My Go Bag

A while ago I was reading about some lifestyle changes to help with energy saving.  I read about having a ‘POTS Go Bag’ that had all the essentials so that those moments before leaving the house weren’t spent running around gathering all the things needed for the day only to be out of energy before getting in the car.  It seemed pretty brilliant.  I’m so thankful for those who went before me and used their brains to figure out all the easiest changes to make life better.

I wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted but I couldn’t find anything perfect so I went to Amazon and found what I thought would work best.  Essentially I wanted a first aid kit, but one that was not too big or too small.  Yes, I wanted the Goldilocks of first aid kits.  A bunch came with all the fillings and while maybe those things would be useful on occasion, I wanted to fill it with things I would hopefully use more often than tourniquets and gauze.

This is what I eventually ended up buying.  It comes in different colors and with the velcro on the front can be easily customizable.

It’s called the Orca Tactical MOLLE EMT Medical First Aid Pouch.  I got red because I thought if a friend or medic was looking in my purse and saw something red with a cross on it, they might assume it was something medical or health related.  I have pretty smart friends so it was a safe bet.

Here it is open.  It’s not stuffed full of things, but definitely has the basics with room for more.

Inside mine I have:

• Oximeter
• Nausea medication
• Tremor medication
• Larabar
• Chapstick
• Tummy Drops – to help with nausea
• Ginger Chews- to help with nausea
• Tums
• Vomit bag- the collapsible blue bag behind the tums.  It is one from the hospital and they are super handy.  *Note: I didn’t steal it. The nice nurse gave it to me after my most recent procedure.*
• Medication List.  Really this is pretty important.  This way medics know right away what is in your system and what conditions you have.  On mine I listed name and date of birth, conditions, medications and the names of my doctors.  I included primary doctor, electrophysiologist, neurologist, and dermatologist (due to the potentially serious EM complication).  On the back of this list I have emergency contact numbers for husband, parents, etc.

On the front I moved the cross over and laminated a cute little medical accommodation card about POTS.  Then I just had to add a little strip of velcro to the back and it was good to go.

Dysautonomia International has these cards available to be printed out.  They have cards created and available for:

• Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome
• Orthostatic Intolerance
• Orthostatic Hypotension
• Neurocardiogenic Syncope
• Autoimmune Autonomic Ganglionopathy
• Autonomic Neuropathy
• Pure Autonomic Failure
• Multiple System Atrophy

http://www.dysautonomiainternational.org/page.php?ID=164

Essentially, as long as I have this, water, crackers, and Gatorade I should be set for most emergencies.

Do you have a Go Bag? What’s in yours?  What am I missing?