How to Travel with a Chronic Illness During a Flare-Up (My London Trip)

This week on Calling in Sick, we’re debriefing my very impromptu trip to London… which happened one week after I was hospitalized. Yes. That hospitalization. The one with the worst IVIG hangover I’ve had in a long time. And somehow… we still made it to London. So in this episode, I’m sharing exactly how we made that possible, and what I learned along the way. In this week’s episode, you’ll hear all about: ✈️ Why I said yes to international travel during a flare (how it connects to my “year of yes” and baby prep!!) ❤️‍🩹 How I prepared my body to go from the hospital to Heathrow airport 🇬🇧 My favorite, hardest, and funniest moments in London 🤪 The #1 mistake I made while traveling with a chronic illness 🧠 What I realized when we got home (it’s a good one) 💛 My Top 5 tips for traveling internationally with chronic illness And bonus!!! I’m answering all your travel questions in this week’s Ask Alex episode, including: food in London, my top allergy recommendations for eating while traveling, if I think compression-wear actually makes a difference for traveling, and how I approach long-haul flights. If you want those answers, be sure to tune in on Wednesday, Feb 18 at 9 AM CST. And of course, our Substack subscribers get an exclusive bonus Q&A this week!! If you’re like me and have ever felt like travel is reserved for when you’re “better”… this episode might gently challenge that belief. Because what I realized from this trip shifted how I see travel, and honestly, how I see doing more things. xx, Alex 💬 Comment: What’s your biggest worry about traveling with a chronic illness? TIMESTAMPS Intro: 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick! 00:02:01 Alex’s Picks of the Week (Sleep Crown & Sweet Bee) Traveling with a Chronic Illness Flare-Up: 00:04:46 How I went from a hospitalization to London (IVIG hangover, the lifestyle & wellness bandaids I used, 00:07:03 Why I’m saying “YES!” to way more things this year, and how I applied that to this international trip 00:07:48 How I broke my mindset of “traveling is only for when I’m ‘healthy’” 00:09:40 How we prepared for this trip differently & my question for y’all 00:11:01 What we actually did in London, my favorite parts & the biggest chronic illness hack for travel!!! 00:14:25 The BIGGEST mistake I made during our trip & the FUNNIEST story from our trip 00:17:58 My TOP 5 TIPS for traveling (how to handle jet lag, change your itinerary like THIS, do it all or duvet it up?, making sight-seeing accessible, 80/20 rule for traveling) 00:23:01 Why is the US approving “natural food dyes” actually problematic?! Conclusion: 00:24:20 One Brain Cell Show: Wild London (BBC… Apple TV?!) 00:27:22 Thank you for listening! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stay connected and follow us on socials for more! • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 • Substack - https://substack.com/@callinginsickpod? ---------------------------------------------------------------- Powered by: Just Media House -- https://www.justmediahouse.com/ Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ Alex’s Picks of the Week: This week I share about how I had the HARDEST time trying to sleep while traveling... and probably would have gotten 0 shut eye if it weren't for these 2 products!! ✨Sleep Crown (the only pillow you'll ever need) — https://go.shopmy.us/p-43127906 ✨Sweet Bee (magnesium butter) — https://go.shopmy.us/p-43127842 I also mention some of the wellness tools I relied on before traveling… shop them here! ✨HigherDose (PEMF Mat) — https://go.shopmy.us/p-42483902 ✨HigherDose (Infrared Sauna Bag) — https://go.shopmy.us/p-33644795 -- Use code "ALEXANDRA" for 15% off at checkout for both products!! ✨The 5 Supplements I traveled With — https://shopmy.us/shop/collections/3899228 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices