On the second day of vacation, we travelled to the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri and camped on the lake. We got to go swimming and walk around in the nature. It was extremely beautiful! I think my favorite memory was when we tried to build a camp fire and roast marshmallows. Every campsite had a fire ring, so we bought wood to build a fire. I was in the car for 30-40 minutes doing my medicine, and let Andy build the fire. When I got out of the car, the fire still wasn’t going. I felt so bad because he almost had it going three different times; which was a feat because all we had to start the fire was the wood and a small lighter! Andy had gathered a bunch of little sticks for kindling and had to try to light one of the sticks in order to get the other ones started because we had such a small lighter. Then Andy got frustrated with it, so I took over. It took me another hour or so and two cardboard boxes to get the fire started. After I got it started I confirmed the culprit… wet wood! It was so humid there that it was probably next to impossible to get a fire started very easily, let alone with the very minimal amount of fire starting tools we had! Oh well.. it ended up being a really funny experience and we still got to eat our s’mores!
Here’s the important bit of the blog for any of you readers out there who have CF. A lot of people think that you can’t travel because it’s too difficult to keep up with all of the treatments and medications. Yes, it’s difficult and I will not even deny that one bit. However, missing out on these amazing experiences is even more difficult (in my opinion). Taking your medications and treatments on the road just takes a little more creativity. I camp, go on road trips, go to music festivals, sight-see, and still am able to do my treatments. They make these wonderful devices that plug into the cigarette lighter in your car that turn it into an outlet. That’s what I use when I’m camping or at a place that doesn’t have outlets. There are also facilities around that you can use their electricity for a little. I’m sure you could easily find a hospital or doctor’s office that would let you do your treatment there. They are there to make sure that people stay healthy. Last year, I did a similar road trip out to Delaware. I forgot my nebulizer cups back at home (in Wisconsin) and didn’t realize it until I went to go do my evening medicine (in Indiana). So all I did was drive to the closest hospital and explain the situation. The nurse that I talked to was really understanding and gave me a couple of nebulizer cups for free. They didn’t even ask for proof or anything. I was in and out of there and back to doing my treatment in no time. So if you are planning a vacation of any sort that you think you won’t be able to do because of your CF, please contact me and we can come up with a creative solution together. There is no way I am letting CF beat any of you or myself. We deserve to have just as much fun (if not more) than any one else! 🙂
