Travelling with a sick child – how to prepare for it?

Traveling with a sick child can be demanding. What should you do to adequately prepare for such a trip?

What symptoms might a child have before a trip?

Children can experience travel quite strongly, especially long trips. These do not have to be unambiguously negative emotions. The excitement may make our child vomit, get diarrhea or just feel bad. We will then, of course, act differently than in the case of fever, tonsillitis or other illness.

So our preparation for the road will look different, depending on what situation we are in. To adequately care for your child’s comfort, the first thing you should do is listen to what he or she says about his or her symptoms, try to respond to what he or she says in real time, and be as supportive as you can.

What should you do if your child is nervous before a trip?

Long road trips are a mental effort not only for adults, but also for children. It is especially important to make sure your child feels safe and at ease during the trip. Otherwise, the ride can be a hassle for both the child and us.

When the symptoms of our child have a psychological basis, it is worth:

• Introduce the route to the child – give an approximate driving time and plan a few stops. It is also a good idea to introduce interesting places to see during the trip.
• Keep the child calm – give the child some time to get used to the idea of leaving, allow yourself to postpone the trip for a few minutes. Even if the trip has been planned for several days, children often don’t think about it on a regular basis, and when the day of departure comes, they may react in different ways.
• Encourage the child to drive – present the purpose of the trip, prepare a reward for surviving the route, and provide entertainment. Entertainment while driving should not be limited to a tablet, phone, or book – a short road to motion sickness problems.

Some tips before driving with a sick child

When driving with a sick child, make sure the child is wearing loose clothing that does not restrict movement or cause discomfort. Plan for longer breaks. If there is an interesting object on our route, we can make an hour stop there instead of just stretching our legs for a few minutes.

We should also take into account the fact that travelling with the youngest requires more frequent stops. If the child reacts to the ride with vomiting, it is worth taking care of a bowl or at least a bag, so as not to soil the interior of the vehicle. Heavy meals and fizzy drinks are not recommended while on the road.

Be prepared to travel with a sick child

When traveling with a child who may be ill or who is expected to catch an infection, it is worth taking care of key equipment. What should we take with us on the road?

• Probiotic food supplement – the microflora of a child is very sensitive. It is especially important when we travel to other countries – the influence of unfamiliar cuisine or not very clean water can cause problems with the digestive system.
• Antipyretic – if your child is prescribed an antibiotic, you should also remember about water to drink. It is worth taking a cup – drinking medicine from a bottle does not always meet with positive reactions of children.
• Medicine for motion sickness – if we do not yet know the barriers of our child in long journeys, it is worth equipping ourselves with such a remedy. Although most medications of this type are quite safe, we should consult their use with a doctor.
• Painkiller – preferably a mild one, which does not contain many active ingredients.

Bandages and dressings can also come in handy when traveling. Although they are not related to diseases, we must always take into account the risk that something will happen to our child. These are products that we can buy while stocking up on the above.

Sick child and air travel

Flying with a child is often not a simple crossing – especially if there is an illness, the symptoms of which include a runny nose, for example. There are significant pressure changes during the flight. The nose and ears are strongly connected to each other at the level of the skull structure, so that even a small cold can be a huge discomfort for the youngest. It also happens to adults, but on a much smaller scale.

If our trip is not urgent, and the child is sick, the best solution will be simply postponing the flight. When this is not possible, it is worth taking care to buy chewing gum, lollipops or candy with gum. Swallowing saliva is a simple and effective way to cope with high overloads. In some airlines, we can also get help from the cabin crew.

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