first aid - primitive / wilderness preparation

[Winnie]

Do you have a national horticultural society? Over her the RHS(Royal Horticultural Society) produces many horticultural books, including one on a herbal remedies. I doubt this particular book would be of much use to you guys because of the difference in indigenous plants, but it might be an avenue worth exploring.

[pocomoonskyeyes]

I know that Sundew has some antibiotic properties, but I have no idea how that would be made. Perhaps if it's an area you know you will be going to fairly often you could "Score" some of the pines in the area, so as to have a supply of sap on hand always.

[aflineman]

Edited to keep with the spirit that your_comforting_company intended this thread to be.

I have used natural items in some first aid situations. Moss to pack a wound, and sutures of a sort from split sticks and twine to hold them closed (sort of like tweezers). Never got those to work if you have to move much, but if you can stay still they can work.

[Sarge47]

Hook up with the Boy Scouts; they learn 1st Aid early on! Go to your local Red Cross & take both a course on 1st Aid & one on CPR! carry 4 bandanas, a couple of large trash bags, 550 cord, a 1st Aid kit with a 1st Aid book...oh, & learn how to handle a machete...I think Owl Girl can help you out there.

[crashdive123]

from the link that Aflineman provided: Disposable Body Stapler Kit

So, what's disposable??? The body or the stapler???

[your_comforting_company]

nevermind.. I'll just keep my mouth shut...

[Rick]

Yeah, right. Like that's ever stopped us.

[your_comforting_company]

well... Rick prompted me to not keep my mouth shut so...to put it simply and straightforward, not intending to p.o. anyone..

this was meant to be "things you can find in the woods to use for first aid".
I've never found a stapler in the woods. the whole idea behind the thread is that you can't be prepared for everything all the time and knowledge of what you can use when you don't have all those gadgets and gizmos and kits and bags on your back.

certainly I know how to use a machete. sometimes accidents happen, or is it just me that has "$htuff happen"? that was pretty insulting.. learn how to use a machete.. ha! learn to read the posts.. never found 550 cord in the woods either. and if the rest of the thread had been read, you'd know that I have since stored first aid kits at the hunting locations we cleared.

my kids are in the scouts. scouts doesn't teach squat about first aid or much of anything else. I'm the one around here doing the most of the teaching useful things to the scouts. all they do around here is make macaroni picture frames and coloring pages.

so.. if I make folks mad or whatever or this post needs to be deleted, feel free mods to delete the post. This wasn't intended to be "instructions so ycc doesn't hurt himself" it was meant to be a collection of information that might help others who find themselves in any similar situation with any minor injury to be able to use what's at hand IN THE WOODS to get their condition stabilized. somehow it's gotten off topic and somehow along the way I'm suddenly an idiot savant with a machete.. come on gang.. we can do better than this.

the goat tears post was just me being funny. perhaps I should have just left this thread in the back of the closet.. forgotten and lost amongst multitudes of posts.

Rick, If I'm out of line, delete the post please.

[crashdive123]

Nothing wrong with the post at all YCC. Just sounds like you're trying to get it back on track. Kind of like herding cats with this crowd (me included), but a good effort none the less.

[Sarge47]

Didn't mean to rankle, however I go along with Crash on "being prepared." & the remark about handling the machete was: "tongue-in-cheek." A couple years back Owl Girl was talking about the one she carries...er, sumptin' like that. Remember; "Chance favors the prepared mind." Also, sounds like your local Scout troop can use some 1st aid classes. Remember when the tornado hit that Scout camp? Primitive methods would be inadaquate in that type of situation.

[your_comforting_company]

Remember; "Chance favors the prepared mind."

Also, sounds like your local Scout troop can use some 1st aid classes.

Remember when the tornado hit that Scout camp? Primitive methods would be inadaquate in that type of situation.

knowledge prepares the mind.

our local troop could use lots of things besides just first aid classes.. thats another discussion.

while primitive methods would be inadequate for such a catastrophe, the aim was for day to day purposes. our ancestors lived on this land without hospitals and modern medicine for aeons. I'm sure they suffered all sorts of tornados and hurricanes and earthquakes and volcanoes without modern first aid kits. And I'm sure many survived. What did they use?

[rwc1969]

I wish I could offer more help YCC, but I'm still learning.

I do know from family experience, previosly mentioned, that the sap of the common milkweed plant, Asclepias syriaca, can be used as an excellent dressing for wounds. It has a glue like latex consistency to help seal the wound closed.

I have no experience with the below methods.

But, after more research, you can also further dress the wound with the silk fibers in the seedpods. The silk repels water and allows air to get in to heal the wound. The sap can also be used for bee stings, poison ivy, warts, moles, ringworm. For warts and moles the sap must be applied several times a day for 2-3 weeks.

Milkweed and it's relatives have a wide variety of medicinal uses, but most require preperation that couldn't be obtained in minutes. They could be obtained in a primitive setting though using only primitive methods. It is important to understand that there are a wide variety of "milkweeds" and not all have the same benefits. It is very common throughout most of the eastern half of North America.

Cattail fluff and Cottonwood fluff can be used in the same way after applying a sticky substance to the wound. Mors Kochanski suggests using "black poplar" or more commonly Cottonwood fluff to dress wounds and burns after applying the resin from the blisters that form in the bark of Balsam fir or "Porslid's white spruce.

The hardest part, besides finding usable information, is getting plants at the time they are producing the medicinal parts or benefits. Also, not all plants grow in all areas. I mentioned milkweed, cattail and cottonwood because they are easily identified with caution, grow in many places and provide the fluff at different times of the year.

[rwc1969]

YCC my grandpa raised 10 kids on his own without modern medicine. Yes, he did use turpentine and a few other basic chemicals, but it is possible to address many serious ailments and injuries using primitive methods. Did he perfrom brain and heart surgery, reattach nerves, or perfrom appendoctomies? No! But, he did most everything else including delivering and caring for all 10 kids and his wife. I'm sure it's possible to create turpentine, peroxide, alcohol, iodine or equally good substitiutes using primitive methods. Except for major surgery I believe all medical needs can be and have been satisified by nature for thousands of years using what most are now referring to as "primitive" methods. Modern medicine/ surgery has actually only been in widespread and semi-functional use for about 100 years. Prior to that it was mostly just guesswork and barbarism.

It amazes me that people think they need modern medicine when all modern medicine was derived from natural substances, whether synthetic or not. It's just a matter of knowing what plants and such produce those substances and how and when to extract them.

My granpa had many medical reference books, and passed down knowledge that he used to provide for his family before and during the depression.

When I try to find info on the net and come across something useful I see medical books from the 1800's and early 1900's referenced. I believe books similar to these are what my grandpa used and most likely contain the required info to extract and use these natural remedies. i.e. How to extract, when to extract, dosages, storage, etc.

I'd suggest trying to get a hold of these turn of the century medical reference books. I haven't been able to locate them myself.

[rwc1969]

The reason I mention the above is because relying solely on modern medicine and techniques is in fact being unprepared. Although, a modern kit is far better, it is not logical or practical to carry a huge first aid kit everywhere you go. You will be caught without it one day and then you will be up sheets creek.

What if you crash your vehicle and your kit is strewn about the forest or off the edge of a cliff? Your boat turns over in the river and your kit is washed away? A plane crashes? Many scenarios could leave you kitless and being prepared for that could be a lifesaver.

[oly]

Never used any of these just read about them so take it at your own risk.
Alumroot (saxifagaceae) root to stop minor bleeding.
Bistort (polygonacea) root to stop minor bleeding.
Cranesbill geranium (geraniaceae) used to stop bleeding.
False solomon's seal (liliaceae) poultice made from root to stop bleeding.
Henbit (labiatae) Leaf and flower tea to stop minor internal and external bleeding.
Periwinkle (Apocynaceae) regarded as a strong capillary constrictor.
Wild mustard's (cruciferae) seeds of shepherds purse are said to act as a blood. coagulant and vasoconstrictor, useful in stopping internal and external bleeding.

I will not post the others I have unless I can verify them and there uses.

I carry cayenne pepper in my pack, bad experience but very effective.

[crashdive123]

I think that the person with the most experience with medicinal plants is WildWoman. She doesn't get on-line as much as many of us would like, but she has discussed medicinal plants before.

[aflineman]

well... Rick prompted me to not keep my mouth shut so...to put it simply and straightforward, not intending to p.o. anyone..

this was meant to be "things you can find in the woods to use for first aid".
I've never found a stapler in the woods. the whole idea behind the thread is that you can't be prepared for everything all the time and knowledge of what you can use when you don't have all those gadgets and gizmos and kits and bags on your back.

certainly I know how to use a machete. sometimes accidents happen, or is it just me that has "$htuff happen"? that was pretty insulting.. learn how to use a machete.. ha! learn to read the posts.. never found 550 cord in the woods either. and if the rest of the thread had been read, you'd know that I have since stored first aid kits at the hunting locations we cleared.

my kids are in the scouts. scouts doesn't teach squat about first aid or much of anything else. I'm the one around here doing the most of the teaching useful things to the scouts. all they do around here is make macaroni picture frames and coloring pages.

so.. if I make folks mad or whatever or this post needs to be deleted, feel free mods to delete the post. This wasn't intended to be "instructions so ycc doesn't hurt himself" it was meant to be a collection of information that might help others who find themselves in any similar situation with any minor injury to be able to use what's at hand IN THE WOODS to get their condition stabilized. somehow it's gotten off topic and somehow along the way I'm suddenly an idiot savant with a machete.. come on gang.. we can do better than this.

the goat tears post was just me being funny. perhaps I should have just left this thread in the back of the closet.. forgotten and lost amongst multitudes of posts.

Rick, If I'm out of line, delete the post please.

You are NOT out of line pointing out the intend of the post that you started. My comments edited to hopefully meet your intent.
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[oly]

I think that the person with the most experience with medicinal plants is WildWoman. She doesn't get on-line as much as many of us would like, but she has discussed medicinal plants before.

I agree. Periwinkle (Apocynaceae) is from the dog bane family, things like that makes me nervous posting it.

[Rick]

What if you crash your vehicle and your kit is strewn about the forest or off the edge of a cliff? Your boat turns over in the river and your kit is washed away? A plane crashes? Many scenarios could leave you kitless and being prepared for that could be a lifesaver.

I think you are squarely on the mark. While I would much prefer modern medicine to folk medicine (I see it as comparing a Hawkins to a Ruger Mini 14) there will come a time when your quote above may well become a reality.

This is one of the items I have on my 2010 list of things to do. May I suggest the Pocket Naturalist? In particular Medicinal Plants. It's a starting point for me.

One that I have used and it seems to have had a positive affect is Coneflower (Echinacea spp.) Root or leaf tea is an antiseptic to clean sores and insect bites. I have use the leaf tea on insect bites. Whether it was a placebo affect or it worked, the bites seemed to heal quicker.

Three that I intend to try are Birch Betula spp. (tea from bark, twigs or leaves can be used for a wash or gargle to sooth sore mouth/throat) and Common Plantain Plantago major (a poultice can be used to stop bleeding and soothe infections and cuts.). Finally, Beebalm Monarda spp. (tea is used for stomach upset and insomnia).

I have had Coneflower tea and Beebalm tea. I find both pleasant but I used Beebalm as a refreshment rather than for medicinal purposes.

I have all of the above plants in my yard.

[rwc1969]

Crash posted a link in a thread I found while searching for something else. Here it is. http://www.raems.com/downloads.html

If you scroll down the page Chapter 8 of the pdf file link titled "Remote and Austere Medicine" has some useful info. Here is the pdf file http://www.raems.com/PDF/Austere%20Medicine.pdf