During my trip to Thailand in 2016, I was hospitalized from severe food poisoning…It was dreadful. The funny part is, I had been eating questionable street food throughout my entire time in Thailand and was totally fine until I checked into a fancy, upscale resort in Phuket. After one overpriced shrimp pad thai meal at their elegant restaurant, I was in the throws of food poisoning for 48 hours. Here’s what I learned!
1. Always have travel insurance
This one is a no-brainer but it’s important to note. Travel insurance saved me hundreds of dollars when Thai doctors had to admit me to the hospital, do scans on my body, and administer tons of different drugs. Travel insurance is an absolute necessity while traveling, I cannot understate the importance of that! Hopefully, you are already well-aware of this if you’ve ever traveled before.
2. Prevent as much as you can
Southeast Asia is a particularly large hotbed for food poisoning, but it could happen anywhere in the world. Make sure that you always drink bottled water, avoid ice (since it can be tap water that was frozen), and be wary of what food you eat. I’m not gonna tell you not to eat street stall food since that’s a huge part of the culture of Southeast Asia, but just be aware of what you’re putting into your body. Does it look like that meat has been sitting out in the sun for several hours, or did you see the lady behind the street stall cook it thoroughly right in front of you? Have that mindset.
3. Bring necessary medication with you and hydrate
It’s a good idea for travelers to always have a couple of different over-the-counter medications with them on hand to treat any ailments that might come their way. For food poisoning, the most helpful medications include Imodium which helps to stop diarrhea and any sort of anti-nausea medication to ease that symptom. At the same time, your body is working to get rid of the bacteria that caused your food poisoning through these natural processes, so avoid medication unless you feel absolutely dreadful. Also, though it may be difficult, try to consume as many liquids as you can. Dehydration will only impede the process of healing, so drink lots of water!
4. Know when to seek medical attention
Food poisoning generally only lasts 24 hours or, at most, 48. If your symptoms extend beyond this, I would seek medical attention. My symptoms went away after roughly 1 and a half days, but I still took myself to the hospital before that because I felt that I was seriously ill compared to other times that I’ve had food poisoning. Doctors at the hospital gave me IV fluids which helped tremendously to hydrate me and gave me several anti-nausea and anti-diarrhea medications since my symptoms were not going away. I felt safer and much better in the hands of trained professionals at the hospital instead of dealing with the food poisoning in my hotel on my own.
5. Rest
Finally, the most important thing is to rest. It totally sucks to miss out on a couple of days of your hard-earned vacation, but your health is more important than anything else. I got food poisoning on my first day in Phuket and literally did not see any part of the town whatsoever because I was bed-ridden/recovering for nearly 3 days – I planned that trip for months in advance. But that’s OKAY because my health was the priority. Rest your body and give yourself the time to recover so that you can make a comeback days later and enjoy the rest of your trip!
Bonus point: update your friends and family back home so that they know what you’re dealing with and that you are going to be okay! Imagine worrying about your child, boyfriend, or best friend in a foreign country who is horribly sick and perhaps even hospitalized. Let them know step by step how you are doing!
