Posted: 11/19/2010 3:15:30 PM EDT
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I am at the academy right now and am going to get OCed on Monday for the first time. Its going to involve a scenario in which the suspect, a P.T. instructor, takes our O.C and uses it against us; and in the process, we must physically fight and arrest him. I know that it's going to be living hell, but I was wondering if I could get any tips on dealing with the O.C. during the fight, and how to recover from the lingering burning effects later on during the day. |
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Tips for getting OC'd? DONT. Seriously, Like the last guy said, I have had OC and the X26, and I would choose X26 ten time in a row before I get sprayed again. That being said... Good luck!  I saw a big guy that was talking himself up before OC curl up into the fetal position, and I saw a tiny female take it better than a lot of the guys. Everyone reacts differently. I had a guy in my last unit that would get sprayed, wipe his face off and charlie mike. He said it was a minor annoyance.  |
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Lots of water, lots of air, and lots of time. Don't bother with milk/baby shampoo. A guy brought a full gallon of milk when we got OC'd, and no matter how much he put on, it didn't work. He ended up getting the instructor to cut up his milk jug so he could fill it with water and stick his head in it.
Be careful when you shower at night. |
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During the time you are fighting for control it's not gonna suck as much since you have a task to accomplish. Afterwards is the real bitch. Your immediate instinct will be to grab your face and rub your eyes...Don't. After you're done wipe with a Sudecon wipe or something similar and then wash with dawn dish soap and rinse with lots and lots of water.
When you get home put your clothes outside to air out and wash them by themselves later. Hopefully by the time you shower you'll have gotten nearly all the OC off but still be aware of where the waste water is going. |
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Quoted:
Dude, I've actually been on fire and OC is worse. Quoted:
Better you than me. I would rather get drive stunned with a Taser in the dick for 15 minutes than ever get pepper sprayed again. I nearly spit my coffee all over the keyboard for the first time in my life after reading these two responses. Thanks guys, I needed that. To the OP: listen to what everyone already said. It sucks. Don't freak out, keep breathing and know it will be over in 30ish minutes. The first time I got it I thought it was a mental thing and I wasn't going to let it affect me. I was wrong. The next time I got it I went into it knowing it was going to suck and that it would be over soon enough. This was a much better approach for me. Just make sure you wash out as much as you can in the beginning cause it isn't too much fun to reactivate in the shower and have your eyes lock up. |
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It sucks. Like others have said, accept you will be in some serious pain for a while, but it will pass. Just before we went outside to get sprayed, we had to watch a video of another class going through their OC training. In the video, there was one guy that as soon as the instructor started spraying OC he jerked his head back with his mouth wide open. Yep, he is now the poster child for what NOT to do during OC training, and earned himself a full shot of OC to the back of his throat. In the video he immediately drops and the sounds he started making were not human... On the plus side - I'm willing to bet this makes the top ten most memorable events of your life GL |
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Three things. Afterwards, you'll want to keep your face in the water. Don't. That only prolongs the burn. Get the initial washdown then turn your face into the wind and let it pass. It's going to burn like a bitch, but it WILL pass.
Dawn dishwashing liquid. It's great at removing grease in the kitchen, and for getting the pepper oil off your skin. Wash well, but don't scrub. That will only rub the oil into your pores. As stated, be careful when you shower. OC is made to affect damp mucus areas the most. Works especially well on sensitive areas, as in "down there." Your best bet is when you get home, wrap a towel around your waist and wash well again with Dawn in the kitchen sink. Let the towel catch the runoff, then shower. Don't forget your hair on the sink bath. Ask me how I know. 
Finally, when performing your scenario, remember that pepper spray isn't necessarily instantaneous incapacitation. I have learned that I have 5-15 seconds of good fight before it affects me. When I did it, I was able to fight and cuff with no problems after I was sprayed. I even found my own way to decon. Once the water hit me, I was done. Remember this if you ever have to use it on the street, too. |
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Quoted:
On the plus side - I'm willing to bet this makes the top ten most memorable events of your life
GL This. Been sprayed twice and tased once. Those three rank in the top eight. The others are getting my badge pinned, getting my anchors pinned when I made Chief in the Navy, getting married, and the birth of my daughters. |
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Been sprayed twice. Once to carry in the Air Force, and once to become an OCAT instructor. Lots of good advice from others. Here's my two cents:
Don't shave- OC is an irritant and, especially if you're a redhead, you will feel like you went to sleep face down on the surface of the sun if you shave that morning. Baby shampoo- most of my students say it works for them, and I can attest it does work for me. It's got novacaine in it so it's a topical anesthetic. Saline solution-water tends to dry out and irritate already irritated eyes that have been OCed. Saline solution is the same pH as your tears and it's very soothing. Bring a towel-preferrably two. One to dry off and one to wipe the oily resin off. Oh, and some clean sweats and T-shirt to drive home in. Bag your exposed clothes and wash them. Post exposure recovery-The less water you use, the better. Blot dry your face with the towel, don't rub or wipe. Use some of the shampoo to wash the resin out of your hair. When showering bend far forward and keep your eyes shut. You WILL redose yourself, but it won't be as bad. Protect the boys, gravity makes things run downhill, just sayin'. The resin likes to linger in your eyebrows and hairline, so beware. As for getting through the scenario, everyone reacts differently to OC. Fight, Flight, or Freeze, I've seem them all and oftentimes all three together at once! I get extremely angry and it's almost impossible for me to open my eyes. Keep your mouth shut when getting sprayed. Take a spritzer in the mouth is even worse than getting that crap in your eyes. Ever gargle burning gasoline? You get the idea. The first time I got sprayed it felt like someone had taken equal parts gasoline and sand, mixed them together, lit it, and threw it in my face. The second time (It was a 20 oz. crowd control canister) felt like someone had poured gasoline over my head and stood me in front of an afterburner. It sucks! Good luck and give us an AAR! |
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My agency goes to Hawaii and dips hot lava into our academy OC containers then pressurizes it. I swear to God this is true. Baby shampoo. Water, cool and air. Although they brought a fan to stand in front of, I hated it. Oh, and I drove home in Aug in Phoenix without air conditioning. It was like 116 out. Big time suck. Oh, and eat dirt and suck on a penny. Removes the alcohol from your system. Wait. Wrong thread. Good luck! Embrace the suck.
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for me, the baby shampoo worked. Hose your face with water to get the majority of it off, then lather, rinse and repeat at least twice.
As good as the water feels, try not to spend too much time with it. Get decon'd and get to air. I was good to go in 15 minutes and all the jaggoffs that tried milk, keeping their face in the water, etc were out of commission for over an hour. |
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Quoted:
Dude, I've actually been on fire and OC is worse. Eh.....I've been on fire as well, and I'll take OC over that any day of the week. To the OP: Just remember that if you write snide remarks about an instructor in a notebook that you have to turn in for review at the academy's halfway point, that instructor will find a way to be there for the OC day. (For anyone who ever gt sent to the Harrison County S.O.'s academy at U.S.M. Gulf Park in Long Beach, the instructor was "Roop the Snoop." If you know who I mean, you likely have a clue how my day went. |
Show everyone else up and opt for OC+CS
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Take aspirin before getting sprayed. It helps with the inflammation (not so much with the immense, burning pain). Like everyone else said, it will pass as long as you stay calm. Quoted:
Advice like this seems counter-intuitive. Isn't the idea to experience what it's like to be sprayed and learn what it's like to try to continue functioning after being sprayed in a BG scenario? Preparing ahead of time to diminish the effects that you'd be experiencing on the street in a way that isn't realistic (unless you take an aspirin before every shift and never shave) doesn't give you that experience.
Don't shave- OC is an irritant and, especially if you're a redhead, you will feel like you went to sleep face down on the surface of the sun if you shave that morning. Granted, if it were a real scenario your adrenaline would be way up, etc so that might make it less awful than just standing there getting sprayed before your scenario. Maybe do a few laps around the building and have a buddy smack you across the face right before getting sprayed. 
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