By Lisa Pearce
In 1990, I was 13 years old, when my dad took me around the world for five weeks traveling to Disneyland in Los Angeles, England, Europe and Hawaii.
Nebuliser packed, tablets packed, letters from the hospital explaining all the medications packed. This was the start of my love affair with travel.
Why was this such an important moment in my life? Because I was traveling with cystic fibrosis, a condition that I had been diagnosed with at 18 months old.
Fast forward to 1997, two friends and I decided we wanted to move to England and do the ‘London’ thing. At the time Australians were traveling to London in droves.
First time out of home, the excitement was at an all-time high! Being 20 years old with cystic fibrosis, again, it never even occurred to me or my parents that I wouldn’t be able to move overseas just like my friends could.
My doctor at the time was Dr Bell at the Prince Charles Hospital, he was such a great doctor, he had just returned from working in the UK and was able to provide me with a referral to the Royal Brompton Hospital in London. Back then, (I am unsure about now) Australia and the UK had reciprocal agreements with health care. I was also working so I obtained a NHS card, (similar to Medicare I guess is the best way to explain it), so I wouldn’t have to pay for treatment. Medication in London was very similar to the cost here, and easy to get.
At the Royal Brompton, the care I received was excellent. I would go for my quarterly check-up like I did in Brisbane, and once a year they did a full annual review, which entailed arriving around 9am and leaving at 4pm. The review consisted of: a more detailed check-up, bone density scans, x-rays, and walking beep test!
During my time in England, I was fortunate to meet some of the closest friends who to this day I am still in contact with. I wasn’t so much into doing the Aussie pub thing which so many Aussies were at the time; for me it was about meeting people from England and finding out what they enjoyed and how they lived. However, I must admit they loved going to the ‘Aussie pubs,’ so every so often I would go to the Redback in Action or the Walkabout in Shepherds Bush.
In the beginning I was working two jobs, travel agent by day and barmaid by night, finishing around 11pm. I did this 2-3 days per week for a year or so, before I started working for an airline and the money was a little better. Sometimes I look back and think how the hell did I work so many hours in one day, but I was young and we had a lot of fun in the pub back then!
When I was no longer working in the pub, I was often in the pub. The culture in London was very much “Let’s have fun.” Most days at 4.30pm the question would start to arise “Are we going to the pub today?” Happy hour was our best friend, every day until 7pm; pints were 2 pounds!
Eventually in 2005 I decided it was time to move home. As much as I loved every minute of my time in London, it was the right time to leave. London is a great place, and I will be heading back in September 2024 to catch up with all my friends!
If there is one thing you can take away from my story it is: you can do it all! Life with CF can still enable you to do all the things you love and live the life you think you can’t. Ensure you are taking care of yourself, keeping up with your medical routine and appointments, and know that you can do the same things everyone else does. Don’t let CF hold you back.
The views, experiences or comments shared on this website are not medical advice and may not reflect opinions or beliefs of Cystic Fibrosis Community Care. Always seek the guidance of your doctor or other qualified health professional with any questions regarding your health.
