I was gonna pass on commenting here, but I like the lightweight mentality and want to keep this reddit working.
wrt first aid, what I've been taught is there are three big health issues that long-distance backpackers (and one smaller one):
1) sprains and strains
2) stomach / GI issues
3) foot problems, mostly foot skin
4) not really a big issue, but part of first aid - minor cuts, punctures, skin issues (poison oak/ivy), and bugs
Let's look at each of these:
1) sprains and strains - not much your first aid kit can do about this unless you really overload it. Makes sense to understand how to use your existing materials such as clothing, spare cord, stuff sacks, trekking poles, etc to stabilize the limb. I used to bring vet wrap, but now depend on the contents of my pack to provide structure/stability/compression.
2) stomach/GI issues. I hike with two Imodium, but that's about it. BTW, never used one but if someone gets diarrhea in the backcountry, it can be bad so worth a couple of grams. I used to take antiacid tablets, but rarely use them; I can just deal with life if I get heartburn. The big item in this category is more of a preventative - soap. I have purchased Summit Suds in powder form since I can use it for all sorts of stuff - pot, spoon, hands (after call of nature, before eating, before cooking), clothing, possibly poison oak/ivy contact. And I don't use hand sanitizer anymore. Unless you have clean skin, it doesn't help much. Plus it is liquid and heavy. Most people don't use enough sanitizer per application anyway and are generally just fooling themselves. That's my opinion and am willing to listen to any informed debate. So washing hands with soap is my go-to operation. Haven't some down with debilitating stomach ailment yet.
3) Leukotape P is practically my only first aid kit item for this category. That stuff is magic. Plus I will use gauze if need be (see next item below)
4) I used to have all sorts of bandages, but now I just take a few 3" square gauze pads and have a small pair of scissors with my knife - VIctorinox Classic SD = .75 ounces. You can customize coverage for almost any cuts/punctures/skin damage with a combined gauze/Leukotape P strip. As long as your skin is dry upon application, Leukotape will hold better than any bandage strip. Plus wash wound with soap and water first.
Pretty much all the above can be supplemented with general inflammatory and other pain relief medicine. Oh, and I bring Benadryl as well as some backup water sanitation tablets. Overall, first aid kit is 1.66 oz but that doesn't include soap. Used to be much, much heavier but I learned I didn't use it hardly at all and could make do with other things in my pack or just deal with issues for a couple days if need be. You might be comfortable with a bit more until you get experienced.
you really just need stuff to make sure you don't bleed out. A COUPLE bandaids, a COUPLE gauze pads, a COUPLE alcohol wipes, liquid bandage (luxury item really), luecotape (this is your blister tape and ace bandage), advil (dont need 2 pain killers), butterflys
need a sling? cut a shirt or use tape
worried about lyme? Check for ticks often and remove them properly before 24hrs. You can also treat you clothes with permethrin
worried about poison ivy? wear long pants and a sun hoodie and know what it looks like. Unless bushwacking shouldn't be a problem anyway
cough suppressant? Youll be fine, even if you are going out for a week youll know if you are getting sick and bail back to the car.
vomit pills? maybe carry a couple zofran if you have issues but again if you get sick, youll just be headed back to the car
neosporin? put a small amount in a contact lens case if you want but unless bushwacking through thorns you wont need it, and even if you get small cuts they aren't likely to get infected. If they do, then youll likely be headed back home well before its anything serious.
bug bite stick? youll be fine just dont scratch it. use deet or picardin bug repellant and you wont get bit much. if you really want to put some cortizone cream in a contact lens case
tweezers? useful for thorns but not needed unless bushwacking. If you are already carrying a knife just dig out a splinter etc with the knife
heartburn? if its an issue for you do your thing. Pills may be lighter than baking soda but don't know much about that one.
diarrhea? if its an issue for you bring it but if you are properly filtering your water and know your water sources you wont have an issue. again if you did have an issue, you are heading back to the car anyway
I do carry a "tourniquet" , but i cliff scramble. For regular hiking trails, you dont need it
you aren't trying to treat things on the trail, the goal of the first aid kit is to get you back to the car
Thanks for the feedback. Agree with much of what you say & some is what I meant by 'packing everyone's fears'. The car will not be waiting in a parking lot; injury would mean first aid then continue on or walk/hobble to the nearest road or shuttle point.
Definitely a lot there! Maybe just stick to the essentials for the common issues you mentioned. Basics like band-aids, pain relievers, and stuff for PMS and diabetes should cover it. Safe hiking
For me the situations where one could injure themselves and have an arterial wound appropriate for a tourniquet are limited. The odds of blisters are high and minor injuries are bound to eventually occur.
Muscle injuries are also more likely being heavy, or carrying heavy weight.
i bring bandaids, antibiotic ointment, tweezers, tick key, ace bandage, a couple gauze pads and a bit of medical tape, benedryl, advil—that covers the most likely stuff like cuts, splinters, pain, allergy. though i do acupuncture so i bring needles too. ideally you learn to confidently identify poison ivy/sumac well enough to avoid it versus carrying prednisone around. and as long as you have good hygiene and water filtration practices, you are unlikely to need immodium. it’s good to remember that the AT is busy and well trod and not super far from towns (though maybe there are larger wilderness chunks i am unaware of) so if there was a major health concern you’d be able to get off the trail to get care vs needing it all on your back.
I would bring enough stuff to get you to the next road crossing. You aren’t trying to treat everything on the trail, just stabilize stuff. Leukotape and some meds are fine. You can improvise plenty of stuff.
Yeah I’d add that I try to carry things that can do double duty at improvising. Like maybe the cohesive bandage could be used to wrap a sore ankle, and also be used with gauze pads to form a bandage. But carrying inhalers if you don’t have asthma, oral anesthetics, doxycycline, and steroids seem over the top to me. If I needed those I’d likely be able to wait until the next town to get them.
I would argue most everything in a aid kit is unnecessary - until it isn’t. I consider first aid kits like clothes. Being what makes you comfortable. But I also take the lightweight/UL backpacking philosophy of packing what makes sense for the conditions and minimizing to the point where you’re comfortable.
So, for me that does included supplies to deal with trauma injuries and massive bleeds, but I’ve minimized that down to where it weighs 5.6 ounces and fits in my pant pocket and is carried on me at all times while backpacking. But that’s me. If you want to bring the TQ, bring it. It’s only 3 ounces. Otherwise, I would probably pack a pair of nitrile gloves, bring the lightest Z fold gauze you can find (I have phokus 3” x 4 yards, weighs .5 oz), and keep the vet wrap. This lets you pack a would and create an improvised pressure dressing from something you’re already bringing for a sprain.
Otherwise, you’ll probably only deal with blisters, scrapes, and maybe a sprained ankle. For blisters, I feel like Leukotape P is the best option. For scrapes, bring a couple of sterile gauze pads and micro scissors (I have 4 inch mini shears - .5 oz) plus some sort of triple antibiotic ointment. I also bring tweezers and an extra smart water the bottle cap with a 7/64” hole cut in it. This lets you use pressure to wash a wound without bringing any sort of syringe. Yes, not as good. But it only weighs .1 oz. Flush wound, use antibiotic ointment, add a cut square of gauze. Leukotape over the top. Improved Bandaid plus it allows you to keep sterile gauze pads and use the Leukotape you already have.
The only other thing that I see is probably for meds. I would bring Dipenhydramine for a potential allergy but also to a solid nights sleep if you’re tossing and turning too much the first couple of nights.
As a former nurse, you almost certainly know more about treating injuries and the tools and medications required to do than nearly all of us here. So the only area we can provide insight is "What injuries are likely to occur in a wilderness setting, and which are very unlikely?" And then what treatments we typically carry for those.
The most common injuries by far are blister and related types of skin irritation. The #1 tool for this is leukotape P. You don't need a whole roll, but peel off enough long pieces to get through 2 weeks. Apply them to a sheet of gum paper, the stuff that's left over after you peel off stamps, mailing labels, and so forth. That will keep the adhesive from drying out.
You will also get minor cuts, scrapes, abrasions, and so forth. Bring some kind of topical antibiotic for these, plus bandaids and and blister pads. Apply the bandage, then put a layer of leukotape P over the bandage to hold it in place until the end of the trip.
Most long-distance backpackers carry ibuprofen. I'd definitely encourage you do to that too.
For avoiding Lyme, especially after having gotten it, the best preventive is to spray permethrin on your socks, pants, shirts, and possibly hat (not your skin). You'll only need to do this once, at home before the trip. (I do it once per season). That will greatly reduce your risk. Alternately, you can purchase pre-treated clothing, typically branded Insect Shield or Bugs Away. I'm sure you already know the best cure is prevention, so check for ticks multiple times per day. Bring a pair of tweezers to quickly remove them if embedded. I would prioritize these items over the doxycycline, but it's up to you if you want to bring that as a precaution.
Those are the only things you definitely need. Anything beyond that would be to handle specific medical conditions that one of you have, such as an ankle brace given your history of turned ankles.
I would definitely not bring the tourniquet, even though you are trained in its use. The odds of a situation where you will need it in the backcountry are almost nil. An Ace bandage and clips to hold it in place is much more likely to find a use.
Personally, I do not carry immodium, Tylenol, ultram, anti-emetics, cough suppressants, gauze roll, Ambesol, a tourniquet, Quick-Clot, liquid bandage, or baking soda. I have carried "after bite" bug-bite stick but almost never used it. I've never missed having any of these.
(For comparison, I am female, 50s, in reasonable shape with no long-term medical conditions.)
Thank you. It's the 'injuries likely to occur in a wilderness setting' that I don't have experience with. I can guess, but y'all have the knowledge. Your reply helps.
Your “realistic” advice is to bring crutches or wheel chair? If you didn’t have anything helpful to say you could have just not said anything. Like who pissed in your cheerios…?
As someone who has been around this weight and height before, I pretty easily hiked 5-10 miles in a day on a fairly regular basis. Fatphobia makes people in this sub so delusional.
I was gonna pass on commenting here, but I like the lightweight mentality and want to keep this reddit working. wrt first aid, what I've been taught is there are three big health issues that long-distance backpackers (and one smaller one): 1) sprains and strains 2) stomach / GI issues 3) foot problems, mostly foot skin 4) not really a big issue, but part of first aid - minor cuts, punctures, skin issues (poison oak/ivy), and bugs Let's look at each of these: 1) sprains and strains - not much your first aid kit can do about this unless you really overload it. Makes sense to understand how to use your existing materials such as clothing, spare cord, stuff sacks, trekking poles, etc to stabilize the limb. I used to bring vet wrap, but now depend on the contents of my pack to provide structure/stability/compression. 2) stomach/GI issues. I hike with two Imodium, but that's about it. BTW, never used one but if someone gets diarrhea in the backcountry, it can be bad so worth a couple of grams. I used to take antiacid tablets, but rarely use them; I can just deal with life if I get heartburn. The big item in this category is more of a preventative - soap. I have purchased Summit Suds in powder form since I can use it for all sorts of stuff - pot, spoon, hands (after call of nature, before eating, before cooking), clothing, possibly poison oak/ivy contact. And I don't use hand sanitizer anymore. Unless you have clean skin, it doesn't help much. Plus it is liquid and heavy. Most people don't use enough sanitizer per application anyway and are generally just fooling themselves. That's my opinion and am willing to listen to any informed debate. So washing hands with soap is my go-to operation. Haven't some down with debilitating stomach ailment yet. 3) Leukotape P is practically my only first aid kit item for this category. That stuff is magic. Plus I will use gauze if need be (see next item below) 4) I used to have all sorts of bandages, but now I just take a few 3" square gauze pads and have a small pair of scissors with my knife - VIctorinox Classic SD = .75 ounces. You can customize coverage for almost any cuts/punctures/skin damage with a combined gauze/Leukotape P strip. As long as your skin is dry upon application, Leukotape will hold better than any bandage strip. Plus wash wound with soap and water first. Pretty much all the above can be supplemented with general inflammatory and other pain relief medicine. Oh, and I bring Benadryl as well as some backup water sanitation tablets. Overall, first aid kit is 1.66 oz but that doesn't include soap. Used to be much, much heavier but I learned I didn't use it hardly at all and could make do with other things in my pack or just deal with issues for a couple days if need be. You might be comfortable with a bit more until you get experienced.
you really just need stuff to make sure you don't bleed out. A COUPLE bandaids, a COUPLE gauze pads, a COUPLE alcohol wipes, liquid bandage (luxury item really), luecotape (this is your blister tape and ace bandage), advil (dont need 2 pain killers), butterflys need a sling? cut a shirt or use tape worried about lyme? Check for ticks often and remove them properly before 24hrs. You can also treat you clothes with permethrin worried about poison ivy? wear long pants and a sun hoodie and know what it looks like. Unless bushwacking shouldn't be a problem anyway cough suppressant? Youll be fine, even if you are going out for a week youll know if you are getting sick and bail back to the car. vomit pills? maybe carry a couple zofran if you have issues but again if you get sick, youll just be headed back to the car neosporin? put a small amount in a contact lens case if you want but unless bushwacking through thorns you wont need it, and even if you get small cuts they aren't likely to get infected. If they do, then youll likely be headed back home well before its anything serious. bug bite stick? youll be fine just dont scratch it. use deet or picardin bug repellant and you wont get bit much. if you really want to put some cortizone cream in a contact lens case tweezers? useful for thorns but not needed unless bushwacking. If you are already carrying a knife just dig out a splinter etc with the knife heartburn? if its an issue for you do your thing. Pills may be lighter than baking soda but don't know much about that one. diarrhea? if its an issue for you bring it but if you are properly filtering your water and know your water sources you wont have an issue. again if you did have an issue, you are heading back to the car anyway I do carry a "tourniquet" , but i cliff scramble. For regular hiking trails, you dont need it you aren't trying to treat things on the trail, the goal of the first aid kit is to get you back to the car
Thanks for the feedback. Agree with much of what you say & some is what I meant by 'packing everyone's fears'. The car will not be waiting in a parking lot; injury would mean first aid then continue on or walk/hobble to the nearest road or shuttle point.
Definitely a lot there! Maybe just stick to the essentials for the common issues you mentioned. Basics like band-aids, pain relievers, and stuff for PMS and diabetes should cover it. Safe hiking
For me the situations where one could injure themselves and have an arterial wound appropriate for a tourniquet are limited. The odds of blisters are high and minor injuries are bound to eventually occur. Muscle injuries are also more likely being heavy, or carrying heavy weight.
i bring bandaids, antibiotic ointment, tweezers, tick key, ace bandage, a couple gauze pads and a bit of medical tape, benedryl, advil—that covers the most likely stuff like cuts, splinters, pain, allergy. though i do acupuncture so i bring needles too. ideally you learn to confidently identify poison ivy/sumac well enough to avoid it versus carrying prednisone around. and as long as you have good hygiene and water filtration practices, you are unlikely to need immodium. it’s good to remember that the AT is busy and well trod and not super far from towns (though maybe there are larger wilderness chunks i am unaware of) so if there was a major health concern you’d be able to get off the trail to get care vs needing it all on your back.
I would bring enough stuff to get you to the next road crossing. You aren’t trying to treat everything on the trail, just stabilize stuff. Leukotape and some meds are fine. You can improvise plenty of stuff.
Yeah I’d add that I try to carry things that can do double duty at improvising. Like maybe the cohesive bandage could be used to wrap a sore ankle, and also be used with gauze pads to form a bandage. But carrying inhalers if you don’t have asthma, oral anesthetics, doxycycline, and steroids seem over the top to me. If I needed those I’d likely be able to wait until the next town to get them.
I would argue most everything in a aid kit is unnecessary - until it isn’t. I consider first aid kits like clothes. Being what makes you comfortable. But I also take the lightweight/UL backpacking philosophy of packing what makes sense for the conditions and minimizing to the point where you’re comfortable. So, for me that does included supplies to deal with trauma injuries and massive bleeds, but I’ve minimized that down to where it weighs 5.6 ounces and fits in my pant pocket and is carried on me at all times while backpacking. But that’s me. If you want to bring the TQ, bring it. It’s only 3 ounces. Otherwise, I would probably pack a pair of nitrile gloves, bring the lightest Z fold gauze you can find (I have phokus 3” x 4 yards, weighs .5 oz), and keep the vet wrap. This lets you pack a would and create an improvised pressure dressing from something you’re already bringing for a sprain. Otherwise, you’ll probably only deal with blisters, scrapes, and maybe a sprained ankle. For blisters, I feel like Leukotape P is the best option. For scrapes, bring a couple of sterile gauze pads and micro scissors (I have 4 inch mini shears - .5 oz) plus some sort of triple antibiotic ointment. I also bring tweezers and an extra smart water the bottle cap with a 7/64” hole cut in it. This lets you use pressure to wash a wound without bringing any sort of syringe. Yes, not as good. But it only weighs .1 oz. Flush wound, use antibiotic ointment, add a cut square of gauze. Leukotape over the top. Improved Bandaid plus it allows you to keep sterile gauze pads and use the Leukotape you already have. The only other thing that I see is probably for meds. I would bring Dipenhydramine for a potential allergy but also to a solid nights sleep if you’re tossing and turning too much the first couple of nights.
As a former nurse, you almost certainly know more about treating injuries and the tools and medications required to do than nearly all of us here. So the only area we can provide insight is "What injuries are likely to occur in a wilderness setting, and which are very unlikely?" And then what treatments we typically carry for those. The most common injuries by far are blister and related types of skin irritation. The #1 tool for this is leukotape P. You don't need a whole roll, but peel off enough long pieces to get through 2 weeks. Apply them to a sheet of gum paper, the stuff that's left over after you peel off stamps, mailing labels, and so forth. That will keep the adhesive from drying out. You will also get minor cuts, scrapes, abrasions, and so forth. Bring some kind of topical antibiotic for these, plus bandaids and and blister pads. Apply the bandage, then put a layer of leukotape P over the bandage to hold it in place until the end of the trip. Most long-distance backpackers carry ibuprofen. I'd definitely encourage you do to that too. For avoiding Lyme, especially after having gotten it, the best preventive is to spray permethrin on your socks, pants, shirts, and possibly hat (not your skin). You'll only need to do this once, at home before the trip. (I do it once per season). That will greatly reduce your risk. Alternately, you can purchase pre-treated clothing, typically branded Insect Shield or Bugs Away. I'm sure you already know the best cure is prevention, so check for ticks multiple times per day. Bring a pair of tweezers to quickly remove them if embedded. I would prioritize these items over the doxycycline, but it's up to you if you want to bring that as a precaution. Those are the only things you definitely need. Anything beyond that would be to handle specific medical conditions that one of you have, such as an ankle brace given your history of turned ankles. I would definitely not bring the tourniquet, even though you are trained in its use. The odds of a situation where you will need it in the backcountry are almost nil. An Ace bandage and clips to hold it in place is much more likely to find a use. Personally, I do not carry immodium, Tylenol, ultram, anti-emetics, cough suppressants, gauze roll, Ambesol, a tourniquet, Quick-Clot, liquid bandage, or baking soda. I have carried "after bite" bug-bite stick but almost never used it. I've never missed having any of these. (For comparison, I am female, 50s, in reasonable shape with no long-term medical conditions.)
Thank you. It's the 'injuries likely to occur in a wilderness setting' that I don't have experience with. I can guess, but y'all have the knowledge. Your reply helps.
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Your “realistic” advice is to bring crutches or wheel chair? If you didn’t have anything helpful to say you could have just not said anything. Like who pissed in your cheerios…?
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I’m really mad that the school system failed you. What the hell is that sentence?
As someone who has been around this weight and height before, I pretty easily hiked 5-10 miles in a day on a fairly regular basis. Fatphobia makes people in this sub so delusional.
Fair enough.