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31 Comments

  1. We are going to need to treat ourselves, so all the medical instruction, and reference manuals, we can get, the better. When at the thrift store, I often check for any books on the topic, and have a pile of reference materials on hand. This last winter, I had to rely on them, and was successful at a result. Total cost for the 1987 edition Merck manual, and old Physicians Desk Reference that provided the necessary information… about 2 bucks. I could have suffered serious secondary infections had I not invested, 2 bucks. Of course there was hours of reading involved, and soon discovered that a single reference source would not have provided enough information to have got the job done.

    I am certainly not qualified to be a medic, but I’ll unfortunately be the only person around here with a clue. Any background in medicine is bound to help. The ability to diagnose is half the solution, and the most critical part. That is why having reference books with plenty of pictures is so important. Having stuff ain’t gonna be enough. We are more likely to be taken out with a bug, rather than a bullet. So, rather than another rifle, I would invest in antibiotics, essential meds, bandages, disinfectants, antiseptics, adhesive tape, and a long list. It takes a huge amount of dressing material to treat a serious wound. If your linen closet isn’t packed full, you ain’t got enough. Instead of antibiotics, the first line of defense against infection will be the ability to clean a wound, and keep it clean. At least be prepared to do that.

    Again, the thrift store is the only way I can pile up such a quantity of supplies. And I might have to use the best, and only multi-purpose adhesive tape I can afford, duct tape. Brutal, but effective. It does not have to be the best, but it better be effective.

  2. Blisters would be a great subject to address, as many people buy new boots and head into the woods both summer and fall. Looking forward to next article around September.

  3. Excellent information. I would like to add one thing. When dealing with poison ivy there is one simple tool to keep at hand and that is Dawn dish soap. Dawn not only Cuts Grease in your kitchen sink does an excellent job of removing the poison ivy oils from your skin and clothing. I recommend a triple wash, back-to-back-to-back all while using a nylon scrub brush to help with the oil removal. I have found this to be very effective.

  4. Re poison ivy/oak rash treament–you mention not to use caustic (basic?) substances to treat the rash. What about vinegar?

    Awhile back, a friend got a significant case of it. Her forearms were a weepy mess. Finally, she wiped them off with vinegar, which dried up the rash, and really sped the healing.

    We always used soap, water, and Vitamin E oil.

    Then, we moved to a higher elevation that has no poison oak.

    1. Aspirin works well BUT..It is more irritating to the stomach and can cause ulcers. Especially when it breaks down in to salicylic acid (Corn Plasters) which causes a strong vinegar smell in the bottle. Also Aspirin has a stronger anti-clotting effect than NSAIDS and can increase risk of bleeding. Aspirin is also risky in children as it has been linked to a dangerous condition called Reyes Syndrome in young people with fever. Use with caution. It probably would be allowed on the market today by the FDA if a new drug application was made.

  5. Excellent article. Reading the comments got me thinking. As an OR nurse, please use caution regarding Duct tape and all tapes really. I can’t tell you how many patients I have seen with skin sensitive to adhesives in tape. One application sometimes results in blisters that are extremely painful. Try to use tape on just the dressing itself if placing on a limb. In olden days people utilized safety pins. Extra material might be used for wrapping around the entire body if needed for say an abdominal wound. A snug fit without being overly tight helps keep those dressings in place. As the author says ace wraps are great as well as something called coban. You should be able to find this at medical supply places and I feel sure Amazon, but it is not cheap. When changing dressings, I have always utilized water soaked gauze or cloth, and gently tease the tape away from the body. Never rip tape away from your patient.

  6. I’ve not tried dish soap for poison ivy type rashes, however I scrub the affected area with Fels Naphtha bar soap that is easier to maintain in a ruck than a liquid soap. Fels will cut the oils on clothing as well and can be shaved into the laundry wash. Follow Fels when washing the skin with a milder soap such as Ivory as the residue can form a rash itself. Fels Naphtha is an old old solution for Ivy rash.

    https://www.toolboxsupply.com/products/purex-04303-fels-naptha-heavy-duty-laundry-bar-stain-remover-soap-5-0-oz?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=TBS_Shopping_3&utm_term=4574861725206165&utm_content=Ad%20group%20%231

    PR

  7. I humbly must disagree with the doctor.
    I am also a family doc working in urgent care. I trained in Massachusetts and have seen hundreds of tick bites and cases of Lyme. I must disagree with the doctors comments on tick bites prophylaxis and treatment of Lyme or potential Lyme disease. The doctor is absolutely in-line with the CDC’s recommendations but in my opinion there are not aggressive enough. ILADs is a Lyme specific group of providers and they recommend 20 days of Doxy for tick bite prophylaxis and 6-8 weeks of Doxy for Lyme disease. This is a huge difference in treatment but the potentially life altering complications of Lyme disease merit a more aggressive approach to care (in my opinion). The study done on Doxy prophylaxis was almost 20 years ago and only claimed to decrease the rash associated with Lyme… Not the disease. The numbers in the study were small. Until we have a good test for Lyme and better research we need to treat it more aggressively. We treat acne with Doxy. A kid with pimples on his back will get far more aggressive treatment than someone with Lyme.
    Sorry to preach but I know first hand the morbitity of Lyme Disease. Please push for aggressive treatment and prophylaxis.
    Sincerely,
    Dr. B

  8. I knew the duct tape would raise eye brows. Yes, you are right to warn others. Duct tape as suggested is user friendly, yet not necessarily friendly for the patient. It is not designed for this job, yet it is an alternative. I would, and do use it in a manner as you describe, and limit the amount of tape used directly on the patient. In some cases, shaving the area would be a good idea. I also have lots of ace wraps, and safety pins of all sizes, even one in my BOB for weak or injured ankles.

  9. Not a doctor, but for minor eye irritations I would also recommend keeping viscous eye drops on hand. Refresh Celluvisc and Systane Ultra are a couple brand names (I am not affiliated with either). They’re just regular eye drops, like Visine, but slightly thickened so they serve as a bit of a cushion to keep your eye lid from rubbing over the scratch. That in turn keeps you from having the urge to rub your eye. They are a real godsend. They come in little individual use containers so your dose is always sterile. They do make your vision a little blurry for awhile but it’s manageable.

    1. Re: Prednisone, and antibiotics

      Hi SOG,
      Prednisone is prescription only in the U.S. The VA is quite restrictive, but perhaps there is another way. And Mexico is hot this time of year. The stuff is hard on the immune system. However, I know guys who cannot function well without it, and it could be a life saver in a few extreme cases…..

      Antibiotics can be purchased at a veternian supply without a prescription.
      Try this place: https://fishmoxfishflex.com/

      Buy this book on what to buy and how to use antibiotics, it is easy to read for a medical book.
      https://www.amazon.com/Altons-Antibiotics-Infectious-Disease-Antibacterials/dp/057841452X/ref=as_sl_pc_as_ss_li_til?tag=doomandbloom-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=77860cfd7f4da6716d740a52943c8e9e&creativeASIN=057841452X

      Go here for supplies:
      https://www.doomandbloom.net/

  10. Good information! Thanks.

    One caveat: Tight boots won’t prevent a break, but can mask the seriousness of the injury. I was snowboarding one time, when a skier cut me off rather aggressively and in my twisting dodge, I fell and broke my ankle. The pain was pretty bad, but I was able to continue down the mountain on my board (albeit very uncomfortably). I quit for the night, but was able to limp along in my boots to get home. It wasn’t until I took off the boots–which I wear pretty tightly laced–that I realized it was broken. The tightness of the boots kept things in place and prevented swelling. Taking off the boot was a real eye-opening experience!

    Also, if you are stung by a bee (not a wasp), the stinger remains in your flesh. DO NOT try to pull it out. pinching the venom sac (still attached) will put more venom into you. Instead, scrape it with a credit card or knife edge. This will usually remove the stinger and sac without adding more venom to the injury.

  11. Fels Naphtha soap is sure to cut poison oak and ivy oils from the skin, clothes and tools. If you don’t clean off the oil healing time will be significantly extended. The oils will also get on your dogs and can be transmitted that way. Jewelweed grows in the same places as poison ivy. It has orange slipper shaped flowers and seed pods that burst if touched when ripe. The watery sap will help with poison ivy, nettle rash and even athlete’s foot.

  12. Good article Doc. I would add (as a health care provider), I see a lot of fungal rashes in the summer which can be treated OTC. A few products to stock up are; Clotrimazole topical 1% cream, use twice a day for 2-4 weeks. Terbinafine topical cream 1% (the strongest OTC), apply twice a day for 1-4 weeks. Tolnaftate topical cream or spray, apply twice a day for 2-3 weeks. I usually recommend the spray to toe/foot fungus (not the nails) since it is easier to apply, and I also would spray inside the shoes. Stubborn topical fungus I would use Terbinafine, but probably start with Clotrimazole, which is much cheaper. (These all used to be RX drugs at one time). Nail fungus is difficult to treat, usually I recommend a visit to your health care provider for an oral tablet. There is a Clotrimazole 1% solution available, but the tablets are more effective (Terbinafine 250mg). Fungal rashes are hard to kill, you must be regular in applying the treatment, and do it for a length of time. Be religious. Fungi like dark, damp places, so keep things clean and dry. My 2 cents. I agree with the ‘sewNurse’, the coban is an excellent product, it has been renamed to 3-M Nexcare ‘no hurt’ tape or Nexcare Athletic wrap, basically it is a wrap that sticks to itself (and not you), and doesn’t require the metal fasteners that the ACE wrap does. We use it all the time, great product. It can be reused once or twice if careful removing it, but definitely put away some ACE wraps, as they will last much longer.

  13. This is the coban I bought. At first I thought (12 rolls???). But the price is cheap.

    https://www.amazon.com/Ever-Ready-First-Aid-Adherent/dp/B00IQTQU6K/ref=sr_1_4?crid=D436FK6S5LMX&keywords=coban%2Bself%2Badherent%2Bwrap&qid=1565760801&s=gateway&sprefix=coban%2Caps%2C242&sr=8-4&th=1

    Only $11.95.

    And I put 2 rolls in each of our first aid packs, including both our vehicles, bugout, etc.

    The leftover 4 are with our bulk trauma bucket. The bucket is a plastic, square topped bucket with lid and handle, from the deli, that used to hold cake icing.

    The trauma bucket is very durable, could be used to haul water, and large enough to accommodate a realistic amount of supplies for an amputation, bullet trauma, chain saw accident, etc. I urge you all to get a realistic amount of trauma items to stop the bleed, especially for more than one person.

    The bucket capacity enables packing lots of roller and square gauze, coban, large pads and tourniquets, disinfectant bottle, sutures, bottles of alcohol and distilled water, etc, etc. I usually keep the bucket handy in my shop, and toss it into the pickup when I go places for carpentry, shooting, cutting firewood, etc.

  14. “””Vinegar is great for reducing the pain of a bee sting, and the itch of mosquito bites. Just dab on with a cotton ball.”””

    Most don’t know about toothpaste–yes, stops pain instantly.

  15. I have had too many personal experiences with poison ivy. I too have found washing with cool water using a generous application of oil cutting soap (Dawn for me) is usually effective in preventing a rash, even from heavy exposure.

    Sometimes I don’t realize I’ve been exposed and hence get a rash. My typical heal time with no intervention for a rash is about two weeks – starting from the time blisters first appear, to skin being only cosmetically disfigured and not itchy any more. I have found two things that consistently help – If I apply Lavender and Peppermint essential oils (diluted in Fractionated Coconut oil) several times a day every day, the rash will heal in one week instead of two, and there is some minor relief from the itching.

    The second help is purely for the itching. I put the affected area (e.g. arm) under a flow of hot water from the sink, about as hot as healthy skin can take. This creates an intense itching sensation on the rash for about 30 seconds, and then it subsides leaving the area itch free for the next 4-6 hours.

    I have found the hydro-cortozone creams provide me almost no relief.

  16. Outstanding article. Very informative and well written. It highlights the value and the quality of the Survivalblog. I am a big fan of the web site and offer my “ well done and thank you” to the owner and editors.

  17. Being the “proud”owner of a couple stents, and therefore on anticoagulants, may I add another warning regarding NSAIDS? DO NOT use NSAIDS while taking anticoagulants.

    It’s sort of (morbidly) amusing just how very excited emergency department staff get, when their heart patient (me) has a hemoglobin of 7 when they expect 13 or 14. But, then, a bleeding stomach ulcer will do that. And some gastric bleeding commonly occurs with NSAIDS. It’s typically trivial, but when your Plavix or Brilinta or Xarelto or Eliquis or Pradaxa or warfarin (among others) binders your body’s mechanisms that normally limit that blood loss, well, things can get exciting.

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