Self Care ~ Some Tips For Surviving A Heat Wave

Given the weather conditions we just experienced, and the number of fatalities during the heat wave, we have to prepare ourselves, especially those who live alone in condos without air conditioning.

In my opinion, any time we are ill or faced with something that can rapidly make us ill, hydration is critical. One of the most important things to maintain and be aware of is fluid balance. You have to keep track of your intake and output. If you cannot do that, you need someone to look in on you. You need to drink twice as much water or more, and if you are not voiding clear straw coloured urine, you need to drink more water.

If the fluid balance is not properly maintained, you become dehydrated very quickly. The blood becomes sluggish and the kidneys can shut down. The electrolytes can get out of balance, which can affect the organs, and chance of survival. Dehydration also increases the risk of stroke and heart attack. The skin is actually the bodies largest organ. As we age, we may not perspire as much or as readily, but even so, if well hydrated, we have a much better chance of getting through it.

Signs of dehydration are seen in a reduction of skin turgor, but that is more difficult to assess in the frail elderly. Sunken eyes, dry mouth, very dark coloured urine, headache, and reduced alertness, are all discernible signs of dehydration. Also if a person normally has visible and palpable veins in their hands and forearms, if there is a change or flatness in those veins, it can signal dehydration. The minimal safe urinary output is 30ml per hour, and may vary if you are on diuretics or certain other medications. It might be a good idea to discuss with your doctor, whether or not certain meds should be stopped or withheld during a heat wave.

Do not make the mistake of over hydration by drinking water non-stop. Although it is uncommon to do so, some people might make the mistake of going overboard, which can also upset the electrolytes. Again, it is all about maintaining the proper intake and output. If a person is acutely ill and in hospital, accurate intake-output records are considered to be very important. We should keep that in mind, in order to care for ourselves and others, and recognize early signs of trouble. Ideally, you want to measure and match the intake with the output. No one should die simply because they need a bolus of fluids.

If faced with vomiting or diarrhea, you will need IV fluids. If you vomit once, and can keep sipping and keep it down, you are probably ok. But if you keep vomiting, it is serious. Usually you have to go to a hospital for IV fluids in that case. Hopefully this heat wave will cause the health care system to develop travelling IV teams. They could send out more home care nurses who can start IV’s, and put in a saline lock, which is a small IV cathlon in the vein. With the cathlon in the vein, you can get a bolus of fluids. The cathlon is left taped in place, until you are drinking well. If you start vomiting in a heat wave, you need medical attention very quickly.

Wear loose fitting light clothing, made of natural fibres, so the skin is free to perspire. Cotton, linen, and silk are best in my opinion. As much skin surface as possible needs to be free to breathe, and perspire.

There is probably no better time to learn about, and appreciate your skin. It truly is a miracle organ, and can save your life. In 2017 when I had a full blown episode of anaphylaxis in the middle of the night, I had third spaced so much fluid within a short time, I did not have enough blood pressure to stand up without blacking out. In the end, every pore on the surface of my skin opened and poured out that toxic fluid. I was quite amazed at how much the skin can contribute to saving our lives.

For this reason it might be comforting to massage the skin with coconut oil infused with essential oils. Many essential oils have healing, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-inflammatory properties. Even if you don’t believe they are medicinal, they do offer comfort in the bath, or for massage. Just be cautious not to get them near your eyes, or full strength on the skin. They need carrier oils, or else to be infused into the air. I tend to use them more on the skin than in the air. The fragrances are really just awesome. Many are woodsy and earthy smelling enough, to feel like you are going camping.

Staying out of direct sunlight is an obvious bit of advice. If you do need to go out in the sun, keep it to five or ten minutes. Keeping a bath tub full of cool water or quick showers will temporarily cool you down. You can also place a fan behind a basin of ice and sit in front of it. Also ice packs, cold compresses, and anything that cools you down.

Conserve energy. If there is a heat wave coming, get the groceries and prepare some food ahead of time so you don’t have to cook. If you have to exert yourself, keep it brief and rest often. Do not treat it like a normal day. The day before it started, I made a big pot of vegetable chicken soup with lots of shiitake mushrooms, and froze half of it for later. It was a great staple during the heat wave and helped to maintain nutrition. We lose our appetite when it is hot, but at the same time, it is not the optimal time to fast, since our body needs less food, but still needs good nutrients. Watermelon, and all fruits are good to snack on.

Rest frequently, but don’t stay completely still for long periods. Walk around a bit, stretch, tighten your leg muscles to help venous return, and do things here and there that test your memory, like login to accounts and remember passwords, bank numbers etc. That way you can test yourself to make sure you are staying cognitively with it.

Reduce any additional stressors that might be around you – if you can. The heat stress on the body is enough to deal with. Avoid arguments, loud noise, and set aside anything you are worried about. Deep breathing, aroma therapy, flowers…are all good. You have to keep your flowers alive too! Even listening to the sound of flowing water is helpful. They have all kinds of youtube videos with soothing sounds, like waves lapping on the beach, or the sound of rain, which can be a nice diversion. Sounds of water are actually probably really good for the mental health during a heat wave. Water is the antidote. Drink it, douse yourself with it, and listen to it.

Shade, shutter and siesta like they do in places like Belize, Greece, and other very hot countries. They close all blinds at around noon, and all is quiet for several hours. People do their work and errands in the morning, and end up eating late in the evening.

Like all conditions in life, we need water, food and shelter as priorities. Importantly, there are some key things to avoid:

Don’t go anywhere in the wilderness where you risk the possibility of breaking down, getting stuck, running out of gas, or getting heat stroke trying to walk out. Like in a blizzard, hunker down in a safe place, and stay put.

Don’t ingest anything that clouds your judgment – to include pain pills, sleeping pills, or alcohol. If you do take these things, make sure you set timers to wake yourself up to drink water, and stay oriented. Maintain contact with someone who can check in on you.

Avoid processed foods high in salt since they are more likely to cause fluid retention. Elevate your legs and check your feet for edema, especially pitting edema. Edema is most often seen in the feet, and signals fluid retention. It is common for pregnant women to develop edema of the feet. Many older people also get some edema during periods of heat, inactivity, or long periods on their feet. Pitting edema is when you push the skin around your feet and the indentation stays.

Most often people are advised to elevate your lower legs, don’t cross your legs, and do not wear constrictive socks or clothing. But if the swelling is accompanied with shortness of breath, or becomes excessive, it can signal congestive heart failure. It is probably a good idea to check your own pulse several times a day. If it is weak, thready, or irregular – especially if combined with weakness, dizziness, shortness of breath, or chest pain – it means you need medical attention.

Avoid the higher risk of falls. The heat tends to throw us off balance, or increase postural hypotension, which is a drop in blood pressure, leading to dizziness when you stand up. Older people should sit at the side of the bed for a couple minutes before standing up. If you are prone to postural hypotension, or naturally have a low blood pressure, give yourself time to adjust when you stand up, before walking. Also avoid climbing on ladders, stools, etc. Be extra vigilant about the increased risk of falls due to dizziness, misjudgement, fatigue, a drop in blood pressure, etc.

Keep a phone, or a fitbit watch, or panic button with you at all times if you are in poor health, ill, or getting sicker. Once you fall, if you are alone and cannot get up, you could lay there for hours, if you have no way of calling for help. If you do feel very faint, the best thing to do is sit down, and get your head down, below the level of your heart. That way you can stay conscious and think for a minute. If you feel very faint, and have to walk to get to the phone or door, make sure to avoid cracking your head on a counter, or hard object if you do fall. Keep your centre of gravity low, in case you black out.

During the anaphylaxis experience, I did collapse on the floor trying to get to the phone. But I knew that if I stayed flat on the floor, I would probably go unconscious, convulse and die. So the only way I could stay conscious was to get up, get seated and get my head down. It made me realize why so many people who are in respiratory distress struggle to sit up. I had to sit up, yet I could not sit upright for more than a few seconds without blacking out. And I couldn’t really get a breath without leaning forward a certain way. The position was a critical factor in that case, and probably varies, depending on what the cause of emergency is. One bonus thing about that whole event, was it took away my fear of death – completely.

It was such a close call, I accepted death, and will never forget the drama of going through that alone. It was like going down in your own private airplane crash. I could not get to a phone and even if I could have, my hands were swollen like baseball mitts. I could not do anything but try to get each breath and stay conscious. There was no way I could speak, use a phone, or walk.

Other ideas like taking a baby aspirin a day, or loofah scrubs to help your skin function more efficiently, are things to consider. Others might put some fresh sheets in the freezer for awhile before going to bed. Anything for some relief! I am sure people came up with all kinds of innovative ideas to stay cool, so this bit of advice is just a drop in the bucket, so to speak.

This heat wave has caused a staggering loss of life. The situation for the people in the small town of Lytton is so close to us, yet almost impossible to fathom having to flee like that on a moment’s notice. It must have been terrifying. I hope they can account for all people soon, as it must be agony for those who do not know where their loved ones are.

Whether or not we believe climate change is man made or not, we are facing drought and wild fires in today’s reality. More than anything – we need to focus on water. Just like we had to drink water to cool and replenish our bodies during the heat wave to get through it, the earth needs water, and needs to focus on water, as a number one priority. Storing water, conserving water, creating energy with water, distribution of water, recycling water, heating with water, cooling with water, and irrigating with water. Our attention should be turning to water, in every innovative and imaginable way possible.

It sure seems to have been a fiery time frame – almost like, okay here we go with a bigger emergency than ever. After all the covid fears, this does seem more catastrophic and perilous. It sure makes us wonder – what is next?

Copyright Valerie J. Hayes and Quiet West (2021). Unauthorised use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author/owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Valerie J. Hayes and Quiet West with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.