@keggebraaten My transplant care is a 10-12 hour drive from our home. Our fastest and most direct route takes us across 2 states and from the middle of one state to the bottom latitude of the state below us. Weather is a huge issue for us, as my care is at Rochester, MN. In our states April snow brings calf-killer storms with heavy, wet snow in large quantities that sticks to the hides of cattle and sometimes weights to much that the animal cannot stand or move. During any storm cattle move away from the direction of the wind and go until they are stopped by an obstruction. Because it is April we have had enough warm weather to melt or at least weaken the ice on any spans of water. Because of these two issues, cattle without an obstruction can easily walk into water, which makes their water weight load even greater and can end up drowning cattle in water that otherwise they could walk or swim through. Needless to say, I do not care for April snow!

We were on the edge of blizzard conditions when I received my call that an organ was available for me. We knew we would probably not be able to make the trip if we tried to drive and, anticipating this, we had people to contact to charter fly us to Rochester, MN -- changing a 10 hour drive to about a 2 1/2 hour flight. Since I am a transplant patient, we are able to use the Gift of Life Transplant House for lodging most times we need to travel to Rochester, MN.
There have only been a few times that the houses were full and we had to stay in a motel. We particularly like staying in the houses because it is more like a home, with TV rooms, puzzles and craft rooms, laundry rooms, libraries, communal kitchens and dining rooms, private parking lots and one underground parking area, your own private sleeping room and bath, a transport van, and (most importantly now) rooms set aside for lab draws in each house. When you need daily labs, it is much better for a recovering transplant patient to be able to go from one room to another rather than go out in the weather and take a bumpy and uncomfortable ride to the Clinic Lab and back. The transport van stops at several buildings, so you do not have to get off at a site that may require you to go a long distance to your appointments.

I encourage patients to use the available free wheelchairs to move around the Clinic campus. The campus is large, as you can tell by looking at a map. There are many buildings connected by a "subway" that is actually just an underground walkway that also connects to places near the Clinic campus. It can be quite a distance from one appointment or test to the next and I was debilitated and unable to manage a whole day if I had to walk. Additionally, I walked so slow that we would not have been able to get to appointments on time. Be prepared for long days in the beginning, right when you are at your worst physically and the most information needs to be gathered and evaluated. There are easily available information desks, restrooms and cafes and coffee shops throughout the campus which we found quite helpful since most days started with fasting labs. There are also several labs in different buildings, and several pharmacy outlets so that you can coordinate picking up any meds you need that day near your route off the campus.

Be prepared that you will received a great deal of information verbally and in print from a variety of sources. I have always carried a briefcase, backpack or large bag to carry everything and have something to distract myself while waiting for appointments or tests. This worked well for us because we could hang the bag on the wheelchair handles. If you are well enough to walk, I see many people using a rolling case rather than a bag.

I also encourage you to carry a large bottle of water and possibly some snacks, as the days can get long and you may not be able to go to get something when you are waiting for an appointment.

Pack less that what you think you will need. I always pack too much. Plan to dress in layers, as the buildings can get chilly. I like to wear a simple shift dress and a lightweight large scarf (mine is rayon) or comfortable jeans, a t-shirt and a sweatshirt. What I did not anticipate was that following surgery I would not be able to wear my jeans. We had to go shopping for large stretchy sweatpants and a sweatshirt because I was initially not prepared for the chilly buildings. No matter where you stay, you should be able to find laundry facilities, so now I pack two dress options and two jean (or sweatpants) options and four days worth of undergarments. Then we wash if we are there more than 4 days.

I always sort 3 weeks worth of medications into daily planners and take all my medication bottles in a plastic file box. It helps me remember to reorder in time and adapt to any possible changes in doses of existing medications.

Good luck on your journey to better health.

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