Survival and its seven enemies.

Australia can be a beautiful place full of great diversity and contrast. With the help of commercial airlines a person could easily snow ski in the victorian High Country, dive the great Barrier Reef in Far north Queensland, hike the rugged gorges of the Northern Territory, explore the great inland desert and arid areas in central Australia, take a cultured dinner-cruise on Sydney Harbour, swim with Dolphins at Monkey Mia in Western Australia and explore the ancient Flinders Ranges in South Australia all in the same week or two. It's a vast county and given enough time, resources and money a person could spend a long time here seeing it all. I've lived here all my life and whilst I've travelled the country extensively I am nowhere near seeing and experiencing it all and focus my life around doing so. It's a great place to live and visit. Get your ass here if you haven't already!

I spend a lot of my time seeking the peace and quiet of less-populated areas; The outback and remote parts of the country that allow me to feel closer to the planet and more centered. I've spent a long time and a lot of effort acquiring the equipment and skills required for remote or outback travel from a first aid, communications, transport, mechanical, navigational, safety and comfort perspective. Australia is completely covered with things that will quite happily kill you, or injure you badly enough that without correct aid will see you perish through exposure to the elements. Snakes, spiders, insects, sharks, box jellyfish, blue-ringed octopus, crocodiles, cassowary and other animals are something a person faces when in the Australian outdoors. The very terrain and environment can end you also. When travelling in remote areas a lot of care has to be taken and of course a great deal of planning.

In my experience, besides the obvious equipment and skills required, there's a few elements a person needs to understand and embrace. In an emergency situation for instance a person must be in the correct frame of mind and to have the determination and attitude to survive; The instinct to live. There are, in my humble opinion, seven elements one must understand and be aware of and with a little planning around these things a scenario headed for disaster can turn into a survivable situation. The seven enemies to survival.

Fear - Loneliness - Pain - Cold - Fatugue - Hunger - Thirst

A person may be faced with one, or a combination, of these things and they can, and will, rob you of valuable self-confidence, logical thought, the ability to reason and worse, your desire to strive for life. Preparation and strategies designed to guard against these things can mean the difference between survival and death.

Fear:
Many people misconstrue fear for weakness or cowardice however in truth only the most foolish of people is never afraid. The focus needs to be on controlling the fear and not allowing it to take control and therefore render you ineffective. I have been in situations in which fear rose swiftly in me and at those times I force myself to think positively, not blindly positive, but positively about my skills as an outdoorsman and in general. Focusing on my abilities and the skills I have learned controls the fear and allows me to think logically, productively and to avoid despair and the grip of fear that can lead to inactivity or rash, dangerous actions. I am never ashamed or embarrassed to admit I have known fear.

Loneliness:
Fear has a close friend called loneliness and they hang out together gnawing away at a persons attitude and confidence. I'm not a psychologist however know that loneliness can strike at anytime, not just in a remote area. Many people feel lonely every day in cities and towns! In a survival situation it strikes hard and without warning. It burrows itself into your brain, feeding on itself seemingly, to undermine your ability to stay positive and lowering your resistance and emotional energy. I have to admit I have not felt it too much as I'm usually with at least one other person in the outback however I have felt it. I always tend to feel...Detached from reality and very quickly find myself in a poor state of mind. Recognising that is vital and then attacking it right back is critical, especially in an emergency situation. Keeping busy is my remedy. Gathering fire wood or food, collecting or purifying water, checking and attending to equipment or even stock-taking supplies. It really doesn't matter as long as you do something to push the emotion of loneliness out of your mind and subconscious.

Pain:
The body's way of telling you something is wrong is pain. Fortunately in times of high stress the body has the ability to mask pain so that the body can deal with the situation however once felt it needs to be dealt with. Cuts and scrapes must be treated and tended to where possible which is where a good first aid kit and medical knowledge come in. Pain can weaken a person's resolve and the ability or desire to push on however it's important it is dealt with early and put into perspective. The pain of walking on a turned ankle will be less than the pain of dying of hunger and thirst for instance.

Cold and heat:
This is a pretty obvious one as we all know. Cold not only numbs the body but the mind and spirit also. Heat can bear down relentlessly on the unprepared, burn skin and cause intense thirst. Understanding the area you plan to visit and planning around it is the key. In cold conditions know how to make fire, where shelter is and how to guard against the cold-related medical issues like frostbite. In the heat understand the importance of shelter, water and moving in the cooler night-time hours. Planning your shelter to maximise the effectiveness and minimise the effects of the weather is important.

Fatigue:
Have you ever performed at your best when extremely tired? No is the answer. Fatigue will reduce your mental ability, cognitive thought and may introduce despondency and carelessness. Physical and emotional fatigue must be considered. I find that many people who don't have a set plan can experience fatigue more readily. A plan allows the person to follow a road map as such and rather than focussing on thinking about it, they can focus on deploying it. My tip is to plan everything and then work to the plan. It will focus the mind on particular tasks to the exclusion of everything else, ward off some of the other emotions that can creep into a fatigued mind or body and will generate a feeling of accomplishment as each task is achieved. Planning is critical to staving off fear and loneliness too. Take breaks from physical and mental activity and follow your plan.

Hunger:
I've been truly hungry only once in my life. I hadn't eaten for 15 hours. Pathetic huh? The truth is though, that hunger in itself is survivable (in certain conditions) for many days. What hunger does however is leave us more susceptible to temperature extremes, pain, fear and fatigue. Having enough food plus emergency supplies is critical to plan around and in an emergency situation rationing immediately is suggested. Take stock of your food situation and then lay plans around it. (Always plan...) Supplementing your food stores with game, fish, rabbits, plants etc. will add to your stores plus bring you focus and activity helping to deal with some of the issues I've pointed out above. You will think better and be more optimistic with food in your belly. Coffee too. :)

Thirst:
This is of critical importance of course. Thirst has sent people mad in the past, and will do so in the future. It will bring fatigue crashing home, dull the mind and promote a high degree of panic. Not positive things when you're focussed on survival. Three days of that is about all you get before you expire so planning around it is very important. If you are lost and in dry or arid country don't leave a water source. Stay put and focus on the other survival needs. Keep drinking periodically; Remember, once you feel thirsty dehydration has already come to visit. Have water carrying devices, collapsible bottles etc. and know how to make water (I wrote a post about this recently). Never eat snow as it will lower you body temperature and could be contaminated. Boil it first.

So, there you have it, a brief insight into survival in emergency situations and planning remote trips. There really is a lot to know, I'll not deny it and this post does not even make up a small fraction. I have spent years learning and still have so much to know. It's a hobby for me and one that not only keeps me safe and on the up and up when in the outback but also can assist me in urban areas where emergency situations arise all the time. Understanding how to control fear for instance could come in useful in certain urban situations.

[- Vincit qui se vincit - @galenkp -]