My name is Ray Gano; I am a prepper and have been a prepper pretty much all my life. My mother was raised during the great depression. Because of that, she was always a frugal person. She would can up and dehydrate food, setting it aside for "a rainy day."One of my most vivid memories growing up was during the economic recession we had in the mid-1960s. Life for us was pretty hard. I remember us going behind grocery stores and picking out old fruit and vegetables. We would pick mustard greens, black berries, crab apples, anything that was growing on the side of the road. There was a butcher in town that used to save beef bones. My mom would gather us around the stove and make "nail soup."Nail soup was a big deal back then. We all helped clean up the old vegetables, cut away bad pieces and keep the good parts. Mom would then have us carefully put the veggies we cut up into the pot. Finally she would pick on of us kids to take the magic nail from the window sil and put it in the pot. See, the nail was magic and that is what made the "Nail Soup" tastes so good.The real ingredient was the best of all; it was my mother's love.Another point when I was growing up was when my father contracted Hong Kong Flu. This was around the same time in the mid to late 1960's. I remember my mom quarantining the room and keeping us kids away. Only she could go into the room and she worked hard to keep the house sterile and germ free.Many people died from the Hong Kong Flu, which come to find out was a strain of H1N1 Spanish Flu. The same H1N1 that we still have today that many believe will eventually mutate again into a more harmful form of H1N1.Over the years I was drawn to home remedies, and back woods cures. I started to learn about all the edible plants in our area and also learned how to use them medically.As time went on I would buy books on the different plant always trying to increase my knowledge.Fast forward to today and with the outrageous cost of medical treatment, I became our families first line medical care giver.I started to expand learning about all of the natural herbs, vitamins and other supplements that are out there.Nurse Amy of "Doc Bones & Nurse Amy" introduced me to essential oils and I started learning more on how to use these effectively, in conjunction with my herbal cures.I want to say that I am not a doctor and I have nothing but the highest respect doctors. All the things they have to study and to stay up to date. I never thought that I had the calling to be a doctor, but I do enjoy the study of folk medicine and the cures and remedies our great grandparents once used. Many of those cures and remedies are making a comeback today.I think it is very prudent that those of us who are preppers have as much understanding about medicine as we are able. We need to return to having the skills of mending wounds, binding cuts and giving proper first aid.If you have not done so, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you read my first book, "Survive The Coming Storm - The Value of a Preparedness Lifestyle."In this book I make MANY recommendations from herbal supplements to OTC medicines. I also make recommendations on getting Hazmat Suits, face-masks, and rubber gloves. At a minimum having a N95 facemask will be a necessity along with bottles of Purell to constantly keeping your hands sterile. On top of that all of us will have to break that horrible habit of touching our face, eyes, nose or mouth. Do that during a pandemic and you sign your own death sentence.If you and your family are not prepared by then, odds are increased in someone contracting the deadly Ebola virus.It is my hope that this book helps you and equips you with information that will help you prepare NOW instead of waiting till the pandemic starts.Ray GanoAuthor, Blogger. Journalist, Father, Husband, & Family Care-giver