Natural Disaster Preparation
I live in an area of the U.S. that is notoriously prone to hurricanes. I grew up doing natural disaster prep, and I can tell a newbie how to prepare for a storm in my sleep. Heck, I even work in an industry that practically revolves around natural disasters. Being chronically ill has changed some of the considerations for storm prep though, and for the first time in my life, I find myself having to think about new ways to prepare. Not to mention doing all of this preparation in a pandemic. Truly a unique exercise in emergency preparation. Luckily, we have had FOUR close calls with hurricanes this year to practice. No direct hits, as all four storms veered in another direction later on, but I still had to start the storm prep numerous times in anticipation of those storms.
I still have to do all the normal things: bring outdoor furniture inside or tie it down somewhere securely, have bottled water on hand, etc. In the past, I would have also stocked up on batteries for flash lights, nonperishable food in case everything in the refrigerator spoils, and just one case of water for myself in case the storm caused drinking water to become unsafe. Now, those considerations are so different. I almost always have some doses of my immunoglobulin infusions on hand, and those have to be temperature controlled (not to be stored above 77 degrees Fahrenheit). If the power goes out during a storm here in Louisiana, the inside temperature would increase to somewhere in the neighborhood of the 80s or 90s, maybe even higher. Spoiled medication would literally cost thousands of dollars to replace, regardless of how many doses I have left on hand.
My newest diagnosis of POTS is also a concern. I have to drink a lot of fluids every day. Like A LOT of fluids. This means that whatever the standard water considerations are for hurricane prep, I have to plan for much more. I also have to plan to have high-sodium snacks and electrolyte drinks on hand. The other major part of hurricanes with POTS is the heat. My tolerance for being in the heat has decreased dramatically over the past few months, so sitting in a hot home with no working air condition during this time of year would be an unbearable way to spend several days if a storm were to cause major power outages.
Because of the combined concerns of my infusion medications and POTS, I now leave to drive up to my parents’ house for every single storm. They live an hour north of my home, and they have a whole-house generator to continue to power the air condition and refrigerator if a storm were to cause power outages. Prior to my illnesses, I would have never left home for minor tropical storms and hurricanes, but health considerations add another dimension to natural disaster prep that healthy individuals do not have to consider. The trick is to have your plans in place long before a natural disaster comes your way, so that when it is crunch time, you know exactly how to execute your plan and nothing gets forgotten in the rushed shuffle. If you live in an area prone to natural disasters, what are some of the ways that you address considerations related to your chronic illnesses and/or treatments?
Chronically yours,
Jen
