Last week I told you about my rookie mistake of not wearing gloves while working in a client’s basement, which resulted in a fairly significant cut on my hand. As the universe’s sense of humor would have it, a few days later Holly Firfer invited me to shoot a segment for CNN about how to organize a travel first aid kit! Ha! Timing is indeed everything.
If you travel frequently like I do, odds are you’re bound to need first aid items at some point. You can be prepared for any minor medical emergency by gathering travel sizes of the following items and keeping them zipped inside a packing cube in your luggage.
- Blister pads and a pair of shoe insoles will save your feet from shoes that irritate.
- Alcohol and antibacterial wipes are great for cleaning cuts and scrapes to avoid infection.
- Hand sanitizer is great to staving off colds but can also clean cuts in a pinch too.
- Neosporin helps keep cuts and scrapes from infection.
- Band-Aids, gauze pads, and medical tape are key for covering most skin wounds.
- A latex glove doubles as a cold pack when filled with ice & knotted.
- A vial of Chinese powder called Yunnan Baiyao helps stop bleeding quickly.
- Tums, Pepto and Alka-Seltzer will help settle your stomach if you eat something that disagrees with you.
- Imodium is handy to have in your bag to treat diarrhea on the road.
- A collapsible travel cup makes taking pills easy wherever you might be and it sure beats drinking from your hands in a bathroom sink.
- Zicam, Nyquil and Dayquil blister packs are easy to travel with and help head off sniffles and colds on the road.
- Q-Tips, tweezers and Nalgene leakproof bottles round out your travel first aid kit.
What other items do you travel with so you're always prepared for minor injury or illness?
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