Heatstroke In Woodyboaterville
UGH
To be clear, I am not to sure I had heatstroke, but it sure felt like it. Here is the story of how it all unfolded, and how a boat ride saved me from myself.
The air was thick
You can see the haze
I was up on the new old scaffolding, I had spent most of the day, cleaning the rub rails, sanding, and painting. Simple stuff, but out in the heat, and mind you the humidity. Like thick air. But I had consumed about a gallon of water, and felt okay, there was a slight breeze. But at some point I started feeling a little wonky, and had that feeling one gets right before you kinda zonk out.
The rub rails are cleaned up though.
So I stopped, and looked down and saw stars, little sparkles in my eyes. NOT GOOD, so I slowly climbed down and walked slowly into the workshop, and sat down.
Reenactment
And thats when ship started getting real. Like, nauseous and thought, mmm, maybe just lay down on the floor. Which I did. It helped but I couldn’t get up. Oh I tried and then, no way, back down. This went on for about 45 minutes, which I was surprised about because it felt much shorter. I was about to call the Boatress to come over, and had just enough energy to crawl to the edge of the shop to get the cooler breeze from the water. That did the trick.
Layed down near the fan – Reenactment
Reenactment
Now, I know this much about heat stroke, if you stop sweating, it aint good, I was sweating like a sprinkler system, I left a major wet area under myself when I would get up. And back down. But I was defiantly out of it, but aware of it. I can say this, I aint putting myself in that situ again. I did make it to the truck, AC cranked and got home. And just sat and thought. You are an old fool. And more importantly.. Hell ya, I got a story, but no photos. UGH, why didnt I take photos? Well, funny thing, I wasnt thinking, sorry, but I did go back and try and reenact the images. So there is that.
900 hp fan
And yesterday, I said, self, BOAT RIDE! Jimmy came by with Dave and we went to Chrisfield across the bay to pick up a model of the GLENNA FAYE. Going 40 mph was sure a great way to beat the heat. . Be careful out there, its hot..
Lots of water
The model, built by Eddie Summers. AMAZING
Its about 30 miles across. Took an hr, but there were storms all around us. But that beast can sure haul and take it. 34ft Regulator with three 300Hp engins
HERE is more info on heatstroke, I clearly didn’t die, and exhibited some of these symptoms, not others, and thankfully I was hydrated and aware. Stupid, and aware. I did try and get myself to a cooler area, but I wasn’t really in charge of myself. So there is that. But I can admit, I was dumb, and as I age ..more, should know my limits and yada yada. I am still a little achy from two days ago. But better.
PLEASE back off a little and take care of yourself!
Only you would do the re-enactments for the sake of a story. The model boat is really cool.
Dang!
I am glad that you were drinking lots of water or this could have been much worse.
Stay safe my friend!
Sounds like heat exhaustion… been there, done that while working in a hot attic, not a fan…
Jesus, Matt. You are lucky. One needs to be more careful about that as one advances in age. Reminds me of the song, Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noonday sun.
agree with heat exhaustion. dehydration, hypovolemia, probably hypotension from low fluid volume leading to decreased perfusion to the brain leading to lightheadedness and needing, having to lay down. probably electrolyte imbalance (sodium, chloride, potassium) which is why the muscle stiffness too. Yes, be careful and if sweating that much, you might consider half diluted gatorade with water. Also, if you have the thought that you may need to call the Boatress, you should. Otherwise, you could’ve easily passed out and couldn’t call anyone. maybe you did given those 45min went by so fast. Not usually the case when you don’t feel well. Usually every minute feels like 10. Be careful out there. You might want a small AC unit to run in a small room where you can sit and cool off , rest and hydrate periodically.
Thank goodness you pulled through it and for the PSA about this dangerous condition during a hot and humid summer.
Matt, just as a precaution go pay your doctor a visit for a checkup this week and explain your symptoms.
Damn! Heat is nothing to mess with take care of yourself. Stay cool.
Hydration is definitely recommended, also realize you are also flushing away minerals through perspiration and urinating so replenish those. I’m not a fan of prepared drinks unless I need the convenience. Having previously biked centuries (100 miles) bike events in the Georgia heat, our aid stations had bananas for potassium and pickle juice to replenish salts along with Power or Gatorades. Catching some of the Tour (de France) this morning the 97+ degree temp with road surface temp of 135 degrees. Riders were wearing ice vests before the start. 15,000 died in the 2003 heat wave in France.
❤️
Like I said drink lots of water! When you’re going through 4 t-shirts because they are wringing wet, you’re bodies getting rid of a, pardon the pun, boat load of water. Having fought fires in 90 degree plus temps, in what amounted to a doubled up snowmobile suit…lots of water, salt replacement(Gatorade worked for me)and, this one I hate, LOTS of breaks from the activity. Monitor your pulse rate and blood pressure. They are good indicators of issues for me. The banana idea is very good too, as a lack of potassium can kill you. I use the banana treatment, but bananas are difficult to keep around for emergencies. Please take care of yourself!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For some reason you’re important to me.
Somehow I knew I would get some great advice here. Wont lie, it scared me. Never had that happen before. And I lived in FLA and dug ditches and so on. Age is a pain in the aft. Which of course could be hemeroids
Glad your better…A trick I learned while doing horse endurance rides out west is the pinch test. You pinch the underside of your biceps and count how long your skin it takes to recover shape….If adequately hydrated, your pinch area should reshape almost immediately. If you are dehydrated, it will take four or five counts to reshape. This work for both humans and horses. Where I live, Granite Bay, CA, we have a dry heat, with low humidity. The occasions, I have been back east or in the south, with the extreme heat and high humidity, I did not handle the heat that well…but I used the pinch test to monitor my level of hydration.
On another note, About 7 years ago, I used the Home Depot scaffolding to repaint my house and barn. My scaffolding shifted for some reason and I fell and broken my foot. Good news is I am fully recovered ….additional good news, except for the bank account, I am no longer allowed to used the scaffolding nor paint the house.
Matt, you shouldn’t be surprised you got some advice here. Your posts and pics bring sunshine to break through the storm brewing every day. Sorry. to not comment often. Agree with Steve… If your boatress is like mine, she’s likely after you to see your doctor as a precaution. Google Doc may not be enough this time. Heed your body’s warning system… We all would thank you.
Hey Matt, I may be just an old country Dentist but we are all getting older. Mentioned to your physician. You’re right in the age bracket when A-Fib becomes a factor. Just saying it doesn’t hurt to be sure. We all don’t need our daily dose of humor vapor locking live an old updraft carb.