Your Vacation Destination - Is It Suitable For You And Your Sciatica/Back Pain?Tips For Flying And Travelling With Sciatica And Backpain.
My other post Tips For Flying And Traveling With Sciatica And Backpain covers how to get to your destination taking your back into account. You will also see there some useful back pain supports that you may need for the journey.
This post is about what to consider about the destination you choose to book for your vacation.
If you are going to have a lovely relaxing holiday that you so deserve you will need to make sure that the destination is suitable for you and your back. I am also well aware that you will have other people in most cases to consider but you must take your bad back into account too.
So before you book a vacation, be it a City, Beach, Countryside or whatever you choose, make sure that you know your back well and what you can and cannot tolerate.
Your Vacation Destination -check the following
Is it easy for you to get around? Do you need to hire a car or if driving is an issue for you is it possible to get places by public transport or do they run coach, boat or rail trips you can go on instead.
If you find steps difficult are there any you will have to negotiate? You also need to check if you will need to walk up and down hills or slopes all the time or just occasionally. Some people with back issues find any type of hill difficult to walk up and down.
What are the medical facilities? If you are outside of your own country do check that there are suitable medical facilities for you and also that you have the appropriate medical insurance for if you need healthcare, do not skimp on this. Of course do take any prescribed medication and painkillers with you clearly labelled and in its original packaging and carry in hand luggage.
How much walking will you need to do to get around? This may vary a lot on a city or country or beach destination.
For some people with backpain walking is not such an issue but for others it is and if it is for you do check just how much walking you will need to do to get to the essential things like shops, cafes, restaurants and attractions. Check if there are alternate ways of getting around like buses, trains, boats, tubes, taxis etc.
How far is your destination from the airport? If traveling is a pain for you, you need to take into account how long your journey is from home to the destination airport and from the airport to your hotel or holiday home.
Sitting is the worst thing for my back, so I need to know how long I will have to sit and what breaks I can get to stand and walk around. Map the entire journey and add a little for any delays. Will there be a long car or coach journey on the other side that you also need to take into account? Do ask for assistance carrying luggage too if you need that help.
You need to know what you can handle comfortably with your back problems and book accordingly.
At your hotel or holiday home.
One of the hardest things I find about travel is that I am not sleeping in my own bed with my memory foam mattress, full sleep body pillow and comfy pillow for my head! I usually cannot take them with me so I have to make sure I can be as comfortable as possible when away from home. A week or two of poor sleep on vacation will not be a holiday for me !
So check if you can have extra pillows- these will be very useful to you for under your head, knees and back to give you extra comfort.
Ask for extra towels- a trick that may be helpful if the bed is too soft for you is to fold a towel up and put it under the bottom sheet- this provides some additional support and I have found can make a difference.
If heat helps you then it may be worthwhile making sure that your room has a bath that you can soak in or at least a powerful shower you can use. Consider taking a hot water bottle with you and fill with hot water to place on your back if it is sore.
If ice helps you then simply ask for a bucket of ice and wrap some in a plastic bag then in a towel and place on your back for 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off to ease any pain. Very important to wrap in a towel or you may get burns from the ice.
If there is a pool then enjoy it. Get in to the water - you do not need to swim just walk around, lie floating on your back, hang off the sides of the pool to stretch out your back and just "be" in the water. Many people find this helpful for back issues, just be careful not to overdo it. Do a little then take a break.
If you find steps difficult are there any you will have to negotiate? You also need to check if you will need to walk up and down hills or slopes all the time or just occasionally. Some people with back issues find any type of hill difficult to walk up and down.
What are the medical facilities? If you are outside of your own country do check that there are suitable medical facilities for you and also that you have the appropriate medical insurance for if you need healthcare, do not skimp on this. Of course do take any prescribed medication and painkillers with you clearly labelled and in its original packaging and carry in hand luggage.
How much walking will you need to do to get around? This may vary a lot on a city or country or beach destination.
For some people with backpain walking is not such an issue but for others it is and if it is for you do check just how much walking you will need to do to get to the essential things like shops, cafes, restaurants and attractions. Check if there are alternate ways of getting around like buses, trains, boats, tubes, taxis etc.
Sitting is the worst thing for my back, so I need to know how long I will have to sit and what breaks I can get to stand and walk around. Map the entire journey and add a little for any delays. Will there be a long car or coach journey on the other side that you also need to take into account? Do ask for assistance carrying luggage too if you need that help.
You need to know what you can handle comfortably with your back problems and book accordingly.
At your hotel or holiday home.
One of the hardest things I find about travel is that I am not sleeping in my own bed with my memory foam mattress, full sleep body pillow and comfy pillow for my head! I usually cannot take them with me so I have to make sure I can be as comfortable as possible when away from home. A week or two of poor sleep on vacation will not be a holiday for me !
So check if you can have extra pillows- these will be very useful to you for under your head, knees and back to give you extra comfort.
Ask for extra towels- a trick that may be helpful if the bed is too soft for you is to fold a towel up and put it under the bottom sheet- this provides some additional support and I have found can make a difference.
If heat helps you then it may be worthwhile making sure that your room has a bath that you can soak in or at least a powerful shower you can use. Consider taking a hot water bottle with you and fill with hot water to place on your back if it is sore.
If ice helps you then simply ask for a bucket of ice and wrap some in a plastic bag then in a towel and place on your back for 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off to ease any pain. Very important to wrap in a towel or you may get burns from the ice.
If there is a pool then enjoy it. Get in to the water - you do not need to swim just walk around, lie floating on your back, hang off the sides of the pool to stretch out your back and just "be" in the water. Many people find this helpful for back issues, just be careful not to overdo it. Do a little then take a break.
Sun loungers are not the most supportive seats for you if you have back issues so remember to take a towel fold it up and place under your back to give you additional support.
Relax and Enjoy Your Holiday
You have earned this break and relaxation will do you and your back a lot of good so chill out, relax and have a good time :)
- See more at: http://lifewithmypetback.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/tips-for-flying-and-travelling-with.html#sthash.O97eJ9gf.dpuf
Relax and Enjoy Your Holiday
You have earned this break and relaxation will do you and your back a lot of good so chill out, relax and have a good time :)
If you like this post or found it helpful please share. Also consider joining our Sciatica Solutions Facebook page. - See more at: http://lifewithmypetback.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/tips-for-flying-and-travelling-with.html#sthash.xnSagrMd.dpuf
Free Back Pain Book
Written by the Healthy back Institute- Steve Hefferon and Jesse Cannone- who are the guys who worked with me to help me get my life back from severe sciatic pain in both legs and low back pain.
- 7 Day Back Pain Cure
This free book (there is a small shipping/handling fee for physical book) will help to to understand your back and sciatic pain. It will give you more than the first steps, covering reasons for pain, pain relief, possible treatments, action plans and many other things you will find useful.
If you like this post or found it helpful please share. Also consider joining our Sciatica Solutions Facebook page. - See more at: http://lifewithmypetback.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/tips-for-flying-and-travelling-with.html#sthash.xnSagrMd.dpuf
If you like this post or found it helpful please share. Also consider joining our Sciatica Solutions Facebook page. - See more at: http://lifewithmypetback.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/tips-for-flying-and-travelling-with.html#sthash.xnSagrMd.dpuf
If you like this post or found it helpful please share. Also consider joining our Sciatica Solutions Facebook page. - See more at: http://lifewithmypetback.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/tips-for-flying-and-travelling-with.html#sthash.xnSagrMd.dpuf
If you like this post or found it helpful please share. Also consider joining our Sciatica Solutions Facebook page. - See more at: http://lifewithmypetback.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/tips-for-flying-and-travelling-with.html#sthash.xnSagrMd.dpuf
Lose The Back Pain System
Lose the Back Pain, is a system of self assessments to determine what physical imbalances you may have that may be causing your pain, then specific and targeted exercises to follow to address the imbalances, along with pain reduction strategies.
For useful information and suggestions there is a Free Back Pain Book Written by the Healthy back Institute-
7 Day Back Pain Cure
This free book (there is a small shipping/handling fee for physical book) will give you a good starting point for taking back control of your back pain covering reasons for pain, pain relief, possible treatments, action plans and many other things you will find useful.
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