In This Article
- 1. Wrong Survival Tip: Ration Water
- 2. Wrong Survival Tip: Go Back To Where You Came From Before Dark
- 3. Wrong Survival Tip: Eating Raw Meat/ Seafood is Safe
- 4. Wrong Survival Tip: Suck Out The Blood Where You Got A Snake Bite
- 5. Wrong Survival Tip: Drink Urine For The Purpose of Survival
- Additional 6. You Can Eat What Animals Eat
- Conclusion
In this article, I will cover some wrong survival tips you probably have heard.
These survival tips are wrong, so they are myths. I will correct these myths, so you only have the correct information.
Let’s jump right in.
1. Wrong Survival Tip: Ration Water
Myth:
If you are lost and have a limited water supply, ration the water and stretch it for as long as possible.
Truth:
The truth is that people have died with water still in their canteens. Do not gulp all the water you have out of panic. Instead, feel free to drink water whenever you need it. Your body’s mechanism of getting your mouth dry is a good indication of when it is good to drink water.
Your body will know the correct time to ingest water and how much you need.
Here is a little trick, if you feel thirsty, it is mostly your mouth, so I recommend you gargle the water for 30 seconds, and you will feel fully hydrated.
If the water runs out before you get help, you have up to 3 days of survival before incapacitation. By staying hydrated at the beginning, you have a lower chance of getting dehydration. Rationing water will speed up your chances of dehydration.
2. Wrong Survival Tip: Go Back To Where You Came From Before Dark
Myth:
The second you realize you are lost, turn around and go back to where you came from before dark.
Truth:
If you are not entirely sure of the way back, don’t try. Sit down, calm down, and THINK. If you have ABSOLUTELY no idea where you are, gather wood, and start a fire.
You also want to build some shelter to minimize the amount of your body heat escaping and to shield yourself from bad weather.
Once when you wake up, you will be able to think clearer.
3. Wrong Survival Tip: Eating Raw Meat/ Seafood is Safe
Myth:
It is completely safe to eat most meat and seafood.
Truth:
You have probably seen some person eating raw skinned or unskinned meat in a TV show. This is rarely safe because these animals often contain deadly pathogens(bacteria, virus, and disease) that can get you very sick, very fast.
What about raw seafood? With raw seafood, the same rules apply. They may contain deadly pathogens. You might be thinking of a sushi restaurant, which does serve sushi.
However, that seafood is rare to find, and they sanitize, vigorously wash, and inspect before serving it.
You should always know what you are eating because it has to be edible and digestible for you. You should also always cook your food or sanitize and vigorously wash it if you know it is edible, raw.
4. Wrong Survival Tip: Suck Out The Blood Where You Got A Snake Bite
Myth:
When bitten by a snake, attempt to suck out as much snake venom as you can, if you have a tourniquet, use it.
Truth:
The snake venom can’t be absorbed by the bloodstream immediately.
Your lymphatic system will absorb it. The lymphatic system is connected to the heart, so if you suspect the snake venom is poisonous, here’s what you do.
Call 911. Meanwhile, don’t move the part of the body the bite inflicted. Apply a bandage with your first aid kit. Then, use an elastic roller to wrap firmly around the whole limb(up to the groins for the leg and up to the armpit for the arms).
At this point in time, the ambulance should be on its way, and you will receive the antidote with splints.
5. Wrong Survival Tip: Drink Urine For The Purpose of Survival
Myth:
Drink your urine if your canteen is empty.
Truth:
Urine is filled with discarded waste products, along with a near-fatal amount of sodium. Doing this will increase your rate of dehydration.
Instead, any non-poisonous plant (leaves/petals/evergreen needles) or rivers will do just fine for basic hydration.
Suppose those are not around your vicinity, then you will have to purify your urine before drinking it, with some basic nature filters shown in this image. The top section is pebbles. The next is sand, then charcoal(burnt wood), then gravel, and finally twigs at the bottom.
Additional 6. You Can Eat What Animals Eat
Myth:
You can eat everything animals Eat.
Some animals have evolved into certain eating routines and have developed to eating things that we cannot eat.
For example, NPR said that goats could eat poison ivy, oak, and sumac because they had to survive on those plants for generations and eventually became immune.
It’s not only goats that have these special eating abilities. It is nearly every animal on the planet, all with different diets. So, if you see a deer or rabbit eating something(berries, leaves, etc.), don’t eat it unless you know what you are actually eating.
Conclusion
These are my survival tips. In this article, I covered the fact that you should not ration water, go back to where you came from before dark, baton, suck out the blood where you got the snake bite, or drink urine.
If you liked this article, perhaps you would like 39 survival hacks that could save your life. If you are new to survival, I highly recommend this survival bushcraft book. It helped me a lot, and it will help you too.
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I knew all of these already. Anyway, thanks for the refresher.
This is a great article! I really learned a lot from it!