Amy A. is a nurse practitioner from Troy, Michigan.
On June 8, 2024, she was driving home with her 8-year-old daughter when she came upon a terrible car crash on Rochester Road.
Amy locked her daughter in the car and ran to the wreck.
In the first vehicle, she found a man with minor injuries.
But in the second vehicle, she found a woman whose arm had been severed.
The woman was losing consciousness quickly.
Amy did not panic.
She pressed her hands directly on the wound to slow the bleeding.
When that was not enough, a bystander handed her a belt.
Amy wrapped the belt tight around the woman’s upper arm as a makeshift tourniquet.
Doctors later confirmed that the tourniquet rescued the woman.
The arm was preserved too.
The Troy Fire Department awarded Amy a civilian citation for her courage and bravery.
She knew how to control severe bleeding because of her training.
Knowing the difference between first aid fact and fiction can be the difference between rescuing someone and making things worse.
Sadly, there are many first aid myths floating around that people still believe.
Some of these myths are harmless.
Others can cause severe harm or even take someone from this world.
Here are a few of the truths and myths you need to know.
Tourniquets are dangerous and should never be used:
This is one of the most widespread myths out there.
For decades, people were taught that tourniquets cause limb loss and should be avoided.
The truth is that a properly applied tourniquet is one of the fastest ways to stop critical bleeding from a limb.
Military research over the past 20 years has proven that tourniquets preserve lives when used correctly.
The key is to apply it tight enough to stop blood flow and to note the time you applied it.
Amy used this exact technique on a stranger with a severed arm, and it worked.
Tilt your head back during a nosebleed:
Almost everyone has heard this one.
The problem is that tilting your head back lets blood run down your throat.
This can cause choking, nausea, or vomiting.
The correct method is to lean slightly forward and pinch the soft part of your nose for 10 to 15 minutes.
This lets the blood drain out and allows a clot to form naturally.
Put butter or ice on a burn:
Putting butter on a burn traps heat in the skin and can cause infection.
Ice can damage the tissue even more because it restricts blood flow to the burned area.
The right move is to run cool (not cold) water over the burn for at least 10 minutes.
Then cover it loosely with a clean bandage.
Move an injured person to a more comfortable spot:
Unless there is an immediate threat such as a fire or rising water, do not move someone who may have a neck or spine injury.
Moving them the wrong way can cause permanent paralysis.
Keep them still, keep them calm, and wait for trained responders.
You must do mouth-to-mouth during CPR:
CPR using chest compressions alone is the current recommendation for bystanders who witness an adult collapse.
Push hard and steady in the center of the chest at about 100 to 120 compressions per minute.
Studies show that CPR using chest compressions alone can be just as effective as traditional CPR for adults who collapse in front of you.
The American Heart Association teaches this method to untrained bystanders.
Drawbacks to learning first aid on your own:
Outdated information:
Many first aid books and online guides still contain old advice that has been proven wrong.
Always confirm that your source is current and backed by groups like the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross.
Overconfidence:
Watching a video is not the same as hands-on training.
If you can, take an accredited Stop the Bleed course or a Red Cross first aid class.
Practicing on dummies and with real tourniquets builds muscle memory that kicks in during a real emergency.
Liability concerns:
Some people hesitate to help because they fear getting sued.
Most states have Good Samaritan laws that protect people who provide reasonable emergency care in good faith.
Look up the laws in your state so you know where you stand.
If you want to be ready to help when it matters most, here are a few items to keep in your gear.
A CAT (Combat Application Tourniquet) is the top standard and used by the military and first responders worldwide.
An Israeli bandage is a pressure dressing that lets you control bleeding while letting you use your hands for other tasks.
A compact first aid kit with gauze, trauma tape, gloves, and chest seals rounds out the basics.
Knowing what to do in the first 60 seconds of an emergency is more valuable than any piece of gear you own.
But having the right gear and the right knowledge together is what separates survivors from victims.
