BY: SARAH, SV SAILING EXCELSIOR
Since Brendan’s most recent near-death experience, suffering anaphylactic shock after being stung by a yellow jacket wasp. I thought it was high time I wrote a blog about first aid for cruisers.
We’ve been living aboard full-time for over five years now and are roughly two-thirds of the way through our circumnavigation. Having sailed to 30 countries and covered over 30,000 nautical miles, we’ve learned to adapt to the unpredictable life on the water. But let’s be honest: it’s not for the faint-hearted. We always have to keep safety in mind, especially with kids onboard.
As cruisers, you never know when an emergency might arise. Most times, we find ourselves in not just foreign countries but remote locations where medical aid isn’t easily accessible.Â
Our first international passage is a perfect example. Just two days into our journey to Indonesia, Brodie was bitten by a snake. It happened at night when Brodie, stepping into his bathroom (without the light on), mistook a snake underfoot for a rope, and before we knew it, he’d been bitten twice.
I can’t stress enough how quickly an emergency situation can escalate. In Brodie’s case, there was no internet and no cell phone signal—just us and the vast ocean.
