Making Myself a Travel First Aid and Health Kit

Every time I travel, I find I get more and more experienced, and learn from my mistakes and am able to improve things over last time. One thing I've especially learned is having to do with taking care of my health while I'm traveling, getting better and better each time. The first time I traveled abroad as an adult alone I ended up in the ER with really bad insurance and big medical bills that I had to pay out of pocket before the insurance would even consider paying me back. I learned from there to get insurance that involves no initial outlay. 

Then on my trip to Greece, I sprained my ankle, and needed to get to a doctor for crutches, but even taking a taxi to reach the doctor (since buses weren't an option with my foot the way it was) cost a lot, and it ended up being cheaper to have a friend buy me a pair of crutches instead of paying for a taxi to get to the doctor which would be free with insurance to get crutches free with insurance. I learned that insurance only goes so far when you're injured, because you still need to figure out a way to get out of the house to get medical help.

And then on my trip to the US, I ended up sick and had to find a store to get stuff to help me heal, and paid through the nose for some immune boosting items and throat lozenges at a store near where I was, because I wasn't familiar with the area or where to shop.

And so, I decided that for this trip, I'd put together my own travel first aid kit, containing basic and maybe a little more than basic medical supplies for myself. While I probably can get all these items locally, there would be the hassle of finding doctors, needing to travel to find these things, paying full price, because I'm not able to buy things on sale or price compare in a new country. Plus this just saves the headache.

In addition to my previous experiences, there was also the factor that my kids just finished having a stomach bug, and while I was spared so far, there's no guarantee that I won't get something while I'm away. So I made sure to go to the pharmacy locally and pick up some generic pepto bismol tablets and immodium just in case.

Having gotten injured in the past, and still in the process of recovering from a sprained ankle (I can walk, but my foot twists regularly and I end up in pain, so the likelihood of reinjury is high) I made sure to bring two ace bandages, as well as some Traumeel. I also made sure to bring some naproxen and ibuprofin just in case. I am still debating this, and will probably end up finalizing this in the morning before I leave, but I'll probably bring along my crutches just in case, because, as I mentioned, my foot still isn't healed.

I brought throat lozenges with manuka honey in them in case of sore throat.

And then because of coronavirus, which I am not really worried about, but decided to take precautions just in case, I also brought vitamin C and immune building supplements. And I also packed some rubbing alcohol to use to clean the surfaces in the airplane.

Then of course, this is personal to me, but I made sure to have plenty of my psychiatric meds, as well as some benzos as a backup for emergencies, as approved by my psychiatrist.

Last but not least, I also have bandaids, both large and small, tweezers, and nail scissors.

I think this is the most I've ever brought for my health and well being on a trip, but its better be safe than sorry, no? Especially with my history.

Hoping I won't need to use any of these beyond my daily psych meds, but you know how it is, when you bring an umbrella it won't rain, and if you bring all these first aid stuff, you won't need them.

Do you bring first aid supplies when traveling? What is in your travel first aid arsenal and why?