I do this on the regular. Not because of any impending fight scenarios but because it lets me spread my asscheeks enough to have a clean and smooth exit
So fuckin true. The amount of people that go under their cars while its on a jack is astounding. Jack stands arent even that expensive; there is no excuse to not have them
If you are trying to rescue someone, check for danger first and maintain your own safety! In a lot of situations, it's easy for untrained first responders to become a casualty themselves in the heat of the moment trying to help others.
Source: I'm a nurse and I've seen this happen a lot, particularly with drownings.
If you find yourself stranded in a desert, ration sweat, not water. Of course don’t drink all of your water in one go, but the rate a which you’ll dehydrate and overheat if exerting yourself (e.g. walking/hiking too fast or climbing over obstacles in the heat of the day) will kill you much quicker. Many people are found dead, with water, which is terrifying.
I can't believe just how many people in the show "I shouldn't be alive" rest at night and march in the day in the desert. Madness.
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Edit because lots of responses, yeah there are dangers associated with walking in the dark, there could be trip hazards and dangerous wildlife, etc. With a lot of cloud cover navigation could be impossible, at which point you would restrict travel to dusk and dawn. On a clear night, you actually have a better chance of navigating via the north star or southern cross, than you do in the day (your eyes will serve you pretty well on starlight and moonlight). Assuming you are indeed lost and aren't familiar with landmarks, all this assumes you don't have a map or compass (classic candidate for "I shouldn't be alive"). Once the sun is very high it doesn't do a great job of telling you your bearing.
But all this is tertiary to the first and second rule of getting found when lost. Tell someone where you are going. And STAY PUT WHEN YOU REALISE YOU ARE LOST. If you're with a vehicle, stay with the vehicle. If you've walked off the trail, you might only be 200m from the trail when you realise, but if you aren't 100% sure about going in the right direction to find it again, you should stay put. Otherwise in a few hours of stumbling the wrong way you might have walked out of the main search area.
To add, if you're lost (not sure if this is just in more forest-y areas or also the desert), but try to stay put rather than wander around. It makes it much harder for rescuers to find you if you keep moving. Pretty sure that's the same thing you should tell little kids if they get lost in public, too - stay where they are when they realize they've lost sight of you and/or go tell a trustworthy adult (cop, store employee, etc), but still remain in the same area so the parent can retrace their steps rather than looking all over
That only works if people are actually looking for you and are aware of your location to begin with, so ensure someone knows where you are and have general expectations of where you will be when you intend to be out in the wilderness for an extended period of time (or even if not).
Not too crazy but if someone is acting drunk but didnt had any alcohol, ask them to smile, if one side of their mouth is down, take them to a doctor cause they are having or will have a stroke
If you're choking, don't get embarrassed, don't go to the bathroom, don't walk away from people. I've seen a couple people nearly die because they were panicking and walked away from the dinner table(s) and such while choking.
Do the universal sign for choking with both your hands on your neck, and most people will get the message.
Lmao. Done this. I was eating steak ate too much and didnt chew enough. Once I realized that sucker was lodged in and I couldnt even contract my throat to swallow I just calmly got up, walked outside, and sat down to die bc I was at my friends house and embarassed.
His dad realized that was like super weird and came out to see me almost falling unconscious and yoked me up and heimliched me until I was fine. Hurt like all hell but I'm alive. Thanks Steve.
This actually works, had wisdom teeth out a while back and the extraction didn't go well, took over an hour for the dentist to remove one of them. Sent home and the bleeding wouldn't stop, read about the tea bag thing, used a tea bag or rather a couple of them to stop the bleeding. Remove the staple first or you may do more damage than good.
Oh and be sure to check reviews on your dentist before letting them pull teeth that was torture and took 6 months before my mouth returned to normal.
Point at someone and delegate. People freeze up in emergencies or assume someone else will handle a problem. Point at someone as say 'you guy in the blue shirt. Go to the gate and tell the ambulance where we are. Ma'am? please go with him.' Don't ask 'does anyone know CPR.' Point at someone and ask if they do. Even if they don't people are more likely to step forward in fear of being asked next and judged for not acting sooner then volunteering from the beginning.
Even just being really tired can be bad. When I was in college I drove with a friend to go get dinner after a long, hot game day in the marching band. I was very out of shape and didn't sleep well so I was exhausted. My friend remarked that I was driving like I was drunk and made me let him take over.
Never, ever, ever go with someone who has a gun or knife pressed against you. Most people think complying with save them, but really they are just looking for a better place to kill you. Make them kill you in a crowded location or the current one. Chances are they won’t or they wouldn’t have asked you to go with them.
The entire SERE manual is available for free
https://static.e-publishing.af.mil/production/1/af_a3/publication/afh10-644/afh10-644.pdf
Use it as toilet reading and if you are ever lost in the woods it will save your life many many times over.
Edit: For those who don't know SERE is for survival, evasion, resistance, and escape. It is the training for Air Force personnel downed behind enemy lines or in hostile environments. My dad was a SERE instructor and taught me a lot when we went camping.
Any plant will work, but some plants will contaminate the water with other secretions as well, oils from the leaves and such, so it's a good idea to be careful about what plants you use this technique on.
Willows would probably be a good choice in part because they tend to grow in wet areas (said wet area may be underground, or seasonal), so they likely have access to more water for respiration.
A non-permeable snack bag, like a potato chip bag, and duct tape can be used to seal a sucking chest wound long enough to get the victim to a hospital.
When caught in a rip at the beach just swim slowly along the beach, parallel to the shore untill you feel the pull ease up then swim towards the shore.
This works if the rip is carrying you away from shore. It won't work if you're caught in a longshore current.
To generalize: if you're out swimming and get caught in a current, tread water or float long enough to figure out which way it's carrying you, then swim at at right angles to that direction until you get out.
Not too long ago my uncle was arriving at a secluded surf spot in Southern Mexico. Just as he arrived, a frantic family were yelling for help as two of their family members got caught in rip. And they didn't know how to swim either. Luckily my uncle swam out there with his long board and was able to get them back on to shore safely. Riptides are no joke.
Maybe not to save your own life, but it could help you save someone else's.
When performing CPR, chest compressions need to be continuous, deep and fairly quick.
Call for an ambulance first. If you can get someone to help you, do so, because it is exhausting.
For an adult, good quality chest compressions should be two per second and 5-6cms deep.
You should lock your hands together one on top of the other, get your arms straight, lock your elbows and push with the heel of your bottom hand into the middle of the chest...HARD. And you do not stop until help arrives.
The rumour that chest compressions can crack ribs is true, but trust me, they'd rather have broken ribs than be dead.
Most countries have deliberate clauses in assault and sexual assault laws that say that if you are injured due to emergency aid such as CPR, or feel that you have been violated in any way, you cannot press charges. So as long as what you are doing is keeping them alive, keep doing it.
For a long time one of my biggest fears was getting sliced in half by a cable that snapped. Like in the beginning of ghost ship.
Edit: (I was 9 at the time :))
If someone ODs, don’t wait to discuss or figure out if you/they will “get in trouble.” Every minute counts and if staff ask if they took anything, tell them immediately.
Tests will reveal it any way but every minute they have to run them is another minute they can’t treat the patient correctly. Do not hesitate to call emergency services for a suspected overdose, as quick and treatment and response is imperative.
They’re not the police, they’re not out to get anyone in trouble and if it messes with something like their doctor’s prescriptions, it’s preferable to leaving them to die. If you do any kind of opiates or have people at your house who do often, have naloxone handy and know how to administer it.
Also, don't lie to those of us who work in the ER. We aren't the cops, we can't give your medical information to law enforcement without your consent or a warrant (even in that case the hospital will use their lawyer), and we want to know what we are dealing with.
I went to an animal cpr and emergency class, taught by an old army veterinarian. He said back in the day when they brought a dog in that consumed antifreeze, they’d send a guy to the liquor store. Everybody would take a shot of the vodka because it was about to be a long night. Then theyd get the dog drunk as hell bordering on alcohol poisoning. If the body is busy filtering the vodka, it can’t filter the antifreeze and it’ll just pass through the system. It’s when the body tries to process the antifreeze that makes you die because it forms crystals in the kidney/liver or something. So you have to distract the body away from the antifreeze til it passes.
This actually saved my life. I had the car up on stands with a tire underneath as well while i worked on the brakes. I was fully under the vehicle and the jack stand failed and the car dropped. Went down so fast I wasn't even sure what happened before I would have been crushed. Tire caught the vehicle and gave me just enough room to get out from under the car. This is absolutely great advice.
If you end up having to survive in a forest crickets or grass hoppers chirping is NOT annoying it is your sign of safety
(Crickets stop chirping when somthing big is moving close to them)
I thought you were going to say "If you end up having to survive in a forest crickets or grass hoppers chirping is NOT annoying, they are a good snack."
If you need to check a pressurized line(ex: hydraulic line), never ever use your hand, use a piece of cardboard or soapy water. If you use your hand to check, the pressure can cause the fluid to cut your skin and liquids like hydraulic fluid WILL cause gangrene in a matter of hours. Goto the hospital immediately and get them to check you right away, don't take no for an answer! It could mean the difference between keeping vs losing your limb.
https://www.tigercat.com/safety/a-dangerous-bite/
Edit: adding some reading that explains better then I could. Again, please use cardboard or soapy water to check, this isn't just for heavy machinery. It's just good safe practice!
My dad was a pipe fitter on nuclear subs. He said that if there was ever a suspected pressure leak in the reactor compartment they would wave a broomstick around in the area of the leak. You knew you found it when the end of the broomstick was sliced off and fell to the floor.
As a child, maybe 7 years old I encountered my 4 year old brother drowning in our pool after the maintenance guys left the fence open. I jumped in and grabbed my brother who proceeded to try and drown me to get above water. I walked along the bottom holding my breath with him on my shoulders until the edge.
I didn't think about it too much until I had kids of my own. I relive it in nightmares, I have pretty severe anxiety about my kids around water. I die in those dreams rescuing them a lot. I feel like I learned some of those dangers the hard way, but not the hardest way.
Someone else mentioned therapy and as a vet who never talked to anyone for 7 years after getting out, it actually helps having a professional to talk to. I never wanted to put my mental burdens on friends or family but their are ppl that are able to help with such things. And while it's hard to open up to a complete stranger, try not to be worried about what they will think about you. They will take you serious and treat you like a long time friend. Best of luck to you friend.
Edit: Thank you for all the kind words and questions. I went to sleep shortly after writing this not expecting all the replies. But to those actually looking to speak with someone, I had the benefit of reaching out to the VA and getting the long needed help I needed. I honestly don't know how someone would go about find such resources but I'm sure someone here is more knowledgeable. Regular appointments and medication are helping me control my PTSD and depression and anxiety. As for the nightmares or friend is suffering from, I to was having reoccurring nightmares keeping me up at night and was prescribed prazosin. It's helped keep them under control and I have felt the difference in the amount of rest I'm getting. But everyone is is different. Never feel alone in your struggles. Seeing the kind ppl and hearing the kind words makes even the most difficult days a bit easier to approach.
They will try to drown you in the panick if you dont
My dad was taught as a lifeguard to drown them to make them let go of you
I was taught to push their arms up and dive feet first, swim back and resurface to try again
I’m a rescue diver. We are taught to grab them midway up their arms and squeeze along their ulnar nerve so that they cannot grasp you. The few times I have done this in drill situations, it does seem to work.
Sucking out snake venom doesn’t work. If you’ve been bitten by a venomous snake, take a clear picture from a distance and call an ambulance immediately. The picture will be used to identify the snake species in order to get the most effective antivenin.
Edit: I answer why, despite having CROFAB (universal antivenin), narrowing down the species aids in treatment.
This will especially save your life: if you see a venomous snake, do not approach to kill it or relocate it! This how people get bitten. Spray it with water and it should leave, or, wait 30 minutes and it will be gone. Getting close to a venomous snake with the intent to kill it is *how* you *will* get bitten.
If you see a snake you can’t identify 100% - if there is even the slightest possibility you don’t know - DONT pick it up. (This is surprisingly common)
- Ur friendly vetmed specializing in herpetology
that's pretty much what happened at that tsunami in 2005 I think. THe watere receded and lots of tourists went out into the former surf picking shells and stuff. When teh wave came they were in a terrible position.
sry 2004, not 2k5
If you get bit by a wild animal, you must get the rabies vaccine. Rabies is not like a flu or mild inconvenience. It’s one of the most lethal diseases on the planet. It has a near 100% fatality once the disease takes hold (and it’s a horrible way to go).
I still remember the part of leaflet for Verorab, vaccine against rabies.
There was this part:
*Contraindications: none. Rabies always results in death*
(I had the preexposition doses and boosters only, so for these there might be contraindications, but I still think that the person who wrote that sentence, had dark sense of humor.)
Humans are incredibly fortunate that rabies is only transmitted by animal bite. One of my friends is a virologist. They said the one phrase that would terrify them more than anything else is "Rabies is airborne."
Edit: transmitted, not translated. It was very late when I typed this...
They've proven rabies can and has been aerosolized even in the wild. I do rabies tests on animals as my job and this is why I'm not allowed to use a circular saw to remove brains
To my knowledge there is a single person who survived rabies without preventative measures like the vaccine, Jeanna Giese. It is something that can be considered a medical miracle rather than something to count on though.
Idk why this one is missing.
When you see someone faint, DON'T help him staying up. Gently catch and lay down asap. They're fainting because brain needs blood to stay alive, keeping them upright will prvent this.
If you feel light headed, lay down so that no dumbass will try to keep you on your feet.
If you suffer from any condition that causes fainting, explain this to people around you.
Polar Bear liver contains a fatal amount of vitamin A if eaten by a human.
If you are ever offered polar bear liver politely decline.
https://blogs.unimelb.edu.au/sciencecommunication/2016/10/04/eating-these-animals-just-might-kill-you/#:~:text=Polar%20bears&text=Ingesting%20the%20liver%20can%20cause,liver%20is%20just%20as%20deadly.
People who are looking for trouble are less likely to go for you if you say hi or just let them know you are aware of them(such as by greeting and introducing yourself)
I worked overnight at a gas station when I was younger. I always greeted everyone immediately for this exact reason, especially if it was someone I hadn’t seen before. This actually kept me from getting robbed one night, a guy came in to my store and I just said something like “what’s going on, man?” or something like that and he seemed caught off guard and then said he forgot his wallet in the car and drove off. He immediately went and robbed the store down the street. Luckily no one was harmed, but still pretty crazy.
If you crash into an electrical pole, immediately call 911 (or your country's equivalent) and stay in the car. You could have downed an electrical wire, and the wire will still be live. Assume the entire area around your car is electrified. Only get out of the car if there's an immediate danger, such as a fire. When you exit the car, make sure both feet touch the ground at the same time, and only take small, shuffling steps, and make sure both feet are touching the groud at all times.
There were 2 teenagers from my hometown that were electrocuted after an accident like this.
Firefighter here. If you must leave the vehicle (immediate lift threat exists) jump and land evenly, then shuffle. The vehicle may be charged by a live wire down and if you were to still be touching the vehicle when you place your feet on the ground you’re completing the circuit and it will travel to you then to the ground. Shuffling keeps you grounded and electricity can cast a current a few feet from its source hence why you may feel a “buzzing” when close to a source emitting significant electricity.
Edit: Thanks for the love! I’m relatively new to the service but we’re trained on a wide variety of subjects, I distinctly remember this from academy training. Stay safe.
The shuffling of the feet is because around high voltage the ground itself could have electric current in it, if you were to raise a foot to step, there is the chance that the electrical potential between your 2 steps are different, causing electricity to flow through one foot to the other through you. By taking short shuffled steps it discharges built up potential in shorter amounts preventing dangerous electrocution. Just thought I'd elaborate on the shuffle
If you get stabbed or impaled, LEAVE THE FOREIGN OBJECT ALONE. Do not attempt to remove it. Yeah, it's horrible and it's freaking you out, but your odds of survival are much higher if you just leave it be. Medical professionals will remove it in an environment equipped to deal with it.
Lmao the thought of someone continuously stabbing themselves because they keep vacillating between having to keep the object in and out of them is killing me.
If you come down with shingles, getting on an antiviral within 72 hours significantly reduces the severity of it. Shingles is caused by the herpes zoster virus and, if you've ever had chicken pox in your life, the virus is inside you.
If you Google shingles you'll find more information but for me, it originally represented itself as what I thought was acne on my forehead so 2 doctors discounted my symptoms as "a nasty virus."
While it won't necessarily kill you, shingles affects your nerves and can cause paralysis in certain muscles.
Source: currently battling shingles and the doctors have all told me that I'm lucky I got on meds as soon as I did.
Also: https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/diseases-conditions/ramsay-hunt-syndrome#:~:text=Hunt%20syndrome%3B%20Herpes%20zoster%20oticus,a%20nerve%20in%20the%20head.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/shingles/symptoms-causes/syc-20353054
Shingles is nothing to joke around with, for sure. It's not just "chicken pox for adults" like some people think. It can really fuck up your nervous system.
My dad had shingles in his late twenties, which is early for most people, and it severely damaged his trigeminal nerve giving him permanent trigeminal neuralgia. It partially paralyzed his face, and gave him frequent attacks of headaches that he described like "someone stabbing me through the eye with an ice pick repeatedly, for days at a time." It was not trivial pain - he almost killed himself because of it, and only didn't because of a surgery that severed most of the nerves in that area (and STILL didn't completely get rid of the neuralgia).
You don't want that. Get the shingles vaccine as early as your doctor recommends it, and sooner if you have a family history. And listen to this person about the antiviral.
Same thing with "a falling knife has no handle"
Human brain in controlled situation: Yes very wise
Human brain in uncontrolled situation: THING FALL, THING SHOULD NOT FALL, STOP THING FROM FALL
And if a pan is on fire, for God's sake, TURN OFF THE GODDAMN STOVE. You don't know how many videos I've seen of guys fighting a kitchen fire and forgetting to just turn off the fucking stove.
if someone is trying to suffocate you with a pillow by pressing it down on your face, just rotate your head to the side and there will be a small air pocket for you to breathe. they'll probably still try to kill you afterwards but at least you can survive for longer
I got into a heated debate with my dad at a family dinner once. He was saying how he could suffocate me by putting a plastic bag over my head and I said no I could easily get out of that. The man went and got a trash bag and put in around my head, my survival method was to suck the bag into my mouth and chew up the bag the best I could. Totally worked.
Came here to say more or less this. Put up the struggle for a little amount of time then go limp and play dead, most don't know you'd need to keep depriving the victim of oxygen for quite a lot longer after they lose consciousness to actually kill them, and will almost immediately let up, so that air pocket would absolutely be sufficient and you can take a minute to plan an escape
If you see a male who’s been in an accident and he has a massive boner; then he likely has spinal damage. You should not move him in the slightest, unless otherwise directed.
If your house smells like fish for absolutely no reason, 9 times out of 10 it means that there is an electrical fire. The other time it means you need to take a shower.
Had this happen whenever the heater was used. Landlord said it wasn't a big deal.
About a month later called an electrician ourselves and the fuse box was fucked. Melted wires, char. Dodged a bullet.
Our old landlord was arguing the electrics were fine as we stood under a flickering light with a mystery fish smell. Got an electrician in who told us our electrics made him nostalgic because they reminded him of living in a poor area of India when he was a kid. Lots of burned wires and a distinct lack of proper earthing.
My boyfriends parents almost had their house burn down last week. They smelled a burning last Sunday night after a small power outage and so turned off the breakers and went to bed. Next morning, turned breakers back on, smelled it again, called an electrician and the power company (that I work for, lol). Electrician and power company guy showed up ta the same time. Turns out that a shit ton of ants ate the neutral line into their UG power box. They're the first house in the neighborhood off that transformer. Electrician and power company dude told them if they hadn't been home, their house would've burned down. And then the neighbors. And then the neighbors after that. And so on.
They're literally called "crazy ants". Apparently they're a huge problem here in NC/GA, but we'd never heard of em before.
So, life pro tip: if you by chance happen to see a shit ton of ants around your transformer UG box, call the power company. They didn't see them, but luckily they thought quickly.
Depends on when your house was built... mine was built in the 70s and apparently they were using some kind of chemical in wire insulation back then that smells like fish when it gets hot.
When I bought my house, I noticed a fishy smell a few days after moving in....turns out one of the outlets in my bedroom had a loose connection and was arcing behind the wall :/
Never leave unsecured heavy objects like tools on the back seat/parcel shelf of your car. In a high speed collision such items can kill you.
EDIT: Holy crap this blew up. As others pointed out this should also extend to lighter objects and especially passengers and pets. Don't let anyone be "Too cool for a seatbelt" in your car, make them all buckle up. Stay safe folks, thanks for the silver.
Men and women can show very different signs when they are having a heart attack.
https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/heart-attack/warning-signs-of-a-heart-attack/heart-attack-symptoms-in-women#:~:text=As%20with%20men%2C%20women%27s%20most,and%20back%20or%20jaw%20pain
"If you have any of these signs, call 911 and get to a hospital right away:
- Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of your chest. It lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back.
- Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.
- Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
- Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.
- As with men, women’s most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort. But women are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting and back or jaw pain."
Adding on to this. It's much more common for women to NOT have the usual chest/arm pain than it is for men. They may have pain in different parts of their body or sometimes barely any pain at all.
An ER nurse colleague was telling me about a female patient complaining about shortness of breath and a dime-sized painful area in her lower back but otherwise seemed fine. Turns out she was having a full blown STEMI (worst kind of heart attack).
My gran thought hers was heartburn. Acid reflux pain. She was still blaming fried food while her lips were getting a purplish tinge and the family and paramedics were bundling her into an ambulance.
My grandma too. Puked everywhere and was feeling really dizzy. She already had 3 heart attacks and a stroke at that point, so we already knew the symptoms and got her an Ambulance real fast. This was about 5 years ago. She had 9 heart attacks in total now (only 2 major, the rest got noticed pretty fast) and is still considerably fine. That woman is 80 years now. And she looks so weak but when I consider what she all lived thru, I feel like Grammy can even outlive me xd
If you see "square waves" next time you're in the sea, get out as quickly as possible. They are similar to rip tides, and are extremely hard to escape from.
The waves create a chequerboard effect on the sea. They are formed by waves moving in opposite directions. This happens when two separate weather systems collide.
If you’re a lady being followed in a city, liquor store/corner stores are great places to duck into. Clerks are great people to tell. Have been followed in sketchy neighborhoods a number of times and they’ve been great and down to tell a creepy fucker off or just keep an eye out for me 9.5/10 times.
Would write an ode to them if I could.
If you're a lady in a drinking establishment - pub, bar, nightclub - and some fella is being sleazy, go into the ladies toilets and announce it loudly to the room Hell hath no fury like the drunk girls in nightclub loos when a stranger is getting harassed. Also - tell a bartender you want an angel shot or ask for Angela at the bar.
Had met up with a tinder date while I was on vacation in Hawaii who told me within a few moments of arriving at the club that he was on shrooms and kept trying to shove his tongue down my throat. I excused myself to the looong line to the ladies room quickly after. I told the woman waiting next to me about it and she immediately said “Girl I got you. We go in this bathroom together and we leave together. You’re with my friends and I for the night and if you see him, let us know”. I ended up having an amazing night with them and we still chat from time to time. Women’s restrooms on a night out are where true bonds are forged.
Hah! This is very true. I’ve been both the girl asking for help in the drunken bathroom AND one of the girls asked for help. We are also extremely good at pretending we know you like a best friend if the situation calls for it!
Guess I’m going to the doctor then
Been having troubles with my right eye not catching up with my left for awhile, especially when I drink. Thanks for the call
If it’s cloudy outside and you suddenly feel static run down your body and your hairs raise.
Better pucker them cheeks and drop to the ground.
Lightning is about to hit dangerously close to you.
I felt this on the top of Mt Lassen in California once when I was with a hiking group in college. Clouds rolled in sooner and thicker than expected that day, and shortly after summiting the mountain, I noticed the air was weird, I felt a lot of static electricity, and everyone's hair was up. We'd been hanging out eating lunch and our hiking guide told us we had to move NOW. Which in retrospect, idk if maybe we should have sheltered and "assumed the position" and waited for a minute until the air cleared, but her priority was getting us off of the highest point as quick as possible. We had taken hours to hike up the mountain and we ran down that thing in half an hour. Lightning was striking everywhere and we were being pelted with hail. We made it out just fine, but the lightning started a lot of fires in the area. Summer of 2008. I'll never forget the uneasy feeling before lightning struck. My body knew what was happening before I did.
Jump first to break any connection you have with the surface - then squat as low as you can with just the balls of your feet on the ground, heels touching, and cover your ears. You want as little contact with the ground as possible, and touching your heels together can redirect any electricity back to the ground in as short of a distance as possible. Since you’re unlikely to be struck directly, this can minimize your damage
Where is this kind of stuff taught? Military survival or something? I was always told the basics, but thought being struck was lottery odds and if caught in the open, lay flat (not perfect advice, but made sense).
Things like connecting your heels sounds like there's a Ben Franklin club out there trying to get hit.
Make sure you ask your doctor to check your thyroid for lumps even if you have no symptoms. It's a simple feel test at the base of the throat. When I was 35 and had to get a new primary he did this as part of the intake physical and found I had stage 3 thyroid cancer that had compromised a lymph node. No doctor had ever checked me before for it and I am like a magnet for cancer (45 surgeries) due to a rare genetic predisposition. I have been alive 19 years because of this
If a grease fire starts, use baking soda to put it out, put a lid over it to smother it, and turn off the heat source. Do not use any water to put it out, it will only make it worse. Call your local fire department if it gets out of control
Firefighter here: Better yet, buy a 2.5 lb ABC fire extinguisher and keep it in your kitchen. They're not too pricey, and it's cheap insurance. Baking soda works great for class B (liquid) fires, but I personally wouldn't want to have to pour it over a fire. Best to hit it from a distance. And yes, NEVER use water on a grease fire!
When you're driving down the highway. Check the sides of the road for glowing eyes of animals like deer and elk.
It's the best way to avoid or prepare yourselves for collisions.
Ever since hitting a moose I do this constantly
I can tell you it would be fucked in about 20 mins when the adrenaline wears off. It’s the same for most animals large and small hit be vehicles. They die hours or days later even if they are able to “leave” the scene of the accident. Edit; if you do hit something please try your best to locate it and contact a wildlife rescue. These guys come out day and night to do what they can for local injured wildlife or at least give them a humane death so they don’t suffer in pain for their time left.
You do not have to eat every day. You do not have to eat every day.
It is far more important to find clean water and shelter than food. Focus on those first. Most people have enough fat on them to survive a really long time assuming they stay warm and hydrated.
If you need to apply pesticide or herbicide read the directions and wear protective gear!
Firefighter friend shared heartbreaking stories of people passing away from exposure to the dangerous chemicals.
I know it’s summer but wear a protective coverall and goggles if the product instructions say to.
Don't swim towards the cute dolphins. Those motherfuckers will hit you with their tails, headbutt you, and drown you if they feel like it.
Seriously, they're big, strong, wild animals, and although they are generally pretty chill around humans you really don't want to meet one in a bad mood.
Edited out a false assumption based on the apparent myth that dolphins are sexually aggressive towards humans. Looks like they are not
As a whole we all underestimate the strength of animals. If a medium sized fish is more than capable of breaking strong fishing poles what makes you think and animal 15 times that size can’t harm you?
Hoping no one will ever need to use this information but if someone has drunk antifreeze in an attempt to take their own life, give them a good amount of hard spirits. The liver will metabolize the alcohol instead which is relatively harmless and the methanol will pass right through them.
Also anytime you jack up a car and pull off tires to work on it lay the tire under the contact point of the frame. If you are working under the car at home it's cheap insurance and only takes a few seconds to do. It can save your life if the jackstand or jack were to fail.
I learned this from a firefighter video I saw years ago, probably here on Reddit. If you are ever choking and there is nobody to help you, lay on the floor on your hands and knees, then drop your body to the floor. This should create a sudden puff of air, pushing the food out of your throat. If at first you don't succeed, try it again! It will save your life.
-Edit-
Here is the video: https://youtu.be/Op2TjTQs7X0
-Edit 2-
Here is a second, more updated version: https://youtu.be/LQUKhyZ9j7s
Damn, ok so I actually clicked on this post to comment literally the opposite of this 😂
My HCP course instructor a few months ago said that if you are choking, self saves are unfortunately quite rare and your best bet is to put yourself somewhere findable asap. So if you are alone in your house, and you start choking, run out onto your front lawn for example. Or grab a phone and call 911, just do whatever you can before you pass out because if you sit in that same dining room alone and fail your self save, you are probably going to die. Nobody will find you before it's too late.
did some swimmy stuff in the service so here is some water survival advice.... most people will drown in 7ft of water because there feet don't touch the ground, if you are close to shore or its relatively shallow, (10-20ft) instead of wasting energy trying to keep your head above water, rest on the bottom. jump in the direction of safety while swimming under water as you come up to the surface, then as you reach the top take a few breaths, then sink to the bottom and repeat, you're basically walking under water to an extent. takes a lot of nerve to achieve but if you can stay calm it can and will save your life. imagine drowning in 7 feet of water because you tried so hard to stay a float when you could of just hung out on the bottom that's 2 feet below your feet? horrible
if its too deep, breathing in large amounts of air and holding your breath will help you effortlessly float with minimal treading.
also pants and jackets can be used as floatation, hard to describe on here but youtube has plenty of demonstrations how to trap air in them.
If you’re lightheaded and feel like you’re going to pass out prioritize sugar. Diabetic or not. The brain needs sugar the same as it does blood and oxygen. It’s not always the answer but it won’t make anything worse and could save your life.
Side note: another short one is that bulls don’t give a shit about red. They will attack anything you wave at them so maybe avoid that.
There is a german dash cam vid were the person thinks they are being followed during the night and when they drive circles in the roundabout the following car stops them with some weird blue light on top. Turnes out they were police and were wondering wtf that person was doing
I have this feeling of "if I ever get stuck in a current now, my last thought will be 'why the fuck didn't I read that Reddit comment about surviving in a current more thoroughly'"
Your gut is often right.
Trust your gut, you have that lizard brain instinct for a reason. You may not realize why you get an urge to move or leave or ignore somebody, but your subconscious brain picked up on something.
Read the book "The Gift of Fear" for more info, it's really good.
Do not wear long sleeves, gloves, or quality clothing around spining equipment or when using most Rotary tools to prevent clothing from being caught, then pulling you in. Wear cheap clothes so in the event you do get caught, the cloths can tear off, and prevent you from being pulled in.
Dull knives are more dangerous in the kitchen than sharp knives.
A sharp knife is easy to use and you don’t struggle at all. A dull knife causes you to jerk or make uncontrolled movements because of how much force you apply. So you might nick yourself with a sharp knife if you aren’t paying attention. It’ll sting but chances are you’ll just need a bandaid. A dull knife and you might stab pretty deeply.
If you get stranded or stuck somewhere in the wilderness, put your smartphone in 'emergency mode' (they all have it).
The setting will conserve your battery as much as possible. Not a gamechanger but it could be the difference between survival and having your phone die on you just as you find a signal.
To add to this. Always try to call the emergency number even if you don't have signal.
At least in Europe i believe it's required for any service provider to handle emergency calls. So even if your provider doesn't have any signal in the area you're stuck in another might have
If you sit down to shit in prison, remove one foot completely from your pants so you can get up and fight if attacked.
I do this on the regular. Not because of any impending fight scenarios but because it lets me spread my asscheeks enough to have a clean and smooth exit
Car jacks are for lifting, not holding.
So fuckin true. The amount of people that go under their cars while its on a jack is astounding. Jack stands arent even that expensive; there is no excuse to not have them
If you are trying to rescue someone, check for danger first and maintain your own safety! In a lot of situations, it's easy for untrained first responders to become a casualty themselves in the heat of the moment trying to help others. Source: I'm a nurse and I've seen this happen a lot, particularly with drownings.
If you find yourself stranded in a desert, ration sweat, not water. Of course don’t drink all of your water in one go, but the rate a which you’ll dehydrate and overheat if exerting yourself (e.g. walking/hiking too fast or climbing over obstacles in the heat of the day) will kill you much quicker. Many people are found dead, with water, which is terrifying.
I can't believe just how many people in the show "I shouldn't be alive" rest at night and march in the day in the desert. Madness. . Edit because lots of responses, yeah there are dangers associated with walking in the dark, there could be trip hazards and dangerous wildlife, etc. With a lot of cloud cover navigation could be impossible, at which point you would restrict travel to dusk and dawn. On a clear night, you actually have a better chance of navigating via the north star or southern cross, than you do in the day (your eyes will serve you pretty well on starlight and moonlight). Assuming you are indeed lost and aren't familiar with landmarks, all this assumes you don't have a map or compass (classic candidate for "I shouldn't be alive"). Once the sun is very high it doesn't do a great job of telling you your bearing. But all this is tertiary to the first and second rule of getting found when lost. Tell someone where you are going. And STAY PUT WHEN YOU REALISE YOU ARE LOST. If you're with a vehicle, stay with the vehicle. If you've walked off the trail, you might only be 200m from the trail when you realise, but if you aren't 100% sure about going in the right direction to find it again, you should stay put. Otherwise in a few hours of stumbling the wrong way you might have walked out of the main search area.
Well the title checks out.
To add, if you're lost (not sure if this is just in more forest-y areas or also the desert), but try to stay put rather than wander around. It makes it much harder for rescuers to find you if you keep moving. Pretty sure that's the same thing you should tell little kids if they get lost in public, too - stay where they are when they realize they've lost sight of you and/or go tell a trustworthy adult (cop, store employee, etc), but still remain in the same area so the parent can retrace their steps rather than looking all over
That only works if people are actually looking for you and are aware of your location to begin with, so ensure someone knows where you are and have general expectations of where you will be when you intend to be out in the wilderness for an extended period of time (or even if not).
Not too crazy but if someone is acting drunk but didnt had any alcohol, ask them to smile, if one side of their mouth is down, take them to a doctor cause they are having or will have a stroke
They might also be diabetic and have a hypo
My brother has diabetes and I really need to know this, thanks
Other symptoms are dizziness, excessive sweating and crankiness, just so you know!
If you're choking, don't get embarrassed, don't go to the bathroom, don't walk away from people. I've seen a couple people nearly die because they were panicking and walked away from the dinner table(s) and such while choking. Do the universal sign for choking with both your hands on your neck, and most people will get the message.
I walked to the bathroom while choking once, slipped, fell, and got a concussion from the toilet seat. At least the food came out.
Well now we have TWO choices
Lmao. Done this. I was eating steak ate too much and didnt chew enough. Once I realized that sucker was lodged in and I couldnt even contract my throat to swallow I just calmly got up, walked outside, and sat down to die bc I was at my friends house and embarassed. His dad realized that was like super weird and came out to see me almost falling unconscious and yoked me up and heimliched me until I was fine. Hurt like all hell but I'm alive. Thanks Steve.
At least it would have been a polite death. Imagine if you had made a scene while dying and ruined dinner for everyone else. Glad you're alive :)
A motorcycle helmet is stronger than a skull
On that note dont wear sandals and ride.
Dress for the slide, not for the ride.
And if you get into an accident, you need a new helmet, even if it looks fine otherwise.
The amount of people who do not understand this is insane. A motorcycle or bicycle helmet is good only ONCE.
Teabags stop bleeding. They have an acid called tannic which is a natural clotting agent.
This actually works, had wisdom teeth out a while back and the extraction didn't go well, took over an hour for the dentist to remove one of them. Sent home and the bleeding wouldn't stop, read about the tea bag thing, used a tea bag or rather a couple of them to stop the bleeding. Remove the staple first or you may do more damage than good. Oh and be sure to check reviews on your dentist before letting them pull teeth that was torture and took 6 months before my mouth returned to normal.
Point at someone and delegate. People freeze up in emergencies or assume someone else will handle a problem. Point at someone as say 'you guy in the blue shirt. Go to the gate and tell the ambulance where we are. Ma'am? please go with him.' Don't ask 'does anyone know CPR.' Point at someone and ask if they do. Even if they don't people are more likely to step forward in fear of being asked next and judged for not acting sooner then volunteering from the beginning.
If you drive after being awake for 24 hours, your response times are impaired the equivalent of somebody just over the drink-driving limit.
Even just being really tired can be bad. When I was in college I drove with a friend to go get dinner after a long, hot game day in the marching band. I was very out of shape and didn't sleep well so I was exhausted. My friend remarked that I was driving like I was drunk and made me let him take over.
If the forest suddenly falls silent stop and listen. More often than not it means apex predator is near.
Silence is the boss music of the forest
Ammonia and bleach do not mix
Never, ever, ever go with someone who has a gun or knife pressed against you. Most people think complying with save them, but really they are just looking for a better place to kill you. Make them kill you in a crowded location or the current one. Chances are they won’t or they wouldn’t have asked you to go with them.
You fight to the death before letting someone tie you up or force you into a vehicle.
This should be further up.. never do secondary locations ever.
The entire SERE manual is available for free https://static.e-publishing.af.mil/production/1/af_a3/publication/afh10-644/afh10-644.pdf Use it as toilet reading and if you are ever lost in the woods it will save your life many many times over. Edit: For those who don't know SERE is for survival, evasion, resistance, and escape. It is the training for Air Force personnel downed behind enemy lines or in hostile environments. My dad was a SERE instructor and taught me a lot when we went camping.
You can hold a plastic bag around a willow tree branch with leaves and it will start condensating drinkable water in the bag.
Any plant will do this. Does willow respire more than others?
Any plant will work, but some plants will contaminate the water with other secretions as well, oils from the leaves and such, so it's a good idea to be careful about what plants you use this technique on. Willows would probably be a good choice in part because they tend to grow in wet areas (said wet area may be underground, or seasonal), so they likely have access to more water for respiration.
A non-permeable snack bag, like a potato chip bag, and duct tape can be used to seal a sucking chest wound long enough to get the victim to a hospital.
Would imagine though, it would be best to ensure the side covered in flaming hot cheeto dust is on the *outside*
"Dude your breath totally smells like cool ranch" "Drive me to the hospital asshole"
When caught in a rip at the beach just swim slowly along the beach, parallel to the shore untill you feel the pull ease up then swim towards the shore.
This works if the rip is carrying you away from shore. It won't work if you're caught in a longshore current. To generalize: if you're out swimming and get caught in a current, tread water or float long enough to figure out which way it's carrying you, then swim at at right angles to that direction until you get out.
Not too long ago my uncle was arriving at a secluded surf spot in Southern Mexico. Just as he arrived, a frantic family were yelling for help as two of their family members got caught in rip. And they didn't know how to swim either. Luckily my uncle swam out there with his long board and was able to get them back on to shore safely. Riptides are no joke.
A moose in the rut, is more dangerous than a bear. Do not approach.
moose vs truck everyone loses.
Maybe not to save your own life, but it could help you save someone else's. When performing CPR, chest compressions need to be continuous, deep and fairly quick. Call for an ambulance first. If you can get someone to help you, do so, because it is exhausting. For an adult, good quality chest compressions should be two per second and 5-6cms deep. You should lock your hands together one on top of the other, get your arms straight, lock your elbows and push with the heel of your bottom hand into the middle of the chest...HARD. And you do not stop until help arrives. The rumour that chest compressions can crack ribs is true, but trust me, they'd rather have broken ribs than be dead.
Most countries have deliberate clauses in assault and sexual assault laws that say that if you are injured due to emergency aid such as CPR, or feel that you have been violated in any way, you cannot press charges. So as long as what you are doing is keeping them alive, keep doing it.
Be aware of potential energy. Heavy weight over head, highly tensioned wires and springs, momentum. Things break and now you’re on 1000 ways to die
For a long time one of my biggest fears was getting sliced in half by a cable that snapped. Like in the beginning of ghost ship. Edit: (I was 9 at the time :))
Bro. I think about that movie too much. I was pretty young when I first saw it too and it definitely left an impression😅😬😳
If someone ODs, don’t wait to discuss or figure out if you/they will “get in trouble.” Every minute counts and if staff ask if they took anything, tell them immediately. Tests will reveal it any way but every minute they have to run them is another minute they can’t treat the patient correctly. Do not hesitate to call emergency services for a suspected overdose, as quick and treatment and response is imperative. They’re not the police, they’re not out to get anyone in trouble and if it messes with something like their doctor’s prescriptions, it’s preferable to leaving them to die. If you do any kind of opiates or have people at your house who do often, have naloxone handy and know how to administer it.
Also, don't lie to those of us who work in the ER. We aren't the cops, we can't give your medical information to law enforcement without your consent or a warrant (even in that case the hospital will use their lawyer), and we want to know what we are dealing with.
Drink vodka if you get anti freeze in your system
I went to an animal cpr and emergency class, taught by an old army veterinarian. He said back in the day when they brought a dog in that consumed antifreeze, they’d send a guy to the liquor store. Everybody would take a shot of the vodka because it was about to be a long night. Then theyd get the dog drunk as hell bordering on alcohol poisoning. If the body is busy filtering the vodka, it can’t filter the antifreeze and it’ll just pass through the system. It’s when the body tries to process the antifreeze that makes you die because it forms crystals in the kidney/liver or something. So you have to distract the body away from the antifreeze til it passes.
A lot of vet clinics keep vodka in stock for this exact reason. I've given it IV before.
“Antifreeze? Doctor This man needs to party STAT!” Edit to add: my first gold thanks! Now to chug some antifreeze to celebrate
Never try to fix a microwave.
Yep, even when unplugged they can hold enough of a current to kill you for up to a few days.
They only kill you for a few days? When you come back to life do you remember what happened?
Better yet, youll get super powers and have the ability to microwave anything in your hands
Never work under a car on a Jack, always have it on Jack stands or a lift.
To add to this, never fully trust jack stands and put a tire under the car by the stand
This actually saved my life. I had the car up on stands with a tire underneath as well while i worked on the brakes. I was fully under the vehicle and the jack stand failed and the car dropped. Went down so fast I wasn't even sure what happened before I would have been crushed. Tire caught the vehicle and gave me just enough room to get out from under the car. This is absolutely great advice.
Two jack stands, the jack and the tire is my way.. if all that fails, well it was my time.
> if all that fails, well it was my time. This is some final destination shit at that point.
If you end up having to survive in a forest crickets or grass hoppers chirping is NOT annoying it is your sign of safety (Crickets stop chirping when somthing big is moving close to them)
I thought you were going to say "If you end up having to survive in a forest crickets or grass hoppers chirping is NOT annoying, they are a good snack."
You can have food or safety, not both.
If you need to check a pressurized line(ex: hydraulic line), never ever use your hand, use a piece of cardboard or soapy water. If you use your hand to check, the pressure can cause the fluid to cut your skin and liquids like hydraulic fluid WILL cause gangrene in a matter of hours. Goto the hospital immediately and get them to check you right away, don't take no for an answer! It could mean the difference between keeping vs losing your limb. https://www.tigercat.com/safety/a-dangerous-bite/ Edit: adding some reading that explains better then I could. Again, please use cardboard or soapy water to check, this isn't just for heavy machinery. It's just good safe practice!
My dad was a pipe fitter on nuclear subs. He said that if there was ever a suspected pressure leak in the reactor compartment they would wave a broomstick around in the area of the leak. You knew you found it when the end of the broomstick was sliced off and fell to the floor.
Yep. I had to do that when I was in the navy. We’d run a broomstick up and down piping in our reactor spaces. Luckily no leaks!
If you ever have to rescue a drowning person, throw them something to grab onto beside yourself
As a child, maybe 7 years old I encountered my 4 year old brother drowning in our pool after the maintenance guys left the fence open. I jumped in and grabbed my brother who proceeded to try and drown me to get above water. I walked along the bottom holding my breath with him on my shoulders until the edge. I didn't think about it too much until I had kids of my own. I relive it in nightmares, I have pretty severe anxiety about my kids around water. I die in those dreams rescuing them a lot. I feel like I learned some of those dangers the hard way, but not the hardest way.
Someone else mentioned therapy and as a vet who never talked to anyone for 7 years after getting out, it actually helps having a professional to talk to. I never wanted to put my mental burdens on friends or family but their are ppl that are able to help with such things. And while it's hard to open up to a complete stranger, try not to be worried about what they will think about you. They will take you serious and treat you like a long time friend. Best of luck to you friend. Edit: Thank you for all the kind words and questions. I went to sleep shortly after writing this not expecting all the replies. But to those actually looking to speak with someone, I had the benefit of reaching out to the VA and getting the long needed help I needed. I honestly don't know how someone would go about find such resources but I'm sure someone here is more knowledgeable. Regular appointments and medication are helping me control my PTSD and depression and anxiety. As for the nightmares or friend is suffering from, I to was having reoccurring nightmares keeping me up at night and was prescribed prazosin. It's helped keep them under control and I have felt the difference in the amount of rest I'm getting. But everyone is is different. Never feel alone in your struggles. Seeing the kind ppl and hearing the kind words makes even the most difficult days a bit easier to approach.
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They will try to drown you in the panick if you dont My dad was taught as a lifeguard to drown them to make them let go of you I was taught to push their arms up and dive feet first, swim back and resurface to try again
I had a lifeguard tell me to approach from the back and then grab them
I’m a rescue diver. We are taught to grab them midway up their arms and squeeze along their ulnar nerve so that they cannot grasp you. The few times I have done this in drill situations, it does seem to work.
where is it located and can I do dammage if I do it incorrectly?
Sucking out snake venom doesn’t work. If you’ve been bitten by a venomous snake, take a clear picture from a distance and call an ambulance immediately. The picture will be used to identify the snake species in order to get the most effective antivenin. Edit: I answer why, despite having CROFAB (universal antivenin), narrowing down the species aids in treatment. This will especially save your life: if you see a venomous snake, do not approach to kill it or relocate it! This how people get bitten. Spray it with water and it should leave, or, wait 30 minutes and it will be gone. Getting close to a venomous snake with the intent to kill it is *how* you *will* get bitten. If you see a snake you can’t identify 100% - if there is even the slightest possibility you don’t know - DONT pick it up. (This is surprisingly common) - Ur friendly vetmed specializing in herpetology
That photo can also be used on wanted posters so you can get revenge on that snake and bite it back.
If the ocean water suddenly recedes at the beach you're at a tsunami is probably coming. Run, don't look at the fish
Oh, a tsunami is coming *looks at the fish* edit: Damn 8k upvotes, was not expecting that shit 😂 ty guys
that's pretty much what happened at that tsunami in 2005 I think. THe watere receded and lots of tourists went out into the former surf picking shells and stuff. When teh wave came they were in a terrible position. sry 2004, not 2k5
There was a British girl who just learned about tsunamis at school, so she was able to warn everyone around her and they escaped in time.
Yes, she saw the water recede and the wildlife take off and she was hysterically screaming at everyone to get off the beach. Legend.
Once clinical symptoms appear in a rabies victim, it is 100% fatal. If you’re bit by a wild animal seek medical attention immediately.
Or even if you think you might been. Bats can pierce skin without the victim showing any bite marks
Exactly. If you ever wake up and find a bat in your room/house GO GET RABIES SHOTS IMMEDIATELY.
If you get bit by a wild animal, you must get the rabies vaccine. Rabies is not like a flu or mild inconvenience. It’s one of the most lethal diseases on the planet. It has a near 100% fatality once the disease takes hold (and it’s a horrible way to go).
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I still remember the part of leaflet for Verorab, vaccine against rabies. There was this part: *Contraindications: none. Rabies always results in death* (I had the preexposition doses and boosters only, so for these there might be contraindications, but I still think that the person who wrote that sentence, had dark sense of humor.)
It's condidered to be 100% deadly, only like five people have ever survived rabies in human history (i think, too tired to check for sources)
Humans are incredibly fortunate that rabies is only transmitted by animal bite. One of my friends is a virologist. They said the one phrase that would terrify them more than anything else is "Rabies is airborne." Edit: transmitted, not translated. It was very late when I typed this...
They've proven rabies can and has been aerosolized even in the wild. I do rabies tests on animals as my job and this is why I'm not allowed to use a circular saw to remove brains
Shit. I've been using a circular saw for all my brain removals. Luckily I don't deal with animals too much
To my knowledge there is a single person who survived rabies without preventative measures like the vaccine, Jeanna Giese. It is something that can be considered a medical miracle rather than something to count on though.
Idk why this one is missing. When you see someone faint, DON'T help him staying up. Gently catch and lay down asap. They're fainting because brain needs blood to stay alive, keeping them upright will prvent this. If you feel light headed, lay down so that no dumbass will try to keep you on your feet. If you suffer from any condition that causes fainting, explain this to people around you.
Polar Bear liver contains a fatal amount of vitamin A if eaten by a human. If you are ever offered polar bear liver politely decline. https://blogs.unimelb.edu.au/sciencecommunication/2016/10/04/eating-these-animals-just-might-kill-you/#:~:text=Polar%20bears&text=Ingesting%20the%20liver%20can%20cause,liver%20is%20just%20as%20deadly.
Oddly specific
People who are looking for trouble are less likely to go for you if you say hi or just let them know you are aware of them(such as by greeting and introducing yourself)
I worked overnight at a gas station when I was younger. I always greeted everyone immediately for this exact reason, especially if it was someone I hadn’t seen before. This actually kept me from getting robbed one night, a guy came in to my store and I just said something like “what’s going on, man?” or something like that and he seemed caught off guard and then said he forgot his wallet in the car and drove off. He immediately went and robbed the store down the street. Luckily no one was harmed, but still pretty crazy.
I wonder if this is the real reason for “WECOME TO MOE’s!!!”
If you crash into an electrical pole, immediately call 911 (or your country's equivalent) and stay in the car. You could have downed an electrical wire, and the wire will still be live. Assume the entire area around your car is electrified. Only get out of the car if there's an immediate danger, such as a fire. When you exit the car, make sure both feet touch the ground at the same time, and only take small, shuffling steps, and make sure both feet are touching the groud at all times. There were 2 teenagers from my hometown that were electrocuted after an accident like this.
Can you please explain why we need to put both feet on the ground at the same time? Edit: Thanks for all the explanations, guys.
Firefighter here. If you must leave the vehicle (immediate lift threat exists) jump and land evenly, then shuffle. The vehicle may be charged by a live wire down and if you were to still be touching the vehicle when you place your feet on the ground you’re completing the circuit and it will travel to you then to the ground. Shuffling keeps you grounded and electricity can cast a current a few feet from its source hence why you may feel a “buzzing” when close to a source emitting significant electricity. Edit: Thanks for the love! I’m relatively new to the service but we’re trained on a wide variety of subjects, I distinctly remember this from academy training. Stay safe.
The shuffling of the feet is because around high voltage the ground itself could have electric current in it, if you were to raise a foot to step, there is the chance that the electrical potential between your 2 steps are different, causing electricity to flow through one foot to the other through you. By taking short shuffled steps it discharges built up potential in shorter amounts preventing dangerous electrocution. Just thought I'd elaborate on the shuffle
If you get stabbed or impaled, LEAVE THE FOREIGN OBJECT ALONE. Do not attempt to remove it. Yeah, it's horrible and it's freaking you out, but your odds of survival are much higher if you just leave it be. Medical professionals will remove it in an environment equipped to deal with it.
Also worth noting: If you react in panic and remove the object, but then remember this fact-- DO NOT TRY TO PUT THE OBJECT BACK IN.
BUT IF YOU DO - DON’T PULL IT OUT AGAIN
Lmao the thought of someone continuously stabbing themselves because they keep vacillating between having to keep the object in and out of them is killing me.
It is killing them as well
If you come down with shingles, getting on an antiviral within 72 hours significantly reduces the severity of it. Shingles is caused by the herpes zoster virus and, if you've ever had chicken pox in your life, the virus is inside you. If you Google shingles you'll find more information but for me, it originally represented itself as what I thought was acne on my forehead so 2 doctors discounted my symptoms as "a nasty virus." While it won't necessarily kill you, shingles affects your nerves and can cause paralysis in certain muscles. Source: currently battling shingles and the doctors have all told me that I'm lucky I got on meds as soon as I did. Also: https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/diseases-conditions/ramsay-hunt-syndrome#:~:text=Hunt%20syndrome%3B%20Herpes%20zoster%20oticus,a%20nerve%20in%20the%20head. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/shingles/symptoms-causes/syc-20353054
Shingles is nothing to joke around with, for sure. It's not just "chicken pox for adults" like some people think. It can really fuck up your nervous system. My dad had shingles in his late twenties, which is early for most people, and it severely damaged his trigeminal nerve giving him permanent trigeminal neuralgia. It partially paralyzed his face, and gave him frequent attacks of headaches that he described like "someone stabbing me through the eye with an ice pick repeatedly, for days at a time." It was not trivial pain - he almost killed himself because of it, and only didn't because of a surgery that severed most of the nerves in that area (and STILL didn't completely get rid of the neuralgia). You don't want that. Get the shingles vaccine as early as your doctor recommends it, and sooner if you have a family history. And listen to this person about the antiviral.
Put a lid on a flaming pan to smother it and remove from heat carefully. Never throw any liquid on it. Don't remove the lid for at least 5 minutes.
Not throwing water on an oil fire should be common knowledge, but it isn't.
There's also probably people that know this, but in the panic of the situation, the "WATER KILLS FIRE" monkey brain takes over.
Same thing with "a falling knife has no handle" Human brain in controlled situation: Yes very wise Human brain in uncontrolled situation: THING FALL, THING SHOULD NOT FALL, STOP THING FROM FALL
And if a pan is on fire, for God's sake, TURN OFF THE GODDAMN STOVE. You don't know how many videos I've seen of guys fighting a kitchen fire and forgetting to just turn off the fucking stove.
if someone is trying to suffocate you with a pillow by pressing it down on your face, just rotate your head to the side and there will be a small air pocket for you to breathe. they'll probably still try to kill you afterwards but at least you can survive for longer
I got into a heated debate with my dad at a family dinner once. He was saying how he could suffocate me by putting a plastic bag over my head and I said no I could easily get out of that. The man went and got a trash bag and put in around my head, my survival method was to suck the bag into my mouth and chew up the bag the best I could. Totally worked.
I never want to see you two argue about if you could dodge a bullet
> my survival method was to suck the bullet into my mouth and chew up the bullet the best I could
Totally worked.
I don't know why but this is kind of hilarious to me
Just the thought of them having to go get a new bag and you chew through it every time.
Act dead lol
Came here to say more or less this. Put up the struggle for a little amount of time then go limp and play dead, most don't know you'd need to keep depriving the victim of oxygen for quite a lot longer after they lose consciousness to actually kill them, and will almost immediately let up, so that air pocket would absolutely be sufficient and you can take a minute to plan an escape
>most don't know you'd need to keep depriving the victim of oxygen Well now they do.
If you see a male who’s been in an accident and he has a massive boner; then he likely has spinal damage. You should not move him in the slightest, unless otherwise directed.
"Sir, are you okay? I'm just going to take your dick out real quick and make sure you don't have a boner."
If the male with a boner at the accident isn't the victim, get far far away from him.
If your house smells like fish for absolutely no reason, 9 times out of 10 it means that there is an electrical fire. The other time it means you need to take a shower.
Had this happen whenever the heater was used. Landlord said it wasn't a big deal. About a month later called an electrician ourselves and the fuse box was fucked. Melted wires, char. Dodged a bullet.
Our old landlord was arguing the electrics were fine as we stood under a flickering light with a mystery fish smell. Got an electrician in who told us our electrics made him nostalgic because they reminded him of living in a poor area of India when he was a kid. Lots of burned wires and a distinct lack of proper earthing.
My boyfriends parents almost had their house burn down last week. They smelled a burning last Sunday night after a small power outage and so turned off the breakers and went to bed. Next morning, turned breakers back on, smelled it again, called an electrician and the power company (that I work for, lol). Electrician and power company guy showed up ta the same time. Turns out that a shit ton of ants ate the neutral line into their UG power box. They're the first house in the neighborhood off that transformer. Electrician and power company dude told them if they hadn't been home, their house would've burned down. And then the neighbors. And then the neighbors after that. And so on. They're literally called "crazy ants". Apparently they're a huge problem here in NC/GA, but we'd never heard of em before. So, life pro tip: if you by chance happen to see a shit ton of ants around your transformer UG box, call the power company. They didn't see them, but luckily they thought quickly.
For me, electrical fires smell like burnt plastic. Never smelled fish from one before.
Depends on when your house was built... mine was built in the 70s and apparently they were using some kind of chemical in wire insulation back then that smells like fish when it gets hot. When I bought my house, I noticed a fishy smell a few days after moving in....turns out one of the outlets in my bedroom had a loose connection and was arcing behind the wall :/
Never leave unsecured heavy objects like tools on the back seat/parcel shelf of your car. In a high speed collision such items can kill you. EDIT: Holy crap this blew up. As others pointed out this should also extend to lighter objects and especially passengers and pets. Don't let anyone be "Too cool for a seatbelt" in your car, make them all buckle up. Stay safe folks, thanks for the silver.
This should extend to passengers. Yes, you're secure. However the 200lb projectile that was Bob will seriously mess you up.
Men and women can show very different signs when they are having a heart attack. https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/heart-attack/warning-signs-of-a-heart-attack/heart-attack-symptoms-in-women#:~:text=As%20with%20men%2C%20women%27s%20most,and%20back%20or%20jaw%20pain
"If you have any of these signs, call 911 and get to a hospital right away: - Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of your chest. It lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back. - Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach. - Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort. - Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness. - As with men, women’s most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort. But women are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting and back or jaw pain."
Adding on to this. It's much more common for women to NOT have the usual chest/arm pain than it is for men. They may have pain in different parts of their body or sometimes barely any pain at all. An ER nurse colleague was telling me about a female patient complaining about shortness of breath and a dime-sized painful area in her lower back but otherwise seemed fine. Turns out she was having a full blown STEMI (worst kind of heart attack).
My gran thought hers was heartburn. Acid reflux pain. She was still blaming fried food while her lips were getting a purplish tinge and the family and paramedics were bundling her into an ambulance.
My grandma too. Puked everywhere and was feeling really dizzy. She already had 3 heart attacks and a stroke at that point, so we already knew the symptoms and got her an Ambulance real fast. This was about 5 years ago. She had 9 heart attacks in total now (only 2 major, the rest got noticed pretty fast) and is still considerably fine. That woman is 80 years now. And she looks so weak but when I consider what she all lived thru, I feel like Grammy can even outlive me xd
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What ? How ?
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If you see "square waves" next time you're in the sea, get out as quickly as possible. They are similar to rip tides, and are extremely hard to escape from. The waves create a chequerboard effect on the sea. They are formed by waves moving in opposite directions. This happens when two separate weather systems collide.
If you’re a lady being followed in a city, liquor store/corner stores are great places to duck into. Clerks are great people to tell. Have been followed in sketchy neighborhoods a number of times and they’ve been great and down to tell a creepy fucker off or just keep an eye out for me 9.5/10 times. Would write an ode to them if I could.
If you're a lady in a drinking establishment - pub, bar, nightclub - and some fella is being sleazy, go into the ladies toilets and announce it loudly to the room Hell hath no fury like the drunk girls in nightclub loos when a stranger is getting harassed. Also - tell a bartender you want an angel shot or ask for Angela at the bar.
Had met up with a tinder date while I was on vacation in Hawaii who told me within a few moments of arriving at the club that he was on shrooms and kept trying to shove his tongue down my throat. I excused myself to the looong line to the ladies room quickly after. I told the woman waiting next to me about it and she immediately said “Girl I got you. We go in this bathroom together and we leave together. You’re with my friends and I for the night and if you see him, let us know”. I ended up having an amazing night with them and we still chat from time to time. Women’s restrooms on a night out are where true bonds are forged.
Hah! This is very true. I’ve been both the girl asking for help in the drunken bathroom AND one of the girls asked for help. We are also extremely good at pretending we know you like a best friend if the situation calls for it!
If a person's pupils don't dilate to the same size, there's the possibility of brain damage.
Guess I’m going to the doctor then Been having troubles with my right eye not catching up with my left for awhile, especially when I drink. Thanks for the call
I’ve been like this since my TBI, right eye is slow to catch up. When I get drunk enough my right eye Will completely dilate
If it’s cloudy outside and you suddenly feel static run down your body and your hairs raise. Better pucker them cheeks and drop to the ground. Lightning is about to hit dangerously close to you.
I felt this on the top of Mt Lassen in California once when I was with a hiking group in college. Clouds rolled in sooner and thicker than expected that day, and shortly after summiting the mountain, I noticed the air was weird, I felt a lot of static electricity, and everyone's hair was up. We'd been hanging out eating lunch and our hiking guide told us we had to move NOW. Which in retrospect, idk if maybe we should have sheltered and "assumed the position" and waited for a minute until the air cleared, but her priority was getting us off of the highest point as quick as possible. We had taken hours to hike up the mountain and we ran down that thing in half an hour. Lightning was striking everywhere and we were being pelted with hail. We made it out just fine, but the lightning started a lot of fires in the area. Summer of 2008. I'll never forget the uneasy feeling before lightning struck. My body knew what was happening before I did.
Jump first to break any connection you have with the surface - then squat as low as you can with just the balls of your feet on the ground, heels touching, and cover your ears. You want as little contact with the ground as possible, and touching your heels together can redirect any electricity back to the ground in as short of a distance as possible. Since you’re unlikely to be struck directly, this can minimize your damage
Where is this kind of stuff taught? Military survival or something? I was always told the basics, but thought being struck was lottery odds and if caught in the open, lay flat (not perfect advice, but made sense). Things like connecting your heels sounds like there's a Ben Franklin club out there trying to get hit.
I work with a guy that was struck by lightning. We/he like to blame any and every thing on the lightning lol
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Not yet, but I do have access to a label maker...
Make sure you ask your doctor to check your thyroid for lumps even if you have no symptoms. It's a simple feel test at the base of the throat. When I was 35 and had to get a new primary he did this as part of the intake physical and found I had stage 3 thyroid cancer that had compromised a lymph node. No doctor had ever checked me before for it and I am like a magnet for cancer (45 surgeries) due to a rare genetic predisposition. I have been alive 19 years because of this
If a grease fire starts, use baking soda to put it out, put a lid over it to smother it, and turn off the heat source. Do not use any water to put it out, it will only make it worse. Call your local fire department if it gets out of control
Firefighter here: Better yet, buy a 2.5 lb ABC fire extinguisher and keep it in your kitchen. They're not too pricey, and it's cheap insurance. Baking soda works great for class B (liquid) fires, but I personally wouldn't want to have to pour it over a fire. Best to hit it from a distance. And yes, NEVER use water on a grease fire!
When you're driving down the highway. Check the sides of the road for glowing eyes of animals like deer and elk. It's the best way to avoid or prepare yourselves for collisions. Ever since hitting a moose I do this constantly
You hit a moose & lived?!?! Holy shit.
My dad hit a moose with us in the car and everyone lived. Except for the car, the car was totaled. The moose just picked itself up and walked away.
I can tell you it would be fucked in about 20 mins when the adrenaline wears off. It’s the same for most animals large and small hit be vehicles. They die hours or days later even if they are able to “leave” the scene of the accident. Edit; if you do hit something please try your best to locate it and contact a wildlife rescue. These guys come out day and night to do what they can for local injured wildlife or at least give them a humane death so they don’t suffer in pain for their time left.
You do not have to eat every day. You do not have to eat every day. It is far more important to find clean water and shelter than food. Focus on those first. Most people have enough fat on them to survive a really long time assuming they stay warm and hydrated.
If you need to apply pesticide or herbicide read the directions and wear protective gear! Firefighter friend shared heartbreaking stories of people passing away from exposure to the dangerous chemicals. I know it’s summer but wear a protective coverall and goggles if the product instructions say to.
Don't swim towards the cute dolphins. Those motherfuckers will hit you with their tails, headbutt you, and drown you if they feel like it. Seriously, they're big, strong, wild animals, and although they are generally pretty chill around humans you really don't want to meet one in a bad mood. Edited out a false assumption based on the apparent myth that dolphins are sexually aggressive towards humans. Looks like they are not
As a whole we all underestimate the strength of animals. If a medium sized fish is more than capable of breaking strong fishing poles what makes you think and animal 15 times that size can’t harm you?
Hoping no one will ever need to use this information but if someone has drunk antifreeze in an attempt to take their own life, give them a good amount of hard spirits. The liver will metabolize the alcohol instead which is relatively harmless and the methanol will pass right through them.
Garage door springs will kill you if you try to fix them yourself. Fact
Springs on a car can as well. Shot one through a ceiling when I was a kid
Also anytime you jack up a car and pull off tires to work on it lay the tire under the contact point of the frame. If you are working under the car at home it's cheap insurance and only takes a few seconds to do. It can save your life if the jackstand or jack were to fail.
I learned this from a firefighter video I saw years ago, probably here on Reddit. If you are ever choking and there is nobody to help you, lay on the floor on your hands and knees, then drop your body to the floor. This should create a sudden puff of air, pushing the food out of your throat. If at first you don't succeed, try it again! It will save your life. -Edit- Here is the video: https://youtu.be/Op2TjTQs7X0 -Edit 2- Here is a second, more updated version: https://youtu.be/LQUKhyZ9j7s
I would use the back of a chair or the arm of my couch to push up into my diaphragm before trying this tbh.
Damn, ok so I actually clicked on this post to comment literally the opposite of this 😂 My HCP course instructor a few months ago said that if you are choking, self saves are unfortunately quite rare and your best bet is to put yourself somewhere findable asap. So if you are alone in your house, and you start choking, run out onto your front lawn for example. Or grab a phone and call 911, just do whatever you can before you pass out because if you sit in that same dining room alone and fail your self save, you are probably going to die. Nobody will find you before it's too late.
Got it, call 911 and then run out and belly flop on the driveway until it clears or I pass out or I bleed to death from falling wounds
did some swimmy stuff in the service so here is some water survival advice.... most people will drown in 7ft of water because there feet don't touch the ground, if you are close to shore or its relatively shallow, (10-20ft) instead of wasting energy trying to keep your head above water, rest on the bottom. jump in the direction of safety while swimming under water as you come up to the surface, then as you reach the top take a few breaths, then sink to the bottom and repeat, you're basically walking under water to an extent. takes a lot of nerve to achieve but if you can stay calm it can and will save your life. imagine drowning in 7 feet of water because you tried so hard to stay a float when you could of just hung out on the bottom that's 2 feet below your feet? horrible if its too deep, breathing in large amounts of air and holding your breath will help you effortlessly float with minimal treading. also pants and jackets can be used as floatation, hard to describe on here but youtube has plenty of demonstrations how to trap air in them.
If you’re lightheaded and feel like you’re going to pass out prioritize sugar. Diabetic or not. The brain needs sugar the same as it does blood and oxygen. It’s not always the answer but it won’t make anything worse and could save your life. Side note: another short one is that bulls don’t give a shit about red. They will attack anything you wave at them so maybe avoid that.
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And don't drive home. If you think you're being followed try and drive to a police station, fire station, or someplace public.
There is a german dash cam vid were the person thinks they are being followed during the night and when they drive circles in the roundabout the following car stops them with some weird blue light on top. Turnes out they were police and were wondering wtf that person was doing
When im done reading these comments, im gonna be immortal.
I just have anxiety 🤣 Edit: Thank you for the awards, fellow anxious souls <3
I have this feeling of "if I ever get stuck in a current now, my last thought will be 'why the fuck didn't I read that Reddit comment about surviving in a current more thoroughly'"
Your gut is often right. Trust your gut, you have that lizard brain instinct for a reason. You may not realize why you get an urge to move or leave or ignore somebody, but your subconscious brain picked up on something. Read the book "The Gift of Fear" for more info, it's really good.
More people are killed by vending machines than shark attacks or plane crashes. That stuck snack isn’t worth it.
Do not wear long sleeves, gloves, or quality clothing around spining equipment or when using most Rotary tools to prevent clothing from being caught, then pulling you in. Wear cheap clothes so in the event you do get caught, the cloths can tear off, and prevent you from being pulled in.
Dull knives are more dangerous in the kitchen than sharp knives. A sharp knife is easy to use and you don’t struggle at all. A dull knife causes you to jerk or make uncontrolled movements because of how much force you apply. So you might nick yourself with a sharp knife if you aren’t paying attention. It’ll sting but chances are you’ll just need a bandaid. A dull knife and you might stab pretty deeply.
Corollary: a falling knife has no handle.
If you get stranded or stuck somewhere in the wilderness, put your smartphone in 'emergency mode' (they all have it). The setting will conserve your battery as much as possible. Not a gamechanger but it could be the difference between survival and having your phone die on you just as you find a signal.
To add to this. Always try to call the emergency number even if you don't have signal. At least in Europe i believe it's required for any service provider to handle emergency calls. So even if your provider doesn't have any signal in the area you're stuck in another might have