VACATION???

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tuffenuff
tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
in Head and Neck Cancer #1
I'm a traveller by nature. I can only go about 6 months without getting the itch to plan a decent vacation. Went to San Francisco once, fell in love with it and want to take my husband there. Question is this... How soon is too soon? I know I should probably make it next year, if I'm being realistic. My treatments are done at the end of first week in August and I'm prepared for the next two months to be pretty unpleasant. But beyond that... I don't want to sit here and let this monster run my life. But at the same time, I don't want to pay out a bunch of money and when the day comes I'm still not in a position to enjoy myself.

Do I just wait til I'm feeling good to even start planning?

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  • KTeacher
    KTeacher Member Posts: 1,103
    #2
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    I would plan
    on some trips that are close to home. Plan on resting. Check ahead about menu's at restaurants. Maybe Goalie will chime in, he travels for his work and I know that he was on the road (plane) soon after treatment. Everyone is different. My recent road trip to Oregon was hard on my old body. We will return next week, my daughter is expecting her 1st baby. My husband is good and knows that it might be a two day trip instead of 13 hours in the car in one day!
  • tuffenuff
    tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
    #3
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    KTeacher said:

    I would plan
    on some trips that are close to home. Plan on resting. Check ahead about menu's at restaurants. Maybe Goalie will chime in, he travels for his work and I know that he was on the road (plane) soon after treatment. Everyone is different. My recent road trip to Oregon was hard on my old body. We will return next week, my daughter is expecting her 1st baby. My husband is good and knows that it might be a two day trip instead of 13 hours in the car in one day!

    Good point on taking maybe
    Good point on taking maybe some shorter trips close to home. I've been basically inactive for my entire treatment. Gotta work up to all the walking we did in SF.
  • boardwalkgirl
    boardwalkgirl Member Posts: 269
    #4
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    You sound like me, I
    You sound like me, I actually had booked a trip to Disney before I got my diagnosis for December of this year for our 30th anniversary. We are still planning on going, knowing I probably won't have the energy I usually have there. We will just take it a little slower and rest more often. But I will not let this disease take away our trips to our favorite place. We have another couple going with us and she has been beside me thru this journey and she is going to be there to enjoy our reward trip. It really gives me something to look forward to. Good Luck with your planning.
  • amy_h414
    amy_h414 Member Posts: 98
    #5
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    just back from vacation yesterday
    Husband finished rads on June 26 and we went to the beach about 3 weeks later. I had booked the beach house back before we knew he had cancer. We talked to the rad onc early in treatment to see what he thought, should we cancel. He told us not to cancel, that we weren't going that far away (about 5 hr drive) and if he needed anything they could call in a prescription to a pharmacy at the beach. So we went. I was nervous about how it would go, but it was fine. He's recovered pretty quickly and was feeling good. I can't imagine going if he still felt bad like he did the first week out. He still has the PEG and brought a box of cans. He is doing some regular food now, so if we were out to eat and he saw something that sounded good, he'd eat it. Otherwise, he'd have a can when we got back to the house.

    And hey, there's always trip insurance. If you book a trip and then can;t go because you're not well enough, you could get your money back. Maybe. I'm assuming trip insurance would kick in for that but I'm not sure.
  • hwt
    hwt Member Posts: 2,328 Member
    #6
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    amy_h414 said:

    just back from vacation yesterday
    Husband finished rads on June 26 and we went to the beach about 3 weeks later. I had booked the beach house back before we knew he had cancer. We talked to the rad onc early in treatment to see what he thought, should we cancel. He told us not to cancel, that we weren't going that far away (about 5 hr drive) and if he needed anything they could call in a prescription to a pharmacy at the beach. So we went. I was nervous about how it would go, but it was fine. He's recovered pretty quickly and was feeling good. I can't imagine going if he still felt bad like he did the first week out. He still has the PEG and brought a box of cans. He is doing some regular food now, so if we were out to eat and he saw something that sounded good, he'd eat it. Otherwise, he'd have a can when we got back to the house.

    And hey, there's always trip insurance. If you book a trip and then can;t go because you're not well enough, you could get your money back. Maybe. I'm assuming trip insurance would kick in for that but I'm not sure.

    Me too!
    Definitely have the itch to travel. Have been to our condo at the lake 2 1/2 hours away but that is it. I am hesitant to make plans until I know I can enjoy eating again. Also, I'm a sunshine person, how long after Tx can I go to the pool without a floppy hat and sunscreen?
  • KTeacher
    KTeacher Member Posts: 1,103
    #7
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    hwt said:

    Me too!
    Definitely have the itch to travel. Have been to our condo at the lake 2 1/2 hours away but that is it. I am hesitant to make plans until I know I can enjoy eating again. Also, I'm a sunshine person, how long after Tx can I go to the pool without a floppy hat and sunscreen?

    For Me
    Never. I had no risk factors for this cancer. Not going to take any chances. I have quite a variety of floppy hats and SPF shirts. I can enjoy being outside, just covered up!
  • Tim6003
    Tim6003 Member Posts: 1,514 Member
    #8
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    KTeacher said:

    For Me
    Never. I had no risk factors for this cancer. Not going to take any chances. I have quite a variety of floppy hats and SPF shirts. I can enjoy being outside, just covered up!

    My humble opinion ...
    As a ex Hilton Hotels guy of 10 years ...here's my 2 cents.

    Plan now.

    Plan a destination that does NOT require a lot of walking (for example, in Europe you can plan a vacay in London that day by day takes you on guided tours via boat, bus or train)..you get the idea.

    plan a trip that has a shorter flying time or uses large hubs only (don't know where you live, but the bigger the airport hub the less chance of disruption like cancellations or bumps)

    BUY travel insurance (the kind where if you get sick, you get your money back) ..BUT I'm not so sure you can get travel insurance for illness if you are already ill (so to speak) and be sure and read the fine print on those policies.

    However, you can also get around a travel policy by getting a 7 day or less cancellation policy on anything you do ...that's actually not too hard in the current environment.

    I've been gone from Hilton Hotels for 2 years, but I'm still in the hotel biz ...and I know we work with guest all the time to accommodate the unforseen.

    Just be sure you read all cancellation policies and get copies of everything. :)

    Not like you did not know most of this stuff ....

    So go plan that vacay and enjoy it!!!

    Best,

    Tim
  • CivilMatt
    CivilMatt Member Posts: 4,722 Member
    #9
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    last time in SF 1974
    Hi tuffenuff,

    If I had to lay down odds based on how well you’ve done to date, I’d give you my blessings and tell you to plan the vacation. Once you have the monster under control, let loose and enjoy yourself (we all know you deserve it).

    Best,

    Matt

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