Alcohol consummtion is already a danger and will only become more of one after the fall of society as we know it. Drinking alcohol is a very common drug used in times of stress and pain. Many people will turn to the bottle once the world starts to fall apart but this is a mistake for many reasons.
The dangers of being drunk are obvious and only a part of the problems drinking presents. It seems almost pointless to point out how not being sober is a bad idea when facing a zombie outbreak. Your wits and training need to be on your side: lack of coordination and loss of clear thinking are like loading the guns for the firing squad. If in need of an example, go to a bar and watch a drunk person try to fight.
If you do find yourself drunk when an outbreak first occurs the most important thing is to not panic but also to not think you are imagining it -even if you are, better safe then undead.- The priority needs to be to get yourself away from any dangers and find a place you can take the time to sober up. Try to think as clearly as you can. If someone is coming toward you, remember, if they can speak they are human, if they can't speak and immediately try to "hug" or grab you they are probably a zombie, run. Do not try to fight, if you have to just try to push zombies off of yourself. Do this by throwing your weight around and using momentum and simple but random movements, flail and make yourself hard to grab but remember the point is to escape. Get away and then keep going until you know you are in a safe enough are to sober up.
Even though getting drunk is such an obvious danger many people will fall to the temptation to drown the pain and sorrow, to try to forget, or even to purposefully put themselves in danger. This is completely self destructive behavior and such a risk must be avoided for a number of reasons besides the most obvious one.
The long term effects of alcohol dependance are complex and awful. Any sort of dependance is a sure path to destruction; be it dependance to drugs, sex, people, booze or anything else. Alcohol is a powerful depressant and easy to get addicted to. When keeping spirits high and finding reasons to live will become a part of life, alcohol can be a major obsticle.
Let's also not over look the fact that alcohol is a poison and a high calorie one at that. The long term effects of over consumtion on the body are harsh and can have negative effects on keeping a body that is fit and able to engage in zombat on a regular basis.
Long term drinking is not the only danger, binge drinking of alcohol, or drinking a large amount in a single night, presents its own set of risks. Some of which relate to the aspect of alcohol being a poison, and taking too much of it resulting in alcohol poisoning. Symptoms of poisoning include:
- Absent reflexes
- Slurred speech
- No withdrawal from painful stimuli (for instance from pinching)
- Confusion
- Difficulty awakening the person
- Erratic behavior
- Seizures
- Feeling very ill including long, drawn-out vomiting
- Slow, shallow, or irregular breathing
- Blue-tinged skin or pale skin
- Inability to make eye contact or sustain a conversation
- Unconsciousness (passing out)
Should someone be suffering from alcohol poisoning you should do what you can for them, this includes drinking water, a lot of water. Also trying to keep the person awake and alert. Watch from changes in breathing patterns, if breathing slows to less then eight breaths per minute consider CPR or at least assisted breathing. Lay the person on the side so vomit or the tongue do not cause choking. Do not for any reason give the person cafeine or salt, both of these will further dehydrate the body and fight against the goal.
If at all possible try to get the person to urinate regularily and to take in vitamins, even in the form of supplements. This is not ideal but neither is letting oneself get to the point of alcohol poisoning.
Now the normal means of simply watching the person until medical treatment arrives does not apply because medical treatment will not be coming. Survivors are their own doctors. This is why training in medical fields will make a survivor very valuable. But each survivor must also keep themself safe; do not risk yourself in order to stay with someone who may cause further issues or may fall into a coma or worse. If the person does manage to pull through, then steps must be taken to ensure the event does not happen a second time. That the survivor realizes the importance of staying away from alcohol once the dead walk.
The best use for alcohol will be one somewhat unexpected. Not for fuel or molotov cocktales as one might assume. Though that is a good use for them, fire can be dangerous and will not kill zombies quickly but will kill them (burning up the brain) and can spread to kill a great number of them if they are close together.
There are many variations of the molotov cocktail. The classic is a glass bottle filled with gasoline. A rag is placed in the neck of the bottle. The rag is lit on fire and the bottle is thrown. This method is extremely dangerous! The best way to make it safer is to take a tampon that is soaked in gas and place it on the side of the bottle neck. Then, tie a rubber band around the tampon. Make sure the bottle has a cap on it. Light the tampon and throw hard because the bottle must break! Note that origanally the bottles had gasoline in them. Alcohol will suffice as gasoline will become very valuable as fuel. The effects are not as grand but very cheap and easy.
The other use however is currency. Many raiders and bandits and other survivors will be willing to see past the dangers alcohol represents and will want to feel the numbness and escape. They will see alcohol as a drug, and its value will rise as such. Many current drugs need to be processed, some of these processes take time and effort that will be lost for a long time after the fall. Many of those who partake in drugs regularily will also fall out of the ranks of the survivors because of both being high and with drawls. Alcohol will be a great currency because other people will want to consume it while its value to the smart survivor will be little more then fuel for fires.
Be smart, may the infection never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate,
Mike D.
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