all my medication; my current yarn project; several changes of clothing; the TSA approved ziplock bag of hygiene products; along with other things like snacks. If my grandson is traveling with me, it also gets packed with kid approved surprises. Usually small books or toys that encourage quiet play and hold his attention. He LOVES to fly, however, and is very good at it. I’ve not ever had a big issue with him on a flight.
Having this backpack prevents my having to have a carry on or check a bag for short trips. By the way, it’s considered a ‘personal item’ like a purse is, so it does not count as your one carry on bag. You just need to consolidate your purse items and use a small clutch that will tuck inside the bag. I love using this bag for everything valuable, as it effectively eliminates theft because it is always within your control. Only once has a stewardess told me it was too large for a personal item, I explained that my medication was inside and she dropped it immediately.
Trust me when I tell you that trying to handle one of the rolly type carry-on bags by yourself is pretty darn difficult to do from a manual wheelchair. It can be done, just not without problems and slowing you down significantly. If you can get an ‘aid’ then you can push it ahead while they push you, which is better, but still problematic when deplaning. If I do have to have one, I usually ‘gate check’ it to my final destination. There is no fee associated with gate checking, it simply means that they are going to toss it in the hold and instead of bringing it to you, they will toss it into the hold of the next plane you are on. That way I’m not waiting for it to be brought to the jet way and fighting it while making a mad dash for the next flight. If you’ve any experience in flying at all, you know that it seems to be the delight of airlines everywhere to arrive at the gate which is the absolute farthest from the next gate you need to leave from. In large airports like Atlanta, that can mean rushing a half mile or more.
To date, I have never had the airline loose a bag that I gate checked. I’ve never had one broken into either. There is a quick trick for that I use, to discourage temptation. Use small zip ties. The bag cannot be entered without cutting the zip-ties, unlike those silly little TSA approved locks. TSA doesn’t care about them, because if they want they can cut them, just like they can with the locks. A baggage handler, however, would be caught out if the zip-tie is cut. With the small locks, they can be opened and replaced easily, thus making it appear nothing is wrong. Naturally you need to bring extra with you, in your personal bag, so that you can re-zip them before your flight home. You shouldn’t ever pack valuables in checked baggage, or gate checked baggage, if there is anyway possible to avoid it. Despite most people’s understanding of it, if your items are stolen the airline is not responsible. Your only recourse is to file a claim with your homeowners insurance. Buried in the airline’s fine print is a blurb about ‘not packing valuables’ that leaves them with no financial obligation.
Last but not least…. airplane bathrooms. Yes they are tiny and weird, which is bad enough, but add to that the effort of trying to reach it down a narrow aisle stuffed full of grumpy passengers with hips/knees/ankles that love to randomly dislocate, and it’s a nightmare in the making. There is no real solution to it, if you gotta go, you gotta go. In this case prevention is the keyword. I’ve a pretty good understanding of my body and it’s inner mechanisms, meaning I know how long I have after that 16 oz bottle of water needs to make it’s exit. I try to time it out so that I can go in the airport, instead of in the plane. It’s some what more difficult with POTS, as hydration is vital to keeping the blood pressure at a decent level. Practice makes perfect. Yes, I said it. Practice at home so that you have a reasonable idea of how often and when you are going to need the facilities. I’ve pretty much got it down to a science now, and haven’t had to use a plane bathroom in a long time. Course that is pretty much out the window if you have a long flight. Some international flights are 12 hours long. Those planes, however, are usually significantly larger and easier to get around in.
So, with all this experience why is flying not a good option for me? Well, it actually makes my pain levels significantly higher because of the constant movement followed by long periods of no movement. I do better if I can move now and again, in a consistent pattern, instead of in bursts. It also messes with my POTS symptoms. I’m not sure if it’s the pressure changes with altitude or what, but my blood pressure usually drops significantly. I also broke an ear drum a couple of years ago, which lead to the rocks in my ear shifting, an issue called BPPV. That was no fun, and no fun to fix either. Since that time I have had significant issues with travel sickness. When my blood pressure gets out of balance it seems to negatively impact the motion sickness, increasing it to the point of nearly passing out. It generally takes me a minimum of 2 full days of resting and napping to recover from a plane ride, which cuts out a lot of enjoyment time on a 7 day vacation. So, I tend to avoid it if possible.
Next week, car travel, or possibly the sleeping arrangements.
Any input would be appreciated!
Have a great week.
TH
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