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HomePosts Tagged "Health" (Page 2)

Probably most of you have included some kind of wound cleaning substance in your first-aid kits. Sure, hydrogen peroxide’s the way to go for getting dirt and other stuff out of the wound, but it’s hardly the only antiseptic out there.

Anticipating that some of you can get a little freaky like me when it comes to having a complete medical kit, I’ve decided to use this opportunity to write about potassium permanganate – prince and pauper, at the same time, among antiseptics. What’s even more interesting is the fact that knowing what this stuff is will allow you to use for stuff other than cleaning wounds.

Before I start talking about the many uses of potassium permanganate, here’s a historical tidbit. During the latter years of the Korean War, the North was so desperate to gain a foothold that it began deploying unconventional weaponry. White phosphorus rounds were one of the weapons used against the South Korean soldiers and friendly American GIs. I won’t go into many details as to what kinds of wounds these devilish contraptions inflicted; suffice to say that it wasn’t a welcoming sight.

Anyway, the trouble with phosphorus rounds was they continued to burn inside the would long after leaving the gun’s barrel. Almost invisible to the naked eye, the Army surgeons had to improvise. And here’s where potassium permanganate comes into play – phosphorus reacts to potassium permanganate; quite violently I might add.

However, if used in small amounts the compound makes phosphorus light up like a Christmas tree. So, in order to operate, surgeons would dunk wounded patients in tubs filled with water, pour in some potassium permanganate, switch off the lights, and operate.

Outside of surgery, this compound can be used for tons of other stuff, most of them having to do with our favorite topic – getting out of SHTF situation. So, after probably boring you half to death with my little historical detour, here’s how potassium permanganate can serve you in a survival-type situation.

  1. Wound managed and various life-threatening scenarios

Let’s start by stating the obvious – potassium permanganate is a very effective antibacterial agent and just the thing you’ll need to keep infection at bay. However, the thing with this compound is knowing what forms works best depending on the nature of your emergency. For instance, in the case of wound management, the liquid solution would be the best approach. However, the powdered form can be successfully employed when having to deal with stuff like snake bites or poisoning.

By the way, if you or someone close to you has ingested poison, you can induce vomiting by using a 0.2 percent permanganate solution. Doctors would often order stomach washes using this compound. Conditions of the skins like irritations, sores or eczema may also be treated using potassium permanganate. Still, if you consider including this compound into your B.O.B or household emergency kit, I wouldn’t use it for more than wound washing.

  1. Getting rid of the dreaded morning breath

Although it’s far trickier to use than baking soda\salt with others, it may be possible to use potassium permanganate to 86 the dreaded morning breath. To prepare a mouthwash, dissolve one gram of powdery potassium permanganate in two gallons of water. This stuff will burn your esophagus and stomach, so be sure you spit it out. By the way, since potassium permanganate is known for its astringent effect (making the skin cells contract), you can use the mouthwash mix to get rid of stinky feet. Use this in conjunction with purified water and soap, and you won’t need another foot spray ever.

  1. Water filtration

If you’re all out of water filtration tablets or can’t lay your hands on charcoal, it may be possible to use powdered potassium permanganate to remove bacteria from the water. According to the FDA’s safety guidelines, the concentration should be around one unit of potassium permanganate to 10,000 units of water.

To figure out what this means, imagine you have a well with very dirty water. By applying the dilution ratio, it means that you will need to use around 7 grams of powdered potassium permanganate to purify one gallon of water. Do the math if you plan to sterilize smaller amounts of liquid.

  1. Fire-starter and probably self-defense weapon

Here’s my favorite way of using this stuff outside medical emergencies – to start a quick fire. For this, you will need around 10 grams of potassium permanganate and one-quarter of a teaspoon of glycerin (if you can’t find glycerin, use a water and sugar mixture). Place the permanganate on a small plate. For extra safety, you should do this experiment outside, as far away from flammable sources as possible. It would also be wise to put the plate on a hard surface like concrete slab or brick.

Now grab a pipette, draw a bit of glycerin and put a few drops in the middle of your permanganate mound. Stand back because the fumes are highly toxic. In a matter of seconds, you’ll see smoke rising from the mound, followed closely by purplish flame. When it’s safe to approach, grab yourself a handful of kindling and longs, move the place to your firepit (don’t forget those safety gloves) and, voila! You now have a cozy fire.

As for the weapon part, I guess you can create makeshift pipe bombs using potassium permanganate and phosphorus. I don’t know for sure if phosphorus is an over-the-counter compound or not, but in SHTF situation, you may be able to combine these two in order to make defensive weapons.

Be extremely careful when mixing potassium permanganate with other compounds. As you’ve seen from the above-mentioned experiment, permanganate doesn’t behave like an English gentleman when combined with stuff like glycerin. Always wear protective gear when working with volatile compounds.

Well, that above covers my take on using potassium permanganate outside the medical field. I hope you’ve enjoyed my article. As always, if you feel that I’ve missed anything, don’t be a stranger and leave a comment.

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Outside of surgery, this compound can be used for tons of other stuff, most of them having to do with our favorite topic – getting out of SHTF situation.

Back when I was in college, I needed money so bad, that I was forced to take quite a lot of odd jobs. Who wasn’t, right? One of the oddest, if I can call that, was working as a book salesman in my home town. You’re probably asking yourself right what kind of person would complain about selling books. I, for one, of course, and probably most of my former co-workers.

See, recommending a title to someone or arranging them on the shelves were the easy parts – you still had to haul them by hand or cart from the back. So, right before I told my manager that we could take his job, wrap it in barbed wire and shove in the place where the sun doesn’t and won’t shine, we had a really busy week.

Long story short, I had to haul quite a lot of book-filled crates. Next morning, my back felt so sore, that I could hardly get out of bed. From there it got progressively worse: numbness in the feet, cringy back pain, stuff like that. My doc told me that I had something called lumbar discopathy, a very fancy word for your spinal column being broken.

Although I’ve tried my best to take it easy, sometimes, I can still feel pain shooting down my back. Thanks, college-me for this marvellous gift! I hope you get psoriasis or something. Anyway, many years later, I’ve tried almost any type of back treatment, short of surgery, for my raging back pain – physical therapy, diets, more exercising, less straining, you know, the usual. For a while, I was okay-ish, but when the weather went sore, so did my back.

Finally, after reading tons of stuff on this subject, I happened about a quaint little recipe which, according to the author, can relieve any kind of join, back or knee pain. Sure, I always preferred witchdoctors over MDs, but why the Hell not, I said to myself.

I kid you not when I’m saying as this stuff smells nasty, and it tastes even worse. But, by God, it really does what’s it supposed to do – take away the pain (wish it could do the same to memories).

Now, the recipe I’m about to show you involves three types of seeds and raisins. I know that it sounds like a stomach-churning combo, but give it a chance. Apart from being great at dealing with all sorts of pains and pangs, you can use leftovers to create survival energy bars. You can also eat it for breakfast instead of cereals, poached eggs, pancakes or whatever.

So, here’s the wonder-med I’ve been talking about.

“Dead leaves, seaweed, rotten eggs, too, stir them in my witch’s brew.”

As I’ve mentioned, this recipe calls for three types of seeds: pumpkin, flax, and sesame. The first is held in very high regard among docs and dieticians since they’re packed with an omega-3 fatty acid, known for its anti-inflammatory effect, zinc, copper, and other essential minerals. As for pumpkin seed, they do contain a fair among of omega-3 fatty acids, along with vitamin B1, phosphorus, and selenium.

Sesame seeds are highly recommended for people with brittle bones, and it’s very effective against any type of inflammation. Word of warning though – curb your sesame seeds intake during pregnancy, as high levels can induce preeclampsia.

Raisins, on the other hand, can aid digestion, since their packed with vitamins, fibers, and a shit-load of minerals. You should consider eating more raising if you have an iron deficiency.

Anyway, this is the basis for this wonder cure. You’re still going to need a couple of more stuff though like honey and gelatin. Let’s get cooking!

Ingredients:

  • Honey (two squirts or 200 grams).
  • Gelatin (no more than three tablespoons).
  • Sesame seeds (4 or 5 tablespoons).
  • Flax seeds (8 tablespoons).
  • Pumpkin seeds (a small pack or 40 grams).

How to prepare

I should warn you that this recipe is very challenging. You’ll have to be at a chef’s aide to pull this one off. It calls for extreme concentration, precision, finesse, and knack for balancing the ingredients. Are you for this challenge? Good! Here’s what to do, young padawan.

Step 1. Gather up all your ingredients.

Step 2. Plug in your food processor or blender.

Step 3. Toss everything inside and hit the “pulse” button a couple of times.

Step 4. When the food processor\blender finished chopping the big chunks, switch it to low, and leave the thing alone for a couple of minutes.

Step 5. Switch off the blender, pour the contents inside a bowl, and mix with a spoon or something.

Step 6. Enjoy (or not)!

That’s it! You now know how to prepare the most complicated natural remedy for pains or pangs in the world. About the aspect part – yes, I’m painfully aware of the fact that it looks disgusting, but with the added honey it should taste more or less like semolina pudding. You can eat for breakfast or as an after-dinner dessert; it’s entirely up to you. If there are any leftovers, you can always turn them into survival bars.

It’s super easy: keep your moist ingredients aside and use the dry ones as the basis for your MREs. Add a little bit of milk powder or sugar, mix the batter, add the moist ingredients, and put the bather in the oven. You may want to check my article on how to prepare home-made MREs for additional ingredients and instructions.

So, this simple recipe will help you deal with any kind of pains, back or otherwise. I can’t say for sure how long before it kicks in – can be a couple of days, weeks or even months. In my case, I started feeling a whole lot better after eating this pudding for an entire month.

Anyway, hope you liked my recipe, guys. Hit the comment section to tell me how things turned out for you.

0 Comments

Now, the recipe I’m about to show you is great at dealing with all sorts of pains. It involves 3 types of seeds and raisins. I know that it sounds

I admit that I’m somewhat of a hoarder when it comes to food. No shame in this, only the fact that I’m on round-the-clock freezer and fridge cleaning duty. Yeah, I know it’s kind of a bummer to take a garbage bag and throw away that awfully good food just because you consider your family’s needs nor the fridge’s capacity (true story).

Anyway, after cleaning the fridge this morning, a thought stroke me: what if there’s some magical way of telling if the food’s safe to eat or not? Well, that would spare the trouble of having to clean the damned thing each week, not to mention the fact that I would probably save a lot of money.

As a prepper, you probably know by now that food past its prime is unsafe to eat, no matter how SHTF-ish the situation gets. This is the reason I’ve spent the rest of my day searching for a way to tell apart rotten from safe to eat food. Yes, I needed to ask Google for directions because I’m really bad at colors and, because of this damned cold, my sense of smell is close to nonexistence.

So, before you grab your garbage back to summer-clean your fridge, freezer or both, you may want to take a closer look at my kick-ass list on how to figure out if your food’s still good or packing a six-shooter.

  1. Soggy edges

Could never tell for sure how off my veggies were. I always assumed that as long as they don’t give off a funky smell, they’re good for eating. Dead wrong! Apparently, soggy edges, especially in green-leafed veggies like lettuce, kale, spinach, watercress or cabbage is, in fact, the first sign of spoilage.

Yes, I know that it’s a no-brainer, but as I discovered, people usually disregard this part, telling themselves that the veggie’s safe to eat if you cut around the soggy part. So, if you see any sogginess, brown patches or if the vegetable sort of deflates, it means that it has gone bad and, therefore must be thrown in the trash can.

  1. Discoloration

Of course, nothing spells “spoilage” better than an unnatural color. However, in some cases (red bell pepper) it’s hard to tell if that’s part of the vegetable’s life cycle or a tell-tale sign of spoilage. The best way to see how fresh your veggie is would be to make a small nick on the green part. Pull it aside. If it’s green on the inside, it means it’s safe to safe. On the other hand, if it has a brownish tint to it, do yourself a favor and throw it in the trash.

  1. Molding

While you’re cleaning your fridge and freeze, you may want to take a closer look at the bread and any other pastry you may be hoarding. See, no matter how well you keep your bread, there’s always that chance of mold growing on it. If you see any, throw it away as fast as you.

Heard a doozie some time ago that moldy bread may be safe to eat, at least for a couple of days, if you remove the moldy part and stick the loaf in the oven for 10 minutes. That’s a big no-no, and I would advise you to throw away the bread as well as the other stuff it came in contact with.

  1. Limpness

Veggies such as green beans have a limp-type of aspect after being kept in the fridge for too long. If you see any of that, it means that the legume is way past its prime, meaning that it has lost all nutritional value and could severely compromise your health if consumed. Yes, I know that most of you are in the habit of quick-freezing green beans and other stalky veggies.

Still, the freezer’s not always the best option for long-term food storage. Sure, it can extend the shelf-life by a couple of weeks or even months but, eventually, all of it will go bad. In case of veggies look for paleness and a thick layer of ice. As for meat, ice plus a violet tint equals garbage bag.

  1. Foul smell

The nose always knows! If you pick off any strange odor coming from your food, then it’s more than safe to assume that it really has gone bad. Meat will give off a rotten smell, while veggies will smell just like forest fungi. The same smell can emanate from eggs and eggplants. Keep in mind that eating rotten stuff can result in food poisoning or worse.

  1. To float or not to float?

In some cases, it’s quite difficult to figure out if they’re spoiled or not. Take eggs for instance. If there’s no expiration label on them, it’s nearly impossible to tell the difference between a fresh and an old one. Luckily there’s a test you can use to figure out if the eggs are safe to eat or not. Fill a bowl with cold water and place all your eggs inside. If they went under and lay flat on their sides, it means that they’re fresh. If not, then you should consider going to the store to buy a new carton.

  1. Discoloration in meat

There’s a bit of an argument on this one. While some say that meat discoloration is solely the result of poor packaging and exposure to air and, therefore safe to it, others argue that meat turned grey or brown should be tossed in the trash. Can’t say for sure which side is right, but my humble opinion, it’s not a good idea to begin experimenting on food. Best to throw away anything that has an unusual color.

That’s it for my short and sweet guide on how to tell if the food’s still edible or not. As always, if you feel that’s, I’ve missed something crucial, do hit the comments section and speak your mind.

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Before you grab your garbage back to summer-clean your fridge, freezer, or both, you may want to take a closer look at my kick-ass list on how to figure out

Back when I was in college, I needed money so bad, that I was forced to take quite a lot of odd jobs. Who wasn’t, right? One of the oddest, if I can call that, was working as a book salesman in my home town. You’re probably asking yourself right what kind of person would complain about selling books. I, for one, of course, and probably most of my former co-workers.

See, recommending a title to someone or arranging them on the shelves were the easy parts – you still had to haul them by hand or cart from the back. So, right before I told my manager that we could take his job, wrap it in barbed wire and shove in the place where the sun doesn’t and won’t shine, we had a really busy week.

Long story short, I had to haul quite a lot of book-filled crates. The next morning, my back felt so sore, that I could hardly get out of bed. From there it got progressively worse: numbness in the feet, cringy back pain, stuff like that. My doc told me that I had something called lumbar discopathy, a very fancy word for your spinal column being broken.

Although I’ve tried my best to take it easy, sometimes, I can still feel pain shooting down my back. Thanks, college-me for this marvelous gift! I hope you get psoriasis or something. Anyway, many years later, I’ve tried almost any type of back treatment, short of surgery, for my raging back pain – physical therapy, diets, more exercising, less straining, you know, the usual. For a while, I was okay-ish, but when the weather went sore, so did my back.

Finally, after reading tons of stuff on this subject, I happened about a quaint little recipe which, according to the author, can relieve any kind of join, back or knee pain. Sure, I always preferred witchdoctors over MDs, but why the Hell not, I said to myself.

I kid you not when I’m saying as this stuff smells nasty, and it tastes even worse. But, by God, it really does what’s it supposed to do – take away the pain (wish it could do the same to memories).

Now, the recipe I’m about to show you involves three types of seeds and raisins. I know that it sounds like a stomach-churning combo, but give it a chance. Apart from being great at dealing with all sorts of pains and pangs, you can use leftovers to create survival energy bars. You can also eat it for breakfast instead of cereals, poached eggs, pancakes or whatever.

So, here’s the wonder-med I’ve been talking about.

“Dead leaves, seaweed, rotten eggs, too, stir them in my witch’s brew.”

As I’ve mentioned, this recipe calls for three types of seeds: pumpkin, flax, and sesame. The first is held in very high regard among docs and dieticians since they’re packed with an omega-3 fatty acid, known for its anti-inflammatory effect, zinc, copper, and other essential minerals. As for pumpkin seed, they do contain a fair among of omega-3 fatty acids, along with vitamin B1, phosphorus, and selenium.

Sesame seeds are highly recommended for people with brittle bones, and it’s very effective against any type of inflammation. Word of warning though – curb your sesame seeds intake during pregnancy, as high levels can induce preeclampsia.

Raisins, on the other hand, can aid digestion, since their packed with vitamins, fibers, and a shit-load of minerals. You should consider eating more raising if you have an iron deficiency.

Anyway, this is the basis for this wonder cure. You’re still going to need a couple of more stuff though like honey and gelatin. Let’s get cooking!

Ingredients:

  • Honey (two squirts or 200 grams).
  • Gelatin (no more than three tablespoons).
  • Sesame seeds (4 or 5 tablespoons).
  • Flax seeds (8 tablespoons).
  • Pumpkin seeds (a small pack or 40 grams).

How to prepare

I should warn you that this recipe is very challenging. You’ll have to be at a chef’s aide to pull this one-off. It calls for extreme concentration, precision, finesse, and a knack for balancing the ingredients. Are you for this challenge? Good! Here’s what to do, young padawan.

Step 1. Gather up all your ingredients.

Step 2. Plug in your food processor or blender.

Step 3. Toss everything inside and hit the “pulse” button a couple of times.

Step 4. When the food processor\blender finished chopping the big chunks, switch it to low, and leave the thing alone for a couple of minutes.

Step 5. Switch off the blender, pour the contents inside a bowl, and mix with a spoon or something.

Step 6. Enjoy (or not)!

That’s it! You now know how to prepare the most complicated natural remedy for pains or pangs in the world. About the aspect part – yes, I’m painfully aware of the fact that it looks disgusting, but with the added honey it should taste more or less like semolina pudding. You can eat for breakfast or as an after-dinner dessert; it’s entirely up to you. If there are any leftovers, you can always turn them into survival bars.

It’s super easy: keep your moist ingredients aside and use the dry ones as the basis for your MREs. Add a little bit of milk powder or sugar, mix the batter, add the moist ingredients, and put the batter in the oven. You may want to check my article on how to prepare home-made MREs for additional ingredients and instructions.

So, this simple recipe will help you deal with any kind of pains, back or otherwise. I can’t say for sure how long before it kicks in – can be a couple of days, weeks or even months. In my case, I started feeling a whole lot better after eating this pudding for an entire month.

Anyway, hope you liked my recipe, guys. Hit the comment section to tell me how things turned out for you.

0 Comments

Now, the recipe I’m about to show you is great at dealing with all sorts of pains. It involves 3 types of seeds and raisins. I know that it sounds

A couple of days ago, I took my wife and kids for a ride to our hunting cabin. The weather was holding and, I said, why not? Four hours later, we arrived only to find out that someone nicked the power transformer from one of the nearby electricity poles.

Long story short, our weekend was doomed because the electricity company representative said that a replacement should arrive in a couple of weeks. Back when we furnished the place, we didn’t consider that something like this could happen, and so we went ahead and bought all the electrical appliances we could find at a discount.

Here’s where things get interesting. My grandma gave me this old and battered chest. Told me that inside it I’d find anything a chef needs to whip up a quick dinner, power or not. Because that thing was heavy and smelly, I figured that the best place to store it would be the hunting cabin.

Seeing that the power won’t come any time soon, I took a peek inside the chest to see if there’s anything of use there. I am not exaggerating when I’m saying that I struck gold. Inside, were indeed all the kitchen tools one could need to live a totally electricity-free life. And I would be lying if I didn’t admit that we had some trouble figuring out what goes where or how to use those thingies.

Anyway, seeing that more and more of you guys are asking about powerless appliances, I figured showing you my list of 8 most useful kitchen stuff. Dunno if you have chest inherited from your grandparents or not, but, surprisingly enough, most of this stuff can be bought from just any kitchen appliances store, and, yes, they don’t cost a fortune. So, without further ado, here are my choices in powerless kitchen gadgets.

  1. Hand-operated coffee grinder

Because I’m a coffee junkie I’m going to start by saying just how awesome and handy a cordless coffee grinder is. I mean, nothing compares to that subtle, yet flamboyant, freshly-ground coffee aroma – way better than sex (hope my wife doesn’t read this article).

Anyway, if you get ahold of one of these gadgets, be sure to hit your local gourmet coffee store for some great beans. While you’re at it, learn how to make Turkish-style coffee – beats espresso any time of the week. Be sure to clean your grinder every now and then and oil those parts to prevent blockages.

2. Meat grinder

If we’re talking of couldn’t-do-without kitchen items, the meat grinder’s is out there with the big shots. Nearly every recipe that calls for minced meat, whether it’s lasagna, moussaka or meatballs, will taste even better with freshly-minced meat. For a while, I used to buy minced pork from my local supermarket.

Gave it up for Lent after I discovered that I could make it at home, with the cuts of choice. More that than, I simply abhor the fact that even the most expensive minced meat is filled with so much water that you mostly end up boiling your meat instead of searing it. Great little gadget, very low maintenance, but now so great when it comes to cleaning it. Pros and cons, man. Pros and cons.

3. Hand-cranked food processor

I like preparing salad dressing as much as the next person, but doing so without an electrical blender is quite difficult. Wrong! The hand-cranked food processor will chop down your veggies or meats in a matter of seconds just like any over glorified electric blender. Just make sure to give those blades a quick sharpening from time to time and to apply some oil or WD 40 on the moving parts.

4. Kitchen scale

My wife’s madly in love with making all sorts of cakes and cookies and pastry. However, most of the time, she needs a scale to measure the ingredients – sometimes I feel like I’m stepping into a meth lab or something.

My take on the electronic scale is the old and moderately precise mechanical scale – a cup, a platform, and several weights. Might not work that well if you need to measure with Swiss precision, but other than that it’s a very dependable kitchen item.

5. Tea kettle

Not much of a tea drinker myself (usually do that when I’m nursing a cold). But I have to admit that a tea kettle is pretty useful around the house, especially when the power goes out.  More than that, if properly maintained, a kettle can last for decades if not more (mom said granny got her tea kettle from her mom). It’s also a very fast and low-gas consuming way of warming up water for other necessities.

6. Eggbeater

Forget the mixer! If you really want to step up your kitchen game, learn how to tame the egg beater. IT’s a really simple item, but one that helps you prepare far more stuff than omelets (I like to use it to prepare the bather for my MRE survival bars).

7. Can opener

Those electrical gadgets are shinny and new but much too unreliable to be kept around the house. If the power doesn’t go out on you, that thing will break down faster than you can say “preparedness.” I had to fix two of those blasted things and buy three others. So, my solution was simple – out with the bad and in with the good, the good being the mechanical can opener. Solid piece of work, capable of breaking into just about any can out there.

8. Water filter

Water comes, and water goes. No matter where you’re from, you must always ensure that the water you drink is, well, drinkable. That’s why a water filter is a must around any house, hunting cabin or duplex. It may be a little expensive compared to the other items on this list, especially the spare carbon filters, but it’s an investment worth making.

That’s my list. Do you have some other mechanical gadgets on your mind or in your off grid house? Share it here.

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Dunno if you have chest inherited from your grandparents or not, but, surprisingly enough, most of this stuff can be bought from just any kitchen appliances store, and, yes, they

Knees are weak; palms are sweaty… Just one of those passing migraines that have the habit of ruining a perfectly good day. As one who had to deal with migraines for the past couple of years, popping pills has become something of a hobby for yours truly.

And even my prescription meds, I can’t seem to shake loose those annoying and throbbing aches.

Anyway, after seeing that marvelous piece on the effects of garlic inside the ear ! I’ve decided to let you on a little prepping secret: salt cures migraines! What? You can’t be serious.

Yes, I am. You mean the same stuff that makes our ticker go haywire can actually cure a frigging migraine? Yup, that’s right. Wouldn’t have written about it if I had even the slightest doubt about it. Even tried it out me to see if works, and it does. Dunno if its placebo or the real McCoy, but the thing is that my migraines are getting less, well, migrainy.

Still, before showing you this neat little trick, let’s get sciency a bit and talk about the connection between sodium (salt) and migraines.

Salt and Migraines Don’t Click! Or do They?

Let’s consider the basics – we need electrolytes in order to live, breath, and thrive; no, you’re going to drink Gatorade instead of water because it contains electrolytes. Think of these substances as the body’s electricity conductors. Their job is to balance the fluids that flow between the outside and the inside of our cells.

As you’ve probably guessed it, sodium is an electrolyte. The most important one at the that. Potassium is also an electrolyte. Now, the interaction between sodium and potassium creates what it’s called an action potential, which is another fancy word for electrical stimulation. This prompts our cells to wake up and do what they’re supposed to do. More or less, it’s like prodding a stubborn cow with one of those electrical batons to make it move.

Our bodies, like the perfect little machines they are, have this innate ability to auto-balance sodium level, but only to a certain degree. Too little sodium and you get kick-ass symptoms like fatigue, hallucinations, headaches, and, yes migraines. On the other hand, low levels of sodium lead to more debilitating symptoms like seizures, coma, and, of course, meeting Lady Scythe. Lovely, isn’t it? Well, that’s it for sodium. But what about migraines?

Well, if you had one before, then you know that it’s something much worse then a headache. For the others, migraine is the, let’s say, the lovechild of headaches and extreme nausea.

Migraines end in throbbing headaches, but they’re usually accompanied by symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, change of vision (your eyes are unable to focus that well), and numbness in the arms, legs, and feet. In some people, migraines can cause hypersensitivity to light (master, don’t come out! The sun’s still up), irritability, and loss of appetite.

I usually end up spending the rest of the day in my attic, listening to some tunes, each time the migraine hits.

Great info, but what’s the connection? Hold your britches. Here’s what you need to know. Among the most common causes of migraines is lack of sleep, dehydration, too much salt, stress, food additives, weather changes, and, bam, electrolyte imbalance.

Though the exact relationship between sodium and migraines has yet to be determined, the guys in cool lab coats, tend to think that it has very much to do with our diet and how our body processes vits, minerals, and nutrients. Our body cannot produce salt, so we need to get it from somewhere else (food and drinks).

The sad part is that although we try our best to curb our salt intake since it’s known to lead to cardiovascular disease, we end up eating more salt than the recommended daily dose. Why? Because our f-ing food is riddled with it. Everything from meat to dairy, sweets, and processed food contains more salt than a saline quarry.

You know what’s the recommended salt intake? 2300 mg – that’s about three-quarters of a teaspoon. Still, with all this wondrous food around, we end up eating one and a half teaspoons of salt per day, if not more.

So how does this amount to salt being good for migraines? Well, some researchers have found out that patients who consumed a small amount of salt were less likely to experience debilitating migraine symptoms compared to those on low sodium diets or no salt. Again, they don’t know for sure why it happens, but it seems to pay off. I tried this cure a couple of times, and it worked like magic.

My take on pain meds

So, to get rid of those migraines here’s what you will need to do. Grab an empty glass, a lemon, salt, and a jug of water. Squeeze the lemon juice, pour it in the glass, then add one tablespoon of salt and water. Stir and shake. Drink it, and that’s basically it. In 30 minutes, tops, you’ll feel like a new man or woman. That’s it – simplicity itself laid out in front of you.

One word of caution, though. If you have heart or kidney issues, I wouldn’t advise using this trick, since it can lead to other nasty entanglements.

You can also use the same mixture of other hygienic purposes. For instance, if you eliminate the lemon, the water-and-salt mix is great for reducing throat swelling. Also, those who have gland problems (another fancy word for smelly feet or armpits), try washing the aforementioned body parts in water with a little bit of Epsom salts. Stay safe!

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Well, if you had one before, then you know that it’s something much worse then a headache. For the others, migraine is the, let’s say, the lovechild of headaches and

In modern times we have become accustomed to medication and healing being only a phone call away. It wasn’t that long ago that we were much more vulnerable to disease. In 1800 43% of children died before their 5th birthday. Its a staggering stat.

This should act as a reminder that without modern medicine the elderly and the young suffer and die on a regular basis. The young and healthy are also subject to the same fate. We have seen modern medicine come to a screeching halt after major hurricanes and other powerful natural disasters.

Of course, these are temporary issues but imagine a world where the medicine runs out, the doctors leave, and you are left to fend for yourself. Could you become the physician and healer in your own family?

Medical Preparedness

Our powerful and effective pharmaceutical and medical industries have extended lifespan and created incredible advancements. However, that power is something of a double-edged sword. Its has also created dependency.

Most Americans have a box of band aids and some OTC medicines in their cabinets. That is the extent of medical preparations. This can be a big problem if we see a time of long-term calamity. Most people think about empty shelves and they get hungry.

Food isn’t the only thing that will go away. All medications, bandages, ointments and other first aid related materials will be gone, as well. Everything must be shipped into your community by trucks and if those roads are obstructed or trucks left inoperable you will literally have to get by with what you have on hand right now.

Can you imagine cutting yourself and worrying about dying from infection?

This will be the situation in a world where waste management is offline, and plumbing is compromised. To be blunt there will be trash and feces in the streets! Next come the pests and they bring disease and viruses.

You need a serious stockpile of medical and first aid preps to assure you are ready for the worst-case scenario.

Natural Healing

You can also leverage the world of natural healing to help with the trials of serious disaster.

Medicinal Herbs

Many plants have powerful healing benefits. Therefore, many preppers dedicate large spaces in their garden to growing herbs. Many herbs have culinary and medicinal uses. Things like oregano have powerful antibacterial properties.

Essential Oils

By taking many of these powerful herbs and pulling the essence out of those herbs and plants you get powerful medicines that can be used and blended in all sorts of ways. Essential oils are a tough thing to recreate but a small stockpile can address everything from allergies to wound healing and even boost immunity.

Trees

The secret of the survival world are the trees. Trees are an incredible resource, but they take some time to learn. Some trees are even painkillers and fever reducers! The best part about these trees is that they are around for all four seasons. That is big!

While gardens die off and wild plants get buried by snow, trees carry on. You can drink the immune boosting pine needle tea 365 days a year and get those benefits.

Learning about the healing powers of trees is essential.

Medical Library

Having the right books on hand to create a medical library can also make a huge difference if the medical system is compromised. Having some high-quality medical resources will give you a tangible resource that you are going to turn to in the worst-case scenario.

If you are looking to get the full health preparedness spectrum covered, you may want to check The Lost Book Of Remedies!

Not too long ago I needed treatment for a minor skin condition. I’m insured, but the copayment still put a dent in my budget. Just a couple of days after this costly incident, I found out that I could have used a stinging nettle tincture. And next time I will, for sure.

Now imagine you weren’t insured and had to pay the full cost. Maybe you have kids to care for too, and money’s tight. Are you going to pay, or just suffer? A lot of people just suffer, but there’s no need to. Four or five generations ago everyone had a load of home remedies for things like that.

Follow this link and find out how to take care of your family at no extra cost.

Extra care will do…

One more thing? Learn 1st Aid. It really saves lives.

First Aid Skills

 

Even with a stockpile of resources and a medical library, practiced skills are what truly makes a difference. Your medical library can teach you about procedures and processes but that can never be a substitute for hands on experience with things like CPR and dealing with real medical emergencies in real time.

Most people don’t go to this level because it takes physical work and dedication. However, we are moving into a time when skills like these are no longer going to be options. State agencies offer up free classes on first aid under the CERT program.

These are 8-hour courses and though they are a time investment, you will come away with some serious skills. Of course, it will be up to you to keep those skills sharp.

Trauma classes are also popping up all over the nation. If you decide to jump into one of these, they often cost money and you must be careful about your instructors. Get to know their background and why they are an instructor.

Conclusion

There is a reason medical doctors are in school for so long. There is a lot to learn! There is a lot of practice to be had and experience to gain. If we face a serious collapse of basic services and critical infrastructure its going to disrupt our medical system and you are going to become the family physician.

What will you do when they look to you for answers? Are you prepared to act, are you informed enough to act?

If not, you should consider resources listed above. You should invest in a sturdy medical library and a stockpile of first aid supplies and OTC medications. You could also check out The Lost Book Of Remedies and add that powerful prepping resource to your library, as well.

Surviving a serious disaster is about gaining every advantage you can.

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Of course, these are temporary issues but imagine a world where the medicine runs out, the doctors leave, and you are left to fend for yourself. Could you become the

Vodka is one of the highest concentrated alcoholic drinks available. Its relative tastelessness makes it a favorite for combining into mixed drinks, and it’s possible to find relatively inexpensively in almost every grocery store in America. Vodka, if used and stored correctly, is also a very important supply to have for prepping, because it has a wide range of possible uses and it never goes bad.

Vodka as a Bartering Supply

When the SHTF scenario finally occurs, one of the surest things that will happen is that alcohol’s value will skyrocket. People crave their vices, even if the vice is not one that causes a physical dependence, and they are usually willing to give up quite a lot to get even a drop of what they know and love.

It’s also a fairly sure thing that, as much as we prep for the future, we cannot possibly deal with every eventuality. You may think you’ve got enough to keep you and your family fed, until you suddenly realize that you have ten boxes of noodles, but no pasta sauce to make a meal with.

Since vodka stores indefinitely, and since it has such a high concentration of alcohol, it’s possible to get a buzz with a very limited quantity of alcohol, and in an SHTF situation, where dependents have been without for so long, it will take very little for them to get drunk. Therefore, you should have little trouble trading a bottle, or even a few sips, for something very valuable when that time comes.

Vodka as a Medical Supply

Like all alcohol, vodka can be used in place of ethyl or isopropyl alcohol in medical applications. Obviously, as a designed food item, the vodka is not quite as good of an alternative as the real thing, but in a pinch, you can certainly use it to disinfect wounds, or rub it on the body over an area you may wish to cut into or sew to reduce the risk of infection.

You could use it to clean your knife or other supplies as well, paricularly needles, or tweezers. Vodka won’t be as effective as other forms of made-to-use medical supplies like hand sanitizer or medicinal alcohol, but it will work well enough.

Alcohol is also useful as an analgesic for tooth pain, and can be rubbed on your skin to treat itches or poison ivy.

Vodka to Make Tinctures

If you grow herbs, or use herbal medicine in any way, then vodka should already be part of your fall purchase list so that you can use it in creating tinctures to preserve herbaceous medicines. The process is simple – in a small, dark and opaque bottle or jar, fill the bottle or jar with herbs (leaves, flowers, roots, or whatever piece you’d normally use). Top off the bottle with vodka, and let it sit for a week or so in order to have the medicine steep into the liquid. After you’ve allowed the mixture to steep, you can strain out the liquid tincture, and store it in dropper bottles, which take up less area and have an adequate measuring system included.

A few tips: you must ensure that your alcohol is at least 80 proof (40% ABV – alcohol by volume) so that the alcohol content can successfully break down the essential plant matter. You must make sure that your storage solution is opaque, as sunlight can damage the medicinal qualities of the tincture. Making a tincture is a method of storing herbal medicines nearly indefinitely if you preserve the bottles in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight.

To take a tincture, you simply add one full dropper to a beverage, or apply underneath your tongue. Because the tincture is an alcoholic product, it will allow the medicine to be absorbed quickly in to your bloodstream, and work quickly and powerfully to fix your ailment. Some herbalists recommend rubbing tinctures into your skin, although this is probably less effective.

Sage leaves, chamomile flowers, and willow bark are easy-to-grow plants that are common in many areas, and have a variety of useful effects. They make great starter tinctures.

Vodka as an Accelerant

Vodka is very high in alcohol content, and as anyone who experimented in chemistry can tell you, alcohol burns hot and quick. You can use vodka as an accelerant for fires (similar to lighter fluid). It does not create a steady, long burn, but it could help you catch a few twigs on fire, and is especially useful if you’re not all that skilled with bushcraft.

Vodka as a Gun Cleaner

If you’ve got a rag and a bottle of vodka, you have all the materials necessary to clean your gun. The alcohol in vodka can break down most of the buildup and gunk that accumulates inside gun barrels and can get all the moving parts cleaned and shined up well.

Vodka as a Weapon

With a rag, a bottle of alcohol and a fire, you have an effective Molotov cocktail, an exploding fire grenade that can deal massive damage to crowds, a vehicle or a building. If you’re in a one-on-one fight, a broken bottle is a very menacing weapon. But beware, glass bottles either do not break easily or shatter completely, depending on a lot of factors. Once again, the movie and TV stereotypes are a myth. On the upside, anyone you injure with this will appreciated that you were kind enough to use a weapon that will fight infection.

Vodka to Keep Warm?

Alcohol in general can make you feel like you’ve increased your body temperature, and therefore, it is often thought of as a way to keep your internal body temperature high. In fact, alcohol does the opposite. You feel warm when you drink alcohol because it actually lowers your internal temperature, causing you to feel like you just walked out on a warm summer day wearing a winter coat. Drinking in cold temperatures can be very hazardous to your health. However, that false feeling, along with the numbing effect, can be an effective method for calming agitated people.

Almost any of the applications here use vodka in unconventional ways, and in almost all circumstances, it is not the primary or ideal way to perform the action. Also, any high proof alcohol will do the job, but vodka is the most accessible and least expensive in my experience. Brandy, Ever-clear or moonshine will all work quite well. When buying vodka, it’s probably best to buy it in glass, not plastic, bottles, and you may wish to choose an organic brand. The higher the concentration of alcohol, the more effective it will be in almost every circumstance listed above.

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Vodka is one of the highest concentrated alcoholic drinks available. Its relative tastelessness makes it a favorite for combining into mixed drinks, and it’s possible to find relatively inexpensively in

Get In Shape

No, really. With absolutely nothing to your name, you can be better off than a quarter if not half the preppers with gear, land, and partners. Want a little ‘for example’? How about the huffing and puffing we hear when folks run from the cold or rain? Or are forced to hustle to catch mass transit of some kind?

There’s the muscle injuries and heart attacks that get warned about ahead of winter storms. There’s a lesser publicized set of aches that even active homesteaders work through at the beginning of spring or late summer and autumn as we get back in to full swing – doing more than shoveling snow, poking in checking on things, hauling feed to the (usually) closer barn than to and around pastures. Every year, there are hikers who end up overextended and in distress.

We shake our heads at news stories when people put themselves in sucky situations. Let’s make sure we’re not one of them sometime in the future.

Get in Shape for WORKING

General physical ability can be helpful, and it’s a leg up, for sure. However, there’s gym fit and there’s street-woods fit. Gear your “workouts” to things you’ll be doing. You can also find exercises that directly relate to activities you expect.

Mix up your walking/packing/jogging/sprint surfaces. If you live rural and plan to cut cross-country, if you’re away from home, sure, focus on the “natural” surfaces around you. Don’t ignore hardtops, but they’re less important for one-time, single-digit day-count packing. If you live or work in a lot of urban environments, though, make your training more fifty-fifty.

Walk on the sides of ditches and in loose leaves to build your ankles up. Sandy beaches offer a variety of challenging textures that can also help seriously strengthen legs and ankles depending on where in the tide line or above it you exercise and run. It’ll be helpful in snow and ice as well, and in tilled gardens or hand-harvesting hay and grains and big bean plots.

Those strong ankles will also be an aid in keeping your balance anytime you lose it – like if you anticipate ever getting shoved or tripped.

If you live somewhere floods are a risk or where you get a fair bit of snow, start plowing through some water if any’s available. You may be able to find times of day or parts of parks where you won’t attract attention slogging through a little stream or knee-deep in lake, bay, or marsh water. You may also be able to find an affordable YMCA or similar pool, although you’ll be “stuck” with waist-high instead of the more-unique pulls of calf- and knee-high slogging. (Please watch for snakes that will be annoyed with you and wear good sneakers.)

Go slow – this isn’t a sprint, it’s preparing you for winter work and bug-outs, not a footrace. Steady, certain steps are the biggie, and developing the muscles. Don’t be too ambitious at first. Rushing is a broken ankle or wrist and be careful waiting to happen. Be smart in cool weather – hypothermia doesn’t require freezes.

You can find gym equipment or band workouts that can help you build muscles for raking and shoveling, swinging an ax, or hauling and pushing carts and wagons. Bands require an investment, and there are contrasting opinions about them, but they’re affordable and compact – exercise anywhere.

Boxing and kick boxing exercises abound on the internet. Both build an enormous amount of core strength.

A gallon of water weighs about eight pounds. (Start with a half-gallon or liter, please.) If we get milk, we can get weights at home without spending an extra penny or having to build in time to go somewhere. When you’re ready for more, look around your environment for pipes, golf clubs, sturdy pruned limbs, etc., that can be used to create a bar. (Duct tape them – sliding weight, even “just” 8-16 pounds, is a recipe for an injury.)

Do Exercises Correctly

Do weight, stretching, and isometric exercises slowly. Use a mirror to check your form. When your form is muscle memory, close your eyes and concentrate on the feel.

Bucking, rocking, kipping or whatever you want to call them are not only cheating yourself. They’re also an injury waiting to happen. You also work more of your muscles, longer and harder, by working them slowly.

Build the Right Strengths

Start with low weights and high reps. Keep those high reps and slow motions even when you advance in weight. Practice holding at each point, and stopping midway for holds, too.

There are the instant-action parts of homesteading and camping/packing/paddling, absolutely: that moment when you heave the pressed hay up and over, to stack or to carry, or slinging a bag of feed up and over your shoulder, shoving off rocks or getting flipped backwards. There are “power pops” when you stress your tool maintenance guy and your body taking bypass pruners to tough wood and at funny angles.

However, many of our tasks are endless repetitions – raking, forking, shoveling, paddling, hauling a rope of a beaver slide or pulley lift to get hay or straw to a loft or hoist an animal for butchering.

In low-power or no-power situations, and low- or no-noise situations, there’s also hand sawing – which is a fast action, but a lot of it. There’s things like rocking a garden weasel back and forth, and push-pull lawn cutting with a rotary mower. There’s the bent or crouched schnick-schnick-schnick-turn-toss-schnick-schnick-schnick of harvesting grains or hay or straw, or gathering small branches or vines, or trimming down tree feeds for livestock.

Do, absolutely, work some of the hand-and-footwork speed drills, too. There are times when higher weights and quick motions do come into play.

I have to have the “snatch” strength to catch that ladder before it tips, or to snag a tree when rotting stuff gives way underfoot, to help somebody on steep trails or slipping on ice, or the harness line when my goofy dog accidentally bounces another dog over the edge of something (most recently it was her brother off a boat dock).

My medical supplies do me no good if I can’t heave my heavy dog over my shoulder and get it somewhere, or drag my family and partners out of something or into something. Maybe it’s a house fire, maybe they slipped off a bridge, maybe a bookshelf tilted. Maybe it’s a large animal, and being able to slam and brace and hold a gate to keep something out and away from them.

Even so, most of those have an endurance aspect. Catching for a moment is only half the battle.

I have to sustain that hold, and I have to be able to pull without losing my grip. I have to scramble with that hold sometimes, or not lose my footing.

Maybe today there’s an earthquake or tornado that starts a fire, some nut-job shooting, or a 500-year flood strikes. If I can’t carry or drag my loved ones all the way out of harm’s way, I lose them.

Maybe today’s task is sitting on the ground or edge of something, digging in heels, straining against a rope and “climbing” to haul something to a loft or my kid/partner/lover/parent out of a well or somebody’s deer pit. If I can’t hold onto that timber we’re hauling, if I slip as belay anchor or lose my grip on that rope, I hurt somebody.

Initial adrenaline will only take us so far. It’s worth getting in shape for.

Prepare Your Body, or Prepare to Fail

All the gear in the world isn’t going to help somebody who can’t get out of a building or down the road, who can’t escape a fire or flood, who can’t evade a mob and then put enough distance between them to beat the police barricade lines.

The best bug-out location on earth won’t help somebody who can’t get to it and keep it going – who can’t lift their kid and that fancy bag up over a fence, who can’t build a shelter against cold, wet weather to keep their family from hypothermia, who can’t lift enough water in big buckets to keep livestock and gardens watered, let alone bathe.

The expensive spotting scope and fancy rifle that found and took a deer doesn’t help the guy who then can’t get it up a hill or across the flats – at all, without injury or heart attack, or “fast enough” in some parts of the world where bears, hogs, and human scavengers like to check out gunshots.

Side Benefits to Exercise

Exercise is also incredibly good for the brain, both in combating stress and depression, and in sharpening our minds and senses. Tired bodies help us sleep better, with sleep hugely important to stress, recovery, mood, and decision making.

When you feel stronger and fitter, you’ll also find your confidence increasing, which in some cases actually decreases aggression and combative attitudes. (Lack of confidence tends to lead to those small-dog yappy-snappy, argumentative people who take everything as a personal insult and a direct challenge to authority.)

That’s going to make a disaster of any scale a whole lot easier to deal with, no matter how active or sedentary it is.

Prep for Retaining & Regaining Strength

If you’re lucky enough to have a bunker, a storm cellar, or a tight compound, don’t forget to stash ways to stay in shape while you’re locked down. You only need a little space and some things that – besides bands – are probably already there. Make sure you also have a variety of exercises, stretches, and drills printed out and stashed.

Not only is endurance and raw strength important, and something that can be easily handled at little to no cost, work on flexibility. Exercises for seniors can be an excellent source there.

Physical therapy exercises are beneficial as well. Don’t forget to print up what they apply to. It can range from post-stroke and nerve damage recovery, to knee replacements and torn ACLs, out to oddballs like whiplash and dislocated fingers and wrists. Not only are many actually pretty fantastic stretching, mobility, dexterity, and strength-building regimens, if there is an accident or injury, you’re prepared for full recovery.

The One Irreplaceable Prep

Every disaster and evacuation, we hear of refugees surviving incredible hardships and long journeys, and people managing incredible physical feats to save their loved ones. But for every feel-good victory, there are losses. Not everyone makes it fast enough, far enough.

Increasing physical ability can be done in two, three, or four 10-20 minute sessions a day, a few times a week. It can cost nothing.

Some of it can be done pumping our fuel or during regular shopping trips, adding less time than we’ll stand in a checkout line or lust over goodies behind glass. Some of it can be done one hand at a time, reading or scrolling the internet with the other. We can keep up with weekly shows/sports doing cals and Pilates and physical therapy on the carpet and kitchen chair, or using a bar hung from a sturdy doorway.

Your body is the one thing there is no backup for. There are no excuses. Not time, not money, not current physical limitations. We can get stronger, and by doing so, improve our chances of survival.

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Get In Shape No, really. With absolutely nothing to your name, you can be better off than a quarter if not half the preppers with gear, land, and partners. Want a

Whether strolling through the park or romping in the backyard, there are a number of things that parents and caretakers should know and pass along, especially to young kids.

Recent statistics show that children younger than six account for a disproportionate percentage of poisoning cases, including nearly half of all poison exposures, according to the National Capital Poison Center.

The highest incidence of poisoning typically occurs in one and two-year-old, the poison center says, though all age groups are affected.

This guide will help parents and guardians know how to prevent poisonings from plants and pesticides and respond quickly to help keep kids safe.

Types of Poisonous Plants

The most common – and dangerous – types of poisonous plants found near backyards, parks, and trails include solanine, grayanotoxins, and cardiac glycosides:

  • Solanine can cause moderate nausea, vomiting, headaches or diarrhea. It’s found in a number of different foods and ornamental plants, but most often in Jerusalem Cherry, Nightshade, potato sprouts and unripe tomatoes. If a kid eats a plant that contains a lot of solanine, they might get drowsy, sweat a lot or experience changes in blood pressure and heart rate. Effects most often occur within two to 24 hours.
  • Grayanotoxins are common in azaleas, rhododendron, and other yard plants. If you’re off-road, watch out for Lambkill and mountain laurel. If a child ingests these plants, they might experience burning, tingling or numbness in their mouths. Other common symptoms include nausea, vomiting, sweating, and confusion and occur within three hours of exposure. In extreme cases, a child may have a seizure.
  • Cardiac Glycosides are most often found in Lily-of-the-Valley, foxglove oleander and squill. First signs include headaches, confusion, vomiting, stomach pain, and dizziness. Children might also experience changes in heart rate and blood pressure.

Here are some other plants to keep an eye out for:

  • Elephant ear plants
  • Daffodil and hyacinths
  • Larkspur
  • Wisteria
  • Acorn and oak leaves
  • Black locust
  • Mistletoe
  • Hemlock
  • Poppies
  • Poison oak, ivy, and sumac

How to Prevent Poisoning from Plants

The best thing parents can do for kids is to teach them never to pick or eat anything from a plant they find outside, regardless of how good it smells or looks. Make sure your children know to eat plants or fruits from outside only if they have permission and if the plant has been washed thoroughly.

Be careful not to confuse your child by picking items from a family garden and eating them outside. Be mindful of tops of potato plants and green portions of potato, which contain solanine, as well as rhubarb leaves, which are poisonous.

If you have or are taking care of a young child, take stock of backyard foliage before letting the child play. Keep berries, seeds, and bulbs out of reach, avoid using poisonous plants for decoration and eliminate all mushrooms from the yard. Be sure to double-check if it has rained recently.

In addition to regular supervision, consider constructing a safe gardening space within a raised garden or container and placing it in your yard. Fill the space with pesticide-free soil, smooth rocks or other items that are safe and will keep your child engaged.

If you’re planning a trip to the park, take a quick walk through the area and note any plants that may be poisonous. Same goes for any wilderness adventures or hikes. Remember that young kids will be attracted to plants with bright flowers or poisonous berries; avoid these at all costs.

What to Do If Your Child Touches or Eats a Poisonous Plant

If your child ingests a poisonous plant and starts to choke, has trouble breathing, swallowing or falls unconscious, call 911. If your child has come into contact with a poisonous plant but isn’t showing any immediate signs of distress, don’t wait for symptoms to show – call your local poison control center at 1-800-222-1222. Be prepared to share your child’s age, symptoms, and your best guess of the plant he/she consumed and, to the best of your knowledge, when the plant was ingested.

If you cannot seek immediate assistance, make sure that your child doesn’t have any fragments of the plant in their mouth and give them only small sips of water. Do not try to make them vomit. If there is any skin irritation, rinse affected areas with fresh water. Again call your local poison center as soon as possible.

Pesticide Safety

Remember that all pesticides carry a level of toxicity and pose a risk to all people, but especially to infants and small children, who are extra sensitive to their toxic effects.

If you choose to use pesticides, read the product’s label thoroughly. Shop around for the least toxic pesticide you can find and keep it in its original container and far away from children and pets.

When applying pesticides, take extra care to keep your children and pets as far away from the area as possible. Remember that the pesticide will take extra time to dry. If your lawn has recently been treated, ensure your children wear closed-toed shoes and sit on blankets or use other barriers between them and the grass. Make sure your kids wash their hands after playing in the grass.

Safe alternatives to combat pests in your garden and yard include insecticidal soaps, horticultural oils, and natural repellents. Here are a few ideas:

  • Vegetable oil mixed with a mild soap for insects like aphids and mites
  • Mild soap mixed with water for insects like whiteflies, beetles, aphids, and mites
  • Neem oil mixed with mild soap and water to disrupt the life cycle of insects and to protect plants before they become infested
  • Diatomaceous earth as a natural pesticide
  • Pureed garlic mixed with vegetable oil, mild soap, and water to act as an insect repellent
  • Garlic, onion, and cayenne pepper, mixed with liquid soap as a natural insecticide
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Whether strolling through the park or romping in the backyard, there are a number of things that parents and caretakers should know and pass along, especially to young kids. Recent statistics

Sanity is important. Really. It’s easy to think that in a disaster we’ll just make do because we won’t have any choice. That’s adding a lot of stress to our bodies and minds in an already stressful situation.

People die and are brutalized as a result of today’s stresses, and various reactions to them. We are not all going to be immune should something occur – income loss, natural disaster, or nation-altering event. However, we can make some sanity-saving preparations to ease those stresses rather than increase them.

Curtains

We’re used to a great deal of privacy in most Western cultures. It’s no longer the norm to have 3+ generations in a single household. It’s no longer the norm to have even a nuclear family live without separate bedrooms and usually at least one family room to choose from and “getaway”.

People make it through boomerang children and sudden house sharing. Flipside: Consider how many conflicts (and separations) occur when folks retire. Sometimes, two people are “suddenly” exposed to each other 24/7/365 and discover they actually only liked each other in small doses.

When we share tighter spaces or share with more people than usual, conflicts tend to arise. Being able to retain even a minor visual escape from fidgets and from annoyances can be huge.

Cubbies can be arranged for tiny reading nooks, as well as to create smaller rooms or block off a bunk to provide some escape space. All we need to maintain some privacy and individual space are some sheets or fabric, and some screws, screw-in hooks, or some heavy-duty staples. You might also want to snag something like garden mesh or tulle that can be doubled up to provide a visual barrier but not block as much airflow.

Ear Plugs

As with getting out of sight, getting away from sounds can be enormously sanity-saving. The earplugs fit a variety of canals, fluff out fast, aren’t scratchy, and you can sleep on your side. They can also be used in conjunction with over-the-ear and around-the-ear headsets, which can further reduce the intrusion of outside noises.

Music & Headsets

Many of us like music, but don’t want to hear somebody learning to play the harmonica and singing may require those earplugs. Within my family, various infidels think Skillet is a pan, Pitbull is a breed, Celtic Woman is plural, FFDP=5FDP, and it’s normal to howl to country music. There’s audio torture in there for pretty much everybody.

Happily, we have options that will allow us to all dance to the beat of our own drummers.

There are umpteen music and video download services for smartphones or tablets. MP3 players have become wicked inexpensive. Phones are media storage devices, giving those old electronics we replace frequently new life. Terabyte external hard drives not much bigger than a wallet, fit compactly in Ziploc and EMP boxes and shields

Even more happily, there are these handy things called “headsets”. This is different from earbuds. Headsets go over your ears or fit all the way around the ear, sealing off even more of the outside world. Plus, you can wear earplugs with a headset.

You’ll want to make sure you’re also stocking multiple power options. There are rocket stoves that can produce electricity. Small solar chargers are inexpensive. Some are barely bigger than an old flip phone, some are the size of smartphones and tablets, and some that are still in the $20-$50 range take up the space of a laptop – some of which expand to 2-3x times that for collection. Most will handle cell phones and mp3 players easily.

Cough Drops & Syrup

It may seem ridiculous, but somebody repeatedly hacking really will get on others’ nerves. It can also be disruptive to sleep – theirs and others’. Sleep deprivation is one of those things that generates emotional outbursts and bad decisions. It’s an easy fix.

Books, Games & Entertainment

Don’t ignore entertainments just because you think you’ll be working and then sleeping, and won’t need light or distractions. We watched and listened to stories and played sports and games even during pretty tough, lean periods of history.

There are compact card versions of a lot of board games, quickie fun like Man Bites Dog, and games like Qwixx that can cross purpose into Farkle, Yahtzee, and other dice games with some pre-printed instructions. We can create holiday, seasonal, and educational versions of Pictionary, Last Word, BINGO, and Scattergories. (Budget extender: home-print prompts and draw for letters instead of buying the game/alphabet die.) Notebook-sized dry erase boards provide reusable playing and scorekeeping.

Books run the gamut from the usual suspects (crosswords, Sudoku, search-a-word, “Brain Busters”) to fiction in line with family’s TV or gaming interests. Large-print versions will be easier to read in dim light. Some of the free papers in front of supermarkets have a puzzle page (don’t forget to snag the next addition for answers, and pencils).

There’s nothing wrong with adding books to our electronic media, but have some hardcopies.

Places like Oriental Trading Co. can be great for nabbing tiny jigsaw puzzles, finger-fidgets, all kinds of crafts, brain teasers, small activities, dominos, and bead mazes, for less than $5-$10 per lot of 4-24. Watch for their free shipping with no purchase limit specials ahead of holidays.

You can have jigsaw puzzles made out of favorite photos, or print your own. A dozen with their pictures fit in a shirt box. Some Nerf or airsoft guns and home-printed targets can make for an all-ages pirate or zombie party. Indoor bowling sets, non-pokey dartboards, mini indoor basketball goals, homemade bean-bag tosses, and similar are all ways to keep boredom and stress from boiling over even if we’re not trapped by weather or in a bunker/compound situation.

If there are adults and adolescents, don’t forget the condoms. Especially if you don’t plan for other entertainments.

Vices

For some, books, games, movies, music, and the internet are vices. For others, it’s nicotine or booze, chocolate or caffeine, popcorn or chips. Some people are pretty well addicted to their sports, watching or playing. Socializing and shopping will be a hard loss for others.

Loss leads to stress, and we’re already looking at stressful situations. We can either add to losses, or mitigate some. People “Jonesing is only going to further stress them and those around them.

Vices can absolutely be poor choices, especially in contained spaces. Still, weigh them out. Some aren’t so bad. Many addiction vices can be stocked for an initial transition period. Other types can be stocked to be a once-in-a-while treat or easily, inexpensively indulged.

Cool-Downs

Heat can be the straw that breaks a camel’s back. Heat can also cause actual medical stress, so combating it checks extra boxes.

One easy, fairly inexpensive helper are battery-operated fans. Some of them are tiny little AA and AAA mini’s we clip to strollers and dashboards. Box fans come in 6”-10” and 12”-20” ranges, running off 4-8 AA or 1-4 C or D batteries. Many can now be charged directly via USB.

Some of them generate a fair bit of breeze, which can help tremendously with perceived temperature. Even the less-effective ones can help a little. You can increase effectiveness by sticking something cool or cold in front of them, like a frozen water bottle, wet sponge, or one of those crack-cool ice packs (especially wrapped in a damp cloth).

Dunk-snap bandanas and soak-activated neck coolers (those start to get slimy after multiple uses) can also help significantly.

Exercise

The loss of friends and family, the loss of purpose after losing a job or retiring, loss of social outlets, and injuries already cause people to spiral into depression. It’s a common problem as-is, and is fairly guaranteed to increase if our worlds are ripped away. Anything that can fight it will be a big help – exercise is one of those things.

Exercise also helps with stress. It’s going to be a necessary outlet for active folks who are suddenly “trapped”. It allows some to release some of their frustrations – some, not everyone. It can also ease anxiety.

Physical therapy and senior citizen exercises can be helpful even for young, healthy bodies. We can leave mat space for calisthenics and Pilates, have chairs sturdy enough for exercise props, and stock resistance bands. There’s also the option of sticking a bike on a rack – which has the advantages of potentially being connected to a grinder, a laundry machine, or a generator. Hand bikes, rowers, or reclining bikes have their own advantages.

I personally wouldn’t install a boxing bag or treadmill somewhere everybody has to hear it getting pounded, since that’s only going to create more conflict and frustration.

Dealing with Conflicts

Anytime you increase stress, problems are going to start showing up. It’s not like preexisting issues go away, either. Especially in situations where you’re doubling-up in homes, living in RV or camping conditions, or in a bunker-barracks scenario, conflicts are going to arise.

Study, train, and stock material related to anger management, stress, grief processing, PTSD, forgiveness, passive-aggressive tendencies, abuse/assault, compromise, divorce, loss specifically related to parents and kids and miscarriages, for-real conflict resolution, and both assertiveness and sensitivity training. Get training on listening – specifically listening to family members – for as many as can attend.

We see divorces, PTSD, business partnership dissolutions, and family meltdowns every day. Thinking that high-stress will only bring our people closer, not crack some and create fissures, is delusional.

Sensitivities

Sensory Processing/ Perception Disorder can manifest in a range of ways. Some “feel” and “see” certain sounds – sometimes like corduroy rubbing in the ear, or that awful sensation of a pencil eraser’s metal scraping paper and desk. I don’t actually recognize background noises – clocks ticking, ceiling fans whirring, dogs panting, conversations behind a door, and rubbing of a callous are as prominent to me as face-to-face words. It has advantages and frustrations.

Other common and regularly undiagnosed sensitivities include misophonia (triggered by picking at nails, whistling breath, chewing, sucking on teeth, flicking and tapping pencils, thumbing pages of books) and misokenisia (many of the same, plus twiddling thumbs, jerking feet, bouncing knees, etc., especially when the repetitive motion is at the verge of peripheral vision).

It’s not just “get over it” territory or being appalled by bad table manners and fidgets. The mis-wired brain triggers extreme flight-fight reactions. It can make sufferers want to cry, scream, or stab someone. People have grit their teeth so hard they crack fillings, and dug nails so hard into their own thighs and earlobes that they draw blood.

Providing escapes and being cognizant of bad habits, sensitivities to bad habits, and finding resolutions is going to be important. Especially since being trapped for a long winter already causes people to go postal (hello, cabin fever) and so many people have weapons handy.

Other sensitivities to note now, especially for tight, closed quarters, are things like somebody wheezing from Vick’s or Aspercreme, somebody sneezing and sniffling until aerosol deodorizers dissipate (and that person not covering their mouth/nose properly), regular detergents making somebody itch, improper hand washing (“Gross!” & “Don’t touch food/dishes!” tiffs), and the smell of certain cleaners turning somebody’s stomach. There’s usually a work-around.

Anytime there’s nowhere to flee – trapped together by a hurricane or frigid weather, or in a bunker-type situation – the reaction to stressors is going to be to fight.

Pay attention, learn sensitivities ahead of time, and figure out ways to prevent and mitigate them. Distractions and mini-escapes will help tremendously.

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Sanity is important. Really. It’s easy to think that in a disaster we’ll just make do because we won’t have any choice. That’s adding a lot of stress to our

Living with chronic pain, caused by any medical condition whatsoever, is an experience that nobody wants to go through. Unfortunately, there are millions of people that are experiencing chronic pain and wishing they knew how to once and for all get some relief.

We are all familiar with the concept of pain, we all have felt it at some point in our lives whether it was because we have cut our finger or broken our leg, our body has used the concept of pain to inform us that something is not quite right. However, in those examples, as soon as the reason is treated, we get lasting relief from pain. And that is the main difference between acute and chronic pain.

You see, chronic pain does not go away even though the injury has healed. You feel that annoying and challenging chronic pain for months, even years. It can occur as back pain or ankle pain or even a headache.

Chronic pain can be either mild or severe. You can feel it as shooting, burning, squeezing, stinging sensations or as a dull ache. It can lead to decreased appetite, insomnia, depression, and fatigue. And that is why it is essential to be treated appropriately. But what is causing chronic pain to occur?

There are quite a significant number of medical conditions that can lead to chronic pain. However, there are few of those that are occurring more commonly than others. And that is what I am going to talk about.

Let’s discuss these eight medical conditions that are most commonly described as the causes of chronic pain, shall we?

Peripheral Nephropathy – Caused by damage to your peripheral nerves, peripheral nephropathy causes weakness, numbness, and chronic pain usually in the hands and feet to occur. The cause of peripheral nerve damage could be traumatic injuries, metabolic problems, infections, diabetics, etc.

Chronic neuropathic pain can be treated with the use of medications, physical therapy, and massage therapy. You can also try exercising, which has been proven as an efficient way to relieve the pain in this case. Acupuncture has also produced results.

Fibromyalgia – Is a medical condition that causes chronic muscle pain, fatigue, depression, and sleep troubles. Although none of these symptoms can be seen, they do produce a considerable impairment in the patient’s life.

Although we are talking about a chronic pain here, there are a few powerful medications that you can try. And of course, there are the necessary lifestyle changes such as a healthier diet and regular exercise.

Perhaps exercising is the last thing on your mind when you feel your muscles aching. However, activities like swimming, walking, stretching have been proven to help relieve the pain.

Arthritis – With its 100 different types is among the most worrying medical conditions out there. If you gather your information about arthritis, you will soon find out that there is no cure for Arthritis.

All that you can do is perform a few tricks to help relieve the symptoms such as pain, stiffness, inflammation and decreased the range of motion. Once again, a healthy diet, regular exercise, and moderate alcohol intake can help you combat all of these symptoms.

Headache – We ALL know this one. However, when your headache lasts for more than a few hours, then you can consider your problem as a chronic one. And with a persistent headache, depression, vomiting, nausea, and insomnia come as well.

So, what can you do to relieve it? Getting a massage, trying acupuncture and some of the famous herbal remedies for chronic headaches in combination with an active pharmaceutical might be the thing that you are looking for. Hydrate. This, like low-dose aspirin, thins the blood slightly allowing it to more efficiently the areas where the pain is being generated.

Past injuries/surgeries – Can also be the cause of your joint pain. If your surgery is relatively recent, 6 months or less, keep your doctor informed as there are many things that can affect healing. If the surgery was severe – an amputation, then these take much longer to retrain the nervous system to deal with. Again – your doctor. And who among us does not have at least one relative or friend who claims their “fill in the blank” surgery can predict the weather better than their local news source?

Low back pain – This has taken part in everyone’s life at some point. However, for many people, it becomes harder and harder to deal with the more chronic it becomes.

Previous injuries, surgery, arthritis can all be the cause of your chronic back pain. And once again, massage, acupuncture, yoga, physical therapy and, in extreme cases, traction can help you combat your low back pain.

Multiple sclerosis – This has been listed as one of the standard causes of chronic pain. Chronic pain due to multiple sclerosis can be either neuropathic pain, pain due to fatigue and immobility or illness related to a spastic condition. Of course, pharmaceuticals are the best answer to your prayers here, but you can also try the unexpected effects of physical therapy, yoga, and massage therapy as well as some dietary changes.

The curvature of the spine – Such as scoliosis and kyphosis can also be the ones that are causing your chronic pain to occur over and over again. Since you know what is causing your chronic pain, in this case, the trick is working to remove the cause and with that your chronic pain.

But how can you do that, you ask? The best thing that you can do for scoliosis and kyphosis is physical therapy and lots of functional exercises. In the meantime, you can also look to non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and over-the-counter painkillers as well, under the advice of your doctor.

Conclusion

What you need to remember is the fact that you may not have to live with chronic pain even if you are not able to remove its cause once and for all. As you can see, we have listed 8 of the most common causes of chronic pain and explained what you can do to recover from the illness, or at least find some relief. The recurring theme of exercise, eating right and getting enough sleep should not be lost on you.

Additionally, you can try a massage or physical therapy or perhaps even yoga or acupuncture, whatever you choose we hope that it will help you to combat your chronic pain, lessen its severity and bring you some sense of control over your condition.

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Living with chronic pain, caused by any medical condition whatsoever, is an experience that nobody wants to go through. Unfortunately, there are millions of people that are experiencing chronic pain