What should I stock up on?

[pkveazey]

Have you ever had a headache, fever blister, cut or scrape, Constipation or the Carolina two step, Baterial Viral or Fungal infection, Took a Bath, Washed your Hair, etc.? When you buy your health products, those are items that you need to buy a lot of because everybody else has the same issues that you do. Lots of Multivitamins, Aspirin, Cold Sore meds, Peroxide and Alcohol, Antacids, Anti-bacterial and anti-fungal meds. I could go on forever but I think I've made my point. Not only are you and your neighbors going to get hungry, you're also going to get sick. Just prepare for it. I try to not think of my close neighbors as Moochers during a crisis, but as more of a support group. I live way out in the country on a country road and I can't believe how many homes there are within 1/2 mile of me. There must be more than 20 houses. I'm focused only on the 8 that are closest to me. OK, there are two in that bunch that I either don't know or don't know very well and I'd just as soon keep it that way. I guess my point is, it would be a shame to have plenty to eat and drink but then die because you cut yourself. I don't actually like GATORADE but you can bet I've got some because you can die pretty quick if your electrolytes get too low. As a side note, I've told my Doctor that if I need electrolytes, don't stick a damn needle in my arm, just hand me a bottle of GATORADE. He thought that was funny as Hell.

[Felix]

Stocking up is something of a crap shoot.    With but finite resources to deploy, the shape and duration of needing those stocks means committing to a "best guess".    Focus on one scenario, your best guess is realized, you'll do OK... great!    Guess wrong and you might gnash teeth while still being better off than the average person.
I've tried to think in terms of "tiers".
First is something like a disaster that breaks supply chains but is recovered from within weeks or even months.
Second is a bump in the road that lasts several years.
Last, but not least, is a return to pre-industrial living (and dying) - with no end in sight.
To this end, I try to maintain a minimum of 3 months _everything_ (including for the animals).
Also, I'm learning/practicing skills that could be useful in the worst case scenario.   At age 70, practice might not be long but teaching makes one immortal.

Question:   how do others prioritize and organize their preps?

[pkveazey]

Felix has made a good point about adding or using existing skills. At my advanced age, There is a zero chance that I will be doing anything close to manual labor. When I was studying Guitar, my guitar guru told me that during the depression restraunts and music teachers made out pretty well because first, people have to eat and second, the people couldn't afford to pay to go where the music was so they took music lessons so they could entertain themselves at home. Since I was a professional musician for over 20 tears, I could teach or play gigs to add to my survival. When I retired, I worked for 7 years as a guitar tech and there isn't much that I can't fix on guitars.

[DMCakhunter]

Prioritize preps - my list
#1 shelter - includes house, tent, cabin, camper and heat, light, electric, gas, wood resources. Includes tools to harvest said resources, axe, gas can,  etc.
#2 sustenance - includes food, water, items needed to prepare and cook. Includes items to harvest said resources, fishing gear, buckets, planting and seeds, hunting, store water, wild edibles books, campfire grill, dutch oven.
#3 clothes - having clothes for all weather seasons, footwear appropriate to your environment.
#4 protection / hunting - knives, weapons and ammo that you know how to use. includes gear to maintain said weapons and carry ammo, magazines, pouches, optics, batteries.
#5 transportation - whatever you have to move yourself / group if needed to travel to safety / relocate. Includes gear to allow longer duration travel, full fuel cans and hitch carrier, spare tires / repair and maintenance items, jumper cables.
#6 medical items. to each your own, you should know what you and the group need.
#7 Money, barter, trade goods, items of value - PM's. Does not include crypto's, they don't function without a network.

My list is prioritized for my situation. Others, if in a city, might prioritize transport to leave the city.
Ultimately, you will have to choose what you can easily move or carry in case you will travel to another location. If you have a truck & trailer = lots of stuff. Car / truck = what fits inside. Bicycle = much less. Walking = only what you want to carry.
If you have preps prepositioned, so much the better and easier to travel.
Also, don't bankrupt yourself. Choose your scenario and add bits and pieces over time. This will allow you to add scenarios.

[Jackalope]

  I don't prepare for any specific scenario, I prepare to survive.  I do use the military PACE method in my planning. As DMCakhunter pointed out, shelter is my first priority, wtih a primary residence, several nearby secondary shelters for alternates, a trailer and tents for contingencies, and a friend's home for an emergency.  We try to apply the same principle to all our preparations.

   My actual priorities vary, depending upon available time and funds to acquire both tangible objects and certain skills.  I look at security. though, as our second highest priority, because if we can't keep what we have, then we become refugees.  Re-read the Grapes of Wrath to understand the concept of being a refugee, or talk with my wife who had the experience of being a POW during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait during the 1990's.  We understand very well the need to defend our family and our preparations.  You do not want to become a refugee, period.

   So, briefly, we subscribe to the tenet of bullets, beans, and band-aids. I cannot overemphasize the need to get fully vaccinated.  I'm not talking about the Covid BS, but talking about common vaccinations.  My wife just had a friend die due to tetanus, which is so absurd, since the vaccine is so readily available.  And I discovered today my wife has never had a tetanus shot, holy crap!  This also applies to your animals too.

    I try to plan for the long term, plan for a generation.  Obtain the skills needed to keep your family for a generation. Our ancestors were able to cope with the challenges they experienced, we should be capable of doing it too.