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Vanda McLean, Patient

Vanda's Travel Blog: Part One



Summer 2022, and things are opening up after being shut down by the COVID pandemic. Although COVID is certainly not over, more people have been vaccinated, and the risk has been reduced. With that in mind, my husband and I haven’t taken a major holiday since I started using oxygen full-time in 2019.


Looking back over this past year, we have our children living near us except for the youngest, who ventured west close to ten years ago. This past year she and her partner sold her home and purchased a beautiful place on three acres outside Red Deer, Alberta. Since we haven’t seen her since 2019, we decided (since my health is currently stable) that it is time for a trip.


We priced airfare, including if they provided oxygen on the flight. This also meant we needed to look into pricing for a car rental. We discovered that car rentals had more than doubled in price since we last flew out and have become unreliable due to the lack of rental vehicles. Then the next issue was that Toronto international airport had become a mess with delays and cancellations of flights. This becomes a potential issue with whether I would have enough oxygen to last a long wait at the airport and for transport at the other end.


We looked at driving out. We estimated the cost of gas on the higher side, food and accommodation. We also planned a stop to visit friends in Thunder Bay, ON. We have done this very pretty drive many times over the years. After looking at the two options, we have chosen to drive.


We will take my condenser, compressor for filling portable tanks and two battery units with us (did I mention we have a truck!). I contacted the oxygen provider (Med Pro) right after we decided to make this trip. My rep is working hard to get an extra double battery and car charger for my Oxy Go, and we plan to have a Sequel unit with us that has two batteries and a car charger. We had this unit until last month when it was taken to another client for a trip. We were promised it would come back for our trip. Our only concern is that the temper-mental compressor does not die. The rep is working on setting up some backups along the way for us. I feel confident in this plan, although my husband is a bit nervous.


 They always tell you to have more than enough when you are travelling, so I have already spoken with my Uptravi and Opsumit supplier and will call TGH, who supplies Tadalafil this week. Then I will talk to my pharmacist about my other medications. This should all be in place a week before setting out.


At this point, our trip is a go. I have my neck pillow so I can sleep as need be. My husband will be doing all the driving, which he likes, as another side effect of this disease is that I can only drive short distances – very frustrating. We are really looking forward to visiting Tracey and Roman and seeing their new home, as well as other friends out there who do not know we are coming out.


So the adventure begins!!!!


Stay tuned for more of Vanda's travelling tips!

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