Travelling Full Time When You're On Medication For Life

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Travelling full time when you’re on medication for life isn’t a topic that I feel is very regularly discussed. I know for me personally, I found a substantial lack of information about what to do and top tips for travelling with medication before we set off on our trip around the world, so I wanted to use this post as a frame of reference for anyone wondering how to do it.

Thankfully, the medication I take isn’t necessarily for a life-threatening condition (I won’t go into too much detail, but I have a kidney condition that requires me to take tablets every single day, indefinitely), but having experienced firsthand what it’s like to travel long term with medication in tow, I thought I could impart some wisdom on the matter so that you guys are better prepared for when you head off on a big trip (when Covid finally does one 🙄 ).

Just a little disclaimer before we get started: All the information below is based on my own personal experiences with travelling with medication as a British resident from the UK, so please don’t take what I say as gospel and always do your own research on these kinds of topics!

Make a list of all the medication you need to take and how long for

The first thing you need to do when it comes to preparing for a long trip if you’re on long term medication is to make a list of all the medication you’ll need to take with you.

You also need to think about how long you might be gone for, so you can get a rough idea of how much you’ll need to take with you.

Now, this is a little tricky to do if you don’t actually know how long you’ll be travelling for (we literally had no idea and we intended to be travelling indefinitely), but if you have a rough idea in your mind, then this is definitely useful (6 months, 1 year, 18 months etc).

Let your doctor know about your trip well in advance – travelling full time on medication

Once you know everything you’ve got to take with you, you then need to make an appointment with your doctor. This can usually just be a telephone consultation, as you will need to let them know that you’ll be going on a long trip.

This is so they can write you a prescription for the time you request (e.g. 6 months at a time), so that you’re able to take a good few months’ worth of medication with you.

Matt and I were only allowed to request 6 months’ worth of our respective medications, so we actually had to ask our parents to bring some out when they came to visit us (more on that below).

Ask for a long prescription from the pharmacist

Following on from the point above, once you’ve asked your doctor for a long prescription so that you can take a good supply of your medication with you, you’ll then need to double check with the pharmacy that the request has actually gone through.

The first time I tried to do this, the doctor had only sent through one month’s worth, so I had to ask them to amend it so I could take 6 months’ worth with me.

Ensure you have all the necessary vaccinations

While this point isn’t entirely necessary in order for you to travel full time with medication, it is something that’s good to bear in mind as it’s directly related to your health.

Before you embark on any long trip, you should look into any and all vaccinations that you might need before you go. Some countries may even require you to prove that you’re vaccinated against a certain disease or illness before you enter the country, so make sure you do all the relevant research before your trip.

With regards to your medication and health in general, it’ll be somewhat of a comfort knowing that your only real medical responsibility while travelling is to ensure that you take your medication when you need to. You won’t need to worry too much about getting ill as a result of not being vaccinated against something that’s preventable, so just use your initiative and double check before you travel.

Ensure you have an excellent travel insurance policy

Ensuring that you’re well equipped with an excellent travel insurance policy is imperative before any kind of travel, but it’s arguably even more prevalent if you suffer from an illness or disease that you take regular medication for.

World Nomads is one of the best travel insurance providers in the world and I’ve heard nothing but great things about their policies, from backpackers traversing South America, to activity-specific cover for things like scuba diving and skiing, for example.

Safety Wing is another great provider who offer travel insurance more aimed towards nomads and remote workers who want to ensure that they’re well protected while abroad.

As always with my advice, ensure you carry out your own research as well to determine the best travel insurance provider for you. It may be that you require a medical condition-specific policy, so you might need to look into a specialised travel insurance provider who can ensure that you’re well covered in the event that you need to make a claim.

Enlist someone to send medication out to you while you’re away

This is something that Matt and I had to take advantage of as we were gone for 11 months, but only took 6 months’ worth of medication away with us.

Thankfully, we were incredibly lucky that both my mum flew out to Bali to visit us for a few days after 6 months and Matt’s mum also came out to Malaysia the following month, so they both brought supplies with them.

However, I’m very well aware that this won’t be an option for everyone, but you will still likely need to enlist someone’s help to send out any additional medication to you that you require.

Of course, depending on where exactly you’re travelling, you may also be able to pick up a local equivalent while you’re away (I tried to do this in Indonesia, but unfortunately they didn’t have the exact one I needed).

Research the medical laws of the countries you’ll be travelling to

Naturally, you don’t have to research every single piece of medical advice and rules in the country that you’re travelling to, but it is good to have a rough idea of some of the laws they might have in place when it comes to the medication you can take with you.

For example, some countries may have a limit on the weight and amount of medication you can bring into the country with you and there may be specific laws on what is classed as ‘personal’ use and what could be classed as you potentially selling it while you’re in the country.

These are quite extreme circumstances and you’re not likely to face any issues (we landed in New Zealand with 6 months’ worth of our medication), but just in case, it’s advisable to double check.

Declare them if/when you have to – travelling full time with medication

As a continuation of the point above about checking medication and health laws in the countries that you plan on visiting, you should also be aware of whether you have to declare them when you enter a new country or not.

Some countries may require you to declare any and all medication that you bring into the country, so keep this in mind when you’re filling out landing forms and declaration forms.

Keep your medication in a safe, secure and easily-accessible location

This also sort of ties into the points above, but it’s definitely a good idea to store your medication in a safe, secure and easily-accessible location within your luggage.

I had a dedicated packing cube for my medication and I always made sure that it was near the top of my backpack, so if I ever had to get it out and show staff at the airport (I didn’t, but it’s still a good thing to do), it was easily reachable and I didn’t have to spend ages messing up my bag trying to search for it.

Separate your medication between hand luggage and hold luggage

OK, so I know that this is technically somewhat of a contradiction of the point above, but keeping your medication in two (or more) separate, but safe and secure compartments, is a good habit to get into.

It’s ideal to have at least one week’s worth of your medication in your hand luggage (if you have any, that is), just in case your hold luggage gets misplaced or lost and you end up losing all your medication. Still keep everything in easily-accessible and secure containers or packing cubes, but having a supply in both types of luggage will ensure that you’ll always have some on you in the event one of them goes missing.

Have a copy of your prescription/doctor’s note with you at all times

Another thing to bear in mind when travelling with medication is to have a copy of your prescription and/or a doctor’s note with your medication at all times.

This is so you can prove that you require the amount of medication you’ve brought with you and so that it doesn’t look like you’ve just crammed 6 months’ worth of medicine into your backpack!

Keep the medication in its official packaging – travelling full time with medication

You should also try and keep the medication in its proper packaging where possible. This can be very frustrating as medicine boxes are often very chunky and can take up a lot of room in your backpack (trust me, I know!), but it helps to prove the validity of your medication if they’re stored in their proper packaging.

And that’s pretty much it! I can’t really offer you solid advice on actually taking and using your medication while travelling, as everyone’s individual circumstances will be entirely unique. Providing that you’re aware of everything you need to take with you and the safety measures you should have in place, travelling full time when you’re on medication for life shouldn’t be too much of a hassle at all!

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Have you ever been travelling full time while on medication? Do you have any experiences or tips you can share? Let me know in the comments or on Instagram @imjustagirl_16.