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Afraid of Disney World vacation with my company.

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 1/26/2013 11:12 PM (GMT 0)
Well this is great news, my company has decided to celebrate our 10th anniversary by sending all it's employees to Disney World at a deluxe hotel in October. It scares the crap out of me (pun intended).

I went to Disney 3 years ago, but my colitis was in remission. It's not likely my colitis will be in remission in October as this flare has been ongoing since around 2010. How do I handle this trip? They're going to fly us all down so some of the traveling will have bathroom access. I want to do whatever it takes to go, but other than starving myself just before traveling I'm not sure how I am going to handle it there.

How are the bathrooms at Disney? Thankfully we'll all have private rooms. I may find myself spending a majority of my time just at the resort rather than in the parks. I did find a bathroom map, but there are times where I am no capable of holding it and walking far.

It's exciting and I need a vacation, but I am so very afraid at the same time.
Posted 1/26/2013 11:16 PM (GMT 0)
If I know I am going to be traveling which for me is by car, I hate to fly, I tend to not eat much the day before. I'm in remission but some days I still go 2-3 times and I really don't want to have to go when its another hour till the next rest stop.

Try not to worry about it too much which will make it worse. It is a long time off and who knows where you will be at in regards to your UC at that time.
Posted 1/26/2013 11:45 PM (GMT 0)
For me it's not how often I go but the urgency. I cannot hold it longer than 30 seconds to a few minutes depending on the day.

I just read about the GAC "Guest Assistance Card." I wonder if this would help me at all. For one I do tire quite easily thanks to this colitis. That's not my major worry though, but walking the distance of Epcot will be next to impossible for me to do.
Posted 1/27/2013 2:52 AM (GMT 0)
Eat very lightly, then do a pre-emptive and leisurely bathrrom stop immediately after. Take immodium and wear a pad. The pad always serve to help me feel less anxious, and then I never actually soiled one.

There are bathrooms at Disney everywhere, as you probably saw on the map. It was the transportation to and from the park that always concerned me, like a bus or tram or whatever that make lots of stops.

Or, just hang at the resort. Whatever gives you peace!
Posted 1/27/2013 3:28 AM (GMT 0)
I do plan to just enjoy mostly the resort, but there are not bathrooms show on the resort maps, just the parks. One nice thing is Epcot is just a short walk from the resort so I feel more in control walking on my own to that park, where an emergency turn back around maneuver can be performed.
Posted 1/27/2013 5:08 AM (GMT 0)
That's so fantastic for your workplace to do that for you. Also another example of how life sucking this disease is.

I think some insurance by way of pads or disposable briefs will work in two ways. 1. So you're not anxious about an accident and 2. It is a locution IF you have an accident.

Tena has some really good choices. I use their ultimate overnight pads most of the time and if I have to go somewhere where I'm really not sure I can get to a bathroom I have some kind of super long pad also from Tena. Don't know what they're called but its just one step down from a diaper.

Good luck and have a great time there.

Have you tried or had any luck with diet modification? You have time to experiment and see if you can find like five or six simple foods that you can eat that will be less problematic for you.
Posted 1/27/2013 5:38 AM (GMT 0)
We just did a week at Disney in October. I was flaring at the time. There are a ton of bathrooms and everything is super super clean. You can also take a backpack in the park and pack your own drinks and snacks.

We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge. We drove this trip. I took imodium beforehand for the drive. We went 2 years ago and flew.

I was very nervous about going but we had an excellent time (I have a 7 yr old). Glad we went :)
Posted 1/27/2013 6:27 AM (GMT 0)
Now to overcome my nervousness of flying with colitis -- hopefully better than traveling, the chance to find a stop before I can't hold it anymore is slim if by highway.
Posted 1/27/2013 2:43 PM (GMT 0)
There are tonns of bathrooms at Disney, like you said  try to get maps aheead of time.  You are staying in your own private room so thats a huge plus.  That would make me more nervous if  had to share a room.

Make sure you pack water and snacks you can eat before heading out to the parks.

I would also pack and take a  LOMOTIL (perscription)and or IMODIUM to slow the colon down before  heading out each day.  I used it daily and had no issues, plus peace of mind.

Wear a pad for peace of mind.

Pack your enemas or rectal foam so you can use these at bedtime to keep things under control.

Before I went I planned where I was eating everyday.  If you know where your reservations for eating are look up the menus they are all online.   I had a meal plan and alot of very nice reestaurants were included in the plan so I ate very heathy and good food while I was there.  I avoided all the greasy pits that are scattered around the park.  You just need to research where the good places are.  There are excellent restaurants in many of the other resorts so  I tried a new one each night.

Try to relax and enjoy your trip.

 

Posted 1/27/2013 3:08 PM (GMT 0)
Like said before there all bathrooms all over the parks. Once you make it to the parks you are in the clear. The only times of worry are taking the buses to and from the further parks. The buses normally stop in other adjacent resorts to pick up more people before going to its final destination. The experience of Disney was so worth it.
Posted 1/27/2013 3:14 PM (GMT 0)
Forgot to say take some probiotics with you to take daily. 

I found the ultimate flora critical care by renew Life good when travelling.

Posted 1/27/2013 6:44 PM (GMT 0)
But start any new probiotics a while before the trip, because sometimes they take a while to adjust to, in my experience. You might get worse before you get better.
Posted 1/27/2013 10:25 PM (GMT 0)
Why don't you give slippery elm a try?
A couple tsp mixed in juice or water before bed is what helped me get rid of the urgency.
When I first started taking it, I also mixed in some probiotics.
Still took the probiotics in the morning as well.

Agree that having pads or Depends type products helps with the "psychological" factor.

I don't eat "plane" food. Take my own snacks. Can do the same at the park to avoid eating preservatives, etc.
I would avoid lactose and gluten for a while before you go to see what happens.

Thing is...if you have to go, don't be shy about making your needs known.... whatever the circumstances.
It took me a long time to get over the reluctance to assert myself. Once I did it, I realized that it's no big deal.
Hope you have a wonderful time.
:-)
Posted 1/27/2013 10:58 PM (GMT 0)
Good advice so far.
I'd also get something for anxiety from your GP ahead of time and try it out before you travel to see how it affects you.
I found it extremely helpful for travel and unknown bathroom times. It just takes the edge off and gave me more of an "eh, if I don't make it to the toilet, it's just poop, no big deal" attitude.

Urgency has always been my biggest issue and anxiety triggers things for me even when not flaring. But the anxiety med, used when needed, helped a lot.
Posted 1/27/2013 11:25 PM (GMT 0)
Disney is over-rated. If you are not with a kid, spend your time at the resort. All hotels and resorts have tons of bathrooms. Especially if you spend time at the pool. Plus, you will be on vacation, so you will be more relaxed. The last time we went I was pregnant, on 15mg of prednisone and freaked out every time we went on a tram, plane, anywhere there wasn't bathroom access. All that anxiety for nothing.......I never had an accident, but I definately did not enjoy my time there. Just relax and have a great time. Make sure you take your meds.....and if you are on enemas, make sure you get a doctors note to have them in your luggage. Have a great time!!!
Posted 1/27/2013 11:45 PM (GMT 0)
How many times have you been on pred? It might help to get on a course of it if it doesn,t bother you, afoul of weeks before and tn start the humira, I have about. 30, seconds too so I am actually going the surgery route soon.
Posted 1/28/2013 3:33 AM (GMT 0)
Think less about it, its easier that way. Also have a "I just pooped my pants kit" in a back pack with you when roaming the parks. Speaking of parks, that pretty nice of a company to do that!
Posted 1/28/2013 5:06 AM (GMT 0)
The anxiousness that you get when you know you have to go. I helped to controll mine by reading it calmed me down, took away some of my anxiousness. little by little I began to have more time to get to the toilet, their are odd occasions when I now dont have as long. I dont know if it would work for you, I found a writer that I really enthrawled me. I hope you have a great time at Disney World, remeber to enjoy it and have a contingency plan like Madcat said to deal with any compromising times. I wore alot of black tights, and pants it hides so much.
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