Old fashioned convalescence holidays. Were they a real thing or only in stories?

[StillTheOneIRunToooooo]

I read a lot of Enid Blyton type books in my childhood 😂🙈

Absolutely a real thing! You can still go on convalescent holidays now.
If you think, there were no antibiotics...illnesses hit people much harder and daily life was much harder work. Having time to get better was a really good idea.

They were a real thing.

My mum and her brother (in late 50s, early 60s smoggy Milan) used to get sent with a bunch of other kids and a group of nuns to the seaside every winter to protect their lungs.

(Mum loved it, my uncle hated it)

i remember my Auntie who had cancer going to one in somewhere like Bournemouth , that would have been in the 60's

wellcomecollection.org/articles/XXurkhEAACgATLgi

Yup - I was a hospital SW and part of my job was to find convalescence slots for people recovering from surgery. The hospital board I worked for had its own convalescent homes in nearby seaside places.

It’s still a major part of lots of continental health systems.

In the uk we’ve forgotten that after or even during an illness people still need time to convalesce. It’s a bit sad really.

Definitely a thing.

Yes my grandma went to a place in Cromer I think.

We should bring them back. It would take some of the pressure of Hospitals and social care. As people have more time to recover with support.

Yep, my friend recently had cancer surgery (not UK) and went to a special retreat to recuperate at for three weeks (included in her health care package).

Her dad (uk) recently had radiotherapy and took him and his wife off to the seaside for a week to recuperate

Genuinely, covid has knocked me for six. I have this bizarre longing for the freshest air I can find.

@Toddlerteaplease

We should bring them back. It would take some of the pressure of Hospitals and social care. As people have more time to recover with support.

I agree. People need somewhere inbetween hospital and back to "normal life". I also think it would stop repeat visits back to hospital in some cases and would be good to have some mental health support and specialist support around anything life changing. All a pipe dream as the government would never find it

Ive had a lot of surgeries and would have loved this. Also after childbirth. I dont have a supportive family and it would so have helped!

It was not uncommon for people who didn't need to be in hospital, but needed some assistance to be transferred into convalescence homes before they were well enough to return home.

Like many things, this was all destroyed by Thatcher's "Care in the Community" philosophy, where by people where sent home to be cared for there, often by blackmailing their family (women, of course) to take on the role. All driven to save money, now all we are left with is private care homes run to make a profit.

And help with bed blocking surely.

They were a real thing. In Germany you can still get your GP to send you for a "kur" (cure) for up to 3 weeks if you need it.

@StillTheOneIRunToooooo

Genuinely, covid has knocked me for six. I have this bizarre longing for the freshest air I can find.

Hope you feel better soon. It took me a while to recover. If you can manage it a day at te nearest seaside on a sunny day just to sit quietly would be lovely

I get that OP, I felt the same and attempted some kind of self run convalescence. Lots of gentle outside walks in nature, nourishing food, easy to bed with a book, naps, slightly reduced hours at work

It lasted about a week before real life descended but it did help.

My dad was sent to Switzerland for the good air.

@TheYearOfSmallThings

They were a real thing. In Germany you can still get your GP to send you for a "kur" (cure) for up to 3 weeks if you need it.

German or Swiss mountains sound amazing right about now.

Definitely a thing. In Liverpool, people went to a specific place somewhere on the North Wales coast to convalesce. Can’t recall its name now. GPs often sent women there after hysterectomies. They would have simply returned to the drudgery at home much too soon otherwise.

The isle of Anglesey I believe @ClaudiusTheGod because the air is good

Originally I believe it was because of TB being sent out of the city to places the air was better often massively improved people's symptoms

They are still popular here (Ireland) for older people after surgery . I’ve been to a few visiting and they are fab- like a hotel !
They are private run so you would need health insurance to afford it

Also people used to get nasty illnesses and have less good treatments for them, so recovery times were longer. If they returned home they might get sick with something else of go back to work too soon, and they needed the beds for new patients. I can see this could be helpful for people suffering from long covid now, actually.