Long term Illness and disasters

kowloon

So I was discussing the finer points of zombie survival when one of my friends asked a very pertinent question: How long could you (T1 Diabetic) survive anyway? Once the fridge stopped working and the chemists closed would you not be screwed regardless of zombies, nuclear winters or any other major disaster?

It has me thinking, if the lights go out and things are looking bad, what would be a good course of action for anyone that relies on meds?

I suppose I could try and keep my insulin cold in a buket of water or something, but how long would I be likely to survive once it runs out?

Anyone else actually think about these things or is this way off topic?
Thread isn't just for diabetics.

mike65

Don't live in war zone so its not something I think about. Storage of insulin in winter isn't a problem really.

tbh

you beat me to it Kowloon - I just finished re-reading "The Stand" and I was thinking of it. You'd have a good supply in chemists around the place, but after about 18 months, when they all hit their expiry dates it'd be grim. Of course if ou were marooned on a desert island, it'd be worse - but possibly quicker

mike65

I suppose one could just go out in a 'death by chocolate' blaze of glory.

BlackEdelweiss

I always loved the thought of being marooned on a desert island, it was one of the things I would love to have done before I died. When I got diagnosed with diabetes 2 months ago I was lying in my hospital bed thinking "fcuk this, now I cant get marooned on a desert island or I am completely fcuked". I seem to be drifting more towards type 2 at the minute so a spell on a desert island would probably do me the world of good, loads of fish, fruit and exercise.
It was on my mind a bit when the flooding was happening, what would happen if the flooding was more widespread and for longer.

fintonie

well I suppose 1 out for you would find the nearest zombie pack and join it

kumate_champ07

Ive thought about this too but not the zombie thing. I wouldnt die from not having my meds(not unless I did it myself) but I would prob have permanent withdrawal symptoms, even if I miss it for 24-48 hrs its horrible. I'd hate to be kidnapped or stranded somewhere

The_Conductor

They addressed this in the recent remake of Survivors by the BBC. The premise was that a plague had mysteriously wiped out about 99% of the world's population and the survivors turned into scavengers and fighters over the limited resources that were left. Supermarkets and places with long life foods were the first to be looted, it was only later that pharmacies and their contents became important commodities.

It was getting really interesting and season 2 was due to be screen this Spring- when Swine Flu broke out, and it was put on hold. The Season 2 premiere is now set to be shown on Tuesday the 5th of Jan @ 9PM on BBC 1.......

Its definitely going to be on my viewing list!

Link to press release about it here: http://survivorsbbctv.wordpress.com/2009/12/06/bbc-confirms-high-octane-series-two-coming-soon-but-gives-no-date/#more-859

kumate_champ07

smccarrick wrote: »

They addressed this in the recent remake of Survivors by the BBC. The premise was that a plague had mysteriously wiped out about 99% of the world's population and the survivors turned into scavengers and fighters over the limited resources that were left. Supermarkets and places with long life foods were the first to be looted, it was only later that pharmacies and their contents became important commodities.

It was getting really interesting and season 2 was due to be screen this Spring- when Swine Flu broke out, and it was put on hold. The Season 2 premiere is now set to be shown on Tuesday the 5th of Jan @ 9PM on BBC 1.......

Its definitely going to be on my viewing list!

Link to press release about it here: http://survivorsbbctv.wordpress.com/2009/12/06/bbc-confirms-high-octane-series-two-coming-soon-but-gives-no-date/#more-859

petrol would be no1 for looting(but most people would go for food and 'expensive' items)
without petrol there would be no long range transport

The_Conductor

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

petrol would be no1 for looting(but most people would go for food and 'expensive' items)
without petrol there would be no long range transport

I think weapons were first on the list- followed by things people imagined would make themselves self-sufficient- gardening tools, seeds, petrol, generators...... People coalesced into small groups and pretty much descended into tribal feuding.

I think Season 1 is on DVD, I'm going to have a rummage in the BBC online shop later for a look.

kumate_champ07

smccarrick wrote: »

I think weapons were first on the list

in Irelands case it would be woodies DIY or atlantic homecare for some pitch forks

The_Conductor

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

in Irelands case it would be woodies DIY or atlantic homecare for some pitch forks

Presuming a 99% fatality rate- you'd only have a very few survivors in most large towns- possibly none at all in remote areas. I reckon that a lot of people would see relative security in living in remote areas- possibly travelling to the towns on raiding trips. Some more civil minded people might try to get rudimentary TV or radio up and running again- but perhaps society would break down to the extent that tribalism would return to being the norm?

I guess there might be 'waves' of plague or disease- where people who thought themselves immune because of their earlier survival, get wiped out- and then all the usual little accidents and ailments that nobody thinks twice about these days- could all become killers again. If you were a doctor- would you admit it to a population of savages as liable to kill someone as help them?

How long before the hardened systems such as the internet and satellite links failed? Probably weeks at best? Would the dams like Inischara survive- without engineering intervention if there were a few days of heavy rain? How long before the infrastructure around us begins to decay?

kumate_champ07

smccarrick wrote: »

but perhaps society would break down to the extent that tribalism would return to being the norm?

I can see cork tryin to claim to be the new capital

robinph

I'm with mike65 and going out in a death by chocolate blaze of glory.

Once there is no more drugs companies about to supply us with the needed insulin then my days are numbered and I'd want toget it over with. Unless I could figure out how they originally harvested insulin from pigs and cows.

locum-motion

I suppose it might depend on what it was that caused the wiping out of most of the population; if it was something like a flu or other viral infection, then I'm sorry but almost all diabetics would probably be in the wiped out/zombified part of the population, not the survivors, wouldn't they?

kowloon wrote: »

So I was discussing the finer points of zombie survival when one of my friends asked a very pertinent question: How long could you (T1 Diabetic) survive anyway? Once the fridge stopped working and the chemists closed would you not be screwed regardless of zombies, nuclear winters or any other major disaster?

It has me thinking, if the lights go out and things are looking bad, what would be a good course of action for anyone that relies on meds?

I suppose I could try and keep my insulin cold in a buket of water or something, but how long would I be likely to survive once it runs out?

Anyone else actually think about these things or is this way off topic?
Thread isn't just for diabetics.

kowloon

smccarrick wrote: »

Presuming a 99% fatality rate- you'd only have a very few survivors in most large towns- possibly none at all in remote areas.

If it was a plague of some sort wouldn't it be the least built up areas, the most remote, that would contain the bulk of survivors?
How difficult would it be to rebuild our current level of medical tech. from the ashes? How difficult would it be for someone, even if they had the knowhow, to start producing meaningful quantities of vital drugs?

What if it was just something catastrophic enough to leave you isolated and without meds for maybe 3 months? Say you got caught up in a civil war and there was no access to drugs?
I'd imagine you would have a hard time living any longer than a month without insulin.

Knowing how unlikely even having to go a few days without meds is in this country, do any of you still feel as unsettled as I do, on principle, with being dependent on society as it is just to survive?

Dothehustle

mike65 wrote: »

I suppose one could just go out in a 'death by chocolate' blaze of glory.

i'll die happy
loot the local spar for all the wispa gold
on a diffrent note i am going to go stock up on novarapid

nesf

Hmm, I'd run out of meds rather quickly. I suppose mania might be useful during harvest season? I'd be most worried about when eventually my glasses broke..