Several days ago I returned from a two-week romp around Scotland, England, Germany and France (which explains my absence from the blog). It was great fun, but the constant travel and sightseeing were a bit stressful, and while my Irritable Bowel Syndrome didn’t stop me from eating croissants in Paris and hiking through the hills of Scotland, it did bother me at some inconvenient moments. Seeing as there are millions of people suffering from IBS and other equally frustrating digestive conditions, I know there are many who look at global travel with trepidation. I too went into this adventure with extreme fear, as it would be the most travel-intensive trip I’ve been on since I’ve had IBS, but it taught me a lot about travel with chronic illness. I want to share with you what I have learned.

Where Sir Walter Scott lived as a young boy with polio

Me at Smailholm Tower in the Scottish borders, where Sir Walter Scott lived as a young boy with polio

1) Don’t be afraid to tell people about your condition. If you’re staying at a bed and breakfast and are afraid you’ll come across as rude if you decline a hearty breakfast, think about what’s more important. It’s not worth eating something that you know will upset your stomach later just to appear nice. Be honest and explain that you have a very touchy stomach and are afraid it won’t agree with you. Nobody can argue with that. Or if you’re going to be confined to a tour bus or something similar, let your guide know that you have a health condition and may require an occasional stop. Most people will be happy to accommodate you. It can’t hurt to speak up.

2) Take preventative steps to quell your anxiety so you can truly enjoy your travels. Our brains and guts are so closely linked, so the more anxious we are, the worse our guts behave. It can quickly become a vicious cycle. One short-term solution is to get a prescription from your doctor for an anti-anxiety medicine such as Ativan or Xanax. These are not to be used often, but can really help you relax in a stressful situation. For example, I had to take long bus rides without bathroom access on two different mornings, during the time when my symptoms are often worst. The more I worried about it, the worse my stomach felt. But I popped my anti-anxiety medicine right before the rides and became calm enough to get through the trips without any incidents or anxiety attacks. Another anxiety-reliever is to wear disposable underwear or thin adult diapers during a situation when you are worried about toilet access. Before you blush, remember you’ll probably never even need to actually utilize them. It is purely as a preventative, to reduce anxiety about a potential worst-case scenario. And if that worst-case scenario happens, you are protected until you can get into a better situation. Don’t feel ashamed.

3) Research, research, research and be prepared. Know you’re going on a long bus ride and assume there will be a bathroom on board, but get on the vehicle only to discover you’ll be nowhere near a toilet for hours? Those kinds of surprises are horrible and anxiety-inducing for those suffering from unpredictable digestive conditions. Think of any potential situations that may cause you anxiety or distress and research them before you go on your trip. Perhaps you want to visit the Notre Dame tower. It will be helpful to do your research and find out that the 50-minute tower tour includes no toilet access, so you will know to avoid it if you aren’t feeling 100 percent. The more you know what to expect, the less surprises (and anxiety) you will encounter. Also, when you go somewhere new, you may want to ask where the nearest toilet is before you even need to use it. That way you can be mentally and physically prepared for a tummy situation.

4) Listen to your body and take a break if you need to. Sightseeing on an upset stomach is not fun. If you need to lay down on the couch until a stomach ache goes away or hang at in the hotel room until your Immodium kicks in, do it, and WITHOUT GUILT. What’s the point of traveling if you’re not going to enjoy it? After all, you are on vacation. Take the time you need to relax and feel better, so when you do get out and see the sights, you are fully present and ready to enjoy it. There were a few different times during my trip when I had a stomach upset and chose to stay at the hotel and rest until I felt better. It was frustrating, but my travel partners understood and went out to do some activities without me. When I felt good enough to go back out, I felt refreshed and ready to embrace the new experiences.

Me at Edinburgh Castle

Me at Edinburgh Castle

5) Always keep some coins handy. While it can sometimes be easy to find a free toilet in Europe, you will inevitably find yourself in situations where you have to pay to go. I found this to be the case at public gardens in Paris, in train stations in Germany and Paris, at a tourist cafe in Versailles, and at a rural tourist site in Scotland. In most cases it was 40 or 60 cents (in pounds or euros). Sometimes it was an actual person accepting the money, so they could make change from bills, but other times, it was an automatic machine that accepted coins only. If you find yourself in such a situation, you’ll be really glad you had some coins handy. Also, you may need to occasionally buy something to use a toilet at a business — I had to buy a bottle of water in order to use the bathroom at one cafe in Paris.

6) Be fearless! This is the hardest tip but most important. You only have one life, and you should enjoy it to the fullest while you can. I went on this trip shaking in my boots, knowing I’d be out of my comfort zone in so many ways. I wouldn’t know where the bathrooms were, I’d be stuck in cars and buses for hours, and I had to many things to do in such a short amount of time. But I realized I had to go into it knowing that I would have a great time. I knew my severe IBS would cause some glitches, which it did, but it by no means ruined my trip. This began as a fear-filled adventure, but it ended up making me so much more confident about my ability to travel the world. It wasn’t perfect and surely would have been much more enjoyable sans IBS, but those weren’t the cards I was dealt. I had be Zen about it and do the very best I could. That’s all that counts. I had to take certain measures — for example, I knew it would be stupid to eat a huge piece of quiche before a long subway ride. I mostly had light snacks during the day, and often didn’t have real meals until dinner, when I was done sightseeing and near my hotel. It wasn’t ideal, but it allowed me to explore all day long, and I still got to eat some wonderful French food in the evenings. I did as many things as I could to reduce stress, control my symptoms, and enjoy the new experiences instead of fearing them. And it was so worth it.

If you suffer from IBS or a similar condition, don’t expect everything to go smoothly all the time while traveling abroad. Even perfectly healthy people can get sick while traveling abroad. But if you go into the trip with confidence and take the steps mentioned above, you will feel more relaxed and find the experience more enjoyable. After the trip, you will feel so proud.