Prepping beginners often ask the same questions with little variation. The horror is that often when seeking answers online, they find themselves flooded with a sea of information and misinformation with the crucial details and truths hidden beneath its depths.
It's hard to know who to trust and what and can lead to dangerous prepping mistakes with long-lasting repercussions.
Food & Water For Two Weeks If At Home, Three Days If On The Go
It's important to pick up enough protein heavy, dried/ nonperishable foods to last an appropriate amount of time-based on a few different situations. The last thing you want is to get stuck in the office with just a slim jim and hope to last for days on it. Likewise, don't rely on being able to fill up water bottles after a crisis has started.
Being prepped means being able to handle the most basic needs for survival that the body requires to function, namely food and water. It can be the difference between life and death.
If you intend to stay home, your home should have at least two weeks worth of food and water for each person that is likely to be staying in residence in the event of needing to hunker down. Some choose to prep for a bit longer as well as for one or two extra guests if things go awry, but it's best to calculate based on realistic needs.
If you intend to leave, each pack should have at least three days worth of food and water as well as a way to transform found water into potable or treated water for nourishment.
Have A Go Bag & A Get Home Bag
Many people make the mistake of having just a go bag or no bag. The go bag is a means for evacuating and surviving in the event of a crisis. The get home bag is a necessity because it is used whether at work or on a drive to get home/survive until you can get to your main bag.
This bag would include tools for prying open doors, digging, treating water, breaking windows and more in the form of a multi-tool shovel as well as a knife.
In any case, having a bag for work, the car, and for getting out when the time comes are absolutely necessary even if it seems excessive.
Have An Evacuation & Stay Home Plan
It’s important to be familiar with your options in the event of varying types of crises. Knowing evacuation routes, alternative roads, and having a plan in place for where you will go and how you will get there will increase your chances of successfully navigating a crisis.
If you intend to stay, having a plan for surviving and securing your household/residence/location as well as a means to get information from the outside world are the two components of a plan that matters. Having your emergency location target, in either case, be self-sufficient can be as in depth or as light as you think is necessary.
Having things like a generator, hand-crank flashlight, and more can make a difference if the grid goes down.
Keep Each Bag’s Ingredients Separate
While it can be tempting to use one item in one bag as a component of another that you think you can just transfer in an emergency as a means to save money, it is a terrible mistake. There are never any guarantees that you will be able to get from your get home bag to your go bag or vice versa.
Every component/ingredient of each bag must be completely separate. Each bag needs to have its own bottle of water, or its own knife, or its own tarp or rope set.
Don’t Overdo It, Build Your Kits & Setup Gradually
For those that are new to prepping, it may seem to make sense to try and overload all at once by getting everything deemed a "necessity." In actuality, the best kits are built gradually and tailored to the individual's needs.
Each person will have their own kit that should be built up over time to both save money and assure that it is as customized as possible for whatever likely potential crisis's are applicable to their lives.
Not to mention, buying and building a bunker with all the works won’t last if your finances aren’t in order, and so taking it a bit at a time can lead to it working out in the long term.
Don’t Wait Until The Last Minute
It goes without saying, prepping at the last minute for an upcoming potential crisis will leave you vulnerable. There is a chance you end up searching empty Walmarts and other supercenters for resources that have been ransacked.
It’s a dangerous game of roulette to waste until the last moment, and is less prepping than reacting, which leads to bad decisions and lower chances of survival.
Have A Means To Defend Yourself
The final point that is important to keep in mind is regarding the nature of panic and mob mentalities. A person is smart, and people are stupid, as said wisely by Agent K in Men In Black.
This is especially the case when a crisis erupts. The very nature of how we perceive civility and social structure collapses. It's because most public services are not prepared for widespread devastation.
This means, in place of the police and the military to protect you, your family, and your interests, it's important to have access to the resources required to protect yourself.
While on one hand, this means having access to weapons as well as security devices for your home and vehicles, it also means being in the best shape possible with proper training so you can use your resources effectively.
It’s better to have and not need, than to need and not have.
Do you have any survival experiences you want to share? Questions? Tips?
Leave them below.