Herbal Medicine First Aid Kit

Why Use An Herbal First Aid Kit?

Face it. The first aid kit in your bathroom cabinet or in the trunk of your car probably expired years ago. When was the last time you checked? Who really keeps their first aid kit up to date? Nobody does, that’s who, except maybe a few organized preppers. I know I have one in the car – I just went out and checked it, and do you know what the expiration date on the pain reliever was? 2006. That’s right it expired ten years ago!! Not good.

So while the tweezers and sterile pads are fine; the rest of it is pretty much toast. So how can you be sure your first aid kit is effective and up to date? How will you know it will still work when you need it? One way is to make it yourself. By doing this, you’re directly involved and have a deeper connection with the items in your kit. They’re not just a few dried up ibuprofens and mangled up Band Aids, but can be homemade tinctures, powders and capsules that last for years along with some soft cotton in a ziplock ready to use for compresses.

Having a connection to your medicine is really what it’s all about for me. Knowing the safety and efficacy of your herbal products, their source and their lack of side effects, makes having your own first aid kit a thing to make you proud. And we do need first aid kits, though thankfully not often. When you need them you want that assurance that these items are safe to use for everyone in your family. You want to know that they’re not full of toxic chemicals, or out of date and ineffective. Herbal first aid products are fun to make, often smell and taste wonderful, and work quickly and effectively.

The learning that goes into making your own herbal first aid kit can help you in many situations. Once you know the power of herbs and have become familiar with different plants and their properties, you can take this knowledge into the wild and forage for medicine that is fresh and right there when you need it.

The beauty of herbal first aid kits is that many of the items, such as the alcoholic tinctures and liniments, are preserved for the long haul. Some even reach a higher potency with more time. Other herbal first aid ingredients are just familiar plants that can be found in the wild. Expiration dates become less important with the herbal first aid kit.

Having the knowledge of herbal medicine is empowering and comforting. Knowing that whether you are at home, traveling, out in the wilds or in your car, you can have a first aid kit that works, that you feel safe meting out to your friends and family, and that you made yourself.

Special Note: In this book I have tried to include every possible emergency situation, and many of these items may never be needed. And there are, I’m sure, many other first aid problems that haven’t occurred to me. Either way, you can use this guide to pack what you think works best for you and your family. I by no means have everything in this book in my car or my medicine cabinet. This extensive list was made for you to have choices for what you want in your herbal first aid kit. If I was planning a long backpacking or camping trip, or traveling domestically or abroad, I would be using this list to cover as many situations as possible, relevant to the area I was visiting.