Category: First Aid/Medical

Letter Re: Gaining Pharmaceutical Knowledge

Dear Mr. Rawles: I recently read through the cluster of articles regarding preparation measures for antibiotic storage and use on your blog, starting with A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI, by Dr. Bones. As the medic for my family resilient survival group and an EMT paramedic, I have learned of some resources relevant to this discussion that will be useful to your readers. The first is the Sanford Guide. This is a book used daily by physicians and other healthcare providers worldwide to assist with empiric antibiotic treatment of infectious diseases. Empiric therapy means that you’re not …


Letter Re: A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI

James, Antibiotics can also be purchased on the internet. While I am no attorney, the Wikipedia article about online pharmacies provides some info on the legalities of ordering prescription grade antibiotics from Canada. While I’m certainly not advising anyone to break the law and order antibiotics or any other prescription grade drugs on line, it seems a like a real grey area for the Government to crack down on Americans that do order prescription drugs on line. Maybe another reader with some legal expertise can clarify what the Government enforces when it comes to ordering prescription drugs on line? Thanks, …


Letter Re: Medicinal Herb Gardening-Making Herbal Balms

After reading “Medicinal Herb Gardening” by Mrs. Celena J. I was prompted to write more about making medicinal herbal balms and ointments. They are easily made once you get the hang of it and different ingredients can be used for different applications. My two favorites are Healing Muscle Balm and Rose Balm for the lips and skin. My family and friends also love these two combinations and have found them very effective. Healing Muscle Balm is a combination of infused oils of Arnica, Meadowsweet, and Comfrey leaf. These particular herbs help with reducing the inflammation and alleviating the pain of …


Surreptitious Suburban Survival, by Suburban Survivor

I didn’t start out being a “prepper,” I was born into it…My father was a Command Sergeant Major in the US Army, we lived on many posts and in many cities, and had to travel at a moment’s notice. So, we were always prepared for the most part as a way of life. OPSEC was drilled into us at an early age, strangers asking questions about dad’s job, deployments, etc., were reported and we “army brats,” stuck together like glue on a hot summer day. Mom, kept the home front squared away, and we always had a nice place, warm …


Two Letters Re: Medicinal Herb Gardening

Hello, I’ve been using herbal remedies for over 20 years and wanted to add a few notes to Mrs. Celena J.’s Article: Spearmint and Peppermint are excellent for nausea and gas. Goldenseal is a natural source of insulin and should be used cautiously with hypoglcemics and insulin dependant diabetics. Its also one of the strongest natural antibiotics known to man, and the root is stronger than the plant. Garlic is also a very strong and versatile antibiotic when used fresh. It kills both bacterial and fungal infections and can be used internally and externally as needed. This was my herb …


Two Letters Re: Practice Night Hiking to Get Ready to Bug Out to Your Retreat

Mr. Rawles: Regarding Fitzy’s letter “Practice Night Hiking to Get Ready to Bug Out to Your Retreat”, he mentioned that he was worried about his dog’s being cut by broken glass on roads and trails. Here is a product that folks might want to keep in hand if they travel with a dog: Musher’s Secret. – Paulette Sir: Regarding the letter “Practice Night Hiking to Get Ready to Bug Out to Your Retreat”I would not recommend the use of Vaseline to prevent chafing. However, if you look online or drop in at a bike shop there are products specifically made …


Medicinal Herb Gardening by Mrs. Celena J.

Earlier this year, I received a free packet of Echinacea (Purple Coneflower) from wintersown.org (by the way, if you’re into gardening check them out; they’ll send you 10 packets of free seeds for the cost of a SASE).  When I saw the seed packet, I remembered that Echinacea is used to reduce the duration of colds and flu.  I began seriously considering and researching medicinal plant gardening.  Having such a garden would be so useful in surviving numerous catastrophes, not to mention the possible money saver it could be during a recession that’s going to last who-knows-how-long!  Of course, not …


Psychological Preparedness for TEOTWAWKI

We do not know what the future brings, though in the survival community there is no shortage of speculative events that may occur. This article is a brief primer on psychological techniques that can be used in a TEOTWAWKI scenario to help prepare for and stave off psychological fatigue until a time at which you can properly cope with the situation at hand. Also, it provides some coping techniques to help get you back on track after all has settled. Why are we so driven to preparation? The answer is death. It is inevitable, and we must all face it …


Three Letters Re: A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI

Hello- I must first thank you, Mr. Rawles, for your advice. I truly believe it will one day save my life. Also, the amount of knowledge I have gained from all of the contributors to SurvivalBlog is astounding! My profession is in the animal industry, so I am familiar with antibiotics and other meds. At work, it is many times frustrating to pull out dosage instructions from a bottle of medicine, only to find that they’re all written for humans. Especially the antibiotics! I order only from veterinary pharmacies, but these drugs are manufactured and labeled for human consumption. Now …


Practical and Affordable Food and Medicine Rotation

Jim, In addition to stores of long-term food in #10 cans (Mountain House and cans from the LDS cannery), I keep about a six month supply of “grocery store” canned and boxed food and a multiple-year supply of OTC medicines. A lot of this stuff goes unused because I’m pretty bad at rotating and while they are items we like, we just don’t eat them that often. Every year around the holidays I box up a ton of stuff and donate it to the food bank. The tax deduction I take is the “fair market value” (i.e., current grocery store …


Wound Suturing, Gluing, and Bandaging, by David in Israel

James Having suture equipment even if you don’t have the skills to use it is useful since you can hopefully find a veterinarian, doctor, nurse, PA, or Dentist qualified to use them. Having your own sterile medical equipment for the medical professionals you find is still a common bit of advice for people planning to visit third world countries. If there is an injury requiring suture and you are not qualified especially in the highly enervated regions where suture can cause serious nerve damage and local paralysis of the body such as the hands and face there is a better …


Seven Letters Re: A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI

Hi Jim, In response to the letters sent to you regarding my article, the FORTE version of the antibiotics described would be appropriate for full-grown men and all but the most petite women (less than, say, 100 pounds or so). Children would be best served with the 250mg fish antibiotic dose. Frequency of these medications is from 2-4 times a day, depending on the individual drug. The risk of under-dosage would be suboptimal progress in healing. Overdosage often manifests itself as diarrhea.. Treatment length is usually from 5-10 days. A good internet drug index can be found at rxlist.com. If …


Home Pharmacy Preparedness, by Michael V.

Don’t plan on your pharmacy being open or not looted after Day 1 after the SHTF.  Just like most cops have reported on this site that they will leave their posts to protect their families, pharmacists will do the same.  Most chain pharmacists have no loyalty other than a paycheck, so unlike “One Second After” it would be unlikely that a chain pharmacist would show up to work and risk their life after the SHTF.  Independent pharmacists who own their own store, and have their fortune tied to it have a better chance of being there, armed, with a more …


Two Letters Re: A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI

JWR, Regarding the recent post on antibiotics, I would love to hear the good doctor or someone else with relevant knowledge describe how to determine dosage (I’m assuming based on weight), as well as any risks associated with over- or under-dosage. Thanks! – E.W. Sir; I’m a relatively new reader of your excellent site and have learned an incredible amount of valuable information from you and my fellow readers. Thank you for such a wonderful service. I read Dr. Bone’s submission with great interest since the medical issues of a SHTF scenario are a great concern of mine. I’m knowledgeable …


A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI, by Dr. Bones

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As a recently-retired physician who is married to a nurse-midwife, my preparedness group looks to us as the post-TEOTWAWKI hospital and medical staff. Medical progress has been exponential and even just the last decade of scientific breakthroughs can equal a century of improvement in medical treatments, surgical techniques and pharmaceuticals. However, in the years (months?) ahead, the crumbling of the infrastructure and devolution of society in general will very likely throw us back to a medical system that existed in the 19th Century. Let’s take an example: When the U.S. was a young nation, the average woman could expect to …