First aid for blisters

You should know first aid for blister just in case you get one or two. Better yet, blisters can be prevented. Using prevention makes a whole lot more sense than waiting until you get one.

Friction blister are the most common when it comes to backpacking and are the result of friction against the skin. Removing that friction is key.

Preventing blisters

You need good fitting socks and good fitting, broken in shoes or boots. They make special athletic socks for backpacking, wear them. Break you boots in slowly before you take them on a long hike. Read breaking in hiking boots for more information.

If you feel a “hot spot” starting, stop immediately and take care of it. It will turn into a blister if you don't. Put a piece of moleskin, duct tape or even gauze with vaseline over it before you continue. Try to find the spot in the shoe or boot that is causing the problem and take a small, round, smooth stone and rub it to get rid of the spot. You may have to do this more than once.

First aid for blisters;

Clean the blister and your hands in all cases when treating blisters.

If the blister is small and not broken, do not break it. It lessens the chance of infections. Cover it with a blister bandage. Take some Moleskin, cut a hole the size of the blister and put it around the blister. Next put gauze or some other padding over that and cover the whole thing with duct tape.

If the blister is broken clean it and cover it with dressing that contains an antibiotic ointment. Do not apply alcohol or iodine to the area, it only slows down the healing process.

If you get a large blister you may be better off draining it. Puncture the edge of the blister with a needle and gently press out the fluid. Leave the loose skin in place, it provides and excellent barrier against infections. Cover the area with a dressing as stated above.

As you can see first aid for blister is not that hard and as the saying goes ”an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.

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