New ones get added on top, every so often - so feel free to check back here again:
Updated most recently on July 14th 2024, at 11:24 PM EST
Before using a new chainsaw to cut your tree, make sure you read the manual in detail, and that the chainsaw functions correctly, and you know how to cut the tree to not get hurt, and the tree to not cause damage to your property as you cut the tree with the chainsaw. If unsure, hire a professional tree cutter instead.
Unless you are a trained electrician by profession, do not try to install your Electric vehicle charger in your home by yourself.
Before getting surgery, inform yourself about pre- and post-surgery procedures, the credentials of your surgeon, whether you can afford the surgery including your current and future additional insurance coverage/s, and watch a surgery video involving the exact procedure you will be receiving. Prepare your Living Will or other, in case you do not survive the surgery. Pre-determine a limit of money to be spent to support, fix surgery issues, in order to keep you alive and functional. Research the best and affordable surgery venues and staff, which is available given your insurance coverage network.
Install the telemedicine phone app of your health provider, if made available to you.
Keep extra home health tests in case you need them, making sure they are not expired.
Practice social distancing during pandemics, wear protective masks, gloves, clothes, and shoes if advised to do so. Consult the CDC.gov website, and federal, state, and local government websites related to your location on a regular basis for new insights evolving, at least on a daily basis. What was considered safe practices 2 weeks ago, may now be unsafe per newer scientific findings. On the flip side, what may have been considered deadly, may now be treatable with available medication/vaccines. Some of the medication and vaccines may be available to the general public, but not in your most current geographic area, or beyond your current financial means, or only by doctor prescription - assuming you have a doctor at all you can refer to.
Think about surface decease transmission very carefully: If you open a door knob of a restroom with your bare hands, wash your hands by turning on the faucet, then touch the faucet again to shut off the water, and wipe your hands dry, and touch the door knob with bare hands again to exit the restroom, was the hand washing fully effective? If you order or shop things in a store, can the surface of what you buy perhaps be contaminated for the next 4 hours, or 3 days? Consult experts in the field on those questions if you want to know for sure.
If you decide to store food for the longer run, purchase food that does not expire if the fridge or freezer stop operating because power is no longer available. If the food needs to be heated to be consumed, would you have what it takes to heat it without electricity or gas? Is the food in packaging that rodents won't be able to open? Is the food stored at the right temperature and humidity level to stay intact till its expiration date even if power is off? Do you need additional ingredients to prepare certain foods - if so, do you have enough of such?
Will your car get you to the next gas station if your local gas stations are down? When is your next car oil change due?
Can you assure continuous payment to your cell phone service provider to keep your cell phone running at all times, even if the local postal office and banks cease operations?
Do you have enough cash for more than 2 days, to get food and beverages in case the credit card system stalls?
If electricity and heating gas are no longer available, would your shelter keep you warm (during winter) or cool (during summer) enough?
Do you have solar power and a home battery system connected in case electricity and heating gas are no longer available?
What would your drinking source be after 4 months, if your tab water is no longer available? Can you safely collect water from nature around you?
Do you have what it takes to hunt wildlife in case food from commercial outlets is no longer available? Do you have any eatable wildlife or vegetables you can farm, around you at all times, even if all neighbors start doing the same?
If you are the 'last one' left who has food and beverage supplies, what will you do when other people come knocking on your door asking you to share such with them?
Clean out mold build-up on window screens, window frames, door seals, carpets, garage brick walls, attik, and more, and re-check regularly to make sure if it comes back you clean it out again
Subscribe to automatic nation-wide food alerts
Clear out the lint in the dryer vent system on a regular basis - if it is totally clogged it can create a fire.
If you have a medical condition and want to gather more knowledge about, aside from getting medical treatment by professionals, there are many free of charge online public medical information hubs out there that can help put your mind at ease. In hindsight you may have worried in vain.
If you sleep less than 5 hours a day, you may still function through routine daily tasks, but you may not be alert enough to excel at unusual or demanding tasks, and you invite deceases to creep in, as the body needs to repair and protect itself thru sufficient sleep every day, not just occasionally.
Wherever you walk, watch in front of you, as objects may be in your path you never anticipated. Tripping over a simple stone can kill even a strong healthy man.
People who constantly imagine worst case scenarios throughout life, put themselves thru undue stress. Humans have only so much energy to cope with mental worries.
Avoid drilling holes in your walls, unless you are quite sure there are no electric cables, gas or water pipes behind.
If you teach someone how to bike for the first time, pick a grassy flat area which may buffer any fall at very low speed.
Do not dive into any water if you do not know how deep the water is, and cannot tell whether danger (rock, sharp objects, dangerous aqua life, bacteria, or else) lures in the water.
Avoid stepping on or ice skating on iced ponds, lakes, or rivers - the ice may be thinner than you can possibly assess, and others around you may not be able to rescue you without putting themselves in high danger.
Do not position a tall ladder to climb outside on the ice - it may slip anytime.
Do not exceed the ladder weight limit recommendation - if you weigh more, do not use it.
When backing out in a public parking lot that looks empty at first glance, check carefully to the left and right, not only in your vehicle's rear camera. Another vehicle may approach faster than you would ever expect.
Do not take a bath or shower with a phone or tablet charging in your hand to avoid potential electrocution.
When it is sub-zero degrees outside, make sure your key-less remote does not slide between your seat and the middle-console of your vehicle, otherwise you may not be able to retrieve it and start your vehicle's engine to warm you up in the middle of nowhere without infrastructure or other people nearby.
If you walk barefoot through a flooded area, make sure there is no electric wire in the water where you step.
If your gas line is very old, have it checked by professionals.
Have your air ducts cleaned on a regular basis - not just once every 20 years or so.
Ensure clean air filtration at your residence when running your heater or air conditioning.
Replace your flooring if molded beyond repair and/or cleaning.
Do not scratch yourself over and over for days in a row, even if it feels better each time when doing so. Find the cause and eliminate it instead. Consult a medical professional if you don't know how.
Keep apps on your phone that consult you about survival skills and rescue and medical self-help in various emergency situations.
Use a phone app to keep insects away from you, wherever you are.
Follow up on vehicle recall notifications - they usually are sent to you for good reason.
If you chew on something your teeth can't break down, try to take it out and do not swallow whatever it is.
If you think you have a serious medical condition, have it checked by a health professional; friends may advise you wrong if they don't have sufficient knowledge, in which case time is then not on your side.
Do not pick up vegetables in nature without knowing what it is and whether it is healthy to eat.
Adjust your belt according to your body, not the other way around. Your body will most likely change over time, and so the belt size.
As adult, if other adults stress you out too much, seek a place where you can retreat and recover, but do not stay around them for months and years, unless you really have to.
Do not assume just because you know someone for a long time, that such person has a predictable and safe impact on you, at all times.
Do not assume weather conditions at your work place will mirror those at your home, when both are more than 5 miles apart.
Do not assume you can do intense sports for hours in a row, without proper rest and energy intake in between.
Do not assume your vehicle can drive through snow all the way to your destination - at some point snow accumulation may be much higher than where you started.
Do not cause other people stress because you feel stressed.
Do not fall asleep in your pool, no matter how low the water level is.
Do not start driving to a destination without knowing for sure where you can sleep when you are tired.
Do not start mountain hiking without proper gear.
Do not start outdoor hiking without checking the weather forecast first.
Do not underestimate cold temperatures. They may not feel cold sometimes but can cause lots of damage to your inner body.
Do not weight-lift more than what you think you can lift safely, even if there are others around you.
Do you know all places you walk, sit, drive, sleep at? Do they contain radon, dust mites, or anything else that could harm you? If so, try to avoid such.
Even if the weather is cloudy, do not assume sun radiation is not damaging to you. If you wear self-tinting glasses, you can assess the intensity of some of the radiation at any given time.
If others around you drink a lot of alcoholic beverages, do not assume you have to do the same, or try to show them you can drink even more than them.
If you don't know how much you can and should lift, get advice first, but do not start with excessive weights trying to calibrate it downward from there.
If you drive on a curvy 2 lane road at nights without traffic, adapt your speed to your visibilty and braking ability - a large animal could cross the road at any time, a tree could tumble on the street any time.
If you go rock hiking, have the proper gear and hiking guide with you - do not just venture on your own because it looks like fun.
If you have to spend time in a molded place, try to make sure the mold gets properly removed quickly, especially if you are to spend lots of time at such place.
If you ride a bike, keep both hands on the wheel at all times, especially in curves and when the ground is uneven.
If you rinse your mouth with inappropriate tap water after brushing teeth or using mouth wash, you may intake unhealthy water contaminants.
If you see a pickup truck in front of you which looks like it may loose things on its truck bed, keep distance to avoid getting hit by any heavy big objects falling off the truck.
If you see an 18 wheeler driving on the highway with a tire that looks like it will burst any moment, keep distance - do not pass just next to it while the tire bursts into pieces.
If you swim in the sea or ocean by yourself or with friends, do not just try to reach a certain destination because it is visible from far.
Listen to your body. If something feels wrong, get advice, and move/live/drink/eat/sleep differently if needed.
Look around you - are you in a safe environment at all times?
Look at the shower head before taking shower: If it is not clean, the water to clean your body is most likely not clean either.
Look at your beverages (the actual liquids, not just the cup holding such) every day: Do they look healthy to take in?
Look at your food every day: Does it look healthy to take in?
Make sure you sleep enough before driving long distances.
Making sure to not getting burnt out physically, is not very difficult. Making sure to stay mentally fit and strong over decades, is more challenging. Humans tend to underestimate the mental part of the health equation.
Many fit people become unfit when their joints do not support physical activity anymore, the food intake is not adjusted accordingly, and fat sets in and is there to stay, causing all sorts of deceases, day by day, year by year.
Many people live with pain that is self-induced and avoidable, not because they are aging.
The more distractive of an environment one spends lots of time in, the more energy it drains over time without being always aware of.
Do not always rely on what you just hear others saying about others.
Try to understand the age of a building you drink water from its water supply pipes, and whether the system has been updated over the past 10+ years, or is 80+ years old.
Understand cause and effects while judging the seriousness of your pain.
Walk extremely carefully, when walking down your sloped driveway in the dark during winter time - there may be very thin ice you do not expect.
Watch for insects - they can come from above and especially behind the knees and neck.
Avoid dirt, pressure, and dust to your eyes. Your eyes are limited in their self-heal ability, but you need them to work for a life-time.
Watch out not to put excessive pressure and strain on your ankles, knees, elbows, shoulders, hips, and wrists. They are limited in their ability to self-repair, but you need them to work properly for a life-time.
Watch when mowing the lawn in a slope and you wear shoes with non-gripping soles, and the lawn is slightly humid or even wet.
Watch your pillow, your mattress, sheets, and blankets: Are they attracting harmful living creatures that invade your head / body while you are sleeping over the next 2 years?
We humans are part of the animal kingdom. When we feel stressed, we can recover quicker through physical excercise, if the body is fit enough for such.
Wear protective clothes while gardening, even in your own garden where you think you know every plant.
What tastes good is not always best for health - also depending on the intake quantities. Educate yourself about healthy food intake.
When the inside of your vehicle is hot due to sun exposure, before you get into your vehicle, vent through at least 1 to 2 open doors before you get in. Do not rush in and assume the air conditioning will take care of the heat quickly enough without at least opening 1 window.
When you are about to avoid a deer while driving, make sure you do not drive into a passing 18 wheeler.
When your water tank bursts and you think you need to check on it immediately, remember where electric wires and gas pipes are in the same room your water tank is in.
Change your vehicles tires and brakes, get wheel alignments and have the sway bar and muffler checked by trustworthy mechanics, regularly.
Disclaimer: Following any advice stated on this webpage is at your own risk. Sophisto LLC and its staff are not responsible for any potential or actual repercussions in that context.