There is a particular kind of exhaustion that settles into the body when stress is not a single event but a sustained condition. It is different from the tiredness that follows a hard day’s physical work, which tends to resolve with a good night’s sleep and a decent meal. Long-term stress, the kind that comes […]
from Survivopedia
Thursday, April 23, 2026
Best Trench Shovel for Preppers: What to Look For and 3 Top Picks
A trench shovel is not glamorous. It does not have a battery, an app, or a multi-tool attachment. What it does have is a narrow blade, a strong handle, and the ability to dig exactly the kind of hole that keeps you alive, concealed, or dry when it matters. If you have not thought seriously […]
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Wednesday, April 22, 2026
7 Cold War Secrets that Will Keep You Alive When SHTF
For about forty years, the United States and the Soviet Union spent an absurd amount of money preparing for the end of the world. Both sides built bunkers, stockpiled supplies, trained civilians, and developed survival protocols that most people today have completely forgotten about. But here’s the thing – the scenarios they were preparing for […]
The post 7 Cold War Secrets that Will Keep You Alive When SHTF appeared first on Ask a Prepper.
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How to Create a Medicinal First Aid Kit
Estimated reading time: 12 minutes
Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor and nothing in this article should be taken as medical advice. Please talk to your doctor before using any of the herbs and/or remedies mentioned in this article.
When you switch to natural medicine, opening a first aid kit can make you cringe. Being prepared requires that you have the right remedies on hand and know how to use them during minor emergencies. Herbalists and preppers alike need to consider how to build a medicinal first aid kit.
Active families and individuals have plenty of opportunities to use a first aid kit. All of my kids have been injured several times throughout the year, playing at parks or while camping. Having natural remedies on hand gives me peace of mind.
Once you decide to build a medicinal first aid kit, you have to gather the right supplies for it. Each item that you place into the kit needs to have multiple uses. You want simple remedies that can easily be stored in a nylon bag or box. Some people pare down the kits even further to keep in their purse or backpack.
What to Include in Your Medicinal First Aid Kit
Here are my favorite remedies to put in the kit. Most of these items are available at a well-stocked health-food store, or you can purchase them online.
Activated Charcoal
Everyone needs to have activated charcoal in their kit. You can use it for acute food poisoning, vomiting, diarrhea, and ingestion of toxins. If you come down with a case of the stomach bug, take a few capsules of activated charcoal to help calm the properties.
Aloe Vera Gel
Aloe vera gel is perfect for sunburns and any mild burn or scald. If you accidentally burn yourself with a cup of hot tea, spread on a layer of aloe vera gel to cool and treat the wound quickly. You can keep a small aloe vera plant on hand and break off pieces when you need them. The other option is to purchase a bottle of gel to keep on hand.
Arnica Gel or Cream
Arnica is known for its ability to treat injuries. This herb has anti-inflammatory and circulation-stimulating properties, and having arnica gel or cream in your kit is excellent for bruises, sprains, strains, and sore muscles. Another choice is to have arnica tablets on hand, but they don't work as fast.
NOTE: Make sure that you don’t apply arnica to broken skin.
Baking Soda
You want to have some baking soda on hand. It’s great for stings and bites. All you have to do is make a paste with baking soda and water, then slather over the bite.
Calendula Salve
Calendula is known for its multiple properties; it’s an astringent, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and wound-healing herb. These properties together make it the perfect herbal salve. It helps to heal wounds, kick an infection, and reduce swelling.
Cayenne Pepper – Capsules, Tincture, or Powder
The hardest thing about cayenne is figuring out how you’re going to carry it with you. Cayenne capsules are the easiest, but having cayenne powder is great because you can apply it topically to wounds. Some people swear that taking cayenne pepper helps increase blood flow and quickens recovery.
Citronella-Based Insect Repellent
Bugs aren’t an emergency, but they can be a nuisance when you’re out in the woods. Keeping an herbal repellant that contains citronella in your kit is a great idea. Citronella is a citrus-scented essential oil that comes from a grass grown in Southern Asia. You need to apply herbal based insect repellants every two hours.
Coconut Oil
Coconut oil can be used as the base for multiple tinctures and salves. So, if you keep a variety of herbs on hand, you’ll want to have plenty of coconut oil. It’s antifungal and great for chapped lips and dry skin. You can also take coconut oil internally, but make sure you purchase high-quality coconut oil.
Colloidal Silver
Colloidal silver is like a natural antibiotic that you can use to treat infections naturally. You can take colloidal silver internally, but most people use it externally. It's an excellent remedy for pink eye and any skin infections. You can mix it with water in a spray bottle and spray the back of your throat. Colloidal silver is worth the purchase.
Echinacea Liquid Extract or Tincture
Echinacea is one of my favorite herbs, and I always have a tincture on hand. This herb is an immune system stimulant that can be used for infections. It’s quite versatile, and it can be used internally or externally.
Epsom Salts
Epsom salts are a source of magnesium, and soaking in a bath with Epsom salt can help with cramped muscles and leg aches. Dissolve ½ to 1 cup of salt in the bathtub for sore muscles or to detox. You also can soak your skin in Epsom salt for 15 minutes to make splinters easier to remove with tweezers.
Ginger Tea Bags and Capsules
Ginger is great for stomach problems. The gas-relieving properties of ginger help to soothe digestive issues, relieve motion sickness, or kick nausea.
Goldenseal Capsules
Goldenseal is antimicrobial and works against a variety of microorganisms that might cause diarrhea or other digestive problems. It also has antiseptic properties that you can sprinkle over cuts or wounds to stop bleeding.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Always keep bottles of hydrogen peroxide in your first aid kit. You can use it for cleaning out wounds, helping to prevent ear infections, and reducing the length of respiratory problems. It’s a wise idea to have some hydrogen peroxide available in the first aid kit.
Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender is an all-purpose remedy for so many ailments. It has sedative, anti-inflammatory, and antiseptic properties. You can use it to treat anxiety, insomnia, headaches, wounds, and burns.
Manuka Honey
Manuka honey is specialty honey that comes from bees in New Zealand that pollinate the manuka tree. It has higher antibacterial properties than regular honey. Many people use it just like a triple antibiotic ointment for cuts and scrapes.
Manuka honey can be used to help speed up healing of injuries and reduce the risk of infection for wounds and burns. Apply it to a burn to speed the healing, and spread it over your face to get rid of acne.
Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint is great to have on hand because it soothes an upset stomach, helps with sinus congestion, and stops itching from bug bites. Be careful if you have delicate skin because peppermint oil can cause a skin reaction.
Valerian Tincture
Valerian has sedative properties that make it great for anxiety, insomnia, and tension. You can also use it as a mild pain reliever.
Witch Hazel Extract
Witch hazel is known for its mild astringent, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory properties. It’s useful for so many ailments, like insect bites and skin irritations; you can even treat hemorrhoids with witch hazel. Some people dilute essential oils with witch hazel for a topical home remedy.
Extra Items to Put in Your First Aid Kit
You need more than herbs, tinctures, and essential oils in your medicinal first aid kit. Make sure you have these items to make applying and using the kit easier and more practical for unique circumstances.
- Adhesive bandage strips
- Adhesive tape
- Alcohol pads or a small bottle
- Bandages
- Cosmetic clay
- Elastic bandage (ACE wrap)
- Electrolyte replacements
- Eye wash solution
- Hand sanitizer
- Irrigation syringe
- Moleskin
- Nitrile gloves
- Roll of gauze
- Safety pins
- Scissors
- Sterile gauze pads
- Thermometer
- Tweezers
Herbs to Keep in Your Herbal First Aid Kit
Depending on how you’re going to use your herbal first aid kit, you’ll want to keep several herbs on hand to create teas and poultices. Having the makings of good herbal tea can help cure dozens of ailments.
Calendula
Calendula is an all-purpose herb that you can use to create a tea to boost your immune system, ease a sore throat, cure seasonal allergies, and soothe sore muscles. Calendula can help to soothe sunburns and heal wounds when applied as a poultice.
Chamomile
Chamomile is one of the most versatile herbs you can keep in your kit, and it's gentle enough to use on kids. It has anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, and mild sedative properties that make it useful for a surprising range of problems.
Brew a strong cup of chamomile tea to calm an upset stomach, ease menstrual cramps, or help an anxious child wind down. You can also use cooled chamomile tea as a wash for irritated or inflamed skin.
Comfrey
Comfrey has a history of being used to help heal broken bones and encourage rapid new tissue growth. It makes an awesome poultice, compress, or salve. Just make sure you don’t apply comfrey to deep wounds before they close.
Elderberry
If you don't already have elderberry in your kit, add it now. Elderberry is one of the best-known herbs for immune support, and research backs it up. Keep some dried elderberries on hand to make a quick syrup, or stock a bottle of elderberry extract for convenience. At the first sign of a cold or flu, take it consistently to help shorten the duration and reduce the severity of symptoms.
NOTE: Don't consume raw elderberries — they need to be cooked first to be safe.
Lavender
Lavender helps to soothe and relax you, but it’s also a healing herb that you should keep on hand. Drinking lavender tea can relieve headaches and sore throats, calm your nerves, treat a cough, and soothe sore muscles. You can use lavender to clean out your wounds and heal them as well.
Mullein
Mullein is the herb your lungs will thank you for. It's been used for centuries to support respiratory health, and it's especially helpful when you're dealing with a stubborn cough, congestion, or chest tightness.
Brew the dried leaves into a tea and sip it slowly to help loosen mucus and soothe irritated airways. You can also find mullein in tincture form if you want something more compact for your kit.
Peppermint
Keep some peppermint on hand to help battle diarrhea, nausea, gas, and bloating. A nice cup of peppermint tea can ease a stomach ache. You can use it to create creams to alleviate muscle pains, reduce your body temperature, and soothe burns.
Plantain
Not the banana. This is a humble weed that's probably growing in your yard right now. Plantain leaf is one of the most underrated herbs for a first aid kit. It has drawing, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties that make it perfect for bug bites, bee stings, splinters, and minor wounds.
In a pinch, you can chew a fresh leaf and press it directly onto a sting to get quick relief. Keep some dried plantain in your kit for times when the fresh stuff isn't available.
Valerian Root
Valerian is known to help you drift off to sleep when you're anxious or stressed. Drinking valerian root tea can soothe those frayed nerves and give you the rest you need. Plus, it also can help relieve a cough and dull any pain you might be feeling. However, it smells like you're drinking stinky feet, so hold your nose!
Yarrow
Yarrow is like a natural bandage. You need to keep it on hand because it can help to stop bleeding on a fresh wound. After cleaning out the wound, apply a poultice or powdered yarrow. Keep that in your pack and hope you don’t have to use it.
Final Thoughts
Building a medicinal first aid kit takes time. You can make a large one to keep at home, then create small ones to take with you on hikes and camping trips. Over time, as you learn how to use herbs more often, you'll find more remedies to add to your kit.
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Why We Need To Know How To Cook
Over the years, as I’ve developed my website and written daily posts for my readers, I’ve frequently commented that cooking is both an art and a survival skill we all need. It seems cooking is a traditional skill, like sewing, that so many members of our newer generations have not been taught.
With all the weather-related challenges I’ve seen on TV and been reading about lately, I thought it appropriate to discuss why we need to know how to cook.
In generations past, people really didn’t have much of a choice when it came to meal preparation. They fixed meals in their cave, hut, open fire, or cabin, or they went hungry. The advent of fast-food restaurants and the convenience of drive-thru windows and related “fast food” takeout have drastically changed that in more recent years. Many families are used to visiting a McDonald’s and calling their meal a healthy response to hunger pangs.
My Kitchen Is My Favorite Place
I’m so grateful my mother took the time to teach my sisters and me to cook. The kitchen is my favorite room in the house. During meal preparation, I feel at peace and comfortable working at the counter, as my fingers cut, dice, chop, peel, mix, and stir. It’s truly my most cherished activity on any given day.
As someone who prides myself on being self-sufficient and enjoys sharing my passion for food preparation and for being prepared for the unexpected on so many levels, today’s post is from my heart as we learn together the key reasons we need to know how to cook. Let’s get started.
In case you missed this post, Easy Frugal Sauces You Can Make Yourself
Why We Need To Know How To Cook
Cooking at Home Makes Dealing with an Emergency Much Easier
In times of emergency, we don’t know what to expect from one moment to the next. Grocery stores and fast-food outlets may not be open for business due to flooding, power outages, wind damage, and other disruptions.
If we’ve prepared for the unexpected, we have food in the pantry, water in a storage tank, and cooking devices with utensils. This provides not only the nourishment we need from healthy food to keep going, but also the confidence we can “weather” any storm.
You Get to Eat Foods You Enjoy
Just think, you don’t have to count on Taco Tuesdays or wait for Fresh Fish Fridays at your favorite restaurant. You can fix anything you want whenever you want and relish every minute of it because you’re cooking what you like every day.
If you’ve planned and shopped each week based on what your family enjoys eating together, mealtimes become more pleasant, and the kids eat what’s good for them, too.
You Can Prepare Meals Based on the Special Diets of Family Members
In today’s world, it seems just about every family has a member with special dietary needs. These could include diabetes, gluten intolerance, nut allergies, etc. If you prepare meals at home, you can, under the direction of a doctor or dietician, fix meals that won’t be detrimental and probably do so cheaper than if you ordered food.
Meals Can Be Prepared Using Foods Produced on Your Property
In my posts, we often talk about gardening, harvesting healthy plants, raising birds or animals, and more. If you have a successful garden and raise animals for meat, plenty of options should be available to prepare quality meals without always relying on the local grocery store. Gardening is another life skill many individuals haven’t learned. Yes, gardening takes time and patience, but if your property has the space and resources, give it a try.
If you’re looking for quality time with family members, a time-out in the garden can be very rewarding. I still remember sending my young kids outside to pick vegetables like green beans and fruit like fresh strawberries that they planted and watched grow. Harvesting those items is a great reward for family teamwork throughout the growing process. Then learning to cook and otherwise prepare those foods makes the cooking process the culmination of a full season of effort.
Picture fixing salads with the homegrown veggies from your garden. Want a healthy, tasty treat made with garden-grown ingredients? Have some strawberry shortcake or berries in milk or cream. And all this without having to attend cooking school since you learned it at home.
You Know What’s in the Recipes and Complete Meals Being Prepared
So many foods today are considered “processed.” From the farmer to your plate, many hands are involved in bringing food to your home. Sometimes, even when you read the labels, you don’t know what’s in the food.
I have harped for years that we need to learn to cook from scratch so we know what’s in our meals and can control the content from start to finish. By scratch, I don’t mean buying a box of cake mix. I’m suggesting you pull the ingredients together from your pantry and make healthy, tasty meals. Please note that my favorite cake uses a cake mix as the base, with sour cream and pudding added. Chocolate Cake
By knowing what is in each meal you prepare, even as a beginner, you can feel confident that you are feeding your family truly healthy, well-rounded, and nutritious meals rather than junk food. I also think that home-prepared meals taste better in most cases.
Isn’t it awesome to send that young adult off to college knowing they can easily prepare meals away from home and do so in a healthy way? As they learn numerous life skills, cooking is one of the most important.
Cooking Meals at Home can be an Uplifting Experience!
If you do a lot of cooking at home, you gain confidence in your food prep skills. You’ll see your self-esteem soar as you watch your family and friends snarf down a delicious meal. You’ll feel even better when positive comments about the flavor, texture, and artistic presentation of those meals come your way.
It may start with learning how to boil water, then progress to understanding cooking times for all the goodies in your pantry. We all had to start somewhere, so enjoy the journey.
Home-Cooked Meals are Easier on Your Food Budget
I used to have a neighbor who loved to cook at home, but she complained about her food budget every month. One day, I asked her what kinds of meals she liked to prepare. I was shocked when she started listing items that Mark and I seldom buy because we feel they are too expensive. She told me she loved salmon, t-bone steaks, fresh shrimp, and other costly items.
I’m all for fixing fancy meals occasionally, but I look for things like case lot sales, clearance items in the meat department, and buying things when in season. We have also learned that the store brands most often compare favorably to the new-brand items.
I know that restaurants can buy their food supplies cheaper than I can, in most cases, but there isn’t any way they can then turn around and sell me a prepared meal for a price that includes their overhead, not counting tips, for what I can spend for the same meal prepared at home.
Also, Mark and I aren’t afraid to plan meals with more volume than just one sitting. We’ll enjoy the meal again during the week from the leftovers we’ve put in the fridge or freezer. We’ve learned over the years that many meals are just as delicious the second time around. Deborah taught me “Encore Meals”!
My Favorite Recipes
You Can Teach Your Kids to Be Good Cooks and More Self-Sufficient
I’m glad my daughters grew up loving to be in the kitchen. Most have become “working moms,” but they still find time to fix quality meals on most days. I worry about today’s youth who not only don’t see their parents cooking meals but also haven’t been taught how to do it at home.
As parents, we have a duty to discuss healthy eating habits. That includes learning to shop wisely, following a weekly menu so you have the right ingredients on hand, and teaching them how to follow recipes so the food turns out as intended.
If your children don’t learn at home, where will they go? Don’t count on them taking a “home economics” class during high school or college; it won’t happen, at least in most states now. Set them up for a happy and healthy future by having them learn how best to cook at home.
Kids are great at researching things on the Internet. Spend some time teaching them how to find quality meal recipes online. I have hundreds of recipes on my website, so feel free to start there when you want a tasty dish for tonight’s dinner.
You Might Even Lose Some Weight
Unless you ” piece” on the food while you’re preparing it or overeat when you sit down to enjoy the meal, you can possibly lose weight by preparing meals for healthy weight loss. Plan to eat lots of fruits, veggies, and other whole foods; serve meals on smaller plates so they have less food and fewer calories when those plates are filled; and skip those delicious desserts we all love. It also helps to eat meals earlier in the evening rather than right before bedtime.
You Can Share Your Prepared Meals with Neighbors in Need
There isn’t anything more gratifying than taking a hot meal to a neighbor who is ill, has lost a loved one, is working a busy schedule, or needs a “special visit.” You not only help them but also bring joy to you and your family, particularly if they helped prepare and deliver it.
To see the light in someone else’s eyes as they contemplate eating the meal is priceless. In case you missed this post, 20 Common Kitchen Tools You Need
Why We Need To Know How To Cook
Some of my favorite kitchen tools:
Final Word
As you know from reading my posts and comments in this discussion, I love to fix and eat at home; it’s just me. Tell me why you like cooking at home; I’d love to hear your ideas and share them with my readers. May God bless this world. Linda
Copyright Images: Means for Making Bread Depositphotos_357263786_s-2019
The post Why We Need To Know How To Cook appeared first on Food Storage Moms.
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