Anyone traveled LONG distance flights (over 10 hours) after surgery?

[booniedog 7]

Hi!

Has anyone else traveled long distance to/from Mexico for the surgery? It takes me 22-24 hours to get to mainland USA from where I live (a tiny island near Guam) and I'm worried about getting blood clots on the flights home after surgery. Both doctors I've contacted assured me that I could travel 3-5 days after surgery with no issues but it still freaks me out.

I'm planning on staying in Mexico or San Diego 6-7 days after my surgery to be safe but I can't get rid of the paranoia, especially because the island I live on has only very limited basic medical care. I'm just hoping others are out there who have successfully made a long journey home with no complications. I'm aiming for surgery in mid to late March

Thank you!

Booniedog

[PagetNic 12]

Hi Bonniedog,

I had one long haul flight followed by a shorter one the next day with no problems. It's important to stay hydrated, so drink plenty of Water. You can also wear the compression stockings you will get for surgery during your flight. And walk around during the flight as best you can. I paid a little more$$ to fly executive class on the return journey and the extra space was well worth it. Blood clots (DVT's) take time to develop, and not likely to cause problems until after the flight. Watch out for post flight pain, swelling or redness in your legs. They are a frequent medical problem, so your island should have the means to treat it. Let your surgeon know if you have had clots before or been on blood thinners. You have to get home somehow--so don't let the flight discourage you. Good luck!

[booniedog 7]

Thanks for your reply and pointers! I wish I could upgrade to business class but even for just one-way it's over $3000 more. But I did get a seat behind the bulkhead for my 11.5 hour leg so that will make it easier to move around and stretch. Maybe I'll try begging the ground crew to let me sit in business class since I can't eat or drink alcohol. (Ha ha)

[UK Cathy 977]

I only took a short flight to another part of Europe but one thing my surgeon did insist on is heparin injections for 2 weeks post op. They were easy to do myself- just grab a bit of fat on the tummy and go. The injection was small and felt just like a sting. Perhaps you can ask your surgeon about this.

[booniedog 7]

Will do, UK Cathy. Thanks for the tip!

[katt1584 46]

Make sure to ask for early boarding so you can get the right seat. They will allow early boarding for medical usually no questions asked. Every time I have flown I ask for early boarding because being obese and flying is no fun! It takes the stress of finding the right seat away. Good luck!

[newmeki 2]

I travelled from MX to the States immediately after procedure and then returned to Saudi Arabia (16 hours) after about 12 days. Because I was not sure of how I would be feeling, I booked first class, first row for my return flight. While it was a good idea, it turned out that my window seat was so close to the front wall, I still needed to ask my seat mate to move every time I needed to get up. I was happy that I could lay the seat back and put my legs up. I also purchased travel socks in order to support circulation.

Franda

[Kate2014 5]

I will be traveling for 20+ hours to get to Mexico and the flights have been my biggest worry. Was staying hydrated a problem? Or swelling....my ankles always swell insanely during long haul flights. I have compression stockings, so hoping that helps along with walking during layovers in London and JFK. I have given my self a week post op before flying back and I am hoping this is enough.

[newmeki 2]

Staying hydrated was a bit of a problem because it was so new after the procedure that I still had to remind myself to sip constantly. I walked quite a bit on the plane as I did not have a layover though I think that that would have been a better idea, to be honest. It was a bit rough doing the non stop long haul. A layover would have been much better. I also had little container of cottage cheese and Jello just make sure that I was ingesting something because it is very easy to forget. I felt really good after my procedure. Much better than I had expected so that was a plus.