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One Year In Hell | Survival Stories
I have seen the story below on multiple forums and posts. I have spent some time trying to verify the source of the story, but so far I have been unable to find the original source. (Though it may be an excerpt from Selco at the SHTFschool.com)
Even though I can not verify the facts in this story it is still very much worth the read.
The English is rough as this was supposedly translated from the speaker’s native language, into French (by Russian translators), before being translated again to English.
Some things, especially the terror of war are never lost in translation:
I am from Bosnia. You know, between 1992 and 1995 it was hell. For one year I lived, and survived, in a city with 6000 people, without water, electricity, gasoline, medical help, civil defense, distribution service, any kind of traditional service or centralized rule.
Our city was blockaded by the army and for 1 year life in the city turned into total crap. We had no army, no police, we only had armed groups – those armed protected their homes and families.
When it all started some of us were better prepared, but most of the neighbors families had enough food only for a few days. Some had pistols, a few had AK47s or shotguns.
After a month or two gangs started operating, destroying everything. Hospitals, for example, turned into slaughterhouses. There was no more police. About 80% of the hospital staff were gone. I got lucky – my family at the time was fairly large (15 people in a large house, 6 pistols, 3 Aks), and we survived (most of us, at least).
The Americans dropped MREs every 10 days, to help blockaded cities. This was never enough. Some – very few – had gardens. It took 3 months for the first rumors to spread of men dying from hunger and cold. We removed all the doors, the window frames from abandoned houses, ripped up the floors and burned the furniture for heat. Many died from diseases, especially from the water (two from my own family). We drank mostly rainwater, ate pigeons and even rats.
Money soon became worthless. We returned to an exchange. For a tin can of tushonka (think soviet spam) you could have a woman (it is hard to speak of it, but it is true). Most of the women who sold themselves were desperate mothers.
Arms, ammunition, candles, lighters, antibiotics, gasoline, batteries and food. We fought for these things like animals. In these situations it all changes. Men become monsters. It was disgusting.
Strength was in numbers. A man living alone getting killed and robbed would be just a matter of time, even if he was armed.
Today me and my family are well-prepared, I am well-armed. I have experience.
It does not matter what will happen – an earthquake, a war, a tsunami, aliens, terrorists, economic collapse, uprising. The important part is that something will happen.
Here’s my experience: you can’t make it on your own. Don’t stay apart from your family, prepare together, choose reliable friends.
1. How to move safely in a city
The city was divided into communities along streets. Our street (15-20 homes) had patrols (5 armed men every week) to watch for gangs and for our enemies.
All the exchanges occurred in the street. About five kilometers away was an entire street for trading, all well-organized, but going there was too dangerous because of the snipers. You could also get robbed by bandits. I only went there twice, when I needed something really rare (list of medicine, mainly antibiotics, of the French original of the texts).
Nobody used automobiles in the city: the streets were blocked by wreckage and by abandoned cars. Gasoline was very expensive. If one needed to go somewhere, that was done at night. Never travel alone or in groups that were too big – always 2-3 men. All armed, travel swift, in the shadows, cross streets through ruins, not along open streets.
There were many gangs 10-15 men strong, some as large as 50 men. But where were also many normal men, like you and me, fathers and grandfathers, who killed and robbed. There were no “good” and “bad” men. Most were in the middle and ready for the worst.
2. What about wood? Your home city is surrounded by woods, why did you burn doors and furniture?
There were not that many woods around the city. It was very beautiful – restaurants, cinemas, schools, even an airport. Every tree in the city and in the city park was cut down for fuel in the first two months.
Without electricity for cooking and heat – we burned anything that burned. Furniture, doors, flooring – that wood burns swiftly. We had no suburbs or suburban farms. The enemy was in the suburbs. We were surrounded. Even in the city you never knew who was the enemy at any given point.
3. What knowledge was useful to you in that period?
To imagine the situation a bit better you should know it was practically a return to the stone age.
For example, I had a container of cooking gas. But I did not use it for heat – that would be too expensive! I attached a nozzle to it I made myself and used to fill lighters. Lighters were precious.
If a man brought an empty lighter, I would fill it and he would give me a tin of food or a candle.
I was a paramedic. In these conditions my knowledge was my wealth. Be curious and skilled. In these conditions the ability to fix things is more valuable than gold.
Items and supplies will inevitably run out, but your skills will keep you fed.
I wish to say this: learn to fix things, shoes, or people.
My neighbor, for example, knew how to make kerosene for lamps. He never went hungry.
4. If you had 3 months to prepare now, what would you do?
3 months? Run away from the country? (joking)
Today I know everything can collapse really fast. I have a stockpile of food, hygiene items, batteries… enough to last me for 6 months.
I live in a very secure flat, and own a home with a shelter in a village 5 kilometers away. Another six-month supply there too. That’s a small village, most people there are well-prepared. The war had taught them.
I have four weapons, and 2000 rounds for each.
I have a garden and have learned gardening. Also I have a good instinct – you know, when everyone around you keeps telling you it’ll all be fine, but I know – it will all collapse.
I have strength to do what I need to protect my family. Because when it all collapses you must be ready to do “bad” things to keep your children alive and protect your family.
Surviving on your own is practically impossible (that’s what I think). Even you’re armed and ready – if you’re alone, you’ll die. I have seen that happen many times.
Families and groups, well-prepared, with skills and knowledge in various fields – that’s much better.
5. What should you stockpile?
That depends. If you plan to live by theft – all you need is weapons and ammo. Lots of ammo.
If not – more food, hygiene items, batteries, accumulators, little trading items (knives, lighters, flints, soap). Also alcohol of a type that keeps well. The cheapest whiskey is a good trading item.
Many people died from insufficient hygiene. You’ll need simple items in great amounts. For example, garbage bags. Lots of them. And toilet papers. Non-reusable dishes and cups – you’ll need lots of them. I know that because we didn’t have any at all.
As for me, a supply of hygiene items is perhaps more important than food. You can shoot a pigeon, you can find a plant to eat. You can’t find or shoot any disinfectant.
Disinfectant, detergents, bleach, soap, gloves, masks…
First aid skills, washing wounds and burns. Perhaps you will find a doctor – and will not be able to pay him.
Learn to use antibiotics. It’s good to have a stockpile of them.
You should choose the simplest weapons. I carry a Glock .45, I like it, but it’s a rare gun here – so I have two TT pistols too (everyone has them and ammo is common).
I don’t like Kalashnikov’s, but again, same story – everyone has them, so do I.
You must own small, unnoticeable items. For example: a generator is good, but 1000 Bic lighters are better. A generator will attract attention if there’s any trouble, but 1000 lighters are compact, cheap, and can always be traded.
We usually collected rainwater into 4 large barrels and then boiled it. There was a small river but the water in it became very dirty very fast.
It’s also important to have containers for water – barrels and buckets.
6. Were gold and silver useful?
Yes. I personally traded all the gold in the house for ammunition.
Sometimes we got our hands on money – dollars and Deutschmarks. We bought some things for them, but this was rare and prices were astronomical – for example a can of beans cost $30-40. The local money quickly became worthless. Everything we needed we traded for through barter.
7. Was salt expensive?
Yes, but coffee and cigarettes were even more expensive. I had lots of alcohol and traded it without problems. Alcohol consumption grew over 10 times as compared to peacetime. Perhaps today it’s more useful to keep a stock of cigarettes, lighters, and batteries. They take up less space.
At this time I was not a survivalist. We had no time to prepare – several days before the shit hit the fan, the politicians kept repeating over the TV that everything was going according to plan, there’s no reason to be concerned. When the sky fell on our heads, we took what we could.
8. Was it difficult to purchase firearms? What did you trade for arms and ammunition?
After the war we had guns in every house. The police confiscated lots of guns at the beginning of the war. But most of them we hid. Now I have one legal gun that I have a license for. Under the law that’s called a temporary collection. If there is unrest, the government will seize all the registered guns. Never forget that.
You know, there are many people who have one legal gun – but also illegal guns if that one gets seized. If you have good trade goods you might be able to get a gun in a tough situation, but remember, the most difficult time is the first days, and perhaps you won’t have enough time to find a weapon to protect your family. To be disarmed in a time of chaos and panic is a bad idea.
In my case – there was a man who needed a car battery for his radio, he had shotguns – I traded the accumulator for both of them. Sometimes I traded ammunition for food, and a few weeks later traded food for ammunition. Never did the trade at home, never in great amounts.
Few people knew how much, and what, I keep at home.
The most important thing is to keep as many things as possible in terms of space and money. Eventually you’ll understand what is more valuable.
Correction: I’ll always value weapons and ammunition the most. Second? Maybe gas masks and filters.
9. What about security?
Our defenses were very primitive. Again, we weren’t ready, and we used what we could. The windows were shattered, and the roofs in a horrible state after the bombings. The windows were blocked – some with sandbags, others with rocks.
I blocked the fence gate with wreckage and garbage, and used a ladder to get across the wall. When I came home, I asked someone inside to pass over the ladder. We had a fellow on our street that completely barricaded himself in his house. He broke a hole in the wall, creating a passage for himself into the ruins of the neighbor’s house. A sort of secret entrance.
Maybe this would seem strange, but the most protected houses were looted and destroyed first. In my area of the city there were beautiful houses, with walls, dogs, alarms and barred windows. People attacked them first. Some held out, others didn’t – it all depended how many hands and guns they had inside…
I think defense is very important – but it must be carried out unobtrusively. If you are in a city and SHTF comes, you need a simple, non-flashy place, with lots of guns and ammo.
How much ammo? As much as possible.
Make your house as unattractive as you can.
Right now I own a steel door, but that’s just against the first wave of chaos. After that passes I will leave the city to rejoin a larger group of people, my friends and family.
There were some situations during the war… there’s no need for details, but we always had superior firepower, and a brick wall, on our side.
We also constantly kept someone watching the streets. Quality organization is paramount in case of gang attacks.
Shooting was constantly heard in the city.
Our perimeter was defended primitively – all the exits were barricaded and has little firing slits. Inside we had at least five family members ready for battle at any time, and one man in the street, hidden in a shelter.
We stayed home through the day to avoid sniper fire.
At first, the weak perish. Then the rest fight.
During the day, the streets were practically empty due to sniper fire. Defenses were oriented towards short-range combat alone. Many died if they went out to gather information, for example. It’s important to remember we had no information, no radio, no TV – only rumors and nothing else.
There was no organized army, every man fought. We had no choice. Everybody was armed, ready to defend themselves.
You should not wear quality items in the city – someone will murder you and take them. Don’t even carry a “pretty” long arm, it will attract attention.
Let me tell you something: if SHTF starts tomorrow I’ll be humble. I’ll look like everyone else. Desperate, fearful. Maybe I’ll even shout and cry a little bit.
Pretty clothing is excluded altogether. I will not go out in my new tactical outfit to shout: “I have come! You’re doomed, bad guys!” No, I’ll stay aside, well-armed, well-prepared, waiting and evaluating my possibilities, with my best friend or brother.
Super-defenses, super-guns are meaningless. If people think they should steal your things, that you’re profitable – they will. It’s only a question of time and the amount of guns and hands.
10. How was the situation with toilets?
We used shovels and a patch of earth near the house. Does it seem dirty? It was. We washed with rainwater or in the river – but most of the time the latter was too dangerous. We had no toilet paper, and if we had any, I would have traded it away.
It was a “dirty” business.
Let me give you a piece of advice: you need guns and ammo first – and second, everything else. Literally EVERYTHING! All depends on the space and money you have.
If you forget something there willll always be someone to trade with for it – but if you forget weapons and ammo, there will be no access to trading for you.
I don’t think big families are extra mouths. Big families means both more guns and strength – and from there, everyone prepares on his own.
11. How did people treat the sick and the injured?
Most injuries were from gunfire. Without a specialist and without equipment, if an injured man found a doctor somewhere, he had about a 30% chance of survival.
It ain’t the movie. People died. Many died from infections of superficial wounds. I had antibiotics for 3-4 uses – for the family of course.
People died foolishly quite often. Simple diarrhea will kill you in a few days without medicine, with limited amounts of water.
There were many skin diseases and food poisonings… nothing to it.
Many used local plants and pure alcohol – enough for the short-term, but useless in the long-term.
Hygiene is very important… as well as having as much medicine as possible. Especially antibiotics
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star
May 2, 2013 at 8:02 AM
Gosh there are some of us who live alone don’t have others to reply on and live in towns what are the weaker sex supposed to do ?
Clifford
May 2, 2013 at 9:03 AM
There is no weaker sex in war. A pretty woman can get close, and then kill you often much easier than a man. Use what you have in a way that benefits you. If you live alone then start using it now to make you some good friends with other survival skills. If you don’t then expect to be on on someone’s barbeque grill getting roasted to a turn after they get finished playing with you and you die. Its a hard, cold world out there Star, and its coming to your neighborhood soon.
star
May 2, 2013 at 11:11 AM
peeps not to friendly here and I am not that young .
Floyd Lloyd
May 10, 2013 at 8:29 PM
Go online to http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.com/ or something similar. Find a prepper meetup group in your area and make connections or new friends. Some of these groups have events where they camp or go shooting or get together to discuss preps and gear. Where is your family? Maybe move closer to them so you have some support.Even if they aren’t preppers now, they will be when shite goes south.
Month
May 2, 2013 at 9:20 AM
Be strong. Don’t be weak. As a female I am preparing to do everything if needed. I am married but something could very well happen to my husband. LEARN. BE INFORMED. FIND OUT HOW TO PREPARE. >>>>You can TOTALLY DO THIS!
Vin
May 2, 2013 at 10:59 AM
You need to learn to take care of yourself first, then try to network with others, make some like minded friends, join a group.
JJ
May 2, 2013 at 2:33 PM
Your only going to get out of it what you put into it. Do first things first get a little food and water before the weapon, at least four days worth. This really has to do with your environment (how long before your neighbors or the thugs down the street start going door to door. At this point you need guns and ammo, Learn how to use them. In your case after you learn how to hit the target start using as life like targets as possible. Start networking its not hard to talk to others about what they would you do if….(pick some event that’s happened) and see where they take it, don’t push, feel them out and don’t ever tell anyone that your stocking up until you know beyond a shadow of a doubt they will not try and come for what you have if things go bad. You must have friends in tough times. Then make a plan as to how to get to those friends or them to you.
Reread this story about a dozen times, and look at your situation. You can’t do it all in a day. I’m a single guy living on about 23,000 a year and for the last two years I have been slowly putting away what I can.
Just the fact that you are here means that your not lost. Be careful what you read, there are plenty of wannabe no-it all’s, that will be the first to die in a real life situation.
I tell my friends – Next time your at the store buy a 5 gals of water and the biggest bag of pinto beans you can find 5 to 10 lbs at least(protein and fiber). Make sure you have a way to cook them. If your single you have enough for a couple of days.
One last thing. I am an older guy with a ton of life experience and very self sufficient, with that said I started prepping on my own knowledge and what I read online. I made a lot of mistakes in the food department. I finally bought someones knowledge and if i would have done that in the beginning I’d saved a lot of money.
Don’t forget water. You’ll need it first and most.
star
May 2, 2013 at 10:59 PM
Well I live on a lot less than you do but manage . It is true one has to be careful whom they can trust . As for ammo hmm I guess a pick fork might work . As for food yeah good to store what one can but one can forage too as many wild plants one can eat if they know what can be eaten [ onions garlic dandelion some flowers leaves ,etc ] And I guess one can pray smiles.
Hujonwi
May 3, 2013 at 3:42 AM
Keep up the good work. A machete will work to. As I have been doing the last couple of years, when I go to the store pick up an extra pound of pinto beans, or can of spam and set it back. Although a gun and ammo are very important, see what ya may be able to pick up used or at a pawn shop. That is great article, I get the info from Selco and it close to what he has to say, so remember extra toilet paper and tampons would be other good things to pick up. I do as a single guy.
star
May 3, 2013 at 10:15 AM
Way pass the tampon age heehee as for tp one can use a cloth and wash . Wonder what thy used in the old old times when no tp ? or even no tampons ? hmm a thought to research.
gigi
May 5, 2013 at 10:25 AM
Tampons are not necessarily ‘a necessity’. Woman’s feminine pads or in an emergency…old torn up tea towels or rags will work. Some of the older women (over 65) may need to teach the younger generations how this method works.
Maxilyn
May 3, 2013 at 10:32 PM
Star, it may not be safe to forage. Much safer to barricade yourself in your home. Buy an extra can or bag of food each time you go to the grocery. Learn to make cheese from reconstituted powdered milk. Learn to make and use a solar oven. Feminine, dental, and other hygiene products are good trade items. Just a few minutes’ research on the web found a site that instructs how to make penicillin, including gauze that can be used to disinfect wounds. If you do get a gun, go to a range to learn how to shoot it. Make sure it’s one you can actually fire. My arthritic hands can’t fire a semi-automatic so I have a revolver. Also have a old-fashioned wooden baseball bat next to my favorite chair “just in case.” If you don’t have a source of clean water, get a water filter–or three. Go a day, a week, or a fortnight without electricity, gas, city water, or leaving the house. That will quickly show you where you need to strengthen your preparedness. Be alert, be ready, but there’s no need to panic. “If you are prepared, you need not fear.”
star
May 4, 2013 at 6:56 PM
what’s the site on making penicillin? Thought that was made from eggs?
gena
May 16, 2013 at 7:54 AM
A cheap home defense item is wasp and hornet spray. If someone tries to force their way in, spray it back and forth across the face, stuff is made to be accurate from up to 15 feet or more, you do not have to wait until they get too close. Legal to buy everywhere, will potentially cause permanent damage, do not use it lightly. Will disable for 10-15 minutes at least, time to kick them hard in the back of the head or neck, if it is a survival situation and you or them. Bear spray is even better and stronger, more expensive and I’m not sure legal everywhere. Get a walking stick and be prepared to use it like a bat, carry it with you when you go out walking. Keep it next to your bed when you sleep. Also, keep a can of the wasp and hornet spray next to your bed if someone gets in and comes to your bedroom. If you can, have a least one yappie dog, as a alarm system that works if the power is cut or out. And pay attention when he/she yaps, you will learn to tell when the dog is warning something is wrong or someone is too near. If you cannot see outside your door, never open the door if you do not know and trust the person at the door. And try to make your doors and windows secure, really secure. Reinforce as necessary and if you are a renter, as allowed on your lease. I also have a Zapper one million volt stun gun and a ,177 caliber pellet gun. Bass Pro Shops sell pepper spray and they sell bear spray, not legal in all states.Sportsmans Guide sells stun guns, sling shots, pellet guns (air guns), ammo for sling shots and pellet guns, all sorts of inexpensive weapons which currently have no restrictions on purchase except you tell them you are over 18 years of age, and with the sprays, like I said, not legal in all states and some cities.
Month
May 2, 2013 at 9:18 AM
This reminds me of another blog by a man by the name of Selco. Almost ALL of this directly correlates with what he experienced in another location when TSHF. http://www.shtfschool.com This type of information is WAY more valuable than us trying to decide what WILL be important. Hearing these stories and taking notes to be prepared for that is more important to me. Would LOVE more stories like this!
Joe
May 2, 2013 at 11:27 AM
Hey Month,
Like I said in the article, I believe this may be originally from Selco, but I couldnt’t verify it. Either way it is a terrible and terrifying, but GREAT story.
Laur
May 2, 2013 at 12:01 PM
Important to note he said the gov’t tried to take all the guns away while telling the people everything was going to be all right. And note that he said guns & ammo were the main things you need to survive. Star, in your situation you might think of some skill you have that can make you valuable in a shelter. Perhaps you can sew or make Steve out of an old bone and an onion? Then get to know some neighbors who seem trustworthy and endowed with common sense. Look around your house for valuable barter items, i.e. seeing needles, pain killers, antibiotics, canned foods (do you have canning supplies?) or maybe if you live alone your house is big enough for food, toilet paper & water storage or even a shelter? You don’t want to let anybody know you have this stuff until you have some friends you can trust & you’ve convinced them that you’re worth more alive than dead. In the meantime, research guns you can handle. You’ll want at least one if not two handguns and a small 410 “snake charmer” shotgun. My mom has one and she’s 75. Learn how to use them and start stockpiling ammo-which is very hard right now and will probably limit your gun choices. A decent gun store will be able to advise you on a good gun for a woman your age and one that still has ammo on the shelves. At the very least, you’ll go down fighting and not end up on that BBQ!
Charles
May 2, 2013 at 12:03 PM
Think i’ll go back and watch the movies “Red Dawn” and “The Mail Man” again.
S
May 2, 2013 at 12:09 PM
Yes, this article is from Selco’s One Year In Hell on his SHTFPlan website, only paying subscribers can read the full story, which is why you are unable to verify it, but I have held a membership to his site in the past. This article is definately a small section of his story, but it is all true, he really experienced those things in Bosnia.
lone wolf
May 2, 2013 at 1:59 PM
A liberal neighbor (Obama devotee) responded to my verbal recitation of the contents of the post: “Why, those sort [sic] of things could never happen. President Obama wouldn’t let that happen.”
Bill
May 2, 2013 at 2:47 PM
Being something of a old “BOy Scout” I have always tried to be prepared. I can see the events in this article taking place in this country in a heartbeat. I have done much on my own but aside from my relatives who live 30 miles away, I’m on my own. Anybody out in the “real” world from the Berkeley County area of SOuth Carolina?
Vince
May 6, 2013 at 5:53 PM
Not sure where that is located in the state Bill. I will be retiring soon and my wife and I are moving to Laurens County S.C.
Thomas-Avery Blair
May 2, 2013 at 5:27 PM
This article should be circulated to each and every household in the USA.
You might not believe anything like this could happen in the USA, but trust me, there is a hoard of people who plan on using violence instead of preparedness to survive.
This year alone I’ve been told by no less than four individuals that when TSHTF crisis happens they will view their fellow man (or woman) as a ready source of protein that can be “harvested” as necessary. Not one of these four are wholesome or caring individuals. They are all four low-brow and vicious, and have no view of right and wrong…only that might makes right.
I did their tax returns and learned just how these loafers and takers will try to survive on the “plenty” of the workers who love their God, their families and their country while also trying not to become victims of the government, their neighbors or the expected looters that will likely rush their homes with numbers and weapons when TSHTF.
By the way, if you don’t have an old-time pump for use on your water well the time to get one is right now! The bladders in those old cast iron hand pumps with handles can wear out, but a good clean piece of leather can be put back into the unit and make it just as good as new.
I suggest that those who don’t die of gunshot wounds will most likely otherwise die of thirst or disease from drinking putrid stagnant water, but those with a water well and a good hand pump will have a commodity (drinkable water) they can trade with that will help insure their survival when the power goes off for six months or longer when TSHTF.
At least food for thought, don’t you think?
gena
May 16, 2013 at 8:01 AM
Try buying a few LifeStraws. Cheap, purifies a whole lot of each each. Well worth buying as many as you can afford.
gena
May 16, 2013 at 8:03 AM
A whole lot of water, each one. Removes most bacteria, protozoa,and solids. I think it removes most things other than viruses.
AJ
May 2, 2013 at 5:57 PM
Yes, the article is written Selco style. Very valuable information on his website. I get a monthly free article.
What do you all think of small homesteads as a source of food for yourselves and maybe some food to trade? Of course this isn’t a plan in a bug out situation but what about a longterm situation? Thank you. -AJ
Mike
May 3, 2013 at 1:42 AM
Many mention the need to have antibiotics on hand. Is there some kind of over-the-counter product that works? Or is there something in nature that works? Stocking up on prescription drugs is not very easy.
Ken
May 3, 2013 at 3:23 AM
@Mike – Check into Antibiotics for tropical Fish and Birds, many are identical to human prescription drugs. Just avoid the ones that say they enhance plumage or fin color or something like that. There are many natural alternatives including Tea Tree Oil, Oregano Oil, and Garlic. There is an abundance of info on these things floating around the web.
Hujonwi
May 3, 2013 at 3:46 AM
Check out fish antibiotics and Dr. Doom and Nurse Bloom.
gena
May 16, 2013 at 8:09 AM
Not sure I’m spelling it correctly, Colloidal Silver will even kill the MRSA bacteria. Not saying drink it, that might be dangerous, but apply to wounds as antibiotic. It is not that expensive. Another item that could prove VERY handy is DMSO, which you can buy on Amazon.com. It will stop strokes, treats arthritis and sore joints and muscles. Was once legal for human use, FDA banned it for human use, as it worked so much better than most pharmaceutical products that were making Big Pharma billions of dollars in profits and is a natural product which cannot be patented. It is allowed for use in animals, saved one of my dogs several times when she had strokes, athletes use it all the time for sore muscles and joints, horse owners use it on race horses for their muscles. Inexpensive, just make sure you buy the pure DMSO, do not buy the products offered on Amazon.com that are cut with a lot of other stuff or scented. Can cause bad taste and I hear bad breath, I have never noticed it when I’ve used it on myself, the taste, no one has mentioned my breath being sulfuric.
Ellen
July 13, 2013 at 2:27 AM
Natural remedies I have used with great success (almost 40 years) are colloidal silver, Echinacea, oil of oregano, black elder berry, tea tree oil, garlic, vitamin c, l-lysine, oscillococcinum and DMSO. DMSO I use externally. All the others I take internally. I have used quite a variety of other herbal remedies and homeopathic remedies over the years.
Buy foods that you normally eat to go into your food storage.
If you don’t/won’t eat it now you won’t want to eat it in an emergency……….you could force yourself…….but why?
Valerie
May 16, 2013 at 4:12 PM
The stocking up on antibiotics is probably fish antibiotics. They are identical to human ones but can purchased WAY cheaper without a prescription. (See Doom and Bloom website)
If you are on a very tight budget, here is what you can do. Take $10 a month and buy extra food, beans, rice, span, whatever you can.
The other $5 go to the dollar store and get things that help or you can trade. Lighters, kitchen matches, soap, salt, sewing kits, spices, flashlight and batteries (the ones at the $tree are not great but…) And so on.
Buy a package of notebook paper and a binder. Go to the library and start taking notes. Go online and make notes. Learn as much as you can about everything.
Buy seeds, you can buy heirloom at Lowes etc for about $2 or less a package. Buy all you can, then get some for trade.
Spend one month on vitamins then on OTC medicines.
If you can afford $20 that is even better, but whatever you can.
Ann
May 3, 2013 at 5:56 PM
@ Star
Before sanitary pads, protection was provided by using folded cloth made from pieces of old sheets. To clean, soak and wash in cold water.
star
May 4, 2013 at 6:50 PM
Yeah I figured that but I also read way way back people squatted over holes to take a poop , was these lines of holes and they squat down and did their business but in the picture didn’t see any thing they used to wipe with . This article was pertaining to how when squatting ones colon is straighter and one can poop better than if in a sitting position as we use on a toilet . Like we in the old days had chamber pots one was practically in a squatting position .
gena
May 16, 2013 at 8:14 AM
If you keep yourself hydrated you can take a dump with ease no matter how you sit or squat. The main cause of people being constipated is dehydration or taking medicine that dries up body fluids. I was on a diuretic and constipated for several years and had to take laxatives to crap, quit the diuretic, and have had NO problem since – over 20 years since. Many allergy meds, psych drugs, blood pressure meds, to include diuretics will dry your insides to the point you get constipated. Find natural treatments, and be sure to drink enough fluids, not to include stuff with caffeine, which are natural diuretics (and laxatives as far as that goes).
rotciv
May 5, 2013 at 10:26 PM
Books and more books. CDS,dvds etc. Nogood when grid goes out.Batteries and generators only last so long.
Dan Nace
May 14, 2013 at 8:30 AM
Does anyone knows what the accumulator he speaks of is ?
Jan
August 2, 2013 at 2:55 PM
I’m in much the same situation as Star age wise and neighborhood wise. I’ve been in this house 64yrs and while it isn’t the inner city it has deteriorated. Most around here are renters who don’t stay long and a few houses on my street are and have been empty for some time. I’m strangely enough 2 blocks from the state police and a half mile from the city police yet the crime around here is high. My daughter & her family live 30 miles away with their heads stck in the sand even if the should wake up when TSHTF his parents also with their heads in the sand are only 2 miles away from them. I am like Star effectively alone on just s s. there have been many good ideas here and I thank you all for them and plan to implement what I can. I am also somewhat handycapped so I think getting in better shape is imperative. The gentleman who wrote that story dosent think you can survive alone but I have a Savior that will keep me-if not he’ll take me home either way ill do what I can and He’ll do the rest. I look forward to any other suggestions.
Sawyer
December 22, 2013 at 9:37 PM
For anyone in the northern 1/2 of US, it would be wise to have a secondary heat source also……… Among a million other things that we sometimes think we must have..
James Mason
August 30, 2014 at 2:53 PM
Was this guy really there? Doesn’t sound like it to me. Some of what he says is true and other parts are ridiculous. Life in Sarajevo moved along as normal as possible under the conditions. The Bosnians were intent on denying the Chetniks control of their lives. You could walk around anyplace in town and not be bothered by the gangs. Cigarettes were the most valuable commodity and this guy hardly mentions that. The citizens remained civilized throughout the ordeal. I was a reporter and was there probably a year’s time total during the three year siege. Most of what this guy writes is nonsense.