Category: First Aid/Medical

Medical Conditions That Do Not Need Antibiotics, by Dr. Bob

The subject of what not to treat comes up so often in medicine that books have literally been written about the subject both for medical and non-medical folks. I decided to break it down head to toe and try to approach it with a common sense approach. Headaches do not need antibiotics. If an infection is due to bacteria, if it causes headache alone…that would be really unusual and probably cause the person’s death. Some bacterial meningitis infections will benefit from antibiotics, but figuring this out in time and having the right antibiotics is just not realistic. Now, headaches can be caused …


Oral Rehydration Solutions Revisited, by Dr. Bob

The following is the “Simple Solution” –  Home made Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS) Recipe Preparing 1 (one) Liter solution using Salt, Sugar and Water at home. Mix an oral rehydration solution using the following recipe. Ingredients: Six (6) level teaspoons of Sugar Half (1/2) level teaspoon of Salt One Liter of clean drinking or boiled water and then cooled – 5 cupfuls (each cup is about 200 ml.) Preparation Method: Stir the mixture until the salt and sugar dissolve. Oral rehydration will make the difference between life and death with many serious diarrheal illnesses.  Please make sure you have this formula somewhere …


Avoiding Heat Injuries, by Dr. Bob

As it is affecting so many of us right now, seems like a good time to give you some information about heat-related problems and preventing heat stroke and heat exhaustion. Heat Exhaustion most often occurs when people work or play in a hot, humid place and body fluids are lost through sweating, causing overheating of the body.  Usually a person is dehydrated to some degree, from mild to severely.  The person’s temperature may be elevated, but not above 104 degrees.  Now, most of us can go inside a cool down either in air-conditioned vehicles or homes.  Even the movies are a great …


Avalanche Lily’s Bedside Book Pile

The latest books on top of my pile include: You’ll probably recall my mentions of Enola Gay, the editor of the excellent Paratus Familia blog. I recently received a review copy of her new book: The Prepared Family Guide to Uncommon Diseases. This book covers 20 uncommon diseases including Bubonic plague, Cholera, Malaria, Radiation Poisoning, Smallpox, Typhoid Fever. Also includes a special section dealing with home treatment of Influenza. The book has recipes, treatment of symptoms, shopping lists and more. Much of the information is also applicable to more common diseases. For example, the details on making your own Oral …


Two Letters Re: Observations From Fence Building

JWR, I’m a fan of your books and blog reader… in a recent guest post,  Observations From Fence Building, by Mudflap, however, the author stated something that is practically true when exercised with common sense, but is factually incorrect and potentially dangerous. The author stated flatly that: “You cannot drink too much water.  As long as you can freely urinate, keep drinking water.  Don’t keep track of how much water you are downing.” When the contrary is quite true – water intoxication, and hypnotremia could occur – in addition, gross excess of water in your system can trigger a reflex …


Two Letters Re: The Rude Awakening of a Spider Bite

Two Letters Re: The Rude Awakening of a Spider Bite Dear Mr Rawles: Fitzy describes a classic presentation for a staphylococcal furuncle, which in this day and age is often caused by cMRSA (community acquired Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) colonizing a patient’s skin.  These typically start as small “pimples” or “bites” on the skin surface, usually in areas of warmth and dampness, but any area of the body can be affected.  Most cases start as infected hair follicles or in areas of micro-abrasion or injury, not due to bites. It sounds like his doctor started him on doxycycline when bactrim …


Letter Re: The Rude Awakening of a Spider Bite

Mr Rawles: Last week I dropped off to sleep and in the night with my legs uncovered due to the room being kind of warm. Some time during the night I was bitten by what was most likely a spider. as I awoke the next morning I started my regular work day. The initial bite was what I considered nothing more then an annoyance. I figured a mosquito might have got me, maybe a spider. I never really had a bad spider bite before. So I was sure it was just something got me, and it was something really itchy …


TEOTWAWKI Preventive Medicine, by Dr. Bob

There have been many article about medical advice and certainly there is no shortage of information available in SurvivalBlog. But as a good old-fashioned country doctor I hope to give you some solid, comprehensive information that you can use now to prepare for WTSHTF.  There are some basic assumptions about TEOTWAWKI that most people have pondered.  Let’s go over the lists first.  It will be darker, colder, hotter, wetter, drier, and dirtier.  There will be less safety, less clean water, less food, more danger, more work, more exposure, and more pain.  Sounds like a bad camping trip. The difference is …


Three Disabling Diseases You Can Cure Without Medicine. by Dr. Cynthia Koelker

Serious medical conditions that occur infrequently now will become commonplace at TEOTWAWKI.  Recognizing the symptoms will help you treat these diseases effectively.  Better yet, learn how to prevent them and prepare accordingly. Case #1 It’s been over a year since you’ve escaped the city for your retreat.  Things are going well, though your teenage daughter is tired of hauling water from the creek. One day you walk with her and are alarmed at how winded she becomes.  She’s been acting fine otherwise, still primping and polishing her nails (though no boys are around).  She hasn’t lost any weight and seems …


Letter Re: Securing Windows With Plywood The Fast And Easy Way

Sir: I’ve been researching ways to secure windows in a SHTF scenario and it seems that one of the best ways to do this is by screwing pre-cut sheets of plywood to the window frame.  This will take many screws and it will leave screw holes in your window frame if/when it comes time to take down the plywood.  It also takes precious time to put a lot of screws in even with a powered screwdriver and depending on the size of the window, you might need several people to hold the plywood in place while you put the screws …


The Case For Silver Spoons, by F.J.B.

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Most folks today would agree that we live in troubled times. At any moment, a single event could change the balance of our society for the worse, taking us back to what some might call the dark ages. Predicted solar flares, EMPs, earthquakes, or  even terrorist activity today could lead to a complete infrastructure failure that would affect every aspect of our future. During such a grim event, our personal health would be a great concern. Without refrigeration, many medicines would spoil. Without power, pharmaceutical plants shut down. The few hospitals that have back-up power will soon run out and …


Letter Re: The Late Ron Hood and Prostate Check-Ups

Jim, My wife just read aloud your touching tribute to the late Ron Hood.   I feel that Ron’s death was a needless loss to the survival community and his family.   If men have their PSA checked annually, there’s no reason this disease should sneak up on them.   I was diagnosed with prostate cancer five years ago when I was 60.   Instead of surgery, which can leave one impotent and/or incontinent, I chose proton therapy at Loma Linda University Medical Center in California, as did my father-in-law.   My current PSA is 0.22. Thank You, God!   …


Letter Re: Bookshelf Recommendations

Jim, I looked at your Bookshelf recommendations and I have a few suggestions to add: First, the Combat Lifesaver handbook. I received a stapled back copy of this accompanied with hands on training through the military, prior to my recent deployment to Afghanistan, and it is basically an instruction course format, laid out for providing medical treatment during combat pre-first responders. Second, the Combat Medic Field Reference. It is a combat medics waterproof pocket guide designed to fit into side pocket of trousers. It covers virtually everything a specific medic or group of medics who are rendering aid under combat …


Bug In, or Bug Out?, by H.C.

I am a double transplant recipient who is 50 years old and in fairly good health but with restrictions as to what I am physically able to do.  My household consist of myself, my wife, and our 8 year old son. I also have a grown daughter that lives three hours drive to the west but she is not a major factor in emergency plans. I don’t say this to be heartless or imply I love my daughter less but,  from my standpoint, she is now on the periphery of my planning as is any other family member who is …


Suggestions From a 2 for 1 Prepper, by M.M.

I especially liked the February, 2001 SurvivalBlog article about Forever Preps. I now have enough salt to last me forever in Mylar lined buckets. That includes regular salt for salt curing. I need saltpeter. I have dry bleach, hand tools, skills, and Jesus. I’m working on the rest. As a matter of fact, within my extended family we have four medical people, a fireman, a teacher, a banker, an accountant, HVAC technician, mechanic, farmer, baker, trucker, engineers—we don’t exactly have a butcher or candlestick maker, but my son tends to his own deer and fish and I have made plenty …