How to Prepare for Travel with Heart Failure

If you are like me and the many other people in the world, you love to travel. Traveling with heart failure is something that can be nerve-wracking, but with the right preparation it can be easy.

I know many of us are planning or thinking of traveling with the holidays coming. It helps to have a checklist to ensure you have everything that you need.

Talk to your medical team

Many of us are not well enough to travel on planes, but that doesn’t mean you cannot travel on land. A doctor’s permission is always a must because you want to ensure you are well enough to travel.

For instance, if you are on the heart transplant list depending on the agency, you need to ask if you can travel. This is because if a heart becomes available in your absence, it can be given to someone else. Some agencies will take you off the heart transplant list if you travel, so you want to keep your team informed.

If you have an LVAD, you must know which hospitals are around to service the LVAD. Unfortunately, you cannot just go to any hospital because they do not all have the equipment and the staff to be able to help you. When I had the LVAD, it wasn’t a well-known device and even hospitals didn’t know what it was. I am hoping that isn’t still the case.

Traveling with medications

Medications should be at the top of everyone’s list when traveling. You should also pack some extra medication in case of emergency.

You should also remember that medication should not be put into checked bags. There are many reasons for this. For one, what if your luggage gets lost and you have no medication? And if you’re in a different country this could get serious. Especially for heart transplant patients who are on immunosuppressants. Immunosuppressants keep the patient's immune system from destroying the heart.

Another thing that can be vital is non-prescription medication like over-the-counter drugs like Tylenol.

Remember any medical devices that you may need

Medical devices that you use daily would be the next thing you put in your suitcase. If you have an LVAD then you need to pack your charging stations. All your batteries have to be charged and taken with you. Cleaning kits for the LVAD are necessary to prevent infections.

Also if you have to check your blood pressure, or your temperature daily you should pack your blood pressure machine. Nowadays with technology being what it is, you can get smart watches to tell you your blood pressure.

Tips for traveling by air

If you are traveling by air, you must be prepared to go into the medical detectors. For those with an LVAD and defibrillators, or metal in the body, we cannot go into metal detectors. Make sure you tell the agents that you have metal in your body so you can’t go into the metal detector. I remember I had a card that explained my condition so it was never a problem.

When you are in the air you must get up and walk around to prevent blood clots. Also, don’t forget to stay hydrated.

Traveling to new destinations

If you are traveling to a different country, make sure you know whether or not you can drink the local water. If not you will have to buy bottled water upon arrival at your destination. Another thing to be wary of is the altitude at some of the places of travel. For instance, when I went to Arizona last year, I wasn’t prepared for the altitude when we got to the Grand Canyon. I didn’t even know anything about altitude sickness, yet there I was with it.

How do you prepare for travel with heart failure?

These are just some of the things you need to remember when you are traveling. What tips do you have for other people traveling with heart failure?