Sometimes you need to be your own doctor in the wilderness

There is nothing worse than being lost, sick and desperate when you’re in the great outdoors. Imagine if you have a toothache, a stomach virus or you start vomiting while hiking and you’re miles from any medical help. On top of all that, sometimes when you feel sick you can’t even walk to the nearest hospital a mile away.

The problem is that in this kind of situation you can be stuck and left on your own, unless you travel with a doctor, but that’s not the case for most of us. If you do not have your own doctor, your only chance to getting better might be to help yourself and prepare something natural.

We’ve got to point at here that we’re not medical professionals and we’re just expressing our opinion on things that have worked for us at times, you’re free to try them or not, it’s entirely up to you.

To be able to deal with a health issue or pain you need to have a certain knowledge about plants and how do they affect you.

The first thing you need to do though is get rid of the fear, which is more than normal if you get lost in some forest or a jungle. Feeling fear is natural, but it does not help your body and mind deal with things, on the contrary, it weakens the immune system. Try to save all your physical strength, get a grip and start a search for wild herbs that can save your life. The apathy will disappear immediately after realizing that the cure might be right at your fingertips.

Wild garlic is a natural antibiotic and antiseptic. If you are wounded what you need is to find wild garlic, crush the bulbs, express the juice and apply it to the wound. This way you have a much better chance to stop the infection. You can also eat it if you have a cold, earache, headache or stomachache. Wild garlic grows all over the US in the same places other wild flowers grow. So, it won’t be a problem to find it whenever you need it.

Wild ginger is a perfect remedy for nausea and vomiting. Native American tribes were using wild ginger root to cure cramps, sore throats, coughs, colds and nervous conditions many many years ago. You can find this green, heart-shaped leaf plant in Mississippi, Oklahoma, Alabama and North Dakota.

White willow contains a large amount of salicin which is the main ingredient of aspirin. It reduces fever, relieves pain from small injuries, headaches and stops diarrhea. You can find it near rivers, creeks, lakes, and ponds. It grows up to 90 feet tall with a trunk up to 3 feet in diameter and has an irregular crown.

Echinacea is a natural immune system booster. It helps with internal and external infections and can also be used topically on wounds. It grows in Colorado, Georgia, Minnesota, and Maine. Echinacea consists of three species: purple coneflower, pale purple coneflower and narrow-leaved purple coneflower. All of these have the same effect.

Being lost or alone in the wilderness can be terrifying, especially if you get sick or injured. That’s why before the next camping trip you need to update your knowledge about herbal medicine, you never know when you’ll need it.

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