BIGEarl
Well-known member
jniehof said:In general, a Wilderness First Aid course is an excellent investment. SOLO comes highly recommended (and often will run courses for the AMC), but BU's course may be more convenient for some. (Unfortunately not offered this summer, and the fall schedule is not up yet.)
One of the topics covered is dislocation reduction--both when, and how. (One of the differences between a frontcountry first aid course and WFA.)
BIGEarl, it sounds to me like the two of you did as well as one could expect without training. Basically kept your head and carefully tried things to see what felt better. This is an excellent self-rescue account and I hope Mohamed's reading
Thanks. Under the circumstances I believe we both did as well as we could.
Over the years I have completed various First Aid classes. None were focused on wilderness conditions. They generally covered basic first aid for common accidents and conditions. Some of the key points in a basic program are useful to this situation. Checking for circulation, movement, and sensation helped to zero in on the actual problem. At first I wasn’t sure if I had a broken arm or dislocated shoulder, but was reasonably sure it was one or the other. I decided it was important to try and identify the exact problem before anything else. Stabilizing the injury was another key point that is included in a basic program. I’m sure there are more but these are a couple that got us headed back down the trail. The most important aspect of the experience was staying calm. I believe both TT and I remained calm throughout the experience. I remember after the fall and after sliding back to the junction of the Mt. Avalon Trail and the Mt. Avalon Spur, I was still on the ground looking up at Sue. I believe I calmly said, I don’t know what to do. And then, at least to myself I said, but we’re going to figure it out. Clear thinking was needed and not possible if we lost control. Fortunately we were able to hold things together. I think Sue is naturally able to perform well in high-stress situations and proved it in this case. Before long I was up, ready to move, and we were slowly moving toward the trailhead. This was one case where a very high tolerance for pain helped (usually that’s not the case).
Once the dust from this experience settles I plan to look into the SOLO programs.
I also intend to make the addition suggested by Doug concerning the reference volume. I don't consider myself a mountaineer but the bookstore will probably still be happy to take my money.
Thanks to you both.
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