Thursday, July 18, 2013

Lessons Learned

It is day 18 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge and NaBloPoMo.  Today's post is in response to this week's blog hop prompt from the Writer's Post host Suzy Que of Reflections of My Soul.


    Over the years I have learned some pretty important things about myself.  I don’t handle heat well and I must drink water.   With the Elkhart County 4H Fair starting tomorrow and the happy weather man threatening over 100 degree heat indexes you can bet I am guzzling water, and have been.


      I go to the fair every year and have my whole life.  I was a 4H member, and now both of my kids participate in 4H.  Not going to the fair is not even an option for me.  I have to go.  I have to know how the kids did on their projects.  Forget that the fair comes at the hottest time of the year.  Forget that a couple years ago I went toe up while at the fair from heat stroke and dehydration.  I learned it is not fun to be vomiting nonstop anywhere but at home.  Not that it is fun at home, but it is a nightmare to be in a medical building at the fairgrounds wondering if you are ever going to stop upchucking and be able to go home.


     Since then, I approach time at the fair with a sense of fear and trepidation.  I don’t want to ever experience what I did again.  So I drink tons of water.  Because I love my kids and want to see their projects first hand, I put aside my fears and go.  I learned an important lesson from that experience.  No matter how much I love to drink soda pop or anything else, water is essential to good health.  It makes up 60% of your body and helps everything in it function properly.  Without it, your body begins to shut down.   A little dehydration can lead to difficulty focusing on small print, trouble with basic math, and completely screws your ability to remember things.  Feeling a bit loopy, drink some water!!  It lubricates the joints and keeps blood flowing for proper circulation.    With the human brain made up of 95% water you can just imagine what happens if you are dehydrated.  Everything goes to hell in a hand basket in a big ass hurry.



 
       I felt like I was going to die that day.  I was weak and fatigued and could barely summon enough energy to walk, nor did I want to.    With the heat topping out in the 100’s, it makes dehydration even more likely and serious of a business.  So I lived to tell the tale, and I learned to drink more water.   I still am terrified of going to the fair because of what happened but I refuse to live in fear.  I choose to combat the heat staying hydrated, using the brains the good Lord gave me, and live my life to the fullest one day at a time.

35 comments:

  1. Yes staying hydrated is important! Glad you survived to remind us. Hot here in Dallas today.

    p.s. I was in 4-H too:)

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    1. Tayla, it was sure hard to quit drinking pop but I quit buying it. That helped a lot. Still the kids love their Kool Aids and sweet tea and I started drinking that too. Just have to keep drinking that water. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  2. Can't have enough reminders to drink water...and I gave up the soda pop when I was 14 and have never looked back. That stuff is poison.

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    1. Carol, Wow that is wonderful!! Pop is poison but it is addictive and hard to shake. It is hard to fathom that while I don't drink or smoke that the pop I drink could be just as detrimental to my health. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments. ♥

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  3. I'm a waterholic so never have to remind myself to drink water, but I'm glad you are doing that. Maybe one day you'll not even want that soda.

    Lessons learned, I'd say! Have fun at the Fair.

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    1. Jo, I am getting much better about it. I think because that happened to me at the fair I will always be a little scared it will happen again...that maybe I haven't drank quite enough to compensate. Fortunately I have because I survived a really hot day at the fair and aside from the fact that my feet are killing me, I feel pretty good. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  4. Get yourself a sun umbrella for constant shade, a mini fan for a constant breeze, have a bottle of water always around and try not to move to much. Sit under your umbrella in the shade and let the people come to you :)

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    1. Sonja, thank you for the great advice! Sounds like great gear to have at the beach too! LOL Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  5. Good luck and have fun!!! I passed out from sunstroke at a Dead show in philadelphia one year. It was a horrible experience. I noticed that was the turning point w/ my ability to tolerate hot, humid weather. To say I'm utterly miserable right now is an understatement.

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    1. JoJo, sunstroke, heatstroke, whatever you call it is nothing to mess around with and is no fun at all. I have noticed too that my tolerance for heat has gotten worse with each episode. I have had at least 3 bad episodes in my life. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  6. I can't stand the heat, which is why I am loving the Australian winter right now :) It's still blue skies and sunshine outside (today anyway), but it's chilly (for us).

    I actually hate UV rays too, because they give me skin cancer, but never mind about that. ;)

    I was at a music festival one summer with the sun beating down on my head, and everything went white and I almost passed out. Thankfully I came back around before I fell down completely. But then, I had also just had a stomach bug and was still recovering from that.

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    1. Trisha, it is really hard for me to fathom that you are having winter now. WOW!! Between the stomach bug and the heat no wonder life almost didn't go on. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  7. I am glad I read your post. I am someone who neglects drinking water and get headaches!

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    1. Shail, I have read that drinking water can actually help make that headache go away quicker and surely helps prevent them. I would have never have thought so, but it is fact! Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  8. water is an absolute must ..atleast 8-10 glasses a day, and more during summers....

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    1. The little princess, true!! Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  9. Glad you lived to tell the tale. And yes, water is so important to drink. Thanks so much for linking up with my blog hop.

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    1. Suzy, thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥ It was my pleasure!!

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  10. Wow! staying hydrated is indeed important. Whenever one of my kids has an episode of vomiting or the loosies, I make sure that they drink a lot of water, with a pinch of sugar and salt.

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    1. Cynthia, I am the same way with my kids but not quite as stringent about taking care of myself. I am getting much better though. They need their mama around as I need them. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  11. Water is the elixir of life and is an absolute must especially in such a hot weather. Have a great time at the fair, Kathy. :)

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    1. Shilpa, thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments. I did have a great day and even was fortunate to have my husband home to go with which was a surprise. ♥

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  12. TheChronicled I dont joke with drinking water. Everytime Iwalk past the water dispenser, Im grabbing a cup. I hate it when that millions trips to the loo comes afterwards lol. You've learnt your lesson lol.

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    1. Scopium, I could do without all the trips to the bathroom honestly!!! LOL But it is better than going toe up and puking your guts. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments. ♥

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  13. Dang that had to have sucked being so sick at the fair. Bless your heart! Stay hydrated so you can support your kiddos. I know they appreciate it when you're there for them. We have some small town fairs and carnivals also in Texas that are in the hot hot summer and its awful!

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    1. Holli, it did and all I wanted was to die or go home...didn't really care which. I just didn't want to go to the hospital and rack up a bunch of bills I would struggle to pay for. Evidently I drank enough because the day went well and I survived. I can only imagine how hot the fairs are in Texas. Here it is 1 in the morning and still 93 degrees. UGH!! Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments. Always great to see you Holli! ♥

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  14. I keep telling the same to myself as well. All the time I repeat this that I have to drink more and more water. And see you just conjured a post emphasizing the same...

    Richa

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    1. Richa, hey whatever works!! LOL I fill a big glass of water and keep sipping it as I do my thing. Before I know it, I need more. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  15. having lots of water is such a challenge for me... i need to keep a reminder to have a glass of it each hour... have always been affected by dehydraton :(

    hope you have fun at the fair and tell us all about it :)

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    1. Sukupedia, I will be sure to!! Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments. ♥

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  16. I love water. I didn't always but when I made the decision to drink water with all of my meals - but breakfast, coffee is still key for me - I noticed almost immediately how much better I felt. I swear by water now. Sometimes I'll have iced tea, sweet tea but absolutely no pop and I thank my parents for that, they didn't raise us with pop and I didn't have it in the house when my kids were coming up, if they got it they bought it at the corner store or when they went to a friend's house. I know water can be boring at times but throw some fruit in it, squeeze a lemon or lime and it is just so refreshing.

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    1. Mimi, my mom always had pop in the house. Sometimes I really wonder if that was a contributing factor to her kidneys failing along with everything else. I have tried the fruit thing occasionally and it does help quite a bit. Still there is nothing like ice cold water from the tap. Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  17. So all the effort was ultimately worth it :) And ya water is such an imp part of our lives but we errr take for granted no?

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    1. Smita, most definitely worth it! Thank you for stopping by and for your kind comments! ♥

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  18. I can't handle heat either, Kathy so I empathize. Must have been miserable being so sick that time. Yes, drinking water is so essential in the extreme heat and anytime. I have to remind myself to drink it as I can get lazy about it sometimes. It makes a big difference in feeling healthy, that's for sure. In WW they say whenever you feel hungry, drink water first because you might be dehydrated which masks itself as hunger. Thanks for the reminder.

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