Getting Started with Prepping
Prepping

Getting Started with Prepping

Lisa 07/05/2022

Prepping refers to an individual, family or group preparing themselves for surviving a potential threat. From natural disasters to world wide catastrophe, prepping can help you to be ready to face just about any type of scenario.

The basics of prepping involve being ready with the essentials of survival; having access to shelter as well as food, water and survival gear are central to prepping, but how can one get started from scratch?

1. Collect Research Materials and Do Your Homework

Books, websites and videos about prepping are a great place to start. The website you’re currently reading is packed with resources, but there are many on and offline resources to connect with. Online prepper groups and forums are a great place to look for information. As for books, there are a great many to choose from, but these titles can help get you started:

  • SAS Survival Handbook: How to Survive in the Wild, in Any Climate, on Land or at Sea – by John Lofty Wiseman
  • The Prepper’s Pocket Guide: 101 Easy Things You Can Do to Ready Your Home for a Disaster — by Bernie Carr
  • Survivalist Family: Prepared Americans for a Strong America — by Joe Fox
  • Back to Basics: A Complete Guide to Traditional Skills, Third Edition – by Abigail R. Gehring
  • Build the Perfect Bug Out Bag: Your 72-Hour Disaster Survival Kit — by John D. McCann

2. Get Your Family on Board

Once you feel you’ve educated yourself about prepping basics and feel confident you want to proceed, share your desire with significant family members. There’s no need to be an alarmist; let them know that your desire to start prepping comes out of a dedication to the health, safety and future of the family. Encourage them to start doing their homework as well.

3. Decide Where You’ll Go if Disaster Strikes

Once you and your family are on the same page, decide where you’ll go and how you’ll get there if SHTF. Having a plan is elemental to prepping, and at its core is knowing where you’ll go and how you’ll get there.

4. Create and Practice an Emergency Survival Plan

Now it’s time to sit down and make an overall plan. It may start as a one-page outline, but it will likely expand to include all elements of survival as well as sub-plans depending upon what is occurring. Lists such as emergency contacts, bug out bag contents and possible routes can also be included; consider keeping laminated pages of the plan in a 3-ring binder.

You can also list out what you still need to do/get in the beginning stages of prepping. Be sure and have one overall go-to plan that covers survival basics. Discipline yourself and your family to practice and train your plan(s) until they are automatic. Repetition and rehearsal are key.

5. Roll Call

Get a clear and accurate count of how many people you will be supporting should SHTF — will it be your immediate family of four, or a small community of 12? Your partners may include extended family members and/or neighbors. You should also plan for what you’ll do with the family pets.