How Medical Travel Prepared me for Real World Adventures
When Travel Changed Overnight
Nobody warned us that our camping trips, hiking trips, flights to California or Puerto Rico, and train rides to North Dakota would be exchanged for helicopter rides to Portland, Oregon, or Spokane, Washington — both of these cities being a 3+ hour drive from where we live.
At the time, I was a stay-at-home mom with Providence while my husband worked full-time in a position that consisted of shift work. I was four months pregnant with my second child, and I remember we couldn’t even make plans for the next week — let alone the next day — because circumstances with her health could easily change.
The Suitcase That Became a Lifeline
After trial and error, I quickly learned that the most important thing I could do was always have a suitcase packed with a minimum of four days’ worth of necessities for myself and my daughter. I call it our hospital bags.
My suitcase consisted of clothing, hygiene products, and over-the-counter medications, since sometimes I would arrive there with the same virus she had. As a woman, I learned to pack pads and tampons, and as a millennial, I definitely had to pack my chargers.
Providence’s suitcase consisted of pajamas, tubie pads, a few diapers and wipes, burp cloths, binkies, vitamins and supplements, syringes and extensions, as well as several lists that explained her daily routines, respiratory treatments, medication administrations, and feeding schedule.
Usually, parents don’t need to bring their own feeding pump since the hospital provides them. But Provi’s pump was different. She used an Infinity Pump, while the hospitals carried the Kangaroo pump — and we preferred ours. That’s why we always made sure to have an extra one in the suitcase, along with three days’ worth of food and feeding bags.
You never knew if she was going to be admitted at the beginning of a weekend or during a long holiday, when administrative staff would be on leave. This way, we could make it a few days — more if she was NPO — until Nutrition Services could bring us what she needed.
When One Bag Turned Into a Caravan
As she grew and as her condition worsened, the one suitcase turned into a suction machine, nebulizer, cough assist, shake vest, and a CPAP/ventilator.
Around the time of COVID-19, it became essential for us to bring her own equipment. Otherwise, we might not have access to one at all. And so, the packing list kept growing.
What the Hospital Taught Me About Travel
Fast forward to today, I acknowledge that the majority of our family travel over the last seven years was hospital-bound travel — but dang, did I learn a lot.
Organization became a big part of our life, and everything had to have a place. That way, when we had to pack up and leave on the spot, we were no longer caught off guard.
My obsession with organization began to blend into other areas of my life as well:
Overnight trip with the hubby? Sure — because I already had Provi’s needs and routines written in detail for her caregivers.
Girls’ trip to Florida for my birthday? Cosmetics and hygiene products are already packed.
Family camping trip? A packing list for each child is already made to make it go smoother.
Forgot her feeding tube while visiting another town’s farmers market? It’s okay — we have an emergency kit packed in the car.
From Survival to Adventure
What once was an inconvenience and stressor became a blessing and a relief. Not to say we don’t still have moments where taking trips is hard, or we forget an essential item — but a minor inconvenience no longer feels like being hit by a bulldozer.
This is why I’m so much more hopeful and excited for our upcoming adventures. They no longer cause me as muchstress and anxiety.
We’ve traveled long distances to North Dakota by car in 2023, to Disneyland by car in 2025, and to the Oregon Coast in January 2026. With each trip, I learn new tips and tricks, and I am so eager to continue our journey.
Looking Toward the Skies
Soon, I hope to take on the challenge of flying with our little family, though the unknown still feels a bit nerve-wracking.
Yet I’m reminded of a moment in Night at the Museum when Ben Stiller’s character, Larry, says, “I have no idea what I’m going to do tomorrow,” and Teddy Roosevelt replies, “How exciting!”