Essential Medical Kit

I always have a small medical kit with me when I travel. You never know how the day will go and if a headache or stomach ache will have you bedridden. Your trip costs you the same amount of time and money whether or not you’re having a good time.

What you’ll see below is my personal medkit. You can swap things out that suit you and your companions.

My essential medkit contains

• A nasal decongestant like Sudafed*.
• Excedrin Migraine tablets.
• Band-Aids (adhesive bandages).
• Lactose digestion pills (I am lactose intolerant)… if I try something and I’m not sure if it’s got dairy, I take 1-2 of these guys prior to eating.
• Lubricating Eye drops (not red eye reduction eye drops), especially for dry climates. 15ml size.

Optional depending on how the water/food is in that country, or the activities I will take on…

• Anti-diarrheal tablets and/or Pepto Bismol tablets.
• Motion sickness tablets.
• Water purification tablets.

Medical kit tips

• All of this will fit in a travel soap container.
• I always choose tablets over liquids. It’s much easier to get them on a plane since you’re often limited to three 100ml liquids total in your carry on.
• I get a small tube of travel Tylenol, peel off the label and empty the pills. It usually comes with Acetaminophen whereas the Excedrin Migraine has Acetaminophen combined with aspirin and caffeine.
• I dump out and wash the Tylenol travel tube and put 3 Sudafed 24-hour tabs, about 5 Excedrin Migraine, and a couple aspirin. I label the side in Sharpie marker “Headache”. If I’m doing anything like boating (motion sickness) or preparing for bad food (Pepto), I label that tube “Stomach”. All the pills have different shapes and colors, so I know which one I’m taking.

I always pack two kits with me. One goes in my street bag/personal item (on the plane), one is in reserve in my carryon bag.

Cost per kit (I keep two total kits):

*Legal warning: pseudoephedrine is illegal in some countries and is restricted in others. Make sure you research your destination. As an example, in the US, you have to present a government ID, are tracked in a nationwide database, and you are allowed a very limited quantity.  Last time I was in England (~2018) you could buy an unlimited amount in large bottles. If you have more than enough for 60 days in Japan, you can be arrested (as of 2019).

If you’re not sure about what medications you can bring into another country, search the name of your medicine with the words “active ingredients”, Then search for that active ingredient name and the country you’re going to.

If you have any prescriptions, make sure to get an extra one on doctor’s stationery to keep on you in case you need to prove the need to authorities.