Guest guest Posted May 16, 2002 Report Share Posted May 16, 2002 Hi Carol, I just took a flight to Mass. from FL several weeks ago, and am getting ready to do it again in early June. I hadn't traveled in a while, not since 9/11, so wasn't sure what to expect. I live in a town with a very small airport, so departing wasn't much of an issue. Coming back from Boston was a different story. With the big airports, it's very beneficial to buy an e (lectronic) ticket. In Boston, if you have an e ticket, you can have the sky caps take your baggage at curb site. Then you can avoid the long ticket lines, stroll over to the security checkpoint and get to your gate in a minimum of time. Some airports have kiosks where you can insert your credit card (I think) for identification and it spits out your boarding pass. Not too sure how this works, I've only had it explained to me, since I could take advantage of the curb side check in, I didn't hunt through the Boston airport to see if there were any kiosks there. Maybe someone else knows more about this?? Once in Atlanta, I was lugging a tote bag. It killed my shoulders and arms!!! The tote itself is so heavy empty, it was almost useless to use as a carryall, since I couldn't fill it with much because of how much it hurt to carry it. I stopped at a Samsonite outlet and found an American Tourister tote on wheels!! It is the same color of my other luggage, it has the little strap that lets you attach it to the handle of my big suitcase, and best of all, it rolls!!!!! I saw a number of travelers using similar totes, and was very jealous! Now I'm looking forward to my next flight. The only other thing that strikes me is how still I got crammed into those little coach seats. Get an aisle seat if you can and get up and move around if you are going to be on a flight longer than an hour. Happy traveling, sounds like fun! Suzanne [ ] Massage and RA > Hi everyone! I've been out of town, so I've missed some posts. I hope > everyone is doing well, and having as pain free of a day as possible. > > I've been doing a little better, and have been pretty active. I started to > flare last week, right before making the 8 hour drive to Atlanta. I had an > appt. with my RD that morning, and he told me to take 15 mg of Prednisone. > I did, and that stopped the flare for a day, but then I started to hurt > again. I ended up tapering the prednisone over 6 days. It allowed me to > function while I was up there. I actually went horseback riding (although I > did pay the price afterward ). > > This Saturday I leave for Denver. Since I'm flying, I don't want to take > the Prednisone, because I don't want to weaken my immune system any more > than it already is with the MTX. I suppose I could take something for pain > when I get on the flight, since it would wear off before I am ready to rent > a car. Since I am going by myself, I have no one to help with my bags. > Carrying the laptop through the airport is going to be miserable for my > shoulder. I'm going there for a class, but I am going to spend Sunday being > a tourist at Rocky Mountain National Park. Also, I'm staying at a hotel > with a spa and want to get a massage when I get there. Is there any > contraindication with RA and a Swedish massage? I don't want it to cause a > flare! Although I'm nervous about my health, I am excited about this trip. > It's an adventure to do all this on my own. > > If anyone has any other travel suggestions, please share them! When I drove > to Atlanta, I had both ice and those disposable heating pads in case I > needed them. That's my only travel tip so far. > > Have a good evening! > > Hugs, > Carol in FL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2002 Report Share Posted May 16, 2002 Hi Carol - Actually, massage is considered theraputic with RA - its actually listed in the Arthritis Foundation's book about living with RA as an alternative therapy, so go for it. As far as travel tips go, I have a few potentially helpful suggestions for your situation. The other day I saw a rolling Samsonite laptop case being sold at Sam's Club for about $40 - that might be very helpful. The other thing you could do is call the airline and identify yourself as a passenger requiring assistance. They will then provide either a cart or a wheelchair to take you from check-in to the gate. Also, I do take Airborne when I fly. They are little tablets that you disolve in water - they sort of taste like Tang. I used to get sinus infections every time I took a plane. I made a few changes - I drink plenty of water, don't turn on the overhead vent (it just circulates the air from inside the plane - including the air from the sick kid 6 rows away), and take Airborne. Since then, I haven't picked up another infection. I don't know why it works for me, but it does, so I keep doing it. Have fun on your trip - >From: " Carol " <carol@...> >Reply- > " \(E-mail\) " < > >Subject: [ ] Massage and RA >Date: Wed, 15 May 2002 17:45:50 -0400 > >Hi everyone! I've been out of town, so I've missed some posts. I hope >everyone is doing well, and having as pain free of a day as possible. > >I've been doing a little better, and have been pretty active. I started to >flare last week, right before making the 8 hour drive to Atlanta. I had an >appt. with my RD that morning, and he told me to take 15 mg of Prednisone. >I did, and that stopped the flare for a day, but then I started to hurt >again. I ended up tapering the prednisone over 6 days. It allowed me to >function while I was up there. I actually went horseback riding (although >I >did pay the price afterward ). > >This Saturday I leave for Denver. Since I'm flying, I don't want to take >the Prednisone, because I don't want to weaken my immune system any more >than it already is with the MTX. I suppose I could take something for pain >when I get on the flight, since it would wear off before I am ready to rent >a car. Since I am going by myself, I have no one to help with my bags. >Carrying the laptop through the airport is going to be miserable for my >shoulder. I'm going there for a class, but I am going to spend Sunday >being >a tourist at Rocky Mountain National Park. Also, I'm staying at a hotel >with a spa and want to get a massage when I get there. Is there any >contraindication with RA and a Swedish massage? I don't want it to cause a >flare! Although I'm nervous about my health, I am excited about this trip. >It's an adventure to do all this on my own. > >If anyone has any other travel suggestions, please share them! When I >drove >to Atlanta, I had both ice and those disposable heating pads in case I >needed them. That's my only travel tip so far. > >Have a good evening! > >Hugs, >Carol in FL > > > _________________________________________________________________ Join the world’s largest e-mail service with MSN Hotmail. http://www.hotmail.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2002 Report Share Posted May 16, 2002 Hi Suzanne. Thanks for the great travel tips. It never occurred to me to avoid the air vent because it's recirculated air. I am going to share that tip with my husband! We travel pretty frequently, and are always trying to avoid germs. I bought a portable luggage cart this morning, so I can carry my laptop case and my carry-on. I already have a really nice leather briefcase for my laptop, so the cart for $15 was a good deal. My garment bag has wheels, so I should be fine with that. And I've called to reserve aisle seats. My hips are bothering me a lot today, so I'm really looking to make this as easy on me as possible. I think tomorrow I'm going to take the one time prednisone dosage like I did when I drove. Maybe it will help me to feel better Saturday morning, yet won't really be in my system. Thanks again! Hugs, Carol in FL Re: [ ] Massage and RA Hi Carol, I just took a flight to Mass. from FL several weeks ago, and am getting ready to do it again in early June. I hadn't traveled in a while, not since 9/11, so wasn't sure what to expect. I live in a town with a very small airport, so departing wasn't much of an issue. Coming back from Boston was a different story. With the big airports, it's very beneficial to buy an e (lectronic) ticket. In Boston, if you have an e ticket, you can have the sky caps take your baggage at curb site. Then you can avoid the long ticket lines, stroll over to the security checkpoint and get to your gate in a minimum of time. Some airports have kiosks where you can insert your credit card (I think) for identification and it spits out your boarding pass. Not too sure how this works, I've only had it explained to me, since I could take advantage of the curb side check in, I didn't hunt through the Boston airport to see if there were any kiosks there. Maybe someone else knows more about this?? Once in Atlanta, I was lugging a tote bag. It killed my shoulders and arms!!! The tote itself is so heavy empty, it was almost useless to use as a carryall, since I couldn't fill it with much because of how much it hurt to carry it. I stopped at a Samsonite outlet and found an American Tourister tote on wheels!! It is the same color of my other luggage, it has the little strap that lets you attach it to the handle of my big suitcase, and best of all, it rolls!!!!! I saw a number of travelers using similar totes, and was very jealous! Now I'm looking forward to my next flight. The only other thing that strikes me is how still I got crammed into those little coach seats. Get an aisle seat if you can and get up and move around if you are going to be on a flight longer than an hour. Happy traveling, sounds like fun! Suzanne [ ] Massage and RA > Hi everyone! I've been out of town, so I've missed some posts. I hope > everyone is doing well, and having as pain free of a day as possible. > > I've been doing a little better, and have been pretty active. I started to > flare last week, right before making the 8 hour drive to Atlanta. I had an > appt. with my RD that morning, and he told me to take 15 mg of Prednisone. > I did, and that stopped the flare for a day, but then I started to hurt > again. I ended up tapering the prednisone over 6 days. It allowed me to > function while I was up there. I actually went horseback riding (although I > did pay the price afterward ). > > This Saturday I leave for Denver. Since I'm flying, I don't want to take > the Prednisone, because I don't want to weaken my immune system any more > than it already is with the MTX. I suppose I could take something for pain > when I get on the flight, since it would wear off before I am ready to rent > a car. Since I am going by myself, I have no one to help with my bags. > Carrying the laptop through the airport is going to be miserable for my > shoulder. I'm going there for a class, but I am going to spend Sunday being > a tourist at Rocky Mountain National Park. Also, I'm staying at a hotel > with a spa and want to get a massage when I get there. Is there any > contraindication with RA and a Swedish massage? I don't want it to cause a > flare! Although I'm nervous about my health, I am excited about this trip. > It's an adventure to do all this on my own. > > If anyone has any other travel suggestions, please share them! When I drove > to Atlanta, I had both ice and those disposable heating pads in case I > needed them. That's my only travel tip so far. > > Have a good evening! > > Hugs, > Carol in FL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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