Montezuma’s revenge, the trots, or simply - Diarrhea.
July 14, 2008 by Gary Smith · 2 Comments
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What made me think about it was a recent camping trip, a group of friends that like to ride motorcycles went down to Johnstown PA to go to a motorcycle rally called “Thunder in the Valley “. If you were there and were looking for the big tough, mean looking bikers. . . That wasn’t us! We had fun but one of our members had a spell of Diarrhea and missed most of the event that he had taken time off from work, driven far to attend and was looking forward to. This sounds like most of the camping trips we all take and who wants them ruined? How can you keep this from happening to you?
Heat Stroke…it isn’t just for the elderly.
June 16, 2008 by Gary Smith · 2 Comments
Last week we talked about Heat exhaustion, and I recieved some private messages that went something along the lines of well this is an old folks’ problem, so I don’t have to worry about it. Sorry devoted readers, what I was trying to express was that the very young and the older/out of shape people are more at risk, BUT young and health people can easily suffer from it, too. All it takes is to start to deplete the body’s store of fluids and electrolytes and not be able to properly cool the body either because of heat and humidity or physical activity.
Today, we are going to go beyond heat exhaustion and talk about Heat Stroke. Remember, with heat exhaustion, the body, if replenished with fluids and electrolytes and cooled, could recover itself. Heat Stroke has gone beyond that. Often the body can not recover on its own and is not able to cool on it’s own either. True Heat stroke victims have lost the ability to sweat; they may still be clammy but are not sweating, and the body’s temperature is climbing rapidly to dangerous levels. But to learn more, let’s follow the continued below link ….
Heat Exhaustion, stop it before it gets worse!
June 9, 2008 by Gary Smith · 3 Comments
When this blog started, in January, I was writing about hypothermia and frostbite, and summer seemed like it was years away. Now suddenly IT IS HERE! This past week in Pennsylvania it has been above 90, and the humidity seems to match! So, now in honor of Summer, I want to write about … You Guessed it … HEAT! Please don’t think I am all about gloom and doom and that nothing can make me happy, or even that I find something wrong with every thing. But each season has its perils, and, if you know about them, you can be prepared to avoid them and make your trip not only safer but happier!
Now, heat is something that everyone expects in the summer, but few worry about. Now, as some of us approach middle age (do I really think I am going to make it past 96?), we find we don’t tolerate it as well as we used to. The young (below 8 - 10) and the middle age to elderly ( I will let you decide where that line falls) have more problems with the heat. So, let’s explore the beginnings of dangerous heat exposure by learning about Heat Exhaustion.
Bee Stings: Prevention and Treatment
June 2, 2008 by Gary Smith · 3 Comments
Tiptoeing through the tulips? Watch for the Bees!
I find it strange to begin this. To me, summer as a kid was always about being barefoot and freedom. Now part of the price you had to pay for that seemingly endless freedom of summer was the occasional sharp stone, or hot tar stuck to your foot or even the fact that once in awhile you got a Bee Sting! I was amazed this week when talking to my three children that 2 of the three can’t ever remember being stung by a Bee, not even once. Not that I went out of my way to be stung by a bee, but it just seemed to happen. I guess the times were a little more primitive. My mother used to tell me to take my shoes off and go play (saved on buying shoes don’t ya know!). Today it seems like every kid has an activity, soccer, swimming, baseball and so on; very few seem to just jump on their bikes, pedal down to the creek, and jump in, or go out into the woods to play.
But, I am wandering off of my topic for the week. Bee stings are feared by many people for a number of reasons. First of which is that they are painful! I mean, only card-carrying masochists want to be hurt on a regular basis, and I don’t think you will find many of those on here. (Wait we pay money to leave our nice comfortable homes to go live in a little, tiny campsite, Ok not serious ones!). Many also fear allergic reactions to the stings, which is a very valid point! Many also fear little tiny creepy crawly things! That is my personal favorite. I hate bugs and have been know to “scream like a little girl” when surprised by them.
But what is a Bee? Where do they come from? How can we protect against getting stung? What can we do once we are stung? Let’s see what we can learn…
Mixing Cleaning Chemicals, Do You Like to Breathe?
May 26, 2008 by Gary Smith · 1 Comment
Today I just want to first take a minute to Thank all those who serve our country in the Armed Services and Thank those families who have given a family member to keep this country safe and secure. We should really thank you every day of the year not just one. Their sacrifice lets the rest of us have the safest and best life of any country on this planet.
Ok, on to our subject of the day. I am very surprised in this day and age that this needs to to be mentioned, but it seems that these days everyone wants to clean quicker and faster and easier. However, in our haste, it seems that some of us are trying to make our own super cleaner. But lately people have been trying to mix Bleach and ammonia. It does make a very good cleaner but there is one BIG Problem…. it will KILL you.
Muscle Strains, Treatment and Prevention Advice
May 20, 2008 by Gary Smith · 1 Comment
Oh the aches and pains of Muscle Strains!
To my faithful Readers I am sorry that this is late. However, I do have a good excuse … I was CAMPING. The first time out of Camp Driveway with then new Jayco 232. Had some of the usual problems of the first time in a new rig, like blowing a fuse and not being able to find the TWO containers of replacement fuses we had gotten for just this problem. Oh, and did I say it rained at least part of 4 of the 5 Days we were out? So, you can see that we “experts” have the same problems everyone else does. Including the aches and pains of overdoing it.
Today, I can feel every one of those problems, too. The aches and pains of muscle strains are really kicking in. I guess I am also feeling sorry for myself because this weekend was my birthday. My age? Lets just say 40 is a fond memory and 50 is getting way too close. So, what are muscle strains? I am sure we have all felt them — the pain you get from overdoing it. The kind of thing when you were younger you might have woke up the next morning feeling stiff and sore for a hour or two. Which now somehow hurts more the day after, the day after the injury. They are muscle pains that come from straining our muscles by asking them to do more than we are used to doing or lifting heavier weights than we should. There is no deformity to the injured area, usually, to be honest, there is no swelling or discoloration even. What you have done is over-used the muscle and usually created small tears and/or lactic acid build-up in the muscles.
To Burn or Not to Burn, the Third Degree.
May 12, 2008 by Gary Smith · Leave a Comment
We have been talking about burns the last few weeks. First degree burns we decided were the kind of burns that are most commonly associated to Sunburns with pain, redness, swelling and illness. Not often fatal, they can make you wish you were dead, but you will be fine in most cases. Treatment most often was hydration and aloe (in other words drink a lot of water or Gatorade and moisturize the skin) and Oh, Stay Out Of The Sun For A Few Days -as my kids say… DUH!
Second degree burns were those that produced Blisters as well as pain, redness, swelling, and illness. These burns can be fatal if large areas are covered or if they become infected. Because they are a large open wound, they are prime sites for infection! Small areas were to be treated with dry sterile dressings and bandages — do not break the blisters. If they are broken, you need to apply some sort of antibiotic ointment that you aren’t allergic to and sterile dressing. We also know that large areas need to be seen and treated by professionals.
So, now we get to Third Degree burns or what is now often called full thickness burns. How do we recognize them and how do we treat them and how dangerous are they? Please be advised, electrical burns do not often show on the surface and, if there is any doubt what degree or area is affected by an electrical burn, seek medical help.
To Burn or Not to Burn, the second Degree
May 5, 2008 by Gary Smith · 2 Comments
Last week we talked about first degree burns, which were defined as burns that produced redness, swelling and pain, the most common of which is the sunburn.
Today we are going to talk about second degree burns. The easiest definition of second degree burns is those burns that produce Blisters, pain, redness and swelling around the blisters. These are some of the most painful burns there are. They also can be dangerous in that they can produce open wounds that can be slow to heal. If large areas of the body are burned, they can be fatal. So, second degree burns are nothing to be taken lightly.
To Burn or not to Burn? First Degree Burns
April 28, 2008 by Gary Smith · 2 Comments
What a difference a few weeks makes in the weather; less than a month ago we had several inches of snow. The past 2 or 3 days we have had 80 degree plus days. As someone said about western Pennsylvania weather, you have to love it or move. With days like this you suddenly have a rash of reports of the new seasonal problem, especially with younger people — Sun Burns or to be more honest First degree Burns. Yes, this is the first of three articles on Burns. I want to cover first, second and third degree burns, treatment and prevention. So, let’s get started with First Degree burns.
First degree burns are the mildest of Burns. You usually get them from, of course, the sun and very mild thermal burns. Now to define terms, thermal burns are from heat as in touching something hot, like a curling iron or stove burner; they also cause “Scalds “ which are from Hot liquids and from contact with open flames. Sunburns are burns from an object radiating energy. This does not mean you have been exposed to radiation as in nuclear power; you can get them from the sun, welding or even strong lights (can you say falling asleep in a tanning bed?). Other burn types are Electrical and Chemical. We are going to leave Electrical and Chemical burns for another time. Be advised a sunburn and a thermal burn and a scald are all still burns. A First degree burn shows redness and minor swelling to the area burned. They are not generally life threatening, but they can be very painful and often cover large areas, especially sunburns, and can cause disabling illness (nausea, pain, and flu-like symptoms) and can ruin your camping trip, because they usually last up to a week. Think about it, who wants to do anything when you can’t sit down and feel like you are going to lose your lunch?
First Aid in a Pinch, Something Out of Nothing
April 21, 2008 by Gary Smith · 4 Comments
Today I want to talk about something that seems to worry people. What to do when you don’t have exactly what you need! Everyone these days seems to think unless it comes out of a box that says “This Is What You Need” it won’t work. In other words, if it doesn’t say “First Aid” on it, you can’t use it in an emergency. As my Grandfather would say, Malarkey! Not everything comes out of a box, pre-made and ready to go . . . in fact, one of the joys of life used to be putting together things. People would put stuff together like Bikes for kid’s birthdays, making doll houses, birdhouses and the like. I know you used to be able to buy a kit motorcycle from Harley Davidson! Maybe you still can, I don’t know myself. Now the things I tell you are not accepted medical treatment in most cases (I have to say this so you don’t sue me!), but they can work as “First Aid”.
One thing that comes to mind instantly in my case (and to several of my readers, Thank you readers!) is the use of a “Sanitary Pad” for a dressing. They are easy to use, come pre-wrapped and are sterile! They are made to absorb blood and with a few pieces of tape you have a wonderful wound dressing.
Another is the use of a magazine. Take a nice magazine and make a “U” shape out of it and put a forearm or lower leg in it, some tape or elastic dressing, and you have a wonderful splint for broken arms or legs, especially for kids. Now for adults, did you save any cardboard for lining shelves or storage cabinets? Pull that out and use it for them.
Or you can use a ski pole, hiking pole or camera tripod for an emergency splint.
