frances00's Status Updates

Hi @frances00, thanks for reaching out. Do you find you are more stressed when you are flying overseas? There are a lot of factors that could cause flares like stress, or lack of sleep due to jet lag, etc. I wonder if keeping a journal might help with identifying why you are getting such terrible flares. Do you have to travel long distances often? Jill, team member

I'm not anymore stressed than when I fly to Costa Rica to visit my brother and I don't get flares up on that 4 hour flight. So, I do think it's related to flying in the airplane for over 4 hours.

Hi . There are so many possible explanations. It could be a time issue. Blood flow suffers when you are sitting on a plane, and a flight from Europe to D.C. can be a good eight hours or more. When your blood flow is compromised, inflammation can worsen. Dehydration from the altitude and the dry airplane air might also lead to more inflammation as could a change in barometric pressure from one environment to the other. I wonder if it would help to schedule trips up and down the aisles every hours or so for longer flights and to bring some powdered hydration packets to put in your water. It would be interesting to see whether it makes a difference. I hope you get more input from others who have shared your experience. Wishing you the best. - Lori (Team Member)