I know what you’re thinking: what could be the uses of lip balm when SHTF? Yes, I understand that keeping your lips protected may be the last thing on your mind in a survival scenario; I don’t care about fashion either. The chapstick truly has valuable ways through which it can be used after the apocalypse.
10 Crucial Uses Of Lip Balm When SHTF
Let us look at just what your chapstick could do for you when SHTF.
Lubricate Gear
Chapstick can pass off as a gear lubricant when there is no alternative. For example, you can use the lubrication to make gear resistant to rust, unlock your stock zipper, wax a bowstring and seal up leaks in your clothing or tent. Even more, by coating an object with lip balm, you can ensure that nails don’t split woods when you hammer them in.
Additionally, by keeping your survival knife well oiled when not in use, you can avoid rusty gear. Remember that a rusty gear can be difficult to sharpen properly under normal circumstances; how much more when SHTF. Leather gear is also very delicate to care for, but you can do so expertly and with so much ease in the wild, thanks to lip balm. Be it your skin, the leather on your boots, or the sheath of your knife; a chapstick is an excellent protector from spoilage.
Start A Fire
Chapstick is flammable and, therefore, can be used to start a fire. Little wonder tasting some women’s lips may make you feel on fire. The typical lip balm is made from petroleum and is, therefore, an eager aid to fire. As a result of this, should you ever need to light a fire real fast while in the wilderness, just rub a little amount of chapstick on a flammable item, say stay bark, gauze, lint, cloth, cotton ball, and whatever fire-building material you can find. With this small piece of cosmetic, you no longer have to waste precious matchsticks or fuel to ignite tinder.
Make A Candle
If you understand the need to appreciate energy conservation in the wild, you’d appreciate this crucial benefit of the lip balm. You can make an improvised candle by stuffing a lip balm tube with a matchstick that is vertically down. This stuffing should only be half an inch deep, after which you’ll have made a slowly burning light source requiring no fuel. As an alternative, you can just melt the balm and stick a wick in; either works just fine.
Deal With Small Cuts
The chapstick is usable for a host of medical emergencies. As a starter, your lip balm can treat wounds instantly, thus preventing them from getting infected, protect abrasions and squeeze out dirt or grime scrapes from your wound surface merely by applying it on the spot. Note that a light, economical coating is just enough to do the job.
Stop Light Bleeding
Your lip balm will not stop blood from gushing out of an arm mauled by a leopard, but it is undeniably useful in stopping minor bleeding caused by wounds like cuts and scrapes. You can rub lip balm on your heels or other parts of the feet to avoid blisters when you hit the trails to hike for preventive measures.
Protect The Skin
If you’re keen against blisters, then the lubrication that chapstick offers the skin may be your thing when involved in any strenuous activity. The lip balm can also help prevent exposed parts of the skin from drying and cracking, especially the nose and fingertips. You should therefore have it nearby in cold weather.
Additionally, you can help the eyes better manage the glare from excessively bright places, say the snowfields or desert. For this purpose, you’d have to mix the ash with your lip balm and apply under your eyes. Lastly, your chapstick works just fine as an emergency sunscreen – after all, this is what it does for the lips.
Treat Nose Irritations
An itchy, irritated nose can be parasitic, particularly when in an SHTF scenario. Thankfully, chapstick can help you deal easily with this. To use, rub on the affected areas of your nose, be it inside or around the nostrils. This may not seem like a big deal, but just wait until you hear from a person who suffers unrelenting nose irritation.
Please note that your lip balm can be used to treat irritations on every part of the body and not just the nose.
Protect Pet’s Claws
In wintry conditions, the lip balm is excellent for keeping your pet’s claws safe and healthy. To use, apply the balm on the paw pads of your pet just before it walks on ice or snow. Keep in mind that your pet has sensitive paws, so this is what will be a barrier between them and the harsh ground.
Get Rid Of Stuck Rings
Anyone who has had a ring stubbornly refuses to be pulled off can relate to the frustration and perhaps agony that is caused. Fortunately, you can easily remove such things by applying some balm on the affected finger. That’s most likely it.
Defog Glasses
If you are having on glasses or carrying a pair of binoculars, a defogging aid will come in handy after some time. The chapstick can be rubbed on your glasses’ lenses and then thoroughly polished with a clean cloth. This will create an invisible slather of lip balm on the glasses, thus preventing fog from gathering over.
Concluding The Uses of Lip Balm When SHTF
I think women wouldn’t find the post-apocalyptic world difficult because does every single woman not carry a lip balm in her purse? Of course, she does, and with the vast uses of lip balm when SHTF, it may be time for men to always have one handy as well. I don’t think disaster is going to announce itself on the PA system before arriving. But if you can’t go about with a lip balm in your pockets, it’s all right; just have at least a dozen in your emergency stockpile.