Dealing With Medical Emergencies Solo: When It’s Necessary To Stitch Up Your Own Wound, Pull Out Your Own Tooth, Apply Your Own Tourniquet
About two months ago, I sliced my leg open with a beer bottle. I work in a bar, so that was extraordinary in itself, but the depth was. Bone wasn’t visible, but everything else was. Luckily, it didn’t bleed too badly. My coworkers insisted that I needed stitches, but I just butterflied the bitch. Maybe I should’ve gone to the hospital, seeing as it took over a month to heal, and I’ve got a nasty scar out of it. Still, four weeks and no infection later, I recognize that I scraped by on the bare minimum. But, sometimes, that’s all that’s going to be available to you.
I had the luxury of being able to go to the hospital if my pride would’ve just let me. But that’s not always a reality. Whether because you are too far away from medical personnel or because there are none available, you’ve got to be prepared to deal with your own medical emergencies. Now there are some things that just aren’t possible (performing your own open-heart surgery, for example), but you’d be surprised what you’re capable of doing yourself if necessary. Below are some tips with dealing with three medical emergencies by yourself.
Mandatory disclaimer: I am not a medically trained professional. This guide is for informational purposes only, based on my experiences and best research. This knowledge is only to be referred to as a last resort- if you do have access to a medical professional that should be your first go-to, no matter what complex you have about receiving help. For the purposes of this guide, you are days or more away from real medical help.
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