Am I too old or disabled to bug out and survive? This is a question that one of my readers asked and another made the remark that no one ever has any prepping info for old or handicapped people. This has really bothered me so in today’s post, I am going to take this subject head on and throw my thoughts on the subject out there.
First question: “Am I too old or disabled to bug out?” First let me say that some of you may disagree with my stance on this subject, but that’s ok because this is one of those things that pull at the heart and mind. The short answer to this question is if you can still breathe and still move at all, then no, you are not too old. I would rather be caught rolling down the side of the road in a wheelchair and praying for a miracle that just roll over and give up! Fortunately I am not in a wheel chair and can still get around as well as anyone. But if I was, I would not just lie down and die for any reason on earth and giving up is cowardly in my book. You may then ask what an old person could possibly contribute to a survival group. The answer is very simple “Knowledge”. You have not been coddled all of your life and you know how to do things that many of us today have long forgotten. You remember seeing how things were done before there were washing machines and even cars in some cases. My father in law was telling me one day about how his father was a Blacksmith and as we talked, the information I learned on the subject was amazing. No, my father-in- law was not a blacksmith, but his father was and he has spent many hours watching his father work and was a vast resource of knowledge. Most of the people under 50 have never even planted anything besides flowers and have no idea of where to even start to grow a food garden. In the post SHTF world, knowledge will be king, so yes; you still have a lot to offer in a survival situation. You may not be able to plow or weed a garden anymore, but you can still explain to others how to do it. If they find a bug on a food plant and bring it to you, you could probably know if it is a good bug or something that needs to be eliminated. Maybe your eyes are not as sharp as they once were, but you can still do other things like help by sharing recipes’ and other things you learned when you were growing up. If you still have your hearing, then you can listen to the radios for information on what is going on and free up someone else that can do other things. Yes, you still have a lot to offer to survival groups and they would be fools not to recognize your value.
As far as giving up… well I look at it this way. The good Lord put us all on this earth and he keeps each one of us breathing till our work that he has for us is done. If you give up, then it is like telling God that you are giving up on him. What about all of the men and women that have made the ultimate sacrifice to protect this land we love? Was it all for nothing? Are you willing to give up on something that they believed so much in? We are all in this together and we will either survive or we will die and you can make the difference for many people. I think that the way we face death is at least as important as how we face life. In the end, it is your decision; will you help others to survive or will you turn your back on them. You are never too old to bug out and survive, you just have to be willing to face what comes and to help others survive anyway you can.
Second Question: ”Does anyone have any Prepping information for older and handicapped people?” Actually I think that there is a lot of information out there for older and handicapped people, if you really look. It does point out that we in the internet prepping community need to make it more accessible to those who want and need it. I am going to look into setting aside some articles each month to address these very issues. What might help would be if you could let me know by emailing me and letting me know what you are most interested in. Not being handicapped myself, I wouldn’t want to overlook any of the special challenges that handicapped people face. I do know that locating a Prepper group that values what you have to offer would be a good first step on the road to feeling more in control of your own future. My email is: the_sargent@americanpreppersonline.com or you could simply add it to the comments below if you want. I strongly believe that there are many older and handicapped people out there that have a great deal to offer and just because you can’t ride a horse or walk a hundred yards or even stand for that matter, it doesn’t mean that you have nothing to offer. Groups will need someone to help watch the children while their parents do other work. As I mentioned before they will need someone to listen to radios for information and share the knowledge that you have. You are a valuable resource that will be greatly needed when the time comes. Hang In there and we will all get through this together. Well, I hope I have given you something new to think about today and hopefully you may have even learned something new. As always, comments are greatly appreciated so until next time, keep on prepping!
-The Sargent-
My great grand father was forty years old in Pensacola when the Civil War started, too old to fight. But, they made him a private in the cavalry, he tended the horses and held them while the rest were fighting. He suffered from Malaria and had to be sent home several times to recuperate. When he passed away, over three decades later, they buried him with full military honors. He did what he could.
War is a young man’s game, there is a reason the Swiss Army retains it’s men at ages 19 to 34. But, older folks can do the ancillary things that need doing, that you wouldn’t want to task a primary combatant for.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_of_Switzerland
I used to be expeditionary, but now with age, and various ailments, I’m only good for the Home Guard… But, I will try to do what I can…
Hi guys interesting article and comments well worth the read cheers
My other half found 3acres and a small house we are in our late 60s.l have a treadle sewing machine and a crank victroa lots of hand tools outside and kitchen can,t walk very far but there is nothing wrong with.my trigger finger. Can skin pluck and cook just about any thing hopefully next year our berries and grapes will show
Age 66, been a patriot survivalist all my adult life. Broke my left leg 4 times-what part
of “Chester” with a 12 gauge shotgun don’t people understand. I worked dangerous industry and on the Alaska seas for 30 years. I am a heavy trucker-survival is a way of life. Bring it ON!! Thank you, great and encouraging article.
Kind Regards, Jim
Member Live Free. American Survivor.org
PS Country Bot Can Survive
This is a topic that needs so much more space than it gets. We have some articles on Survivopedia that you might find interesting:
http://www.survivopedia.com/preparedness-for-people-with-disabilities/
http://www.survivopedia.com/survival-items-to-hoard-for-seniors/
http://www.survivopedia.com/preparedness-plans-for-oldies/
http://www.survivopedia.com/living-with-chronic-disease-during-disaster/
Thanks for those links. Unfortunately, seniors are like teenagers; lumped into one big generalization. My grandpa used to joke, “Just because there’s snow on the roof doesn’t mean there’s no fire in the stove!” Of course what he was claiming to be ready for was something a little different. Haha
Thank you for this article. I’m a 70 yr old woman, blessed with good health but not as spry as I once was. But I can grow a garden, prepare herbs to heal, chop off a chicken’s head & cook him up, deliver a baby, make a quilt to keep it warm & teach it to read when the time comes. I’m an excellent shot & not scared of anything except running out of coffee! Actually, ya’ll ought to be scared if I run out of coffee. Haha
I am an older,smarter and wiser cavalry veteran. I might be slower like the turtle but I will die before I let intruders take our country . I am a old, onery Texan. I have lots of experience and knowledge which could help any group. I am not an expert. Jack of all trades and master of none.
A very thought provoking article. As a now classified as a senior citizen who doesn’t want to accept it let me add my resume.
Age 66
As a child worked on dairy farms in the summer, helped to maintain a large family garden, helped my father raise rabbits, we had 20 does and 2 very tired bucks, chickens, ducks and other critters. I learned to shoot with an open site .22 shooting rats around our rabbit pens like a sniper. Military experience 11 years as a paratrooper, Vietnam a year. As a civilian, aircraft mechanic 20 years on everything from Cessna 150 to Boeing 747 and a commercial pilot, firefighting experience both woodland and structure, I have some plumbing, electrical, wood frame, block & concrete construction, general knowledge. I can and do own chainsaws, splitting mauls, I own 2 SOTZ Monster Mauls, axes, wood saws for firewood, a very extensive tool box, experience in hunting, fishing, snare making, winter survival experience, a graduate of Arctic Survival School at Eilson AF Base.
I currently have a ¼ acre garden and a container vegetable garden, can my excess.
My now problem is my knees are shot and my mobility is limited. When 40 years ago I could run 7 miles in less than an hour I now could not walk 500 yards in an hour. For me bugging in is my main priority but I have a motorhome as a bug out vehicle if necessary.
If a person with these skills and more came knocking on your door would you let them in or would you throw in with them at their bug in location or send them packing?????
Someone with your skill set, I would welcome with open arms! Anyone that can’t see the value in having you around probably won’t make it anyway! 🙂
‘The Sargent’ – I don’t agree nor do I disagree with you. Would I make a trip, the trip, without food or water? If it meant that I would as you put it ‘make the trip’. In short, be still breathing at the end of the journey. The ‘big’ picture requires whether we like it or not getting through all the little ones. Sort of like an old film reel. The movie has an ending; but, it takes all those little frames passing in front of the projector bulb to get there. If the strip is cut somewhere in the middle, you’ll not see the credits at the end. I point out the simple fact that one person’s disability is that person’s and whomsoever deems it their’s as well. As for betting that any particular individual’s skills are so crucial to my or a group’s survival? That is a judgement call to be done by the people involved. And as in all things concerning life and death, there is no grey zone. Whatever is decided, the responsibility for that/those decision(s) falls to those who make them.
Would I wish to leave behind anyone? No. Might I? It will be as God wills it. I see that each circumstance will be unique. As will the actions taken. Hopefully – and again, I stress that the people who make any such decisions do so quickly and with the best of intent – none of us are faced with such a cruel future. I do know this as far as my own life is concerned. I accept that if I should become a burden and put at risk others I care for, I’d choose not to be carried. It would not be a matter of if I knew “so much more” than they. What is lost when a person passes is lost and must be lived on without or relearned. As it was originally. A wise person once told me “no one is irreplaceable”.
Recently I read an article about people living alone for years and years in the forests of Russia, not far from Siberia. Cold as cold can get, forbidding landscape, void of friends and help from anyone, but dedicated to their lifestyle. They live among the bears and wild hogs too. They doing a great job and are doing fine. What did they have in common: OLD and physically challenged, rejects from society. One of them was blind, but still living in the woods. But here’s the catch: They are Russians, acclimated to hard times, mental toughness, and an I will survive no matter what attitude. They don’t have access to non existent sicknesses such as PTSD and bipolar and the welfare checks associated thereof. These people are real men and women living as best they can, facing the realities of living with nature. AND I ADMIRE THE HECK OUT OF THEM. It’s a matter of attitude, people, attitude, attitude, attitude. Especially when there is nothing to return too. thanks for your time.
taxdn2poverty, your statement “They don’t have access to non existent sicknesses such as PTSD ” What is your military experience????
Old Veteran: I think you will really enjoy tomorrows post! It’s about PTSD! 🙂
@Old Veteran: My military experience was 6 years total, including one tour with 2/17th Cav. 101ABN, and another with C TRP. 1st. Sqdn. 11th Armored Cav. Regiment. My second tour was spent just to keep my little brother out of that rat hole place. The other four years were spend in Germany. Please don’t hand be the crap about veterans are special, and deserve all we can do for them. If they would stop whining and complaining, and take their job application and go to the end of the line and wait their turn just as I did then maybe we could have some respect for them. If you are receiving a PTSD welfare check then by any standard of measure in this universe, you ain’t much. PTSD is welfare, and nothing else because they don’t make anything any lower. The mere fact that a full grown man can whine and whimper about his/her ‘military experience’ and then expect the taxpayer’s to support them is absurd. Once on the welfare rolls, PTSDer’s can never be reevaluated and they receive taxpayer livelihood until the day they die. Totally stupid, childish, and immature to allow such things to even show their faces in public. We have enough veterans missing arms and legs that we should be taking care of instead of pandering to diaper dandy ptsders. thanks for your time and can’t wait to hear from you again (please change your diapers first, please).
@taxdn2poverty: You have been a loyal reader in the past and we almost always see eye to eye on most things. I have to say though on that last comment, you are wrong my friend. I do understand where you are coming from, but you are making way to many assumptions about veterans and PTSD. I guess we will just have to agree to disagree on this one it seems. Thanks for the comments none the less.
I also went there so my little brother wouldn’t, I was with the 173rd.. He wound up in Korea. To assume that I am a PTSD veteran is Presumptuous. After 11 + years I left in 1980 during the Carter administration and started from scratch at the bottom and worked my butt off to be where I am now. There were times when I could have qualified for public assistance but had more pride in myself and never did and I never used PTSD as a krutch or an “IN” to get a job but I did use my military skills and training to show and prove to an employer that I was a trustworthy and valuable employee. I don’t wear diapers any more but am afraid the day might come again and then I will deal with it if I am still productive if not????
I didn’t ask the question to start a peeing contest but to see where you are coming from
It’s called backstroking old Veteran. That’s what you are doing. Nothing more, nothing less. Here’s my final comment on the matter of Ptsd veterans. “If they had to pay to have it, instead of getting paid to have it, then how many would be afflicted with it?” Exactly zero, that’s how many. Well, what the heck, one more comment. A normal human mind cannot accept, define, nor justify what soldiers on all sides of conflicts do. We agonize over it, lose sleep, and have a lot of gray hair. No honorable person can take another human’s life and not feel shame and guilt afterwards. But to say the taxpayer’s owe us anything is treasonous. thanks for your time and I’m done.
The most encouraging comment of the lot. Keep low, keep quiet and wait it out.
The title of this article is: “Am I too old or disabled to bug out and survive?” And I’ll do my best to reply to that in addition to the text of same.
Is ‘Old’ is merely a chronological quantification of age? Or does that imply much more? A 21 year old person is ‘old’ compared to a grade-school child. Right? So, I’m forced to assume that here ‘old’ equates to more than a number. I’ve known many ‘old’ persons quite physically capable and many ‘young’ persons who are not. ‘Old’ in this article must imply that the person under scrutiny is in some fashion disabled physically by that number being reached.
The question is one of bugging out, isn’t it? Again, the term ‘bug out’ must imply movement(s). Physical actions of relocation. Not post-bug out, having come to safety or a point of rest location(s). And that is the crux of this matter. Can the ‘old’ person make the move with minimal assistance; if not, entirely under their own volition and enterprise? For to not be able to do so requires some other less physically impaired individual perform the tasks and labor involved in the moving of the ‘old’ person. And that is the problem in a nut-shell.
It is not a question of worth as to acquired and learned knowledge, experience(s) that can be passed on. It is one of mobility. I totally agree with all statements as to jobs/tasks that can be better done by those same ‘old’ persons due to their lives, education, histories. From communications shack operations, child care, being excellent sources for reference on needed post-chaos rebuilding needs in terms of information. No, those traits are not the issue.
The issue is that of getting from point A to B in time as well as place. And that is the harsh reality.
Heartless, let me ask you this, would you make the trip without food or water? Of course not because your life will depend on having them with you. The harsh truth is that it is about survival and not comfort. The effort required to transport an elderly person or a person with limited mobility that has the knowledge to help you survive is just as important as the water and food you carry. Not bringing them while bugging out because it is inconvenient makes no sense at all. If you make it to where you are going, and don’t have all of the kowledge you need to survive, then your trip was for not. You need to see the bigger picture. It’s about long term survival, not about trying to make some very small part of it easier.
Everyone regardless of age and mobility is valuable if they believe in God and the constitution. Our government is evil. Planned parenthood, illegal immigration with sanctuary cities is unbelievable. The only way to stop that is file criminal charges against the Mayor of the cities for harbouring a felon which is a felony. This also means senators derelicting their oath of office. These people are nothing short of criminals. So yes loader,communicators,advisors and teacher, respect your elders for they have knowledge of time.
Good post. We cant do everything but there are things we can do. Make us feel needed. Most of the time these people are calmer and have a wealth of knowledge.
A task useful for a mobility challenged prepper might be getting certified as a short wave radio operator… as a communications coordinator in a prepper group. And an older prepper might become a ammo loader for younger preppers.