Traveling with Allergies

As a severely allergic person, I can tell you that travel does not come easy. There are medicines to carry, activities to avoid, and restaurants that make you feel as if your entire life is one giant inconvenience. Many people with life-threatening allergies do not travel because of the massive undertaking it becomes. This guide will help ease the anxiety of travel, and show you how to make the most out of your vacation. The key to this is the ability to be proactive.

There has never been a better time to have allergies. Why might I say something like that? Well to begin with, the advent of the Internet has made all of our lives easier in a multitude of ways. What allergic people need to know is how to use this tool to our advantage. Search the web to see where the closest pharmacy to your destination is, should you need it, and copy the information into your wallet. If you need to reach your doctor while you are away, you now have information to convey. Use the Internet to find out information about your hotel. Do they accept pets? Most hotels that do also set aside rooms to be "pet-free." Call and make sure that you're not staying in a room that previously held a dog or cat, if those are among your allergies. Even though you're not bringing a pet on vacation, you don't want to be affected by one that was there before you.

Perhaps the largest benefit to those of us who suffer from severe food allergies is the ability to read menus on-line. You can look up your destination, find restaurants in the area, and read their menus. The contact information listed allows you to reach someone at the restaurant and talk to him about your allergies ahead of time. More often than not, a restaurant will do their best to accommodate you, provided that you give advance notice. While planning your trip, incorporate meals at the restaurants whose menus look the most allergy-friendly. Chain restaurants, both low and high-end, often have excellent allergy policies in place. Knowing that you will be able to eat safely often takes the pressure out of traveling.

Do you eat out with food allergies, but not trust that your server is communicating your message correctly? One of the greatest innovations for the food-allergic person can be found on the website Select Wisely (www.selectwisely.com). They have allergy cards that can be ordered and printed out to give to your server, encompassing everything from a specific allergy, such as "peanuts and peanut oil," to the "lactose intolerance card," or the "gluten-free card." The best part of this site is that they offer them in more than 15 different languages, so that you may use them while traveling internationally. You hand the card to the server, who then brings it back to the kitchen with your order. A card that tells the chef just how severe your allergy is means you are communicating with the source, and helps to further ensure a safe meal for you. Most of the food-allergic people I know carry these cards by the dozen. The food allergy buddy website (www.foodallergybuddy.com) offers a similar printable version of this card, without the language translation, for free.

Another extremely important item for an allergic person is a medical alert bracelet. Whether your allergy is to penicillin, latex, or peanuts, anything that can send you into anaphylaxis must be listed somewhere for other people to see. Often times, writing it on your medical insurance card is not enough. Should the worst-case scenario occur, and you encounter something that causes a severe allergic reaction and renders you unable to communicate, you need a way to let someone know what has happened. If you are in anaphylaxis because a peanut accidentally made it onto your dinner plate, it will let an emergency medical technician know why you are in your current state. You also need a way to let someone know how not to treat you. If you are allergic to latex, you cannot have a medic touch you with latex gloves. A medical alert bracelet, something all medical professionals are trained to look for, can speak for you at times when you are unable. It can and will save your life. You can purchase medical alert bracelets at drug stores and through the Internet. A website that is often used for this is American Medical ID (www.americanmedical-id.com). A typical med-alert bracelet will run you anywhere from $30 to $100.00.

With all of the new airfare security regulations, it is urgent that the prescriptions you carry are up-to-date, in your name, and in their original containers. Epinephrine injectors must be in their case with a current prescription label. You do not want to have to argue with airport security about why they shouldn't confiscate the shot that could potentially save your life. Allergy medicine also needs to be in individual prescription bottles. Do not place several different pills in a pill carrier and take that on board an airplane in your carry-on. You need to be able to identify the medicines and prove that they are legally yours, should the need arise. Having your medicine confiscated could wreak all sorts of havoc on your allergies, no matter what type they are.

The key to traveling with allergies is to plan. Make lists of what you'll need. Make lists of safe places in the area to eat, and contact those places before your trip. If you can't do that, pack snacks that you know are safe. Pack latex-free band-aids if you have a latex allergy. Take every precaution you can possibly take, because it will lessen travel anxiety and increase your chances (and the chances for those around you) to not only enjoy, but also have an incident-free trip. Remember, when traveling with allergies, there is no such thing as being overly cautious. Travel safely!