Disasters overwhelm our surroundings and challenge our mental, emotional, and physical capabilities. Often the fear and uncertainty seem impossible to overcome, and those feelings escalate when our families are involved. How might those feelings change if the emergency involved more than your immediate family? Would it make a difference if you weren’t alone?

Community preparedness is at the core of author Kyle Ferlemann’s summary of myriad lessons learned over decades of studying, interviewing, and living through any number of natural disasters and geopolitical conflicts. Practical Preparedness focuses on what we can do before disaster strikes, listing the steps to take so you and your family will have the best chance of surviving any type of event during any season of the year.

If we respect nature, add knowledge to our toolboxes, and reach out to others in our communities, Ferlemann believes—and has witnessed firsthand—anyone in any location and at any time will greatly increase their chances for survival. It comes down to making personal choices that offer the best opportunities to survive, and even thrive, during a downturn of fortune, whether caused by nature’s fury, an armed conflict, or a worldwide pandemic. According to Ferlemann, it takes resiliency, strength, determination, independence, cooperation, positivity, adaptability, and determination, along with focused preparation and a sense of community.

Learn all you can about Practical Preparedness before it becomes necessary to evacuate or shelter in place, and prepare your family members so they have the best chance to come out the other side as physically and mentally fit as possible.