Children change everything, don't they? Most of the change that comes with kids is good. What is not necessarily good is at least challenging. Take travel, for example. Travelling with children is a wonderful and exciting experience. It can also be somewhat trying. Kids get fussy. Kids get bored. Sometimes they get sick or injure themselves.
In light of that last point, it is a wise idea to add a first aid kit to your luggage when travelling with your children. A first aid kit might be something you have never thought of before. After all, it has always been just you and your significant other. But now that you have children travelling with you, things are different.
The nice thing about first aid kits for travel is that you do not need anything big or fancy. You can buy commercial first aid boxes designed specifically around travel needs if you want to, but doing so isn't completely necessary. A basic kit from your local big-box retailer will suffice. You can even create your own kit with supplies from your home medicine cabinet and a plastic food storage container.
Handling Minor Injuries Yourself
So, let's talk about why adding a first aid kit to your luggage is a smart idea. Remember the one simple fact that kids are more injury prone than adults. Things happen. It is part of being a child. The younger the child, the more likely that child is to have an accident or two.
Imagine travelling overseas to your favourite travel destination. On one of your off days, you are sitting and relaxing by the pool. You keep an eye out as your child walks across the pool deck just steps away. Then it happens. She stumbles and falls, scraping her elbow as she lands on the deck.
The abrasion on her elbow is a minor injury. You can patch it up nicely with your first aid kit and get back to enjoying your time at the pool. That is the point here. Carrying your own first aid kit affords you the opportunity to handle minor injuries yourself. You do not have to get help from the hotel staff or run to the local hospital.
Travelling in Remote Areas
Handling minor injuries at a hotel is one thing, but what if you travel in remote areas with your family? Now you have an even greater need to carry a first aid kit. Travelling in remote areas means you do not necessarily have access to hospitals and urgent care centres. You may have no other choice but to treat an injury or illness yourself because help is hours away.
This sort of situation entails having a bit more stored in your kit. Rather than just a few bandages and some burn cream, you are looking at a kit that also contains scissors, medical tape, splints, and more. You can stock your first aid kit depending on where you plan to travel and the environment you know you and your family will be experiencing.
Around the House and in the Car
You might be tempted to eschew a travel first aid kit because you don't know what you'll do with it after your trip. It is a legitimate concern. However, you can never be too safe when kids are involved. Use your first aid kit around the house for fast and convenient first aid. Take it with you when you travel in the car. Even if you are just going to the park or out shopping, you never know when that little one will injure himself.
As a side note, you may need that first aid kit yourself. We adults sometimes injure ourselves as well. Nothing is quite as embarrassing as cutting a finger and having to ask everybody within earshot for a bandage. Carry a small first aid kit with you and that problem disappears.
Emergency Treatment Only
In closing this post, an appropriate reminder is necessary: remember the first aid kits are intended only for emergency first aid treatment. They should never be considered a substitute for professional care. If you ever treat yourself or a child using supplies from a first aid kit, consider whether or not the injury requires professional treatment as well. If so, seek out that treatment as soon as possible.
You have reached that point in your life at which you will start travelling with children. It is an exciting time of life for sure. Know that travelling with children can be a wonderful and fulfilling experience in every respect. But don't go into it thinking that there won't be any bumps in the road. The bumps will be there.
Make sure you are prepared for those bumps by planning accordingly. Make a point of adding a first aid kit to your luggage. That way, you will always be prepared with emergency medical supplies just in case your little one has an accident.
