A new perspective on how quickly things can go bad...

Barrabas said:
My mother in law is an ex nurse / traditional medicine buff as well. This Lady is amazing.

I asked her about the best thing to carry in my pack for a severe cut, that would get me by in the best way possible until I made it to a Doc.

She told me to go out in her back yard, and pick some Yarra or Yarrow? (not sure the correct spelling), It kind of looked like what I used to refer to as chigger plant, but some had tiny blue flowerlets, and other had yellow.
She told me to take the leaves off the stems, dry them and keep them in my pack.

She also gave me a little education as to how during the War between the states, the Soldiers would carry it with them to help clot wounds.

I did as she suggested, and the only time I have used it was for a trial run when I cut myself shaving - worked great, but needs to be moistened a little by water /saliva to help it clot properly - unless it is green (freshly pulled).

Amazingly no sting - at all.

A friend at work got a nasty cut on one of the doors, and gave him some - worked for him as well.

You can pick it wild, and seems to be readily available in the mountains (Eastern US), she also gave me some seeds she bought - going to plant them in my yard, as well as some of the wild.

Worked for me.

Be Well,

sp
Click to expand...

The plant is called Yarrow. Botanically, it is Achillea millefolium. It is known by quite a few common names, such as Soldier's Woundwort which it acquired because of its styptic qualities. The Achillea part of the binomial apparently refers to Achilles who used Yarrow to tend to his soldier's wounds, the millefolium species name refers to the finely disected (spelling?) leaves. It is also used as an herbal tea. The native version we have around here has white flowers, although I've seen reddish flowers in some flower gardens.

The accident described (hatchet) is not uncommon and apparently has caused some deaths when the femoral artery has been cut. For this reason, I don't use hatchets and much prefer a large knife or machete. For me, at least, it makes it harder to miss what I'm chopping.

Doc
 
On peices like tha I just place the hatchet on top to hold it and then take another peice of wood to smack the back the hatchet. It sinks in and you proceed to finish the rest with your hands away from the wood. I know I use my 12" ontario machete for that reason and baton it through. Hope you heal alright and learned a valuable lesson. Because the next time it might be worse for ya. Heal quick and get back out there.!
 
Its not a bad idea to carry a pair or two of latex or rubber gloves that fit fairly snug in your kit. They can hold things together and make it easier to prepare the bandage without blood running all over. In a pinch you can carry water in them as well. A couple good heavy duty Latex balloons in your kit is good as well. You can carry water in them or use them to form a tourniquet of as a float or jug for fishing and many other uses and they take very little room to store in your kit.

Even the fingers from rubber gloves can help hold a bandaid in place and protect the wound.
 
Super glue. I keep it in my kit. Along with needle and thread.


ps anyone have good super glue suggestions? all the stuff I buy lately takes too long to dry. I need some of the good old stuff that used to glue my fingers to toys.
 
I found out about this stuff a long time back. It was what got the VietCong thru the war. It's called Yunnan Paiyao. You can find it at Chinese medicine shops. It will stop bleeding fast. My pic isn't focused too well, sorry.

IMG_3530.jpg
 
I cut my thumb to the bone and all i had was a small sewing kit so i heated the needle over the fire and sewed the darn thing up with regular thread and never seeked medical attention but it hurt like H when it healed and i pulled the thread out which was now part of the flesh! it bled from every hole! but it did save time and money.
 
Get some QR powder and keep it in your kits. Its invaluable for us bumbling sharpy guys.
 
Yarrow, Cayenne, Wild Geranium root, all work pretty well. I use Yarrow regularly for a variety of things!
 
Dunno know if this is the QR Powder that Fiddleback mentions, but some powder is available from the farm and feed stores (should be, they are scarce around me) - same sort of thing, packaged for animals, perfectly safe for you, and a lot cheaper than BQ.
 
I snagged the end of my thumb while working on a bandsaw once, I felt it bounce of the bone, which sent a jarring shock all the way up my arm. While walking to the bathroom to clean it, I went into shock, and sort of detachedly watched myself go through the motions while I sweat bullets and sort of floated along mentally.

Good to know when shock is coming, so one can sit down and get stock of things.
 
Dr. Mudd said:
By now you've probably thought of several other ways to make kindling, but long ago I learned to use a small stick or a previously split piece to hold the chunk upright while you split it with the hatchet or a large knife.

That "bad feeling" you got after bleeding for awhile was the beginning stages of going into shock I believe. Over the past summer I kept having an artery blow out in my nose which produced unstoppable bleeding. It's hard to believe you can bleed that much from an uninjured nose! After I'd bled for an hour or two I experienced the same feeling you described, only I didn't keel over in the dirt. The first time this happened I took my first ambulance ride. I learned just a little every time it happened after that. On my fifth trip to the hospital they did surgery to clamp off that main artery deep between my eye and my nose. Feeling shocky is really disconcerting, isn't it?!? I got hot and sweaty, weak, nauseated, and my vision began to blur with little "starbursts" around lights. People, do something constructive before you get to this stage! Soon you won't be able to think straight or to get some help!
Click to expand...

Ditto for me - I had nasty nosebleeds for a while. Long story short, my doctor told me that if any source of bleeding goes for 4-5 minutes, and doesn't slow down or let up even after having pressure put on it, get help right then. don't wait.

I've been lucky. No major cuts. Yet.

thx - cpr
 
I agre with those who say avoid quick clot I have heard some really bad results from medics in the gulf

I also have to ask if you had been drinking alcohol at all, That thins your blood and dehydrates you and is something I avoid when spending time afield.
 
Holding the injured hand above the head will slow bleeding, then use pressure on the wound. I had the end of my index finger bitten by a pirhana, about the dia. of a ciggarette and as deep. It bled profusely and that was how it was finally stopped.
I wear leather gloves when splitting kindling, they will protect your hands fairly well
 
This is the kind of helpful thread that I come to these forums for.

I've never even heard of some of this stuff (Yunnan Paiyao), but it has me thinking that I have nothing in my kit to staunch serious bleeding. I know Rambo just uses gunpowder but I don't even have that on most hiking trips.;)

So, do you guys have a favorite? I guess I'll purchase some QuickClot since the price is right, but it seems like it might be worth getting a single Hemostatic Bandage just in case.
 
Which one of these would you suggest for someone who is on blood pressure meds and also takes baby aspirin(told by doctor to take along with meds)? Thank you.:)
 
Thanks for the help everyone.
I hadn't had any alcohol in ~ 10 hours, and even then it was just one beer.. a magic hat, pretty tasty.
I'll be picking up some of the QR stuff, anybody able to suggest which formula I want for similar problems?
 
I am not a medico in any form or fashion and make no pretense of anything other than a bit of common sense. There are those who will argue with that but, I will give my own personal opinion. Use a sterile dressing and apply direct pressure. Allow the body to do it's own natural clotting, if it will. Most of the clot agents I have seen have potentially serious consequences. I personally have used a paper towel or kotex pad and duct tape to hold it in place tightly. I fear that misuse/misapplication of the agents could be worse than the initial injury in many cases.

Codger
 
I got hot and sweaty, weak, nauseated, and my vision began to blur with little "starbursts" around lights.
Click to expand...

FWIW, this is also what it feels when one starts going into heat stroke. Did that once and now I'm paranoid about keeping hydrated. It's no fun when you're sitting there, feeling weak and like you're about to puke, and all of a sudden your vision turns completely white.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top