Non-Emergency Medical Issues While Traveling
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Hello Reader, Heya Fit Travel Tribe, 😷AVOIDING THE DOCTOR😷 You have an emergency and of course you visit the doctor...DUH. But what about traveling and having NON-emergency medical issues? AKA the same chronic issue that keeps popping up, but it's easy to avoid...yet also...as a responsible adult, you know you need to attend to it at SOME point, right? RIGHT?!!! Non-emergency issues can typically wait until you get home. However, if you're traveling all the time (either out-and-back from home or just ongoing and consistently), that can make it more complicated. Personally, I've had an ankle issue the last 2 years (it flares, I modify high impact, then it's fine). Since I hadn't yet found "my person" (aka my go-to sports medicine doctor) in Sofia just yet, I've been procrastinating even though I've known for awhile I should have it examined. I literally went to the doctor the day before I flew to Germany and it turns out I have an early stage Achilles issue and I need physical therapy (ok, thanks doc, I'll work on that after my trip). So what do you do about it?If you're constantly traveling, non-emergency medical issues can get surprisingly complicated. Here are a few things I try to keep in mind:
Basically, if you're a frequent traveler, medical care becomes another logistical decision. It's not just “Do I need a doctor?” It's “When, where, and how should I handle this?” Hiya from Sofia - where I'm recovering from a fitness event 😴 Today is a big rest day and my quads got the DOMS (muscle soreness) because yesterday was a Les Mills fitness event in Sofia. I did 4 classes and got to cheer on my bestie up on stage (though, truth be told, I was sad I wasn't up there with her this year). I just got back from Germany, where I visited 6 different cities in 7 days and collected a bazillion photos and videos. I loved Bamberg and it has such a cool old Town Hall on the river (see below). I just have one more trip planned for the calendar year...and, well...as of now in general! And that's good cause I just want to sit down and focus on writing my tours that I have stockpiled haha I'm going to the States in a couple weeks (should be submitting my residency paperwork just before that - wish me luck!). Additionally, with our ongoing apartment renovation, we just ordered our new kitchen cabinets. We’re replacing the smaller cabinet with a wall of cabinets (basically as many as we can fit), because my partner knows I love shelves and storage. We were standing in IKEA this weekend picking out everything, and he said, “We need to get the door handles.” And I thought, "Ooh, how adult! We’re picking out door handles for our kitchen cabinets!" Approximately five minutes later: “This is not fun...kinda sucks...ugh are we done yet?” Anyway, I have my half marathon this Sunday and we will see how it goes! I'm planning to run it (assuming no ankle pain) and hopefully it doesn't rain. I also have my first physical therapy session this Thursday with my bestie's partner. I gotta tell him to be a bit of a hard ass with me since I hate boring PT exercises.
🏰Rhodes Old Town Audio Walking Tour I've been VERY excited to have my Rhodes walking tour published! So far it's been doing very well (yay money for hard work!). This offers a low-cost option to be guided along the Streets of the Knights and by the famous landmarks. There aren't any typical "free walking tours" that budget travelers might Google upon arrival so I'm hoping this fills some of that gap. The Old Town is truly impressive and I had a ton of fun researching and putting this tour together.
🚲Cycle the "Romantic Road" in Bavaria, Germany Many locals in Germany love road trippin' the "Romantic Road" in Bavaria, but did you know there's a cycling route, too? The Romantic Road runs roughly 460km/290 miles from Würzburg south toward Füssen, passing through medieval towns, the Tauber Valley, the Nördlinger Ries and eventually the foothills of the Alps. The main cycling route is surprisingly flat, though there's a climb by Rothenberg ob der Tauber (where I visited on my recent Germany trip) and many people cycle it in stages (which of course, you can do some or all). Curious about a cycling vacation?! Besides a DIY-version, check out structured offerings to give you the confidence to pedal forward on your next active adventure. 🚑Don't Forget About Travel Insurance Just to be clear... Typical travel insurance isn't a full replacement for ALL medical care; it's typically just for emergencies. However, nowadays with digital nomadism increasing, there continue to be extended "complete" packages that provide coverage for non-emergency situations. If you're spending significant amounts of time abroad, living internationally, or constantly moving between countries, it's definitely worth looking into. I'm currently using SafetyWing's subscription plan while I get myself properly set up with healthcare in Bulgaria just to make sure I'm covered at least for emergencies even though I'm now "at home." Thankfully, I'm generally very healthy, but I still need to determine what will be the best for me for routine visits.
Always on my mind: More money for more travel! It's often worth a little homework for those savings 💸 Feel free to always respond back to this email with any thoughts and questions you might have or content you'd love to see in the future. Happy travels & healthy living, Heidi Note: Some images and GIFs sourced from Unsplash and Giphy. |