Be careful Flying with Oxygen

[Guest guest]

The first time I used Oxygen was on a flight from Chicago to Honolulu

in Dec. 06. I had just been diagnosed with IPF in Nov 06, yet the

doctor said I was already in the endstage (having apparently been

misdiagnosed by doctors with all my employment moves iver 10 years).

I had already flown a lot and knew that air in planes was dry so used

saline spray. However, I apparently did not use enough or should

have taken an extra soft tubing because 4 hours after my arrival I

started to have a nose bleed that turned into a fountain bleeding.

(The canula had gotten so hard from the dryness it actually cut me

inside my nose.) I ended up in the hospital for 24 hours because I

not only had lost so much blood, but they feared that it could have

damaged my heart. It didn't and I didn't have to have a transfusion

then. My advice to those of you who will fly with oxygen is to use

AYR gel (or KY) to moisten the inside of your nose. You can use the

Ayr saline spray as well as the gel & it works. I used O2 again when

I flew to Hawaii again in Aug. 07 before my transplant & had no

problems with the nose. Most of you on oxygen already know that it

does dry out your nose especially if you live in a colder climate. I

also used a portable concentrator while in Hawaii, and although it

was a pulsing one I did fine with it once I got used to it. So those

of you who want to travel, don't fear it, do it and enjoy it!

Love and Aloha

Judy (Ohio) IPF 11/06 TX 8/07