Very early on in our journey into developing a survival training company we learned that survival can mean many different things to different people. For a lost hiker it means either surviving long enough to get rescued or figuring out how to self rescue. For a person facing a forest fire or a hurricane it can mean sheltering in place and hoping your preparedness efforts are good enough, or evacuating to a safer location. We learned that self defense is also a form of survival, and that in itself that could mean several things as well. From awareness, avoidance, and deescalation to all out physical violence, either armed or unarmed. An unexpected injury by itself, or in any of those previously mentioned scenarios could be the survival problem, or another addition to it.
I said all that, to say that we quickly realized we needed a broad definition that could help us better understand what the concept of survival truly is. What we came up with was that survival broadly speaking is "the art and science of buying ourselves more time". Look at any of the previously mentioned scenarios and it becomes clear that any steps we can take to increase our time being alive is a step towards survival. This concept now gives us a framework from which to work from. Once this became part of our overall strategy we started looking at the Survival Priorities Rule of 3's as one of the primary tactics in organizing our survival plans, training, and gear.
For those not already familiar with the Rule of 3's that is where you hear you'll survive 3 minutes without oxygen, 3 hours without appropriate shelter in extreme environments, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food. Now it is extremely important that I clarify that this rule expressed this way is merely a rhetorical device meant to imply you have seconds, minutes, hours, days, and weeks not to give you an exact amount of time. It is easier to remember that way.
The number 3 gets violated all the time, it's the concept that matters most. For example someone already dehydrated due to poor water intake discipline may have less than 3 days. Someone who hasn't eaten in weeks will technically be alive but hardly able to function in order to affect their own survival. And someone may be able to hold their breathe for more than 3 minutes but bleed out in seconds. Remember blood carries oxygen to and from the vital organs.
All right now that we've established an understanding of the concepts involved lets see how we can apply them to kit development and more importantly to the skills those kits may complement.
3 Minutes Without Oxygen
The thing that's most likely to kill us the quickest is lack of oxygen. When stated without context most people will quickly think of drowning or maybe allergic reactions leading to an inability to breathe, and maybe even someone choking. All important things to consider and prepare for. Learning to swim is an important survival skill for anyone who may spend time near the water. Additionally being trained in cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills is an important thing any survival minded person should take seriously. For people with known allergies having tools and medicine such as epi pens and benadryl as part of their personal or survival gear might be an extremely important consideration.
But know that isn't the only way to lose oxygen! Massive bleeding is often a faster way of losing oxygen than lack of breathing. In fact in our trauma courses managing severe bleeding comes before airway and breathing considerations. So in addition to CPR training having trauma management training is also highly advisable along with having the appropriate gear to manage those emergencies.
By now you should be realizing first aid is a critical component to this survival "algorithm". So since this article is titled "The Back Bone of Survival Kits" lets consider things that help us manage airways and bleeding are critical components of any of our survival kits, bug out or get home bags, and even include them in our disaster Preparedness kits. A good trauma kit that includes tourniquets, pressure dressings, and plenty of gauze for wound packing is a good start. Adding benadryl or similar medicines or even an epi-pen when appropriate is another smart move.
Other things for smaller issues can be added later or even be part of a separate kit. We like to add things like splints and triangular bandages to our emergency kits since they are quite versatile for managing a wide variety of mechanical injuries, and in a pinch can be components of improvised tourniquets should more be needed. One more thing I like to add to my kits is powdered aspirin. Not so much for pain management but in case of possible heart attacks (search it up). A separate boo boo kit as we alluded to earlier is a great way to manage the other smaller medical stuff such as band-aids, pain medicines, and other non catastrophic medical items. A couple other things I like to keep in those kits are tweezers (for splinters etc.), leuko tape (blisters), eye wash, and electrolytes (heat injury & hyponatremia prevention).
3 Hours Without Appropriate Shelter in Extreme Environments
Our first layer of shelter is our clothing. In our teachings shelter always begins with the right clothing and shoes. Since we're wearing it, its unlikely we'll lose it. Anything else we might choose to carry is supplemental to that. Of course this will be influenced by several factors including the season, the weather, and the terrain. In hot areas and particularly those closer to the equator protection from the sun is of paramount concern. The more jagged the ground the more important the robustness of the footwear becomes. Two points often lost on tourists visiting the beaches here in my home town Miami, FL. I can't tell you how many times I've seen tomato red tourists duck walking back to their cars because they chose to walk several blocks to the beach wearing only their speedos. Not even accounting for the floor being blistering hot!
More than once they weren't so fortunate and needed medical help after succumbing to heat injuries such as heat exhaustion or worse heat stroke. This problem becomes even more dangerous as you get further away from civilization. I always make it a point to bring long sleeves, a wide brimmed hat, and light pants or other covering for my legs anytime I'm going to be out in the sun. Even if I'm expecting to spend most of my time in swim trunks. Pro tip: I've seen through hikers carry umbrellas to create portable micro-climates on particularly hot days. Perhaps something to consider for a bug out bag?
In colder climates the strategy is to wear layers. An initial base layer, an insulating layer, and a wind breaking layer. Gloves, boots, and head gear are also very important since most heat is lost through the extremities particularly the head. Once the clothing is addressed shelter should be considered. In the previous example shelter would be something that can make shade and perhaps protect you from the rain such as a tarp, for cold it's a little more involved. Since we could lose heat in several ways such as convection from the wind, or conduction from touching cold surfaces such as the ground, or even radiation as our body releases its own heat, a problem made worse when not clothed appropriately.
With heat loss mechanisms in mind shelter needs to be more nuanced. You'll need something to sit or lay on to protect you from the cold ground, and a roof with walls to protect from weather and wind as well as trapping radiating heat. Additional layers could further trap heat. Something like a sleeping bag or even a wool blanket may work very well in this regard. Lastly a heating device or a fire might be helpful but an adequate discussion on that will make this treatment painfully longer so I'll address survival fires in a future article. Though I will say some hand warmers, a small candle, or even a survival stove may serve this role admirably when used properly.
3 Days Without Water
Earlier I alluded to people being dehydrated due to poor hydration discipline. Think about it, most people live in a constant rush due to work, and other life responsibilities. How many times have you noticed your first drink of water happening in the late morning or worse? For many coffee comes before water making it even worse since its a diuretic. The general advice I've been giving for years now is something I learned as a young boy scout from my scout master. He would force us to prehydrate. First thing in the morning in every camp out he'd make us pound down a quart of water. Afterwards we'd be sipping water throughout the day keeping true to the survival maxim "the best way to carry water is in you".
Even the mildest form of dehydration starts making itself known through various forms of impairment. Dry mouth is pretty bad already, but getting a headache is worse. By the time you are experiencing these symptoms your are already starting to get in trouble. Dehydration can also further exacerbate other issues such as heat injuries. Staying ahead of it is key. Being able to carry water is essential, and my choice of vehicle for this is a single walled metal container that can do double duty by helping us boil water should our first line purifier go down.
There are various ways to clean our water but our preferred way is by using a high quality water purifier. Check out our favorite one HERE. Otherwise it becomes a multi step process. For example using a filter alone is often not enough since microorganisms small enough to get past the membrane of the filter such as viruses exist thus necessitating a follow up treatment such as boiling, or chemical disinfectants such as bleach or iodine.
Water is so important that not only do I encourage both boilable containers to back up a water purifier I recommend redundancies to those as well. I often carry water bladders as a means to carry extra water. Sometimes I may carry dirty water in one that I will clean later for convenience. Another thing I carry is a bandanna or other cloth-like material I can use as a pre-filter to preserve the life of my filter. At a minimum I'd recommend a pre-filter, a boilable container, and a water purifier for your survival kit. A cup that nests into your boilable container is another nice to have item that increases that kits versatility without taking up more space and minimally adding weight.
3 Weeks Without Food
Early on in any survival situation food is important to maintain electrolyte balance in your body. Continual drinking of water without replenishing electrolytes can quickly lead to hyponatremia. A potentially deadly problem who's initial symptoms look a lot like dehydration. It is for this reason I mentioned electrolyte replacements as part of my first aid kit. Truth be told I also keep restaurant sized salt packets in my cook kit as well along with bullion cubes. Both as a flavor enhancer and as an electrolyte replacement in a pinch.
Hyponatremia is largely caused by a shortage of sodium but a much better solution will also contain potassium and even some sugar. Individual packets of electrolyte replacement powders can easily be had very inexpensively from most grocery stores and easily packed away in all of your kits. Furthermore you could easily make your own using equally easily sourced ingredients also from the grocery store. Just combine 1/2 tea spoon (about 3 grams) with 2 tablespoons of sugar (about 25 grams) to a quart (or liter) of water. Stir and enjoy. Some of the commercially available ones will also contain other electrolytes such as potassium and magnesium and are what I prefer but in a pinch even the home made one can help so don't rule it out.
Beyond the electrolyte issue food will also provide us with energy in the form of calories. There are a ton of survival foods in the market, too many to discuss individually so lets discuss types instead. The easiest to acquire and likely the cheapest are canned foods or snack bars in mylar bags. The downside to cans is that they're heavy, but a big plus to them is that they don't need water and can often be eaten cold. Unlike freeze dried camping foods that need to be re-hydrated but are much lighter thus easier to carry. Another type worth mentioning are life boat rations which offer the additional benefit of being resistant to extreme temperature changes. They look and taste like scotch short bread biscuit and can survive living in the trunk of your car. Something worth considering for a get home bag that may live in your car.
While these items and skills may be the back Bone of most of your kits please bear in mind that it is simply a good start. A proper kit will need to be fine tuned to the expected situation, the environment, the weather, the season, and legal landscape of the area.
You'll also want to look into things like signalling and communications, security and safety, and possibly even distraction and entertainment for longer duration events. These things can be determined with research or better yet a proper area study. All of which we'll be discussing in future articles.
If you like reading this type of content and would enjoy more current event type information please consider joining our mailing list HERE.
If you like
Until next time stay safe everyone!
*If you liked this post please feel free to leave us a comment or give us a "like" by clicking on the heart icon so we'll know you were here. Also if you found this information useful share it with a friend that may benefit from it.
Comments