my asthma wasnt as bad last time i flew, but concerned this time now re: air pressure in the cabin etc... will i need oxygen ? do i need to ask for assistance ?
i tol the airline i was brittle asthmatic, but they said 'oh, thats fine, we dont need a fitness to fly certificate' but i am concerned by them being so blasey.
i will have my nebuliser with me, but its mains operated , and of course air compressor, not oxygen!
i dont fancy flying gatwick -> rome -> hospital !!!
If you are worried about flying I would go back to your gp or consultant and ask for his/her opinion. If he/she thinks you need a fitness to fly assessment he/she can arrange one for you. This should also cover weither you need oxygen for the flight.
It may be worth asking for a course of antibiotics to take with you just in case you need them. For some reason I alway's find I end up with a cold or chest infection a couple of days after a flight not sure if this is to do with the re-cycled air on the plane or being in a enclosed space with lots of people... so catching whatever bug is around....
thanks for your reply.
i go my next consultant review end march so i will ask his advice then...
good idea about the antibiotics, i got augmentin on my repeat if i need them, obviously i dont have them every month! - though it feels like it as i need them often enough!! so i will make sure i take some with me, and i am on daily pred anyways so i will be covered on that front.
just worried bout the oxygen levels in-flight etc and not being able to breathe, so will defo ask for a fitness to fly test, incase i need supplementary oxygen or anything else. i know it may sound OTT, but after what i been through, cant help thinking what else can go wrong!! :S
Have you considered purchasing a portable nebuliser? I brought one last year and although we havent had to use it it's nice to have it as a back up. I purchased Omron MicroAir and it uses batteries or you can buy a plug in lead. Got it from Internet - Evergreen and it cost a lot less than in our local chemist. Evergreen were very good to deal with as well.
hi angie
yes i have been told by few of you guys bout the portable nebulisers, scared of using them...
and also when looking at them online they quite expensive, cheapest i could find was 150!!
need to look into finding the evergreen omronair one though, thanks
x x
its not over the top, many years ago (actualy on way to my honeymoon!) I had a major attack on the last leg of our flight to the Maldvives and had to be ress on the plane floor, I luckily had told the airline prior and they had extra oxygen onbaord as I later found out that they dont carry much as routine, but the insurance co started to agrue over it as the airline refused to fly us home without a medical escort and there were no seats free on return flight so it ended up being dead complicated, but too our advantage we got to fly home 1st class with Air Emirates, anyway they told me that if I had not of decalred it and asked for the oxygen etc then they might of refused to pay what turned out to be a £27K bill, as an end result I am not allowed to fly now for more than 4 hours, which is fine with me.
Dont take risks as its not worth it!
Like others I now have omrom micro, but didnt back then!
Snowy
wow! you had an eventful honeymoon then!!! jeez.
travel insurance company knows my meds from before, however... i am on home nebs now, and my asthma less controlled now :S not told them yet as not going till june anyways, so i know it will cost me few quid more i am guessing... but i couldnt get over how blasey easijet were! grrr... i will wait to see what my consultant says bout fitness to fly test etc.. march 24th then contact insurance company. hopefull my mind will be put at ease...
i will defo be investing in the omron micro like many of u have done as that seems the best and well worth it, as i cant go using the mains operated one on the plane etc...!!!! haha
x x x
yes, eventfull is one word that springs to mind! lol
The best bit was a few days later sitting by the pool people were talking about what happened on the flight and we just let them carry on with their version of the fact i had died etc... and then revealed it was indeed me, that was soooo funny!
I only paid £72 for my neb so shop around!
Snowy
just been on airline website... i need to produce med cert confirming all meds am taking, certificate proving am fit to fly as i have brittle asthma, also i need to inform cabin crew i have anaphylaxis to peanuts so they dont sell peanuts on the flite - how caring!!
i can also carry nebs with me + of coourse inh as long as its not oxygen - well its air so thats fine.
but i need to ring them to let them know they need extra oxygen just in case! . . . oh the joys, its suprising what things you have to think of when simply booking a holiday!!!!
Hi again, I think I paid either £70 or £80 for Omron MicrAir (£130 in local chemist). You can buy a mains lead which was something like an extra £20+. If you google 'Evergreen' you will find them. When I ordered it online I got a phone call from them within a few hours apologising that it wouldnt arrive the next day!! So they give very good service, definitely worth looking into.
Hope ur recovering a bit from your travelling ordeal of Thursday, and having a good rest. xxx
Just a word of warning about O2 on flights. If you declare with a drs letter that you need it or may need it, some airlines will charge for it.. can be £100 plus in some cases.
check out British Lung Foundation website for info on traveling with O2.
If you don't need it at home, then you may not need it for flying.
Declaring it can whack up your Travel insurance premium too.
But, please ensure you have adequate cover, even if it means paying a premium.
Kate
Many years ago I was on a transatlantic flight where we were moved to first class mid flight, when we arrived at heathrow my dad realised he had left his glasses on the plane which was flying onto India and when talking to one of the airline representatives were told that one of the passengers on board had lung problems mid atlantic and unfortately had not survived the flight. So it is best to make sure you have all the correct equipment and meds you need... Also make sure you carry your epi-pens with you at all times, don't let the flight atendants hold them as in an emergency you will need the quickly... and make sure someone is with you who is trained to use them....
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