“Rehydrate or die, Drill Sergeant.
Rehydrate or die.”
© Daniel Kilburn
During my
tenure as a Senior Drill Sergeant I was charged as all Drill Sergeants are with
the safety, health and welfare of the young men and women placed in our charge.
During their
time with us these individuals are placed in situations that will tax their physical,
mental and emotional core beyond anything they have ever witnessed in their
lives, with few exceptions.
These
individuals were placed in situations that if not managed judiciously, could
cause serious injury and death. In this environment there are no accidents.
Only failures to act accordingly.
One of the
most serious and preventable injuries we are faced with are HEAT ILLNESSES.
Heat illness falls under three headings
HEAT EXHAUSTION
HEAT STROKE
HYPONATREMIA "Water
Intoxication"
Heat Exhaustion
and Heat Stroke are the two most common manageable injuries. Hypernatremia is a byproduct
of over hydrating and can be mistaken for Heat Stroke.
In our efforts to maintain proper
hydration forced hydration is often implemented. I personally have 12 one hour hydration
alarms set on my phone that activated every hour from 0700 (7 am) till 1900 (7
pm) though this was sometimes extended into the evening depending on the
situation. As the alarm activated I would (if it would not cause great risk
because of what we were doing) yell, DRINK WATER!!! The soldiers would then sound off
with
“Rehydrate or die, Drill Sergeant.
Rehydrate or die.”
And they
would go to their Canteen or Camelback and drink water.
I bring this
up because in a Disaster/Emergency situation your need for water will probably elevate.
Waiting to drink water when your thirsty means that you are already dehydrated
and at risk of Heat Injury.
Environment
Activities
Acclimatization
Personal Risk Factors
Don’t be the
person that places your family and loved ones at risk because you don’t have
time to keep hydrated.
A couple
good resources to start with;
Water is
water. It is not Coffee, Soda, Red Bull, Amped, Beer, Wine, Ices Tea or
anything else with an H20 base and additives. Make a list of everything you
drink daily that is not water (H20). You will probably learn that you are not
drinking enough water.
Depending on
your source of information ½ to One gallon of water a day is the recommended
quantity.
Go here to
check your H2O need;
Till next
time
“Be Safe”
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