What do you have or eat that you possibly cannot live a day without? 

To me, creature comforts are items and services you don’t want to live without but could live without if you had to in certain situations. Could you live without them? Sure. They aren’t necessary to survival, but they make life much more enjoyable and they help you keep your sanity. 

Some creature comforts have become a lifestyle for some people. They couldn’t possibly imagine life without those things. For some, those creature comforts have become an addiction. Being without those things would be hard for the person relying on them and very difficult for others to deal with the addict. 

A few of the hardcore preppers would just say that you learn to live without them. You just toughen up and tough it out. I do think that is what would happen in an SHTF situation for most people. You would mourn the loss of those items, get busy doing what needs to be done and get over it.

However, we just went through a shutdown, are facing a lockdown, and are still living through a declared pandemic. Trust me, people have not lived without their comforts. Amazon did record business in this last Spring. People were not living without things if they didn’t have to live without them. Online shopping was keeping shippers very busy. Sure, there were shortages, but people still managed to be pretty comfortable waiting out the pandemic at home. 

In order to avoid that, you should be considering either stockpiling your favorite creature comforts or finding alternatives. While prepping focuses on gathering the necessities to live and survive, having those comforts make a difference and keep up morale in bad situations. If you don’t have to live without your favorite things, why would you? Sometimes, in stressful situations, a little pick-me-up helps boost your morale too. 

For people who could not even get the essential items, panic shopping ensued. Quite frankly, the whole situation became messy and ugly in some areas. Why? People are used to living at a certain level of comfort and will not live below that unless they are forced to do so. Some people will temporarily, but not over a long period of time unless the circumstances dictate that they have to. When they find out that they have to or the possibility exists that they may have to live without items like caffeine or alcohol, they will start panic buying. People were doing that just for paper goods and food. 

In some cases, now may be a good time to figure out if you are an addict and quit those things altogether. If you are addicted and cannot access the items you are addicted to for a few days, quitting may be very difficult for you if not deadly. Dealing with your addictions now in the good times will be a lot easier than dealing with them in difficult times.

Another aspect for you to consider is why you reach for these items or comforts in the first place. Is it a habit? Is it stress? Is it a reward? Sometimes, that is a good thing because they become motivators. Motivators are not a bad thing. Some days, we all need them to keep going. Sometimes, that is a bad thing because we are not dealing with our stress and emotions in a healthy way. That quickly turns into an addiction. While you still can access counseling services, you might want to consider getting some help in those areas.

Most creature comforts are harmless though. They make us feel better, but we can live without them. Stocking up on them or finding creative ways to still have them in our lives will not hurt us. For me, I could live without a hit or two of coffee in the morning and a cup of tea in the afternoon, but I don’t want to if I don’t have to. I keep a stash of coffee and tea in my preps as well as a little sweetener for both (to keep the acid reflux at bay). I also know how to make tea from herbs and plants if I need to. I like to shower, but I know some days it won’t happen. I keep wet wipes, a solar shower, and more in my preps to address that need.

As was mentioned before, your prepping should focus on the necessities, but having some comforts in your preps will go a long way towards keeping your spirits up.

What are your creature comforts and how do you prepare for them?

Thanks for reading,
Erica

Related Posts:
100 Shelf-stable Foods To Store in Your Pantry/Stockpile
How Well Do You Deal With Stress?

(Notice: I am an affiliate for Amazon LLC. It doesn’t cost you anything, but it certainly helps to bring a little extra income into my home. Thanks in advance for any links you use!)

Check out these books also to help you be more prepared for the future!

Sharing is caring!