Hey guys!
Today's video is going to be another Disability Discourse, and this one is going to be about
traveling with a disability.
I've been fortunate enough to get to travel quite a lot in my lifetime, and I think we
all know that even without a disability, travel can be super stressful, and especially for
those of us with conditions that get worsened by stress, this can make things kinda tough.
So today I'm going to go through ten things that really help me to lessen my stress from
travel and help me just keep things under control, and kind of just...smooth things
over while traveling with a disability.
So I really hope that this will be helpful to you, and let's get into it.
So the way I'm going to format this is I'm going to try and do it in kind of chronological
order, so we're gonna go from the planning stage, all the way to you getting home from
your trip.
So first off let's start with some planning things.
Number one is going to be checking the places that you want to go and the places that you
want to stay for accessibility.
This sounds really obvious, but I do have what I hope will be some slightly more useful
tips for you.
Of course the easiest ways to check for accessibility are to check the place's website and to call
in advance, and these are absolutely great, do these for sure.
However, I think we all know that unfortunately a lot of the time accessibility information
isn't all that great and isn't all that readily available.
So if you're having difficulty figuring out if a place is going to be accessible for you,
I do have a couple of other things that you can try.
Number one is Google reviews and TripAdvisor reviews.
If the place that you're going is quite popular, definitely read through all the reviews of
the place.
Even people who aren't disabled might have mentioned things like "oh there are a lot
of steps and I didn't really like that" and obviously that's something that you need to
take into consideration.
Um, so reviews can be really really helpful, just check what other people have said about
the place.
Second is YouTube videos.
So look up the place that you're wanting to go or the place that you're wanting to stay
and see if it's in anyone's videos.
Even if they don't specifically talk about accessibility, you're going to be able to
actually see what the place looks like from the ground and see if that looks like somewhere
that you would be comfortable going.
And my final recommendation is Google Maps' street view.
I know it sounds a bit ridiculous, but especially for things like hotels, this means that you
can get down onto street level and check the entrances, check what's around it, check the
pavement situation, if it slopes up or down, the whole shabam.
So if you can't find accessibility information on websites or by calling places immediately,
don't panic.
Definitely try and do a little bit more research.
I would say start planning as early as possible, just to get all of this stuff out of the way
so that you can be as comfortable as possible that you've chosen the right places to go
to.
So your planning stage is gonna be the most important part of your entire trip.
Let's talk about it some more in number two, which is: Schedule rest for yourself.
I think that it's really easy when you're planning things to get kind of carried away
and plan out two or three big things to do every day because you just wanna do so much,
but I think one of the most important things in your planning process is to be realistic.
Can you really do a big day and then do something else that night?
Is that really realistic for you?
Because it's better if you plan things so that you do have rest, and if you don't need
your rest, if you're feeling fine, you can go out and do whatever you want to do and
just wander around and things.
But if you do need your rest, then at least you have that there.
I think this is a way better way of doing it, 'cause there's nothing more devastating
and disappointing than planning to do something that you're really excited about and then
just not being able to.
So plan as though you'll need some rest and put in some rest days.
My best recommendation for this is to alternate days.
So have one day that you do something that is really strenuous and big, and have another
day where you do something like say a bus tour for example, where you're just going
to be sitting down a lot, you can still enjoy the sights, but it's something that's a little
less strenuous for your body.
So yeah, definitely plan in enough rest and be realistic with your planning.
Number three: If you're traveling to a different country and you don't speak the native language
there, look up any words that you regularly use to explain your disability and either
memorise them, or write them down.
I suggest both, because if you're in a stressful situation where you need to explain yourself,
you probably won't remember the words you learned.
So I just recommend writing them down somewhere and keeping them with you, just so that you
have that if anyone asks or if you, for whatever reason, need to explain things.
Number four is to take your time and research what accommodation is going to be right for
you.
For me that means somewhere that is really close to a lot of different amenities, and
I don't know what the right type of accommodation is for you particularly, just make sure that
you find what you're looking for and don't just book the first place that comes up.
So for me, when I'm looking for accommodation I need to make sure that it's super close
to whatever transport I'm going to be using, if that's a train station or a bus stop or
whatever that is, and I also like to make sure that it has some other things around
there in case I end up really sore and I'm stuck in the hotel for a day or a couple of
days.
So I wanna make sure it has a supermarket close by and that it has maybe a couple of
places that I can go out to eat if I end up not being able to travel further afield.
Because the difference between having to go out for a full day and then walking half an
hour back from the train station, versus walking five minutes, is really really big, at least
to me.
So for sure do your research, take your time when it comes to booking accommodation, start
early, and just make sure that you get the absolute right place for you.
Number five, on that same note, reserve the right type of plane seat.
Now for you that might mean that you want a window seat so that people aren't jostling
past you all the time, it might mean that you want one of the seats with extra leg room
up the front.
For me that means I want an aisle seat because I need to get up and walk around the plane
- we'll talk about this a little more when it comes to keeping yourself as healthy as
possible on the actual flight, if you're doing a flight.
So yeah, if you're going anywhere by plane, make sure that you get the right plane seat,
because if you have a flight that's longer than a couple of hours, it makes all the difference
in the world where you're sitting.
Number six is: Pack for the worst case scenario.
For example, if there are certain devices or medications that you don't use all the
time, but sometimes when things get bad you use them and they're helpful, bring them along.
There's no harm in bringing things just in case.
As I said at the start, travel can be really stressful and for illnesses that are related
to stress that can mean that you have flare-ups, so it's worth having those tools with you.
Plus there are all sorts of things that are going to be different, like you might be walking
more, you will have had possibly a long flight, all these things can factor into pain levels
and just like general illness levels, so if you have things in your arsenal that you wouldn't
normally take at home, bring them anyway.
Just have your doctor write a catch-all note for you, saying which medications you are
going to be bringing and have him - or her - put all of the medications that you might
possibly need and just bring it all along.
There's no harm and it'll make you feel a whole lot more comfortable with your travel
as well, knowing that you have options.
Number seven: Bring anything that is vital in your carry-on bag.
I've only ever had my luggage lost once, but it's really not worth the risk to put your
life-saving medications in your hold bag and then to have it get lost.
Anything that is completely vital to your trip and to your experience, put it in your
carry-on or have it in your hand bag that you're gonna bring on the plane.
Another thing that goes along with this, is that anything that's super vital and small,
like life-saving medications like I mentioned before, pack them in two separate locations.
So while you're traveling have one on your person, and then one back at the hotel, just
to make sure that if anything happens to one lot you still have the other lot.
It's just worth it, once again, for your peace of mind and for these "just in case" scenarios.
Number eight is going to be all about flying.
Now long haul flights, I'm talking like more than three hours, can be pretty stressful
to anyone's body, and especially anyone who already has some like bodily, physical issues
going on.
So there are two main ways that I would recommend dealing with this.
Number one is you can go the medicated route, which is fine.
If your doctor thinks that it's fine for you to do that, go and check and say is there
anything I can take that can help me deal with flying?
If that's a sleeping pill, or if that's some pain meds, whatever that might be, just take
their recommendation and you can take that if you want.
If you're not comfortable doing that or if you can't do that for whatever reason, I do
have a couple of non-medication flight tips that I often do.
So whichever ones of these are possible for you, if they're not possible for you then
obviously don't worry about them.
Number one is to bring a bottle of water and make sure that you're drinking really regularly.
Flights can be super dehydrating and I don't know why, but for whatever reason when my
body gets dehydrated, my inflammation goes up to like level fifteen and it's awful, I
hate it.
So definitely remember to keep drinking.
The second thing is, like I mentioned, I always get an aisle seat when possible, and I try
to get up at least once an hour and just have a hobble up and down the aisles.
So I do that, but if you can't do that for whatever reason, try and do some stretches
and just move around a bit in your seat, just to keep your joints and body moving and to
keep the blood flowing, 'cause sitting still for like eight to ten hours, it's not fun
when you go to stand up.
It's just not.
And the final thing that I recommend is wearing big, comfortable shoes.
Everyone's feet swell during long flights, but especially if you have an inflammatory
illness like I do, your feet will get like double the size.
So I usually just wear slippers to be perfectly honest, so I like get on the plane and just
have my slippers on so that...um, 'cause I take my shoes off during the flight, and I
highly recommend that you do that 'cause your feet swelling up inside your shoes is like
not a pleasant sensation.
So take off your shoes at the start of the flight and bring big shoes because at the
end of the flight, when you go to put your shoes back on, if you've brought regular-sized
shoes that fit you normally, you won't be able to get your foot inside it.
So wear some comfortable shoes that have a bit of room inside.
So yeah, that's my advice for flights.
Flights I think will always be a bit stressful on the body and you'll kinda feel pretty terrible
at the end, like even a regular, totally healthy person will feel pretty shitty at the end
of like a long haul flight, so bear that in mind.
It's normal to feel pretty terrible after a flight, but there are some things that you
can do to mitigate it a little bit.
Number nine: If you're traveling in a group, don't hesitate to split up if that's going
to make things easier for you, and if that's a safe thing to do.
I think that often traveling in a group for a disabled person can be tough because you
end up in this Catch-22 situation where if you don't go to do all the things that your
friends and travel companions want to do, you feel guilty because they have to stay
behind and can't do the things they wanted to do.
But if you do go and do them, then you feel terrible and are unable to move for the next
like three days.
So I think the best way to deal with this is just to split up, whether that means you
staying back at the hotel and just sleeping or resting for the day and then you can go
and do the things tomorrow, or whether that means you going and doing something that is
a little less strenuous, perhaps there's other people who might like to join you, or perhaps
you're going off on your own.
Obviously make sure that it's a safe place to go off on your own before doing that, but
I think in general splitting up is a really great way to make sure that no one has to
feel bad.
No one has to miss out and no one has to feel guilty.
And finally number ten is to do with getting back.
Try to leave a little bit of rest time if you possibly can when you get back to your
home, before you have to go out and do work or school or whatever you're going back to.
When I would do weekend trips away in Japan I would try to get on either Saturday night
or at least Sunday morning, so I could have that little bit of extra rest time.
No matter how prepared you are and no matter how well you plan and do all the things on
this list and all the things in your head, travel is really stressful and it's likely
to tire you out a lot, because it's just gonna take all your spoons and then you'll have
none when you get back home.
It's easy to keep going in the moment when you're in this amazing new place and you're
exploring and you're having fun, and often when you get home you'll just be like "bah!"
and just fall over and not be able to do anything for a little while.
So try and give yourself that little buffer zone before you have anything really important
that needs to be done at home.
And bear in mind that while you might feel bad the first couple of days or couple of
weeks after getting back from a trip, try and remember that it was worth it.
Like it's not worth ruining that whole trip in your memory just for the bad couple of
days or weeks after you get back.
It was worth it.
Look back on your photos, look back through everything that you did and just try and remember
that this is what you did it for.
So yeah, try and have a buffer, and try not to let that end flare-up and the comedown
at the end of the trip ruin the trip for you.
'cause the trip, I'm sure, was great!
Okay, so that about does it for my ten travel tips for disabled folks.
I really hope that if you are planning on traveling for the first time or for one of
the first times soon with a disability that this has helped you.
I know it can be really really stressful and really tough to deal with, but I'm sure you've
done a great job and that you're gonna have an amazing time away.
Thank you so much for watching, and I will catch you in the next one.
Peace!
For more infomation >> Attending the ABC Kite Fest? Here's what you need to know - Duration: 2:00. 
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét