holiday with the girls - health worries

[wiggywog]

Next week a group of us are going to Ibiza on a hen holiday for 3 days

two weeks ago I ended up in a&e with really agonising pains in my abdomen which I thought was appendicitis.

The Dr couldn't find anything wrong, took 3 blood tests , urine test and x-ray and discharged me saying if it happened again to come straight back.
He said it could be a grumbling appendix or something else
I'm now feeling really apprehensive about my trip and it happening again in a foreign country and being with a load of girls and possibly ruining their trip as they would feel the need to go to the hospital with me

Firstly it may have been nothing and not my appendix at all
If it was my appendix it could grumble on for years

I so don't want to ruin it for anyone (who might feel like they need to look after me)

The thought of having that sort of pain again in front of a set of my friends scares me My head is going round in circles.

The pain hasn't come back but my right side/ tummy is 'twinging' constantly - though not painfully.

What would you do, cut your losses and let them enjoy their break and stay at home.
Or go and cross fingers

Have you got travel insurance?

Get some good travel insurance, go & cross fingers! Ibiza will have hospitals with English speaking staff as they're very used to tourists.

Sounds like your trip will be fun!

Remember if you haven’t got insurance yet you will need to declare this incident. The insurer may refuse to cover you for abdominal pain/appendicitis.

I'd go on the holiday (provided you have travel insurance). Ibiza has modern, well run hospitals just like the UK. But it's unlikely to happen again when they couldn't find anything wrong. It could have been an ovarian cyst, it's not uncommon to get sudden severe pain when a cyst bursts, that resolves by itself. A grumbling appendix can come and go for years.

Imagine how you'd feel if you cancel and are then fine all week.

If you haven't got your travel insurance yet then definitely declare it, if its counted as still under investigation then they may refuse to cover you for that issue or anything attributed to that condition.

Ibiza is EU, we have reciprocal healthcare agreements with them. You can use their hospitals for free. So even if your insurance won’t cover an appendectomy you will still be able to access free surgery if needed. Not sure why everyone is obsessing about insurance for an EU country, it would be useful if you needed a medical evacuation home or you ended up needing to staying the hotel for a few days more recovering, but not needed for the medical treatment itself.

You would need cover should you need repatriation or end up in a private hospital because only the equivalent basic care would be covered. You can get extra insurance for specific conditions from specialised insurers and I had to do that once for a pre existing condition which occurred before a holiday .

Have you got an EHIC?

I would go. I had this a couple of times - doc said it was likely a viral stomach/digestive issue (can’t remember which) as I ended up in hospital with suspected appendicitis as well.

There’s some over the counter medication you can get, begins with a B, that you can take if you get the cramps again.

Bus loan.

Thanks autocorrect, so very helpful...

Buscopan!!

Yes that’s the one!

Buscopan not bus loan

ManeChanged to go on holiday without insurance with a known medical condition is just utter madness.
There are agreements in place and the EHIC card will give you the same level of cover at the same price as if you were a citizen in that country.
The key thing is that this applies to state hospitals only.
Many private hospitals in Spain have agreements in place with hotels to take any ill residents to them. Apart from the US Spain has the highest costs for a tourist receiving medical treatment.
Insurers are not going to pay for you to stay longer to recover if the condition itself isn't covered to begin with, it's all part of the same package.

Did your doctor give you an ultrasound? I had a very similar sounding pain last year and it turned out I had a small ovarian cyst.
I was x-rayed but nothing was visible until I had an ultrasound.
It was small, had popped and was causing the pains you describe.
I had antibiotics and pain killers and all was fine again

If you already had travel insurance before the condition arose then then you'll be covered, if not and you get insurance now then it's unlikely they'll be willing to cover it

That's the thing though. I don't have any condition. They couldn't find anything wrong. Yes I have ehic
but will phone the insurance now.
Grumbling appendix is listed and covered but as I said don't know if it is that

As long as you bought your insurance before this happened then yiure covered as normal. It is only pre-existing conditions that need to be declared.
You don't have a condition (which is great news) but insurance companies are notorious for trying to wriggle out of paying claims and they would look to see that you have had medical attention for a suspected condition.
I hope you have a great time

Thanks. I have just taken out a policy.
The lady said as I was discharged and nothing was found when they examined me there isn't anything to declare to them.