Category: First Aid/Medical

I read the article by “American Dad” titled “Prepping and Unassisted Childbirth”, and I must comment on some of his points.  As a “senior” practicing Physician, and an avid closet “Prepper” since the early 1980s, I have often considered the health consequences of a true SHTF scenario.  Only recently has my Family suddenly decided my preparations are not so “far out there” after all, but it has been a lonely quest these many years.  I long ago gave up trying to convince people to look past and through the media hype and actually “see” what is running the world view.  …

Sir: Becca makes a great deal of sense with regard to muscle recovery.  It is also my humble opinion, that massage is an essential component in physical therapy for major injuries and for those preppers, such as myself, who suffer from partial disabilities involving muscle issues that are resultant from nerve damage, neuropathy,  and other deep tissue injuries.  As an example, I have had everything from vertebra L3 down to vertebra S1 surgically fused.  While such a fusion, in and of itself, is not considered completely disabling; if you take into account the resulting damage of lesser nerves by the …

It could evolve as systems are stressed after a natural disaster.  It could be caused by a terrorist attack.  It could even be the result of a societal or economic collapse.  Have you ever thought about what might happen if our current health care system (EMS, Doctors, Hospitals, and Pharmacies) ceased to function normally? What would you do if you couldn’t go to your doctor, all of the hospitals were shut down, all of the pharmacies closed, and no one answered the phone when you called 911?  You would be on your own.  You would have to take care of …

James: I read with interest Dr. Koelker’s article/letter regarding DSMO and its pain killing effects and would like share my own personal experiences with it since I am an alternative health care practitioner (not a doctor). First, DSMO is a by product of the paper industry and yes, horse people have used this for years with excellent results. Outside of this country and within the US some doctors use it by injection directly into the joints with amazing results. A quick google search will bear this statement out. In my own experience I have used it topically for muscle problems …

A reader of SurvivalBlog wrote to ask whether dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is safe and effective for use in humans. The chemical is well-known in veterinary circles for its soothing effect on swollen, inflamed equine (horse) muscles.  But would it have the same effect on people?  Unrelieved pain is a great fear among survivalists and preppers.  Few have access to narcotics or anesthetics.  Wouldn’t be great if there were a readily available, safe and effective over-the-counter remedy?  That is the primary question with DMSO. What is DMSO anyway?  The chemical dimethyl sulfoxide is a potent solvent, produced as a by-product of …

Hi Jim & Family, SurvivalBlog readers will be interested in this new DVD titled “Alternatives To Dentists“.  It contains very effective techniques for daily hygiene, treating and preventing cavities, even healing abscessed teeth – and how to do this in a grid down, primitive, “no dentist available” scenario.  The presenter is Doug Simons who has been using these techniques for himself and his patients for almost 30 years.  Doug has a bit of a ‘tree hugger’ in him, but the information is solid and well worth having in any survivalists library. You’ll love it. – Greyback Mountain

Dear Editor: There are a few errors in J.C.’s article posted 5/19/12. I am a registered nurse that has delivered many babies in hospital and in home and other emergency locations. My comments are in bold type. J.C. wrote:   Make sure to never pull on the baby’s head. Do apply gentle downward traction while someone pushes firmly down superior to mother’s pubic bone. This counter pressure is usually only done if there is a problem delivering the shoulders not as a routine intervention. Once the baby delivers the top shoulder, then release all pressure by everyone and tell mom …

I never intended to be a homebirthing dad.  Our first child was born in the “normal” American way – in a hospital.  Physically, mom and baby came out fine.  But the scars from that experience still throb in our hearts many years later.  The impersonal way hospital staff treated us; the overactive use of clinical equipment, terms, and technology; the fact that I had to keep briefing incoming personnel on our birth plan (since apparently they didn’t take the time to actually talk to read the copies I had provided, or talk to one another); the fact that they ordered …

Our society today views childbirth as a sickness that can only be managed by “professionals” in the hospital.  Babies that might come out blue and unresponsive, possible hemorrhaging, and babies that get stuck in the birth canal are all things that deter families from having births at home.  These are real issues and should not be ignored, but they make up only a small percentage of birth outcomes.  The vast majority of women in the world can and do give birth safely at home.   As fellow survivalists, we understand that the government and media either hide statistics or distort them. …