Never to old to learn.
Some days ago, I suddenly fell very unwell, debilitatingly so. As I raced to understand the cause, I frantically searched for any hint that it wasn’t a heart attack. Not that it frightened me, but it just didn’t make sense, I’ve never had any problems in that area. Though a lot of the symptoms pointed that way, others definitely didn’t. It took a couple of days to triage all of the pain I was feeling and what caused it to be less or more intense. After trialing various things, it eventually emerged that I suffered severe dehydration due to the heat wave and a lack of drinking.
All of which is perfectly logical and natural in my advanced years. You see, I had to learn that I no longer feel as thristy as I once did — a common characteristic in the over 65 apparently — and that I must force myself to drink whether I am thirsty or not, up to 2.5L or more each and every day, hot or not.
Five days ago I suddenly stopped eating and drinking due to the pain it casued in my chest and upper belly (as well as various other muscle spasms, neurological pinches, and other bodily disfunctions), Three days ago, I started forcibly drinking. Today I started eating again, though with no appetite not very much to start with, and I’m happy to say the diagnosis was correct and the cure is working. I am recovering.
What casued it all, was a ‘lack of thirst’ over a number of days prior to this heat wave. Not the hot weather per se.
I thought I’d bring this up as a reminder not to underestimate the need for water. Please drink throughout the day, and avoid alcohol, coffee and sugary foods during the hot season. Stay healthy.
My challenge now is not to forget this episode and continue to drink lots of water every day whether I feel thirsty or not. It might have to be a permanent entry in my journal 😉