How to Survive Turkey Season
Why a Turkey-Hunting Camp Is a Foreign Environment
 Editor’s Note: Behold the turkey hunter. Up before first light, coffee in hand and dressed in full camo, he approaches the new day ready to attempt to outsmart one of God's noblest creations. At least, that's how we like to think. But the rest of the world s ees the turkey hunter as short-tempered, slow walking, and grumpy with a runny nose and a sore throat who constantly complains about what he has to endure to hunt gobblers and how he's so tired. Most of us have learned we may take a gobbler, but the birds will beat us up in the process. We went to the medical community to learn how to survive turkey season. Dr. Joe Hudson, an internal-medicine specialist, ER doctor and turkey hunter in Birmingham, Alabama, explains how to prepare for woods and camp.
Dr. Hudson who hunts turkeys every chance he gets, explains that, "When you go to a turkey camp and turkey woods, you enter a foreign environment and often eat foods you won't at home. You must prepare for turkey hunting as if going on an overseas trip and take along any medicine you may need." Dr. Hudson recommends the following medical remedies to relieve the strain of turkey camp.
* "Antihistamines – Most camp houses you stay in when you go turkey hunting have been shut up since the end of deer season. The air in these camp houses probably contains dust and spores that cause congestion and other respiratory problems, which antihistamines can relieve. Antihistamines also can relieve you of symptoms associated with pollen. I recommend taking Benadryl during turkey season before you go to bed, if you suffer from allergies.
* "Chapstick – In March and April, many parts of the country have wind and dry air. You can avoid chapped and cracked lips by smearing on a little Chapstick.
* "Aspirin, T ylenol or Advil – Moving around in the woods may cause sore muscles, aching feet, a sore back and minor nicks and cuts that can aggravate you and keep you from sleeping soundly.These medications also relieve fever.
* "Tums, Rolaids, Pepcid or Pepto Bismol – In hunting camp, you may eat some strange, spicy and unusual foods. These medicines will solve your indigestion and upset stomach problems, which may disturb your sleep.
* "Chiggerid or Chiggeraid – You can apply this clear substance to chiggers or red bugs to kill them and stop the itching.
* "Cortaid Cream and Benadryl – These two drugs can relieve your suffering from poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac, which are usually potent duringturkey season.
* "Insect Repellant – Make sure you're not allergic to Deet or any of the other ingredients in a good insect repellant. Applying repellant before entering the woods can save you a lot of pain and itching from mosquitoes, ticks, flies and other annoying insects. Even better, use a ThermaCELL device to rid your immediate area of mosquitoes and biting flies.”
You don't have to carry a doctor's kit with you when you hunt, but these medicines will help you sleep better and hunt more comfortably.
To learn more about ThermaCELL, go to www.thermacell.com
Tomorrow: Remedies and Buddies
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