The Complications of International Travel

Posy, who lives in the UK, needed to to see her daughter, who lives in the USA. She needed to. Her daughter was very unwell and she needed her mom. They had not seen each other since 2019 because of COVID travel bans.

Anxious about leaving

Two weeks before she left, Posy couldn't even get out of bed. The thought of traveling across the world was giving her panic attacks. But Posy had to take this opportunity. Flights were duly booked. Everything now depended on whether UK citizens would be allowed to travel. This, in turn, depended on restrictions that might be imposed by COVID.

Thus the source of Posy's panic attacks shifted from: "OMG, what if am I unable or not well enough to travel?" to "OMG, what if we are not allowed to travel?" Are Parkies never satisfied? (As with mental illness, it is difficult for the uninitiated to comprehend the, "I can't," when physically they imagine, "You can!")

So, what else could Posy fret about? The stress was building before the lateral flow test. But, it subsided somewhat after the results showed she did not have COVID. Phew. Scrutinizing the news through the night, Posy and her husband got no sleep, worrying about any changes.

Getting ready for the flight

A couple of days from departure, Posy was excited to be packing her case. In those moments, all seemed normal and quite nice. Normal not to be focusing on what she could not do, for a change. Nice to be going anywhere, quite frankly, after hiding from the virus for 2 years!

Still in a state of disbelief, Posy began the outward trip. She managed to stay calm when half way to the airport they had to return home. Thus, adding 90 minutes to the car journey.

Posy's husband, having taken responsibility for absolutely everything, had left his own blood pressure medications behind. But, they had left in plenty of time, so no problem. Then, the international flight from London was delayed on the ground for an hour, so they need not have rushed.

During the flight, Posy worried about missing the connection from Atlanta, as there had been only 45 minutes between flights. But thankfully the airline messaged that they were now booked onto a later onward flight.

The timing of medications

On landing, adrenalin came from somewhere and the 2 of them ran to the train, changed concourse, sprinted to the gate and were allowed to board their original onward bound flight as the gate was closing.

And so did their baggage! Wow. It was wonderful to experience excitement and positivity winning over stress. Each setback had been resoundingly resolved.

Ah but, in this crazy situation, Posy was not keeping a clear record of the time changes in relation to the specified times for taking her medications. How does one negotiate the schedule for taking Parkinson's meds when traveling backward to another time zone?

It was difficult to stretch out her 4 doses of levodopa/carbidopa, (normally taken every 3.5 hours) plus the bedtime one.

Contemplating the future

By the time Posy arrived at her destination, she was not feeling quite so serene. In fact, while in the baggage hall and waiting for the rental car, Posy had a not-so-funny turn. For a frightening hour, Posy contemplated a future in which she might be unable to travel at all.

Was this the vertigo that had afflicted her mother and sister? How strange to be clobbered with an affliction that might be unrelated to Parkinson's.

Then it dawned on her that maybe this scenario was caused by not taking the levodopa efficiently. Was Parkinson's ruining Posy's chances of traveling to see her daughter so soon?

It did take a couple of days to feel completely better, which, on such a short trip was not ideal. Nevertheless, just seeing and holding her daughter was an incredible experience after being separated for so long.

Drained by jet lag

Saying goodbye was completely heart-breaking. Posy had never been needed so much, and now she had to leave. The travel insurance company would not extend the medical coverage for her to stay, so Posy and her husband are planning to return in January, COVID rules permitting.

The journey home was shorter and less eventful, especially as the baggage was checked to the final destination, removing the stress of re-checking it after the first leg.

However, we all know that happily ever after is a myth. So Mr. Parkinson's scolded ... "Are you taking the Mickey? You think you can have my disease, cope with jet lag, and miss a night's sleep?" With that, he promptly sent her to bed for 4 days!

Posy would love to hear your thoughts on managing international travel and especially on what to do about one's disrupted medication regime? How do you cope?