In this episode of the Kidney Stone Diet Podcast, hosts Jeff Sarris and Jill Harris discuss the challenges and fears associated with traveling while having a kidney stone. Jill shares her personal experiences and offers practical advice for those concerned about traveling with kidney stones, including the importance of consulting with a doctor, preparing a travel first aid kit, and considering trip insurance. The conversation emphasizes the need for patients to be proactive in their healthcare and to ask the right questions during doctor visits.
Takeaways
- Traveling with a kidney stone can be very stressful.
- Consult your doctor about the location and size of your kidney stone before traveling.
- Packing a first aid kit can help manage potential kidney stone pain while traveling.
- Trip insurance is advisable for those with medical conditions like kidney stones.
- Patients should prepare questions for their doctor visits to maximize the effectiveness of the appointment.
- Understanding the risks associated with kidney stones can alleviate travel anxiety.
- It’s important to know that not all kidney stones will move during travel.
- Having a plan in place can help reduce fear when traveling with a kidney stone.
- Traveling with a kidney stone requires careful planning and preparation.
- Being informed about your condition can empower you to make better health decisions.
00:00 Traveling with Kidney Stones: A Scary Reality
05:39 Preparing for Doctor’s Visits and Travel Insurance
Jeff Sarris (00:00)
This is the scary truth about traveling when you have a kidney stone.
I know you said this is something that people worry about and stress about so—
Jill (00:08)
Every time somebody says how stressed they are about whatever, in this case, traveling, I always feel bad because as somebody who has had some illness in her life, I really understand what it’s like. I had to get, every month I would have to go for about six months, I would have to go back and forth. I would get chemo here in Chicago at Northwestern, and I would have to travel once a month to Sloan Kettering to get chemo in this liver pump that I had. And it was scary getting on a plane when you’re not well.
What’s even scarier is getting on a plane when you don’t even know if a kidney stone’s about to move. The only thing that you know is you have had a kidney stone in the past and it was the worst pain you ever had in your whole life. So the thought of being in an airplane and maybe you’re going to Asia, maybe it’s a 20 hour flight, maybe you’re going to Australia, it’s a very scary thing.
So a lot of my private consults are about, you know, Jill, let’s go over this urine collection. But I also, I’m supposed to, we planned this family vacation two years ago and it’s thousands of dollars. I don’t know if I want to go on it. I don’t know if the stone’s going to pass while I’m away. I’m in another country. So I’m petrified that I won’t know the language. What about their ER, their urgent care? I don’t know. So people are really scared. And I’ve had many people cancel family trips. It’s a lot, it’s a lot, it’s a lot, you know? So here’s what I tell these patients.
Please speak to your doctor and have him or her look at your latest imaging. Where is that stone located? Lots of time when it’s in the lower lobe of the kidney, it has to go against gravity to come out. So a lot of the doctors will say that lower lobe kidney stone, it’s not going anywhere, Timmy, so you can go on your flight. Now this doesn’t mean that Timmy’s not scared, because he still is. Because there’s no guarantees and that is what I will tell you folks. There is no guarantee that a stone is not going to move. You can’t guarantee that, but probably it won’t. Probably it won’t.
So I, number one, I would ask your doctor, what does my imaging suggest? Would you cancel a trip? What are the odds that this is going to pass? Is it highly going to pass? Is this something that’s going to pass in a month, two months? They may say, I’m not sure, but typically when I see stones like that, it could be you could have it forever. Some of you may have a stone right at the UVJ and that’s right before it gets to the bladder from the ureter to the bladder. And you know, that could be just a week or two and that’s going to pass. So your doctor, your urologist, your urologist, he’s the surgeon that takes stones out. He will know best if it is safe for you to travel.
Now, I have had other patients say to me, we’re going. We’re going on this trip. My wife will kill me if I don’t go on this trip. She’s been wanting this, Jill, since our honeymoon. So then I tell patients, pack a bag. So he’s going. No matter what, he’s going. And I say, pack a little first aid kit. Ask your doctor if he could prescribe preemptively some Flomax that can help dilate a ureter and help you, you know, if a stone’s about to pass when you’re in your vacation place.
Pain medication, Tylenol, Advil, if that’s okay for you. Not everyone can take ibuprofen and Advil and the NSAIDs. A heating pad, things like that, that can help you with pain. If a stone decides to move, I would bring a thermometer, travel with a thermometer. Do you have a fever? I mean, I know this seems kind of like crazy, but it’s really not.
And I don’t even know why I always travel with a first aid kit. Well, you’re a nurse, Jill, of course you do. But I do, because if I’m staying in a hotel, there’s no doctor in the hotel I’m staying at. So if I cut myself or whatever, I want a little first aid pack with me. It has my aspirin or whatever I’m taking, band-aids, all that kind of stuff. I have a nice little first aid kit. So have a little travel first aid kit with you with the things that you know make you feel better when you’re trying to pass a stone. Those are some of the things that I would say.
So as far as having fear and whether you should cancel a flight or not, I would never tell somebody to cancel a flight. That is something that’s a very personal decision. I will always defer to your doctor and ask the doctor based upon the location of my stone, the size of it, etc. Do you think I can make this trip that we’ve planned for, you know, for months, you know, when I can’t get my money back kind of thing.
Going forward, this is something I always have, where I started when I was going through my cancer stuff. I always get trip insurance. God forbid, you know, maybe the stone, maybe a week before you have some movement with that stone and it’s trying to pass and you’re like, hell no, I’m not going on that flight no matter what, because I’m in the middle of passing a stone. I would suggest you always have, when you have medical conditions, urgent care kind of things, like a kidney stone, I would suggest that you get trip insurance so you don’t lose money if you do have to, unfortunately, cancel a trip.
But talk to your doctor, what’s the best idea for you to do? Should you go on a trip? Should you not? That’s going to be based upon each of your specific circumstances. That’s what I got to say about that, Jeff.
Jeff Sarris (06:08)
Yeah. And I think that’s so important figuring out the best way to have the doctor’s visits too. Like, the things to ask, you don’t know what to ask. So that is one of the things that’s right on the website, absolutely free. There is a guide to having a better doctor’s visit. If you go to kidneystonediet.com, go to the resources page and you’ll see the absolutely free guide that Jill’s put together to be sure not only for travel, but just overall that you get the best care that you possibly can.
Jill (06:37)
I think that’s really important, Jeff, because when you first get a kidney stone and you’re going, if you haven’t talked to me first, meaning a lot of patients get one and then call me and we talk and then I tell them what to say at a doctor’s office visit. But if you haven’t talked to me, my blog is filled with things like that. And I think it’s the most critical thing to ask your doctor. There’s that blog post. And the other blog post is, yeah, ask these questions at your doctor’s first appointment.
First appointment with your urologist because there’s a whole bunch of stuff that if you don’t know to ask, nine out of 10 offices ain’t offering. And there’s certain things I want you to know going into that first urology appointment. Nowadays, folks, you’re waiting months and months and months to get your tush in the doctor’s office. Office visits are so backed up. So you don’t want to waste it. When you get there, you have your list. Here’s what I’m supposed to ask you.
Get it done and you’ll feel prepared and you won’t waste that visit. Otherwise, you’re not going to go back for another six months to a year and you don’t know what you’re supposed to do. And that’s another reason why people come to me so anxious and in fear because they don’t know what to do. So kidneystonediet.com, the blog is just info after info, all kinds of stuff. And of course, free and then this YouTube channel. And if you’re finding it useful, could you please like and subscribe? That would be very helpful to us so people can find us in the algorithm when people search for kidney stones. Thanks.
Jeff Sarris (08:11)
Yeah. And if you want to be kept on track, there’s also the free weekly email newsletter that Jill sends to you every weekend. So you can find all of that at kidneystonediet.com. And I think we’ll wrap there today. Thanks for tuning in and we’ll see you next week.
Jill (08:14)
Bye everybody.
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