Adventure Doc Blisters

Most everybody in the world has gotten a blister. They can ruin a trip, especially a hiking trip. Everybody has his or her own special way to treat a blister, and so do I. This is what I have found to be successful. I have two approaches, depending on how bad the blister is and what you are going to be doing the next few days after the blister occurs.

MoleSkin is a great product and works wonders. A small square piece of moleskin should be used, with a hole cut in the center the size of the blister. Place the cut-out square of moleskin on the effected area, making sure the blister pokes through the hole you cut out.

This keeps the friction from popping the blister and dramatically cuts down on the pain form wearing that shoe. I advise taping the piece in place with some duct tape, because the sweaty feet make this hard to stick and it will come off in few hours of walking. This is a great method and works well. This is for when you will only be walking a few more hours then the trip ends.

Popping a blister is another method that works well. Just as it sounds, the blister is popped with a needle and the fluid is squeezed out the hole. Once the blister is flat, you must tape it with duct tape. If the blister is not taped, once popped, the layer of skin that covers the blister will quickly be rubbed off, leaving a large red sore spot. I advise popping the blister with a clean needle and lancing it at the base, not in the top or center. This method will get your through a few days of walking, provided that tape stays on your skin.

Lastly, the best way to deal with a blister. Popping and refilling with tincture of benzoine is a guarantee of a pain free way to continue the trip, for many days to weeks. This is what you should do if you get a blister on day one of a 2-week hiking trip. Pop the blister, just as I mentioned above. Now, the tricky part. Refill the blister, though the same hole you already made, with tincture of benzoine. This solution hardens in a few minutes, leaving a greenish/brown glob under the skin. The good thing is that this will last for several days to weeks. The problem with simply draining a blister is the skin that remains, covering the hot spot. That can easily be worn off, leaving the hot spot unprotected. This eliminates that problem. The skin covering is left in place and the benzoine hardens under it, eliminating the pain of the hot spot underneath. I advise doing this with a 1cc insulin syringe.

Also, the tincture of benzoine can be purchased at most pharmacies, over the counter. Once the trip is over, remove the top layer of skin and the greenish blob of benzoine will rub out with some hot water.