Featured Article (September 2005)

The Summer Heat and Your Safety at Horse Shows

At the VADA/NOVA Summer Dressage Show at Morven Park on June 25-26, I collapsed with a heat emergency, severe heat exhaustion as diagnosed by Raymond James, the show’s EMT. Because of this serious episode, I wanted to share with you what my symptoms were, the different types of heat emergencies and how you can prevent any heat emergency from happening to you. You may be very surprised, as I was, how uninformed we are of the levels of hydration we actually need during normal and strenuous activity and how easily preventable emergencies like this are through planning and pre-hydration.

To really make a point, I am writing this article six days after it happened and I still am not thinking very clearly, I am dizzy at times, my vision is still blurry, my body is still cramping, I am still weak and unable to do any strenuous activity and my headache has not gone away. All this, even though I am resting and properly hydrating my body.

So, what happened ?

My dehydration actually started the week of the show. I worked outside rebuilding a deck in the 90+ degree heat while drinking soda and water. Then I packed for the show, shipped my horse, schooled and rode all weekend in 100 degree heat index while drinking soda and water. At night, I ate supper with some wine or beer, further dehydrating my body. By Sunday afternoon, I couldn’t sustain the fluid loss and my body lost it’s ability to get rid of the heat through my circulatory system. My blood flow decreased to my vital organs resulting in a form of shock due to changes in sweating and chemical and salt imbalances. My body’s temperature rose above normal creating a form of hyperthermia called severe heat exhaustion.

If Ray had not been able to stabilize my condition late Sunday afternoon, I was quickly headed for heat stroke. 50% of all people who get heat stroke die from it, that’s the fact, plain and simple.

What were my symptoms ?

On Friday, I was very tired. I told myself, oh, it’s just the heat so I drank some more water. By Saturday, I was somewhat lightheaded and felt weaker than normal, my face was red and flushed, I had a headache coming on, had abdominal cramps and I was somewhat confused all day. On Sunday, all of the above symptoms intensified and I had cold sweats, chills and shaking. By the time I got to the EMT, I was exhausted, shaking, cold and disoriented. All my muscles in my body were cramping hard, my vision was very blurry and all I wanted to do was sleep. My blood pressure soared and my pulse rate was strong and full. Ray worked on me for 2 1/2 hours and I was finally able to stand up and get in the car to go to my friend’s house to rest and re-hydrate.

What types of heat emergencies are there ?

There are three types, heat stroke, heat exhaustion and heat cramps.

1. Heat Stroke: The body’s heat regulating mechanism fails resulting in possible brain damage or death, is life-threatening and requires immediate and aggressive treatment. Symptoms: The victim’s skin is hot, red and usually dry, pupils are very small, the body temperature is very high (over 104 degrees). First Aid: Get professional help immediately, cool the victim as quickly as possible in a bathtub of cool water or in air conditioning, do not give victim anything by mouth and treat for shock.

2. Heat Exhaustion: Caused by fluid loss, is a form of shock and requires immediate treatment to prevent it from becoming heat stroke. Symptoms: Cool, pale and moist skin, heavy sweating, dilated, wide pupils, headache, nausea, dizziness, vomiting and fainting. Body temperature will be near normal. First Aid: Get professional help immediately. Get the victim out of the heat into a cool place, place in shock position (lying on back with feet raised). Remove or loosen clothing, cool by fanning or applying cold packs or wet towels or sheets. If conscious, give water to drink every 15 minutes.

3. Heat Cramps: Caused by dehydration and loss of salt through sweating, usually due to heavy exertion. Symptoms: Muscular pain and spasms usually involving abdominal or leg muscles. First Aid: Get the victim to a cool place. If they can tolerate it, give one-half glass of water and electrolyte solution (Gatorade for example) every 15 minutes.

The sidebar chart shows the Signs and Symptoms of heat emergencies. Sometimes these indicators can be interlaced, as in my case, so always call skilled help if you suspect any of these conditions.

What can I do to prevent a heat emergency from happening to me?

Here’s the part that amazed me. There is a very simple formula that Ray taught me, which helps you know how much to drink. On a normal day of activity, you must drink at least 50% of your body weight in fluid ounces, preferably a combination of a Gatorade-type drink and water. On a strenuous activity day, you must drink at least 100% of your body weight in fluid ounces, again a combination of water and electrolyte solution. Also, if you are planning to several days of strenuous activity in a row, like a horse show, you must start pre-hydrating your body three days in advance. So, for Friday schooling, start on Tuesday with water and electrolytes.

Let’s calculate an example. If you weigh 150 pounds, and you are horse showing on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, you must start drinking 150 ounces of water/electrolyte solution on Tuesday and continue through Sunday to help keep yourself safe. For reference. a gallon is 128 ounces, a quart 32 ounces.

I learned my lesson the hard way. Now, I have my bottles of water/electrolytes set up in the morning and I leave the house with my daily supply. By the end of the day, I know exactly how much I drank.

When I hear "Drink plenty of water on a hot day, " instead of this vague statement, I know EXACTLY how much fluid I must have to stay healthy. Armed with this information, I will have a much better chance of being safe.

As with anything like this, consult your doctor if you have questions. I’m not a doctor, only a victim. Good luck and good health to you.

Editor’s Note:

When I received this story, I thanked Nancy Olson for reminding me that most of the Virginia Horse Journal articles are about protecting our horses, and we forget that our readers/riders need information on their well-being. Nancy wrote back: "You know, it’s so funny that you said that because after I finished the article, I realized that I never even mentioned my horse and his condition. He was fine and I spent all weekend giving him fresh water and electrolytes, never understanding how I should have been doing the same thing for myself.