I love to travel.
I love airports.
I love planes.
I love boarding a plane in one city and arriving somewhere completely different just a few hours later. I love the drive to New York. I love the travel process from beginning to end.
When I started experiencing lower back pain, travelling was something I thought I wouldn’t be able to do anymore and that was heartbreaking.
Not because I didn't want to travel anymore.
Because I didn’t think my body would let me.
I believed that I had two choices:
Travel and suffer.
Or stay home.
So I stayed home.
Then I realized there was another option.
Adapt.
I took inspiration from the adaptations I had already made in other areas of my life. I paused and asked myself:
"How can I make travelling easier on my body?"
Before leaving
I make sure I've taken my medication on time, my brace is on for extra support, I have my medication list and everything I'll need throughout the day and while I’m away. I never travel without muscle rub or a heat pad, and before I leave the house, I always do my back exercises to loosen things up.
These are the small things that I do to help me feel as best as I can before leaving.
On the way
I recline my seat to about 110 degrees to reduce the pressure on my lower back.
It's a small adjustment, but it helps.
At the airport
Travel day consists of a lot of waiting.
For international flights, we're asked to arrive at least three hours early - a long time to be sitting in airport chairs.
Knowing that I'll be seated for most of the flight, I spend as much time standing and walking as I can. I save my sitting for the plane.
In the air
Once I'm in the air, I try to get up at least once every hour on longer flights. Sometimes, while I'm waiting for the bathroom, I'll do a few gentle exercises. If possible, I'll recline my seat slightly to take some pressure off my lower back. While seated, I do gentle pelvic tilts to keep my back from stiffening.
Nothing crazy, just movement.
When I arrive
The second thing I do is unpack.
The first is look after my back.
I grab an ice pack (if needed), lie down, and stretch.
By now, I know what my body needs after a long day of travelling. I close my eyes and give it time to settle back into its version of normal - the level of pain I've learned to live with.
It might sound like a lot of preparation, but we all have routines that help us do the things we love.
This is mine.
Chronic pain changed my life.
But I wasn't ready to give travel up.
So I made room for comfort.