ME/CFS & Long Covid Don’t Take Holiday Time

Hello and welcome to Believe in ME with Rhona Barton. 

This podcast is about all things Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) related!

I'm Rhona and I lived with ME for almost 10 years during which time, I was bed-bound and wheelchair-bound, welcome to my Podcast.

Hello and welcome to Believe in ME with Rhona Barton. In this week’s episode, I’m going to be chatting about Holiday time!

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Ok, let’s jump straight in!

One of my favourite times of the year is holiday time. I’ve very lucky to be able to take two holiday’s a year including one in our motorhome. That hasn’t always been the case, however. Growing up, we never did foreign holidays. We might take a short break somewhere in the UK but mostly we had time at home and explored our local area. It’s only in the past 15 years or so that I’ve been a position to be able to afford to travel overseas. Sometimes that’s been for a holiday and sometimes it’s been for a work trip. 

I love the build-up to a holiday or a break away. Getting out my bag – am I going only hand luggage, or do I need to pack a suitcase? I’ve been away for almost 6 weeks with only hand luggage so selecting a suitcase is a big deal for me! What is the weather likely to be when I’m away? That determines most of my packing choices – I usually end up opting for layers so I can throw more on or take them off as the day unfolds. I’ve never been a girlie girl, so don’t give a whole lot of thought to make-up, dresses, doing more than washing and drying my hair or shoes so I usually get through my packing really quickly. In fact, I’m pretty much a jeans, t-shirt and trainers sort of person and the less time I have to spend picking an outfit, the better it is for all involved! If I can’t get away with a smart-ish top, clean trainers and jeans for going out when on holiday, chances are, I’m not going to be interested in going to wherever it is that’s been suggested. Ultimately, I just want to be comfy, practical and wear what I like. So getting ready for a break away gives me a chance to select my favourite things for wearing and keeping the baggage weight down as much as possible. I gain quite a sense of achievement when I have everything I believe I need in one bag plus whatever I’m using as a day-to-day handbag when we’re away (and that’s, more often than not, a backpack!).

But I also love the pre-planning. You know, the thinking about the place you’re going and then planning out some of the activities you’d like to do or places you’d like to visit when there. I also enjoy planning out the books I’ll take with me for reading, the podcasts I’m going to listen to and selecting a new notebook to take with me for the writing bug that’s sure to hit mid-break. 

The books that I take with me have changed in recent years. I used to have to limit myself to 2 or 3 for a week away as there just wasn’t room in my bag to take more. However, about 10 years ago, I treated myself to an eBook reader – thank goodness for Christmas sales! And WOW, what a game changer! I will never not love a physical copy of a book but, for travel, I’m hooked on my eBook reader! I’m not limited to the number of books I can take with me now. It’s one of the first items that goes into my backpack – fully charged and with a wide selection of reading options!

I’ll also download a couple of audiobooks to go alongside my podcast selections. I really enjoy having something to listen to in the motorhome when we’re driving o