On the Road.
We, as a family, take a lot of road trips.
Or, at least compared to my family as a kid, we take a lot of road trips.
I grew up in New Jersey, where we could literally drive through six states in a single day, so living in Texas is quite a change. If we want to go anywhere out of state, it’s at least a six hour drive.
So, a few weeks ago, when my childhood bestie was in town, and we decided to go on the trip to Fort Worth we’d been planning to go see Rush (excellent, in case you were wondering) since last year, I decided that it might be a good time to soft launch the concept of traveling overnight and spending a night in a hotel room.
Because, you see, we, as a family, take a lot of road trips
So, I wanted to see if it was going to be possible for me to go somewhere overnight and stay in a hotel room, to use a bathroom and a shower, and to travel in another city without worrying about whether or not I’d be able to do it.
Now, sure, I know that disabled people travel all the time, so I don’t want to paint it as a dire situation, but I was also going to be spending a night in a room by myself and doing all of those things without assistance for the first time since the hospital, so I was quite nervous.
Luckily, as I said, I was traveling with one of the few people on Earth that I would trust to help me out in any situation, including the potential “I’m naked in a shower, and something has gone horribly wrong” situation that might arise in Fort Worth.
So, even nervous as I was, I held my breath and leapt.
And the trip exceeded my wildest expectations.
The drive was uneventful, and the Sheraton Downtown Forth Worth was absolutely lovely, as were all of the employees there. My room was huge, and every part of it was accessible.
How accessible?
There was a chair-level peep hole to see who might be at the door. The beds were lowered to make it easier to get into. There was an accessible desk.
And the bathroom? The bathroom was incredible. There were three bars at the toilet, and a roll-in shower with a long shower bench. For the first time since March, I was able to shower with no assistance. It was glorious. So glorious, in fact, that I showered twice.
It also helped that my friend was in an adjoining room, just in case. But I needed no assistance. I was able to do all the things I needed to do by myself. And that was amazing.
So, now I know I can travel. But here are some helpful hints if you’re going to do it.
There are different levels of accessibility, so make sure your room has what you need. In my case, bars in a shower with a tub wouldn’t have been sufficient. So, if you’re on a site like Hotels.com, make sure you get specific with the filters. It’s not enough just to ask for an accessible room.
If you are feeling trepidatious, call the hotel itself to make sure you’re getting what you need. It’s their job. They’re in the hospitality business, and they’ll treat you really nicely.
Look for backups, just in case. Now, in my case, it was a little dicey, because the concert was in town, but so was the World Cup, so hotels were at a premium.
Try and book as much in advance as you can. It makes it easier for you to find what you need.
Be patient and try to have a good attitude. People will want to help yoiu even more than they already do.
Don’t panic. There’s always a solution. It might not be the optimal solution, but if you need to sleep in a room, there will be a room somewhere for you
I can’t tell you how liberating it is to know that I can travel again. It’s such a big part of our life, and I would hate to have to give it up.
The next frontier that needs conquering is flying on an airplane. I have a trip coming in September, so I’ll keep you posted on how that all goes.
Fingers crossed.
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As always, if you have it in you, please give a thought to donating time or money to Hospice Austin. They do amazing work for people who are going through the hardest thing a person can face.
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