General & First Aid
Electric Shock
Injury from electrical current passing through the body — causing cardiac arrest, severe burns, and internal damage — requiring immediate separation from the source and CPR.
Also known as: Electrocution, Lightning Strike, arrhythmia (definition: irregular heartbeat)
📝 At a glance
Likely root causes: Contact with live electrical wiring or equipment; Lightning strike; High-voltage lines.
First thing to try: DO NOT TOUCH the victim while they are still in contact with the current — you will be electrocuted too
See a doctor if: Immediately after any electrical shock — even if the person appears unhurt, internal organ damage, cardiac arrhythmias, and severe burns may not be immediately apparent.
🔎 Start with the cause
Lasting relief rarely comes from covering a symptom. First find what is feeding the problem, change what you can, and then help the body do what it was designed to do — heal.
Likely root causes
- Contact with live electrical wiring or equipment
- Lightning strike
- High-voltage lines
- Faulty appliances and equipment
- Working with electricity in wet conditions
Change what you can
- DO NOT TOUCH the victim while they are still in contact with the current — you will be electrocuted too
- Turn off the electricity: pull the main electrical switch or remove the fuse; or call the electric company
- If you cannot turn off the power: stand on something dry (wood, rubber, newspaper, blanket); wearing dry gloves if available; use a dry wooden pole or broom handle to push/pull the victim away from the current — NEVER use anything wet or metal
- Once the victim is free: check breathing — begin CPR if needed
- Call emergency services; get to a hospital even if the person seems fine
- Treat for shock
- A person struck by LIGHTNING may be touched immediately — begin CPR at once if needed
🌿 Then assist nature: remedies & protocols
With the cause being addressed, these are the actual things people do for this — ranked by the community. Vote ▲ on what helped you and ▼ on what didn't, and open How to do it for the steps. Each shows two quick signals: Evidence (how much science backs it) and Gentleness (how safe and in keeping with whole, natural health).
★ Start here — our first-line pick, pinned for safety
This is first-aid support only — every electric shock needs emergency medical evaluation, even when the person seems fine.
How to do it ▾
Why it works: Electrical current can keep flowing through a person in contact with a live source, so touching them directly can pass the current into the rescuer's body too; breaking the circuit safely comes before any other care.
- Do not touch the person while they may still be in contact with the electrical source.
- If possible, turn off the power at the switch, breaker, or fuse box, or unplug the source.
- If the power cannot be turned off, stand on something dry and use a dry wooden or non-metal object to push or drag the person away from the source.
- Once they are clear of the current, call emergency services right away.
- Check breathing and begin CPR if you are trained and it is needed, continuing until help arrives.
First few minutes after the shock · Once, immediately
Caution: Never touch a person who may still be in contact with a live current — you can be shocked too. Never use anything wet or made of metal to move the person away from the source. Even minor-looking burns can hide serious internal injury, so medical evaluation is needed every time.
When to get help: Call emergency services immediately for any electric shock, and go to a hospital even if the person seems unhurt, since internal injuries, heart rhythm problems, and burns may not show right away.
Source: Standard first-aid guidance
Comments & experiences ▾
Also helps — ranked by the community (vote to reorder)
This applies specifically to lightning strikes, which behave differently from contact with live wiring — it is supportive first aid while emergency help is reached.
How to do it ▾
Why it works: Unlike contact with a live wire, lightning strikes do not leave the body electrified, so rescuers can begin CPR or first aid immediately without the same risk to themselves.
- Move the person to a safer location if lightning risk continues, but do not delay care for long.
- Check for breathing and a pulse.
- Begin CPR immediately if the person is not breathing or has no pulse, and continue until help arrives or the person recovers.
- Keep the person warm and still while waiting for emergency responders.
- Call emergency services as soon as possible if you have not already.
Until emergency help arrives · Once, immediately
Caution: This guidance applies only to lightning strikes, not contact with live household or industrial current, where the danger of touching the victim remains real. CPR should only be performed by someone trained, or under the phone guidance of an emergency dispatcher.
When to get help: Call 911 immediately for any lightning strike — cardiac arrest and burns are common, and the person needs hospital evaluation even after recovering consciousness.
Source: Standard first-aid guidance
Comments & experiences ▾
This is a supportive comfort measure only, used after the electrical source has been safely removed and emergency services have been called.
How to do it ▾
Why it works: Physical trauma triggers the body's shock response — low blood pressure and reduced blood flow to organs — and staying warm and still reduces added strain on the heart and circulation.
- Lay the person down and elevate the legs slightly unless a head, neck, or back injury is suspected.
- Cover with a blanket to maintain body warmth.
- Loosen tight clothing and keep the person calm and still.
- Watch continuously for changes in breathing, alertness, or heart rhythm until emergency help arrives.
Until emergency responders arrive · Once, continuously
Caution: Do not move the person if a spinal injury is suspected unless there is an immediate danger like fire. This does not replace emergency medical treatment — electrical injury can cause hidden internal damage.
When to get help: Seek emergency care immediately for any loss of consciousness, irregular heartbeat, difficulty breathing, or visible burns.
Source: Standard first-aid guidance
Comments & experiences ▾
How the numbers work: a weighted voting system — trusted published sources cast endorsement votes for each protocol, and your ▲/▼ adds to them. Not medical advice.
🩺 When to see a doctor
- Immediately after any electrical shock — even if the person appears unhurt, internal organ damage, cardiac arrhythmias, and severe burns may not be immediately apparent.
🌿 The seven pathways to health
Seven pathways for your electric shock — tap the circle to check one off (saved on your device), or ask Remy for help.
“Disease is an effort of nature to free the system from conditions that result from a violation of the laws of health... In case of sickness 1cause should be ascertained, 2go to work intelligently to remove the disease. 3Unhealthful conditions should be changed, 4wrong habits corrected. 5Then nature is to be assisted in her effort 6to expel impurities and 7to re-establish right conditions in the system.”
🌿 Overview
Electric shock can cause cardiac arrest, respiratory failure, and severe burns — including internal burns invisible from the outside. Do NOT touch a person still in contact with a live current. Lightning strike victims can be touched immediately and may require prolonged CPR.
Electric shock occurs when electrical current passes through the body, and its danger goes well beyond surface burns: the current can disturb the heart's rhythm, cause deep internal injury along its path, and lead to cardiac arrest, even when the skin looks only mildly hurt. The damage is often greater than it appears.
This is an emergency. The first, vital step is safety — never touch a person still in contact with a live source; switch off the power or move the source with a non-conductive object first — then call emergency services and begin CPR if needed and trained. Even seemingly minor shocks, especially from high voltage or with any loss of consciousness, irregular heartbeat, or burns, need medical evaluation because of possible hidden internal injury. Prevention through electrical safety is paramount.
Common signs
- Burns at entry and exit points of the current
- Cardiac arrest or arrhythmia
- Loss of consciousness
- Respiratory arrest
- Muscle spasms and pain
- Even small electrical burns may mask severe internal damage
🍃 Supporting foods & habits
The gentle, everyday foods and supports that help in the background — secondary to the active remedies above. Vote on what helped you.
How the numbers work: this is a weighted voting system — every published book or article recommending a remedy counts as an endorsement vote, and your ▲/▼ counts too. Not medical advice. *Ties are broken by our editor score (sources, safety, simplicity, cost, lifestyle fit, eight-laws alignment).
🍽️ Eating to help
Food is one of the gentlest medicines — small, steady changes help most.
Favor these
- Supportive nutrition during recovery: vitamin E for burn healing, vitamin C for tissue repair
Go easy on
- Nothing specific — medical treatment is the priority
All electrical injuries require hospital evaluation even if the person appears uninjured — internal damage is common.
⚖️ Good to know
- The primary danger for the rescuer is touching the victim while still in contact with live current
- Even small burns may indicate severe internal damage — always seek medical evaluation
- Do NOT use wet or metal objects to move victim from live wire
⚕️ What a doctor may offerConventional treatments for this condition — for your information.Show ▾
RemedyRank's heart is natural healing — and honest information. Here is what conventional medical care commonly involves for this condition, listed to inform, never to promote. Decisions about treatment belong with you and your own physician.
Electric shock can cause hidden injury — seek medical evaluation after anything beyond minor.
Commonly offered
- Ensure the power is off before touching the person; call 911 for serious shock–
- CPR if not breathing; heart-rhythm monitoring–
- Treating burns at entry/exit points–
- Evaluation even if the person looks okay–
Worth knowing
- High-voltage or lightning shock, or any loss of consciousness — call 911.
- Internal injuries and heart-rhythm problems may not be visible.
- Don't touch a person still in contact with a live source.
👍/👎 shares whether a treatment helped you — community experience, not medical advice. For full professional details, see the sources under “Learn more” below.
📚 Learn more
Sources for further reading. These open in a new tab.
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