2025 sure wasn’t boring. A lot of people felt uneasy right out of the gate. Prices kept climbing. The dollar felt shaky. The news was louder than ever. Every week there was another warning, another rumor, another “expert” telling regular Americans to calm down and trust the system.
Most of our readers didn’t buy that for a second.
This year, Ask a Prepper made sure won’t provide fantasy or end-of-the-world talk. Instead, we chose to talk about real concerns and real decisions working Americans had to make. The truth is, some folks nearly gave up. But a lot of you stayed, learned, and adjusted.
What follows is the story of how the year unfolded through the articles you read, shared, discussed, and saved. Each one hit a nerve because it spoke to something many fellow Americans were already feeling.
If you lived through this year with us, you’ll recognize the moments. If you missed some of them, this will catch you up.
Starting the Year With Better Habits
In January, we published 6 Prepping Items the Amish Never Stockpile, and it stood out because it was pushing you to rethink your prepping strategy. The article examined a community that has lived without modern systems for generations and asked why we still rely on things they avoid.
The Amish don’t build their lives around convenience, but around durability habits that don’t pile up clutter year after year. By pointing out what they don’t store, the article raised a question that didn’t demand an answer right away, but it stayed there: Are we preparing with purpose, or simply accumulating gear?
Didn’t read the article? Then watch this video instead:
Not long after, we ran Why Everyone Is Abandoning Prepping, and the focus shifted from supplies to mindset. The article examined how something meant to create peace of mind had become complicated for some people.
Too many warnings arriving all at once. At one point, the article noted that prepping had stopped feeling steady and started feeling overwhelming, which helped explain why some people were stepping back rather than leaning in.
Keeping You Updated on Gun Laws
The year tightened when we posted this piece on what guns you need to buy before the government bans them. Gun laws in the United States don’t stay still, and responsible gun owners know that what’s legal today may not be tomorrow. We know that keeping track of those changes is important for our readers who believe in lawful ownership and long-term planning.
The point was simple: they don’t take your guns all at once. They change a rule here, ban a part there, raise a fee, close a loophole and by the time you notice, it’s too late to do anything about it.
Our readers put a lot of effort into sharing current, updated information on gun ownership, so you can make informed decisions based on the rules as they exist now, not as they used to be. That’s why you should check out what guns to stockpile in 2026 for your own protection and peace of mind.
Control and the Illusion of Safety
As spring moved closer, trust in large institutions came up again. 15 items FEMA Doesn’t Want You to Have made a simpler, but powerful points. Large systems function best when people depend on them, and tools that allow households to operate independently don’t fit neatly into centralized planning.
Afterwards, when we published This is How My Grandma Made Antibiotics, something clicked. The article was a reminder that knowledge, especially the kind passed down in kitchens and gardens, is a quiet form of power. The irony? What Grandma knew is now considered “alternative.” Meanwhile, Big Pharma tells us not to try THIS RECIPE at home, even if it outsmarts the very medicines we’re told are our only option.
What Still Holds Value When Systems Fail
As the year went on, the conversation widened. In June, we published a truly valuable piece for our readers. These Items Will Make You Rich Post-SHTF wasn’t about money in the usual sense, but what will still hold great value in a grid-down world.
When systems stall or break, numbers on a screen lose their power, while skills and tangible goods gain it. This piece framed value in terms of what people need and what you can provide, not what you can store digitally.
That mindset felt even more relevant once summer rolled around. In These 20 States Will Go Dark This Summer, the focus was on grid strain, extreme weather, and aging infrastructure – problems that you already know are becoming part of everyday life.
Power outages weren’t treated like shocking emergencies so much as interruptions people should expect and plan for. The real question wasn’t whether the lights would go out, but how long everything would keep working when they did.
Because you gave us a positive feedback for this article, we decided to continue the series with another piece – EMP Aftermath: Here’s What They Don’t Want You to Know. Instead of leaning into worst-case scenarios, the article focused on quieter realities: electronics failing without warning, systems taking a long time to come back online and repairs dragging on.
Our goal wasn’t to scare you, but to help you understand how quickly the grid can fail and why protecting your home from an EMP matters, especially at a time when many countries are threatening U.S. stability.
Questioning What We Think We Know
By early fall, the pace slowed again. The Amish Ways Book Review highlighted why certain low-tech habits endure over time. A slower way of living that holds up under pressure. This book shows you how to build resilience, simplify systems, and rely less on fragile modern infrastructure. It’s a must-have if you want to stay ahead with your prepping plan.
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That idea was challenged again later in the year with How Being a Gray Man Can Get You Killed, which questioned the idea that blending in is always the safest move. Our article didn’t promote attention or bravado, but pointed out that context matters, and that tactics without awareness can become liabilities.
As winter approached, trust returned as a central theme. My father was a FEMA insider showed you how large government systems operate under pressure, by protecting themselves before anyone else. When resources are limited and decisions matter most, regular people are not the priority. The message was clear: relying on FEMA is a mistake. Families who want to stay safe need to plan as if help may never come, because history proved us that it doesn’t.
Closing the Year With Open Eyes
The year wrapped up with My Worst Fears for 2026, an article that brought together a lot of thoughts that had been sitting in the background all year. It touched on growing strain across everyday systems and how much harder it’s becoming to fix problems once they show up. Rather than laying out predictions, it focused on the bigger picture shaping what comes next.
Many of you told us the article captured worries you’d already had in the back of your mind. The tone stayed grounded and practical, encouraging you to think ahead, pay attention, and make choices while you still have time to do so.
As a way to close out the year, it captured what 2025 ended up being about for many people: paying closer attention, understanding limits, and taking responsibility before those limits become unavoidable.
Also, make sure you won’t miss our special message on how to face the realities of a new year:
A Heartfelt Thank You to Our Community
Dear readers, thank you for standing with us throughout 2025. Your support and trust are what allow this platform to continue growing and bringing people together around shared knowledge and values. Every moment you spend with our content helps shape a community that becomes stronger with time.
Thanks to you, we can keep doing the work we believe in and moving forward with purpose. This journey wouldn’t exist without your presence, and we’re truly grateful to have you with us as we continue building something meaningful together.
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