Severe Heat Exhaustion: A Personal Account

I suffered from severe heat exhaustion yesterday. I would like to express what the experience of heat exhaustion is like first hand. I am driving along and all of a sudden this feeling of nausea starts to take over. I have all my windows rolled down but I cannot seem to get enough air. I keep thinking I just need to try to get home because something is really wrong. I start getting dizzy and realize that I need to find a place to stop. I pull into this apartment complex and that is the last I remember. I woke up not knowing at first where I even was. My car was still running and in drive. I consider myself lucky because somehow I had kept my foot on the brake the whole time I was unconscious.

When I woke up I was a little bit frightened. I shut the car off and opened the door to try to get more air. I really wanted to recover from the heat exhaustion so that I could get out of there. I closed my car door to try to leave, but then vomited everywhere. I opened the door again and vomited about 5 more times. There were a few people around that I wanted to ask for help. Although when they saw me vomiting they took off. I think they thought I must be a drunk. I sat there for about 10 minutes and then drove the 2 blocks home. It seemed to take forever because I was still feeling bad and afraid I wouldn't make it.

When I pulled up to my townhouse I was so weak. It was difficult just getting out of my car and to the front door. Every spot on my jeans and blouse were completely soaked with sweat. I had an insatiable thirst and the first thing I did was get water. I couldn't get enough water and just kept drinking more all evening. I have never had heat exhaustion before and I hope I do not get it again. I wasn't outside in the heat for a long time. I wasn't dehydrated. I wasn't engaged in physical activity. Supposedly, I wasn't at any real risk for getting heat exhaustion.

Before this all happened, I had worked all day in an air-conditioned office. I had water during the day and was looking forward to having 2 days off. I was feeling fine during the first half of my drive home. Once the symptoms of heat exhaustion start to hit everything happens very quickly. Within a 15-minute period of time you can go from having no symptoms to losing consciousness. Anyway, that is what it is like.