To survive one must be physically fit! This statement has been said and written over and over, time and again. To say that Survival is for this group of individuals exclusively has strong weight when it comes to a TEOTWAWKI scenario. How ever I would disagree with this assessment. Granted, total invalids could pose a problem but that is not the focus of this article. The focus is on those individuals who are disabled but can still function to some degree and contribute to a TEOTWAWKI scenario.
During the fall of the twin towers on September 11th there were 31 disabled employees working in the towers when they were struck by the jet planes. There was only one disabled survivor. This brave young lady and her friend took it upon themselves to no be a sheeple and risked their lives to get out of the building. Moments after they left the tower collapsed. The rest of the disabled employees died because they were told to wait by the stairwell and rescue workers would help them out. 30 lives were needlessly lost because they did what they were told to do.
In an ideal world, no one would be left behind but we do not live in an ideal world and all people no matter their background deserve a right to live and be productive members of society. A lot of disabled individuals have contributed to the world as we know it. Beethoven was deaf. Professor Hawking is wheelchair bound. Even President Roosevelt was disabled during most of World War II but saved this country from the nazi war machine. [JWR Adds: Some might argue that FDR‘s weakened condition led to disastrous results at the Yalta treaty negotiations.] So even if someone is disabled don’t count them out as a valuable asset.
On the practical side of survival let’s look at what can one do to contribute in a survival situation. To a disabled individual, every day is a challenge so one of the great factors that they have is the ability to improvise in everything they do (At least that is how I think.) Let me break it down to simple everyday tasks that people take for granted. Getting out of bed. Bending over to pick something up. Going to the bathroom. Sitting down or standing up. Climbing stairs or even getting up the curb. All of these scenarios don’t seem like a big deal to the average person because they don’t need to worry about these simple tasks in daily life. In my case all of these are daily challenges to overcome. In a pre-TEOTWAWKI world there is a lot of assistance to be had and laws that ensure that I can function in society with little or no assistance in certain areas. However there is a lot that does not apply because efficiency is not always geared towards the disabled. Going anywhere is an adventure. I go to a friend’s house to visit and he has a 4 or 5 step stoop with no railing. I do not have the strength to climb it without the railing. What do you do? Imagine trying to climb that stoop with 500 pounds on each leg with nothing to lean on to assist you. This presents a significant challenge would it not? How would you overcome this simple obstacle to visit your friend? If the stoop sticks out from the home and not running parallel to the wall there will be nothing to lean on to climb them. A standard cane is too short and one does not normally carry crutches around and the fact that the latter tend to hinder more than help when ascending stairs. A sturdy walking stick made from a shovel handle would be best in this situation. It is strong and be cut to the desired length for the user. Put a rubber cane or crutch stopper on the end and you have a multi-purpose walking stick. If applied right one can employ the walking stick as a portable railing. It can be used for defense. A walking stick can be used as a pry bar. It may also be used as an extension of you arm. Imagine sitting down on the toilet and the toilet paper is across the room on the sink counter. You have done your business and realize that you need the TP. Using the walking stick it is just long enough to reach the TP. If done right you would not need to get up to get the TP. There are several things that you can do with your walking stick that most people would not think of using it for. One can wrap a poncho around the walking stick and secure it with 550 Parachute-Cord. You now have a portable simple shelter in a compact package complete with a support spine all in one. Total cost for this was less than $5.00.
One more thing you can add would be a micro compass on the end. Drill out a small hole in the top of the shovel handle just big enough to fit the compass. Once done you can apply a silicone based glue (I prefer “GOOP “) and place the compass it the hole you just drilled. There are many things you can do to customize your walking stick to your needs. Your only limitation is your ingenuity.
Other aspects of Disabled survival can be put into one word “Improvise”. With this word there are several things that come to mind. Most of which revolve around making things easier with a minimal amount of effort to achieve the desired results. 90% of my survival planning is based on this concept. With limited strength and limited mobility, finding innovative ways to achieve my goals is a daily exercise in adapting normal items tailored to my specific needs.
One of the more embarrassing aspects of daily living is doing the simple task of going to the bathroom and wiping myself when I finish. A normal person has no issues with this unless they are paralyzed. I am not exactly pleased with the prospect of having someone wiping my behind. Not to mention the numerous jokes that are associated with it. In my case I have limited range of motion and it causes several problems. One of which is not having the ability to reach around and wipe. My Father had similar issues when he was alive but he did not live long enough for me to ask him how he overcame this little problem. You see his range of motion was even more limited than my own (I do stretching on a regular basis to keep what range of motion I do have.) I asked my mother about how my dad solved this and she was no help either.
This was an issue with immediate need. My attempts to solve this problem were futile at best for some time. As it became more and more difficult to reach around to clean up I was at my wits end. Then one day while tagging along with some friends at Wal-Mart it hit me like a ton of bricks. We just happened through the domestic supply isle. I was looking at the various implements used for cleaning and right there was a very simple tool that would solve all of my wiping problems. Hanging on the wall was a curved handled toilet brush. What caught my attention was the fact that it had a sponge on the end instead of the typical bristle brush. It was only 99 cents so I figured what the heck. It was a lot cheaper than the cost of a Birthday. That and there would be no need for water pressure or electricity to use. A simple solution to a very big problem. I have also found that Cottenel wipes are a must for my survival stocks, to use the brush. Take one Cottenel wipe and drape it over the end of the wiper making sure that the curved end of the handle is pointing up. Than just use it as an extension of your hand and finish your business.
Weight is another issue that I have to contend with. if there is anything more than 20 pounds that is needed to be moved and I am not any good. That is the limit of how much I can move and that is not very far. So this presents additional problems. The least of which is a Bug out Bag. If it is packed too light than there are essentials that are missed. If it is packed to heavy than It won’t bug out very far without help. I happened upon a nice little pack that solved my needs, made by Whirlwind. It has an extension handle and wheels I’m am currently modifying another walking stick to attach to the extension so that I can pull the backpack behind me when I am hobbling for short distances or attached to my electric scooter.
Speaking of scooters if you happen upon any Bruno brand scooters grab it they are no longer manufactured but they out last anything currently on the market. It turns out that the manufacturer stopped making them because they made them too well. Solid steel frame with an enclosed electric motor that does not get exposed to the elements like most standard motors. There are a lot of modifications one can do to this scooter that you would not be able to do to any of the other ones on the market. One other side note the Bruno battery cases are perfect for marine [deep cycle lead acid] batteries. You can swap out the chemical gel [“gel cell”] batteries with marine batteries in a pinch. The manufacturer does not recommend this. I waited until after my 10 year warranty expired before I did this. I was in the market for a new scooter by this time anyway but as long as mine was still kicking I’m going to use it until it finally dies. The reason I feel that the manufacturer did not want you to swap out the batteries is due to the cost. After extensive research on the types of batteries on the market and after reading several articles on SurvivalBlog about alternative power and battery banks I notice that with the exception of the ratings and output of any given battery it does not really matter what type is used as long as the output matches the recommended wattage usage of the device they are attached to. With the cost of the specialty batteries that the scooter manufacturer says you need I was rather irritated. The chemical gel batteries run about $180 each and I need two batteries for my scooter. That’s $360.for replacement batteries. I don’t like them because they are way over-priced and wear out much too fast. After the third set I looked into an alternative. That is when I read about Marine batteries. A good marine battery can be had for less that $50 and perform just as well as the fancy chemical batteries. I can even find them on sale for less depending on the time of the year I am looking. My scooter can go 25 miles on a full charge with an average top speed of 4.5 miles per hour. It is rated for a 350 pound carry capacity. I can carry 200 pounds of gear and supplies without any problem. Add to this a small trailer and the possibilities are endless. It may be low profile but it can go over most terrain without any problems. I have been able to take it up a 45 degree grade hill without any trouble except I had to lean forward to the front to prevent it from coming up and flipping me backwards.
Hope this helps anyone out there who may find that they may need to depend on a walking stick now or in the future. I will be typing follow up articles on additional items and skills to help those who are disabled and are survival-minded.