“Don’t Risk a Fart”

“Don’t Risk a Fart”

These were wise words from my brother in law as we headed to South East Asia’s beautiful country of Sri Lanka.

Travel advice comes in thick and fast when you declare rookie status on the adventure front.

Far too often we have to see it, feel it, taste it and touch it to have it make sense to us, so all the advice landed somewhere in my brain… until I needed it and then I had an ahhh moment  ( and some Doah). There is nothing like lived experience to bring a whole new level of meaning.

As you can see I took a swag of supplements with me. I am a naturopath after all, but let me tell you I came home with very little left over. My “just in case” stash became “thank god I packed these”.

Here is my list and why:

For me personally I am a Pyrrole Girl so my must have supplements are:

• Zinc picolinate
• B6 with P-5-P
• Magnesium powder

I calculated 10 doses for each and then a few extra ( also known as stress dosing – because stress causes leakage of nutrients and extra depletion).

Then I packed:

Apple cider vinegar tablets – calculated at 3 per day for the 10 days – see below why I needed these as my hot tip for keeping mosquitos at bay – and they worked. They also helped keep me alkalised which adds a further level of resistance.

Digestive enzymes – to cover me if I accidentally ate gluten or dairy and supported pancreatic enzyme 

function as well as HCL for my stomach. I took enough for 1 per day thinking this would cover me. I used them all.

Alkalising Mineral Powder – yet another powder to double bag – and just 1 dose per day. Not only essential to keep me alkalised – but also an incredible rehydration formula with all the buffering minerals like sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium… I knew that it was going to be hot – so I will be losing fluids. I scooped in just a couple of extra doses thinking if I had any diarrhoea needing further re hydration.

Antimicrobial “bomb” ( my secret miracle) – I put in enough for me to have an “oh no” moment every day and another for any other person in my crew to have the same moment. There is nothing worse than giving out all your emergency tablets to your loved ones early in your trip only to need them yourself later down the track. So I packed 1 for me for the 10 days and 1 for 2 others daily . 30 precious bombs in total. The peace of mind this gave me was priceless. As it was I handed over 2 early on for a sore throat ( need to chew them for this) and 2 more to bomb some gut issue later in the peace. I also needed to prick a capsule and squish the contents onto a nasty splinter I got – not knowing if the humidity would slow my capacity to heal. Finally I took 1 per day as prevention – and then I handed the rest over to my sister who was extending her trip by another 14 days – with instructions “ these are for ANY oh no situation”.

Natural antihistamine – hot weather, bites, and slightly different food all spell histamine reaction to me and I wanted to quell that potential from the get go – in addition to packing the claratyne ( pharmaceutical anti histamine which blocks the histamine H1 & H2 receptors) I wanted to be looking after this potential upstream – keeping my histamine vulnerability lower. I packed 3 per day which added to 1000mgs quercetin daily.

Activated Charcoal – this is a medicine chest must have wherever you go. Activated charcoal is the great absorber – so even just a little gas/wind can be alleviated with a couple of tabs, It is also useful for ingestion of any poison or suspected poisons in the stomach. Some take it for hang overs but its capacity to absorb the affects of alcohol are not proven. It must be taken away from all other medicines as it will absorb that too!! 1 hr either side is enough. I only took 6 of these and came home with them all. However they live in my handbag because when you do need them you don’t delay.

SB Probiotic – I am not one to take any probiotics prophylactically, but this went with me on an OS trip to take 2 daily as a first line of defence. So 20 of these went into a labelled zip lock bag. As we know the gut lining is a vital barrier and defence to invaders ( 80% of our immune system is in the gut lining) and when travelling – anything you can do to fortify that barrier is helpful – meanwhile the other defence systems can kick in – but the first line needs to do its bit and fast.

Urva Ursi – herb capsulated to take to reduce fluid retention in my ankles and calves on the plane. I just packed a 6 – which was 2 for each flight.  I needed to pee a lot.

Vit D to improve respiratory defence especially for on the flights. Feeling like if I caught something it may be possible in the close confines on an airplane with people coughing and sneezing. I took 5000IU each flight – x 6! That will cover me.

And now:

Here are my “lived” hot tips for travel.

Tip 1:

• Apple Cider Vinegar 3 x per day
• Keeps you alkalised but also changes the composition of your sweat – the bonus is the mosquitos don’t like it! So if you are travelling to a wet country where mosquitos are a problem then do this 1 week before you leave and throughout your travel.

Tip 2:

• Take Eagle Oil
• This little green bottle of muscle rub will sooth your headaches and tired muscles as well as neck tension. It will also take out the sting and swelling of any bite as well as act as a further insect repellent. So glad I had this little bottle of green goodness with me.

Tip 3:

• Pack cleverly for Travel On Luggage
• This is something I missed and with a missed connection and long stop over I wish I had my: medications and supplements, charger, change of underwear ( or 2) toothbrush and paste and other essential items

Tip 4:

• Pack a wrap or shawl – that will keep you warm.
• Even if you are travelling to a warm country the plane can be cold and so can the floor of an airport.

Tip 5:

• Don’t compromise on self care
• In fact do more self care than ever before as it is likely you will be sleep deprived, exposed to various bacteria and viruses as well as out of your comfort zone at times.
• So look after you and your nervous system however you can. I packed all my supplements and then some- just in case.

Tip 6:

• Don’t drink the water
• Or brush teeth with the water
• watch for ice cubes too
• Always use bottled water
• Or boiled water at the least for teeth brushing

I am sure you have some travel tips too! If you feel inclined do share.