Holiday anxiety

Try and get a plan in place then it would help with your anxiety. Do you have friends or relatives you could call to help in an emergency. You would call an ambulance for your husband and hopefully will have someone that can support you with getting yourself sorted.

Hope it's not necessary, but I'd call a son or daughter to help? Or a good friend?

If you are on a proper site ask at the site office as to what happens if there is a medical emergency out of hours they usually have plans in place if a doctor or ambulance is needed to be called.

If you're worried about being able to tell an ambulance where you are while you're away, have a look at this website and download the app to your phone:

what3words.com/products/what3words-app/

Lots of emergency services use it.

Thanks, I have site address etc but worry that site full, so could be in situation where have to go but have no means if doing this. DH loves the caravan and thinks my worries insane and that someone would help. At present we are 5 hours from home

I’m always worried on holidays in case either of us needs an ambulance in an emergency. Usually I would go for a hotel with 24 hr reception for this purpose, when we stayed in self catering and only had an emergency phone no to contact, I would worry about it in case you couldn’t get through. So you are right in working out what to do in emergency beforehand.

So what you are worried about is that DH might have to go to hospital, leaving you alone at the site and unable to drive yourself home if the site were all booked up and you had to leave? Your best action is to be prepared for just that contingency, then you won't be so anxious.

First thing to do, as you are at the caravan site, is to go to the site owner and tell them the situation. There are several ways in which they could be helpful to you - you are not all alone in this, so don't feel that it is all on your shoulders.

Ask what the arrangements are in the case of an emergency, how do you phone an ambulance,and what is the exact address and phone number of the site. Keep this with you so that you can contact the ambulance quickly if you need to, and tell them exactly where to come. They will be able to put that address into their GPS. Have an overnight bag ready packed for him with essentials and medicines and so on, plus a small amount of money and the address and phone number of the site.

If you go with him to the hospital, you will need a way to get back to the caravan. Ask the owner or the site office about taxis and public transport - what would they advise for getting back to the site, possibly in the middle of the night? Keep the taxi phone number to hand in your purse, and enough money to buy you a snack at the hospital shop and pay your fare home - plus the keys to the caravan!

While speaking to the owner or site office, also ask whether anyone is booked into your pitch after your holiday ends, and whether it might be possible to extend your stay if necessary.

Think about how you would get home if DH has a lengthy stay in hospital. Would your insurance pay to get you home? Could a family member or neighbour come and fetch you? How close is the nearest train station, and could you get a taxi to it? If you have a lot of bits and pieces of stuff with you, and no family or neighbour to drive you, would someone from the site drive you home in your car, with all your luggage, and get a train or bus back (with you paying?)

Have your plans made, all the phone numbers you might need noted down and kept safe, DH's hospital bag packed and ready, your allies prepared to help you if it is needed, and then - stop worrying about the faint possibility of having to put it all into practice and ENJOY YOUR HOLIDAY WITH YOUR HUSBAND. He has enough to worry about with his health, without having you anxious all the time.

The most important thing to do is to speak to the site organisers. You will find them very ready to help in any way they can.

Elegran never thought about all that, home or abroad. My main worry is getting medical help but there’s a lot more than than. Can you just imagine? Puts you off going anywhere!

Excellent advice from Elegran - hope it helps Nana56

Elegran is exactly right nana56, if we know what we’ll do if the worst happens then we can stop worrying and simply get on. It’s a bit like having an insurance policy. Why not try working all the details out and see how you feel then, my guess is you’ll feel a whole lot better.

Well said Elegran , forward planning is essential- hopefully Nana 56 won't need to put it into practice. Having plans written down and phone numbers and address of site will help if the worst were to happen. Nana 56 write everything down - even the smallest detail . Keep the written plan with you , then please relax and enjoy your holiday !

Remember, too, that caravanners are, on the whole, lovely, generous people. If you had a real crisis, I’d put money on someone offering to drive you to hospital, pick you up, take you to the nearest railway station, etc. Someone would help you move your van to a storage area and lock it up safely.

Stop fretting and enjoy your holiday!

One other thing my Mum and Dad learned the hard way was to take an extra week or two supply of any medication they each needed, in case either of them were ill and their return home was delayed.

The other advice I would give you is to stop asking him every five minutes whether he is OK. He will tell you soon enough if he isn't. One of the triggers to stomach problems is anxiety, and he won't be able to relax with you fretting at him all the time and reminding him of what might happen. Your constant checking on him could set it off!

For goodness sake, a meteor just might fall into your the caravan site at 8 am precisely one morning and land in your muesli. If you worried all the time about that possibility you would give yourself an ulcer, so how much more likely is it that you keeping on about his innards could get him wound up and screw up his inner workings?

This is a holiday! You are there to relax and enjoy it. For insurance, get your emergency plans made and written down, and then put the list away and forget about it.

Well said Elegran. I can't add any more.

You are on your way Nana56. Do what Elegran says.

Please enjoy your lovely holiday with your DH.

Providing you have mobile phone and the postcode of the site there should be no problem in summoning an ambulance. Not sure if this is you own caravan a tourer or a static. Obviously a tourer would need to be moved to your home but if you're in the AA or RAC shouldn't be a problem. Telegrams advice is very sound.

If you are in the Caravan Club and have their insurance, they will get you and your tourer home.

I just wondered how many people have travel insurance when holidaying in your country rather than going abroad? I know I don’t as it hasn’t really occurred to me before but I guess without it, any expenses to get me home if stranded would be mine? My car is covered by the RAC so I think I’m also covered for the journey home but there can be lots of other costs associated with an illness of you or your partner. My mum got stranded in France when my father dies there while on holiday and was repatriated by their fantastic insurance company but it must have been expensive for extra hotel nights, food, internal travel and additional plane fare.

Exactly Teacheranne how awful for your father to die while on holiday abroad! Sadly these things do happen, only some people who are worriers anyway, will think about it a lot more than others happy go lucky ones. I know how Nana56 feels. For those of us with anxiety, it puts you off going anywhere.