How to Pack a DIY First Aid Kit Right For Families
A first aid kit is an important piece to have in your luggage and often, making your own DIY travel first aid kit ensures you have everything you need. You may not end up using it other than the panadol and band-aids however, it can really ruin your day (or even your whole holiday) if you need it and don’t have it.
Here is how I go about packing a DIY travel first aid kit for family holidays.
Start With…
Start with a small to medium-sized first aid kit pre-purchased from the chemist and already stocked with the standard bandages, tweezers and gauzes etc. for your DIY travel first aid kit.
Then Get a Bigger Zip Up Bag For Your DIY Travel First Aid Kit and …
… Put the small to medium-sized first aid kit inside it!
Then add for the kids …
- Kiddy size band-aids.
- Kids panadol or something for fever and pain.
- Motion sickness tablets suitable for children.
- Chuckies bags. These are travel sickness bags suitable for throwing up in. You can buy them at the chemist.
- Saline nasal spray
- Bacterial wipes
- Thermometer
- Nappy rash cream and powder for babies
- Children’s vapour rub for stuffy noses
- Any usual medication
Then Add The Following to Your DIY Travel First Aid Kit For The Adults …
- Motion sickness tablets. The proper medicated kind. If ginger works for you that’s great! However, all I end up doing is throwing up ginger tablets.
- Pain medication. You can’t buy codeine and other stronger stuff over the counter in quite a few countries.
- Panadol or something for mild fever and pain.
- Ibuprofen or some sort of anti-inflammatory.
- Your usual medications … enough to last the trip.
Then Chuck in the Following for Everyone! …
- Sunscreen
- Mosquito and bug repellent
- Broad-spectrum anti-fungal cream
- Antiseptic cream
- Stop itch cream
- Imodium or some kind of anti-diarrhea tablets
- Laxatives (you really don’t know which way it’s going to go when your usual diet changes)
- Eye drops
- Antihistamines
- Rehydration solution
- Copy of travel insurance information so it’s on hand if you need to visit a doctor or hospital
Other Important Things to Remember:
- A doctor’s certificate in your DIY travel first aid kit is useful if you are carrying lots of medication through customs.
- Some people just take a blister pack of tablets to save on space. I like to keep things in the original packaging in case it looks suss when going through customs.
- Some countries require extra vaccinations …. please do your research before you leave.
- If you are hiking or somewhere more at risk of open cuts, you might want to consider a few extras such as adhesive skin glue and water purification tablets etc. in your kit.
Pssst. Now that you’re first aid kit is sorted, check out our home page for inspiration both around Australia and worldwide.
