Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Trip Planning

Our family is in desperate need of a vacation. S has been on short term disability as he learns to cope with the fact that he can no longer drive and will be in constant pain for the foreseeable future.  The pain and the pain medications both affect his ability to work.  While working with his therapist, he has also been fighting to remain on short term disability and get paid regularly. It has been hell. He has been spending more time fighting to get paid than he has been working on adapting to the situation.

His STD claim has been approved and we can finally plan our trip. This is where my own version of hell comes in. I am still coming to terms with the fact that I am the only driver in our family. I despise driving, but someone has to do it. To get to where we want to go, I will be driving for eight hours. My mother in law has kindly offered to give us the money for a hotel room at the half way point, so the trip will be broken into two portions. One problem solved.

The next problem isn't so easy. S has trouble sitting for more than an hour at a time. Even with frequent rest stops, this trip is going to be tough on him. We are hoping that his new doctor will increase his pain medication for the trip down and back. Otherwise, I don't know that we can make it.

We are also planning on camping. This is one of our true pleasures as a family and not one that we are willing to give up. I am spending an incredible amount of time finding ways to make it easier for S. I've already taught our 11 year old son to help me put up and take down the tent. I have found some chairs that S can stand to sit in. I am going to buy a double thick air mattress and possibly a folding lounge chair so that he can put his feet up. 

I truly believe that getting away from our house will do him (and the rest of us) a world of good.  With good planning, this trip should be a success. Yes, we should probably find a place closer to home, but we are going to one of his favorite vacation spots.  I have no problem doing extra work to make this trip memorable and relaxing for him.

If you have any suggestions, please let me know.

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