Need a handhold- ill and due to fly home tomorrow

[holidaytummytrouble]

Posting here for traffic. On holiday with DH and two young DC. I started with diarrhoea at 2am. It's showing no signs of stopping, even though I've had nothing but water since last night and we're due to fly home at midday tomorrow. It's a 4 hour flight and on the way here there was a queue for the toilet pretty much the entire flight.

I don't know what to do. If I'm still like this tomorrow I can't possibly fly, can I? Presumably the insurance wouldn't pay for all of us to stay so DH would have to fly home with the DC and leave me here?

DH has taken the DC out to give me some peace but I'm just lying here panicking about tomorrow in between running to the hotel bathroom. I don't even know where to start with the practicalities if I can't fly tomorrow, would we contact the airline or the insurance company? Will they definitely pay out? If anyone has been in a similar situation and had any advice it would be very much appreciated.

You have my sympathy! After a work trip to Mumbai (educational conference) where I picked up E. coli I know how you feel. I only drank bottled water, even brushed my teeth in bottled! I only ate in the 5 star hotel I was staying in, at the International School holding the conference and at another 5 star hotel hosting an evening event hosted by the conference and avoided salad etc. Still got E. coli.. As I was travelling alone I was pushed into having a nurse sit in my hotel room all night to keep an eye on me. That was an experience! Ended up delaying my flight by 24 hours and taking Imodium to get me through the flight home.

Spain these days more strict about over the counter medicines, like antibiotics. You need now prescription for many meds. So people in Spain go to the doctor (free) instead of self medicating.

Go to the doctor. Ask the hotel for which medical centre can see you now. The Spanish health care system is probably one of the best in Europe.
I agree parafarmacia is not a pharmacy but a shop for food supplements and herbal remedies.

Farmacia is a pharmacy. They can also advice where to go. There are medical centers for issues like this (Ambulatorios or Centros de Salud) . Ask the hotel or the "farmacia"

Poor you, I had this with a breastfed baby on a long haul flight. I put one of his nappies on, took some Imodium and hoped for the best. Def get something at the airport, you'll feel slightly better knowing you’re prepped. I Made it back and never ate eggs at a hotel buffet again ☹️

Just get it OTC. I get everything OTC.

No one is well now. It is ridiculously hot.
It is not [self medicating to take immodium or equivalent.

This thread is a little precious.
Hope you feel better OP.

Lol. I flew 12 hours with a parasite and it was GRIM, but I'd already changed by flight twice and needed UK healthcare really. I was in the window seat and pity the person next to me as I got up approx. 23 times (I counted). Went straight to hospital and tbh was just glad to be home. Separately flew really hungover, but that was totally my fault. You'll be fine. Just take tablets, try and sleep and use the loo.

I am a pharmacist and there is no evidential reason why you can’t or shouldn’t take loperamide. If it’s infective diarrhoea we often say to avoid the use of loperamide to basically let the infection run its course and get out of your system. However, due to you not having vomiting it sounds like it’s more than likely a gastro issue from food or water than a virus.

I would risk it and eat, your body won’t be able to fight whatever it is if it doesn’t have energy. I have IBS, I wouldn’t take immodium yet, purely because you will feel bloated all night and you want to give your body chance to get rid of as much as it can first. Start the immodium about midnight so that you have a better nights sleep to recover and then take some everytime you go to the toilet or when you first wake up (whichever is soonest). Then take every opportunity to go to the toilet you can get. Be very vigilant with washing and sanitising your hands to reduce the spread. All the people giving you grief would do the same thing if it came down to it.

CholeHel’s advice is obviously good as a pharmacist and I would follow this. I’m not a pharmacist but work in a closely related field and DH is one, so I would generally defer to him.

It sounds like you have loperamide now but I was going to suggest cocodamol as an alternative, although not if you have to drive following your flight.

It could be a reaction to the mineral content in the water, even if you’ve been drinking bottled water, tap water is used for cooking, beverages etc.
My gut is sensitive, if I go to Turkey or Cyprus, I get the squits. The first time ai went abroad, mainland Spain I spent two days of my holiday in bed or on the loo, horrendous stomach cramps with running diarrhoea, my friend got a doctor for me, he said I didn’t have infection or parasites. Advised to eat bananas, cooked chicken, rice, apple sauce and something else I can’t remember. The banana's, chicken and rice helped.

All those people saying “just claim on your insurance” have you ever tried to do that?? In my experience they won’t just merrily throw money around at the drop of a hat, they will have onerous hoops to jump through and very specific criteria to meet and try everything to avoid paying out.

If OP is not vomiting she hasn’t got norovirus ffs, and probably no standard gastro bug. It’s likely travellers diarrhoea and Imodium in the short term to get home is her best bet.

And she’s not being “dramatic” being sick when you have to travel is horrible and stressful for anyone. All the best OP.

Yes, I have had to claim on insurance.

1. When one of the dc had a bad accident five days before we went on holiday. GP had to sign the form. Price of holiday repaid in full.

1. Last Christmas when dd got covid the day before we were due to go away. Insurance paid in full.

1. Couple of summers ago I had to have a break pinned and plated on holiday. Insurance paid for private room and because dh and I couldn't share a long drive home across Europe and I needed medically advised rest breaks, the insurance also paid for two overnight stops en-route and the rebooking of the ferry.

If a Dr advises someone is unfit to travel, the insurance pays.

Yes but a bit of diarrhoea is nowhere near as clear cut as your examples. It’s very common in travellers. Besides, we’ve had an insurance company’s dr reject our dr’s advice and refuse to pay. So even if op can find a dr who will certify her unfit to travel I can assure you from personal experience it’s not a foregone conclusion that insurance will pay up.

I’ve claimed holiday insurance twice. Both claims were paid in full. But one was subject to approval by the insurers before payment. This was in Bulgaria I became very unwell overnight, tried to get out of bed but couldn’t stand, DH had to help me to the toilet. He was concerned so asked reception to call a doctor, an ambulance arrived, took me to a private clinic where I was examined, x rayed etc told I had phumonia I was treated very well. I wasn’t kept in, an ambulance collected me from the hotel twice a day for IV antibiotic, fluids and oxygen and took me back afterwards.
After this I had oral tabs and given a fit to fly letter. My tan line had a lovely white mark where the cannula was.
DH contacted insurers, he was told if the bill was going to be more than £500.00 they would arrange for me to be sent to a public hospital. Otherwise pay by credit card, get receipts, copies of x ray, medical notes etc. The clinic kept the cost to just under £500.00, Medical care is cheap in Bulgaria.

How are you today OP?

I’m not in your Timezone so not sure where you are at but please tell us you got home ok 😊

Did you make it back OK OP?

Sympathy.. I had similar on Mexico flight few years ago.
I felt so awful, and heaven help the person who went to the loo on the coach after me!
Dosed myself up with stuff from Pharmacy. The guy in Pharmacy said this will get you home, it did. Totally Knocked me out!
Phoned GP when I got back.. Turns out. I had Salmonella.. No wonder I felt shit.. And had them.

Imodium, Dioralyte, large bottle of red wine and keep the cork for later

Did you make it home safely OP? Hope you’re feeling much better!

Its awful isnt it? My meds give me the runs sometimes and its caught me out so many times - lucky I've been in UK and found a loo as needed!

As this poster says immodium or an unbranded version are so quick to work

On my last holiday a fellow cruiser got a bad tummy. She didnt tell me someone else did, so I sent my anti diarrhoea melts to her. When i saw her later she said they worked brilliantly. Can you ask if anyone has anything?

With hindsight, take some plasters, antiseptic wipes insect repellent, bite treatment, paracetamol, unbranded diarrhoea and anti allergy meds on holiday next time.

Good luck x

I feel your pain.. I had an IBS flare up on my way home from my last holiday. Hit three days before I was due to leave and I hoped it would go…it didn’t. On the plane I had the most excruciating cramps, kept having to line for the bathroom and couldn’t keep anything down. To make it more fun, I had A woman with a young baby on her lap that I had to keep asking to let me out. The flight was 9 hours.😵‍💫
I definitely recommend Imodium. I’m going fully prepared next time!!

How did you get on OP?

Wow a whole 9 page thread, such drama and the OP hadn’t even taken Imodium 🤦‍♀️

how did you get on?

Did due get off on the plane???

Paraphrased from Friends