Most important Homeopathic travel remedies for gastro on the GO

Remedies for nausea, vomiting, or diarrhoea while traveling? Whether you’re in Bali, Thailand or Fiji, or just ate a takeaway from your local Takeaway, it is very easy to end up with stomach upsets while away from home. And, it can sure put a dampener on your long-anticipated holiday.

Even with minimal experience, it is easy to handle common traveling ailments, such as food poisoning, gastro bugs, sunburn, and insect bites, using your Homeopathic First Aid Kit. One or two well-chosen homeopathic remedies can make a huge difference to the intensity and duration of symptoms, and then you can get on with your holiday.

An unwelcome guest at a wedding in Thailand

The following story is my experience in Thailand, using just a basic 20 remedy kit, for what turned out to be a major gastro bug at a wedding. The wedding planner did NOT see this one coming! My partner and I arrived at a posh resort in Koh Samui which had been booked out for the wedding. The many guests arrived from all over the world, and sadly, one of them brought an unwelcome companion with him, probably of viral origin.

Remedies for gastro

The gastro bug made itself known on the day before the wedding ceremony, and people started dropping like flies. Many of the guests came from Germany, France, and South America where homeopathic medicine is commonplace and practiced by most G.Ps, so they were very keen to take a few little white pills to help settle their vomiting, diarrhoea, fever and chills.

Consequently, I spent several days moving from villa to villa with my trusty Homeopathic First Aid Kit, handing out the appropriate remedy to match the particular symptoms. I also supplied probiotics and sachets of Gastrolyte (rehydration electrolytes), which were available from the local pharmacy.

I did send one of the guests to the local doctor, just to be on the safe side. He was highly anxious, and was much happier with his diagnosis of a viral gastro bug for which he took the
prescribed antibiotics! There are several gastroenteritis causes. A day later, he came and asked for some of the white pills that everyone else had been given. He responded well to Arsenicum and recovered quickly thereafter.

I am always amazed at the way each person reacts to the same virus or bacteria in such a different way. This is, of course, the basis of homeopathic prescribing, where the presenting symptoms of each person are matched to the remedy required to bring about healing. Which explains why different remedies are required for different people with the same bug.

Homeopathic Travel Remedies

Diarrhoea while travelling and remedies for gastro

The remedies needed most often were all the usual suspects for nausea, vomiting, traveler’s diarrhea treatment, gastroenteritis symptoms – Arsenicum, Nux vomica and Podophyllum.* However, there were also a number of more unusual presentations, where a little more investigation was required to reach the right remedy. Gelsemium and Rhus-tox did the trick in these cases.

The mother of the bride sent for me on the morning of the wedding. She was tucked up in bed, with nausea and diarrhoea, aching bones and was very tired and weak, asking how to get rid of traveler’s diarrhea. She was shivering with a hot face and cold hands and feet. She volunteered that she had been very anxious about the wedding preparations over the last few weeks. Two doses of Gelsemium and she was back by the pool-side within two hours, and in fine form for the wedding.

The wedding was a great success, with only one guest unable to attend. The Best Man went down with the bug the following night. When I arrived he was lying on the floor of his bathroom in-between bouts, rocking to and fro in an attempt to ease his back and leg pains. Rhus-tox did its work and within 30 mins he was up, and an hour later had rejoined the party.

Later, he needed Nux-vomica for over-indulgence. (Best party remedy ever!) And NO, just in case you are wondering, neither my husband nor I succumbed to the dreaded lurgy. As is our custom in Asia, we were already taking one probiotic daily, which we promptly increased to two x daily when we realised there was a problem. We also took
Arsenicum preventatively for travelers diarrhea prevention, as it matched the most common symptoms of the gastro bug.

When travelling in Asia, I always take my Homeopathic First Kit (obviously), tea tree oil as a local antiseptic, a good probiotic (I like SB Floractiv (Bioceuticals) and sachets of a rehydration/electrolyte solution (eg. Hydralyte).

Homeopathic First Aid Kit

SO, get familiar with your First Aid Kit. Read Natural Medicine in the Home eBook (from HHC online shop) and have a go at using your kit. A general rule is for an acute illness such
as a cough, cold or flu, take 3 doses over 4-5 hours. If there is no improvement, move on to the next best-matched remedy, or come into the clinic for an acute appointment if symptoms
persist.

Harbord Homeopathic Clinic runs regular ‘Homeopathic First Aid in the Home’ talks, which cover all the basics of using your kit, with a helpful discussion about the ins and outs of choosing between remedies. Just ring and have your name added to the call list for the next scheduled talk.

A WORD TO THE WISE – Severe or persistent travelers diarrhea and vomiting can quickly lead to dehydration, particularly in infants, children and the elderly. Fully recovering from gastroenteritis takes time.  Replace lost fluids and electrolytes with oral rehydration solutions or similar. As always, this is not personal medical advice and we recommend that you talk with your doctor.

Podophylum is not included in HHC’s First Aid Kit of remedies for gastro. It is often useful for the symptom’s of ‘Bali Belly’ (regardless of country of origin), and may be requested from the
clinic for diarrhoea while travelling.

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Sabina Vatter

I grew up in a home where homeopathy was regularly used. After completing my Masters in Psychology in Estonia, I was certain I would devote my life to working with people. The road took me to Manchester, UK where I qualified as a homeopath. At the same time, I had a strong interest in research and I completed a PhD in Medicine in 2019. Over the past decade, I have been involved in numerous research studies with different age groups and health conditions and published in many prestigious academic journals.

Since moving to Sydney in 2020, I have been involved with several homeopathy research projects with The Aurum Project. I also work as a homeopath in the Harbord Homeopathic Clinic in Brookvale, Sydney, alongside a team of fellow homeopaths sharing the same passion for homeopathy, yet also acknowledging our unique ways of practicing.
I have loved homeopathy since my childhood and I am grateful to be able to offer this wonderful form of healthcare in Sydney and internationally via Zoom to babies, children, teens, adults, and pets. I have experience in a wide range of ailments, including mental health, emotional trauma, and behavioural issues in adults and children, gynecological concerns, pregnancy, childbirth and postnatal concerns, gastrointestinal problems, skin issues as well as problems with sleep.

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