11 Critical Survival Skills That Could Save Your Life

#1 — First Aid

The only thing that could make a survival situation more difficult is going about it with an injury. On the contrary, an injury could be what puts you in a survival situation. So, having a solid understanding of first aid can prevent further complications or improve your situation until advanced help is available.

Here are a few first aid techniques for survival skills to consider learning today.

• Basic wound closure
• Blister care
• Burn treatment
• First aid for bites and stings
• Fracture and sprain management
• Head/brain, neck, and spinal injuries
• Recognizing and treating heat-related illnesses
  • Frostbite
  • Heat exhaustion
  • Heat stroke
  • Hypothermia
• Trauma treatment
• Wound cleaning and dressing

#2 — CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, is a life-saving method used to maintain consciousness in patients experiencing sudden cardiac arrest and other situations until advanced medical treatment is available.

Learning CPR is a vital survival skill that gives you the information, self-assurance, and abilities to help someone in need and remain composed in a medical emergency.

#3 — Trauma Treatment & Bleeding

Traumatic wounds are defined as sudden acute (ripped or torn skin), cuts or lacerations, and puncture wounds (penetrating, stabbing, or gunshot). Blood loss is a grave concern for someone whose endured a traumatic wound. Significant blood loss is a life-threatening situation, and if that loss occurs quickly, loss of life can follow.

Knowing trauma treatment and bleeding survival skills could prevent loss of life and increase healing.

• Allergies and anaphylaxis: Life-threatening allergic reactions can happen seconds or minutes after you've been exposed. Knowing how to react with first-line treatment could stop the attack and save someone’s life.
• Application of a tourniquet: In an emergency, a tourniquet limits the quantity of blood that can flow through blood arteries by applying pressure to them, which helps slow or stop excessive bleeding.
• Severe bleeding: Professional emergency responders may not always be able to reach the scene immediately, so it's important to know the basics of how to stop blood loss and save a life.
• Treating hypothermia: Hypothermia occurs when the body loses heat faster than it can produce heat, causing the core body temperature to fall below 95° F (35° C).
• Wound packing: By absorbing any wound drainage, knowing how to pack a wound promotes internal tissue healing. Without the packing, the wound could close at the top, trapping fluid and possibly bacteria in the deeper areas.

#4 — Water Safety

It only takes a moment. A child or weak swimmer could drown in the time it takes to reply to a text, check a fishing line, or apply sunscreen. The necessity of water safety in all activities involving water is highlighted by this sobering reality.

Increasing water competency — including swimming abilities, water smarts, and aiding others — can prevent emergencies but also increase your survival skills in any water situation.

• Find Swim Lessons
• Free Water Safety Course
• American Red Cross Swim App
• Water Safety Infographic
• Water Safety Resources

#5 — Shelter Building

Shelter should be a top priority when you find yourself in an extended survival situation. You may not have the ability or resources to set up a complete camp, but building a shelter of any type limits your exposure to natural elements — which can be dangerous, even in weather that isn't harsh. A lack of shelter can make it difficult to maintain body temperature, leading to hypothermia.

Additionally, shelters create a barrier from predators and offer a sense of security.

There are a few things to consider regarding shelter building survival skills.

1. Find a suitable location: Look for a nearby water source and access to trees for firewood as well as potential food sources you can hunt or trap.
2. Use natural materials for your shelter: Look for grass and other soft materials that you can use to sleep inside your shelter. Rocks help build the structure of a shelter and surround a fire.
3. Construct your shelter: Create a small framework that can be piled high with available debris like moss, ferns, grasses, leaves, and pine needles. Pack the inside of the shelter with debris, and the entrance is sealed to prevent convective heat loss.

#6 — Building a Fire

If building a shelter is a top priority for survival skills, building a fire and keeping it going is easily the second. A fire provides warmth, light, and a source to cook food. It can also be used as a signal for rescue, if necessary, and to ward off predators.

Starting and maintaining a fire can be challenging, especially in wet or cold conditions, unless you know how to do this proficiently, so learning and practicing this survival skill is vital.

#7 — Foraging and Hunting

Foraging and hunting for edible food and water are vital survival skills. You can live up to three days without water and one week without food. While nature does afford many natural resources for food and water, understanding what is safe to eat — berries and edible plants — is an essential survival skill. Otherwise, you may find yourself in a more severe situation fast.

#8 — Water Purification

Water is necessary for wilderness survival or any survival situation with limited water supply. Wild water sources can have harmful viruses and pathogens that could cause waterborne illnesses.

Purifying water can be challenging if you have little to no gear. If you don’t have tablets, iodine drops, or a UV light purifier, boiling water may be a good solution. Knowing how to handle this situation — like what water is safe to cook, how long, and how to make a pot if you don’t have one — is an invaluable survival skill.

#9 — Navigation

Navigating without technology is one of the most essential survival skills. Using a compass (which helps navigators determine where north, south, east, and west are) and a map isn’t just a good survival skill for wilderness sports like hiking or backpacking. Being able to navigate is an essential survival skill for finding your way in emergencies.

#10 — Signaling

Signaling is your lifeline when it comes to an emergency or wilderness sports survival skills. How you signal may differ depending on the situation and available resources.

• Mirror: A small mirror or reflective surface against the sun can make you immediately noticeable to any help in the sky.
• Morse code: Knowing a few key phrases in Morse code can benefit survival moments.
• Signage: Building a large SOS sign out of rocks or sticks can be effective if you are in a clearing and likely to be seen from the sky.
• Smoke and fire: Fire is a preferable signal method at night or in low-light conditions. But fires should only be used in a controlled area and not directly in the camp.

#11 — Knot Tying

An often-overlooked skill, knot-tying increases your chances of survival by helping you build a shelter, set snares, and create tools. Tying secure knots takes time and practice, so grab a rope and brush up on your knot-tying skills.