Everyone taking an extended trip needs a travel strategy, but after my anoxic brain injury, it became necessary for me to develop my own brain injury travel strategies. It’s a matter of being able to survive the major stress placed on anyone who has suffered an acquired brain injury and needs or wants to take a vacation or business trip.
I remember the first time I had to travel for my job alone. I literally shook because I knew by then all the things that could go wrong. I was so nervous just thinking of all the situations I would face – not to mention other things that could happen. So I decided to come up with my own brain injury travel strategies.
My trips involved flying, so there were a number of things to consider with all the security regulations now in place. Going through security is a challenge for someone who is not living with brain injury, but for someone who is, it could be a nightmare if not completely prepared for it. That’s not to say situations sometimes knock a big hole in a strategy. It’s imperative to have a backup. The first one should be “take a deep breath and consider calmly what to do next”. If I don’t, it’s off the deep end I go and things continue to get worse – confusion, frustration, panic.
When I fly with Larry now, I try not to let him totally take the lead in every situation so that I don’t become too dependent on him. Overtime I have become more comfortable traveling alone, but I know I must have my travel strategies to be assured of a successful and pleasant trip. You can find a number of these strategies in Brain Injury Survivor's Guide.
Larry and I leave in the morning for Saint Martin, French West Indies. It is our favorite place on earth and we are very excited. You can bet I’ll be using my brain injury travel strategies as always.
I remember the first time I had to travel for my job alone. I literally shook because I knew by then all the things that could go wrong. I was so nervous just thinking of all the situations I would face – not to mention other things that could happen. So I decided to come up with my own brain injury travel strategies.
My trips involved flying, so there were a number of things to consider with all the security regulations now in place. Going through security is a challenge for someone who is not living with brain injury, but for someone who is, it could be a nightmare if not completely prepared for it. That’s not to say situations sometimes knock a big hole in a strategy. It’s imperative to have a backup. The first one should be “take a deep breath and consider calmly what to do next”. If I don’t, it’s off the deep end I go and things continue to get worse – confusion, frustration, panic.
When I fly with Larry now, I try not to let him totally take the lead in every situation so that I don’t become too dependent on him. Overtime I have become more comfortable traveling alone, but I know I must have my travel strategies to be assured of a successful and pleasant trip. You can find a number of these strategies in Brain Injury Survivor's Guide.
Larry and I leave in the morning for Saint Martin, French West Indies. It is our favorite place on earth and we are very excited. You can bet I’ll be using my brain injury travel strategies as always.
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