#And it’s worse if I don’t have enough salt or electrolytes in me or if it’s too hot

[theforesteldritch]

I’m dehydrated and forgot my water bottle and electrolyte tablets and my schools cafeteria isn’t open yet so I can’t get a Gatorade heres to hoping I don’t pass out today

[lethalrexie]

just saying if you can’t l0se we!ght and you’re complaining it’s just because you’re either not disciplined enough or don’t have enough self control. (unless your life circumstances literally don’t allow it) i’m l0sing about 1!b per day (give or take depending on water intake) due to pretty 8 much factors. SORRY I TALK SO MUCH 😦

1. keep your e@ting window as small as possible aka eat to live don’t live to eat (the r3xie motto 🤪). i’m f@sting minimum 16:8 and i try to extend that. but major thing is don’t beat yourself up if you can’t make it 16hrs and be happy the days you can make it longer!! esp if your just starting out.

2. stay low c@l. i’m trying my best to stay under 500 c@l/day. and consume that how it works for you. if five 100 c@l snacks over 8 hrs work best some days that’s ok. if OMAD works best, great! my mom is a dietitian and i promise, eating a little of each food group (dairy, carb ik scary, protein, veg & fruit) will help your metab which in the long run will help you l0se more weight.

3. don’t do long term fasts. i’d say up to a week with liquids is okay. but long term fasts can lower your metabolism, deplete electrolytes, and sodium, which long term is going to bloat you, keep weight on, and overall make you feel like shit (which could lead to hospitalization)

4. don’t eat refined sugar or refined foods. do literally AS MUCH AS YOU CAN to eat sugar free and whole foods. i have a major sweet tooth so i turn to sugar free jello/pudding, sf caramels, halo top ice cream if i REALLY need it. otherwise i do sweet fruit and veggie based substitutions for carbs. i use cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, or there’s these great hearts of palm noodles.

5. eat tons of fiber!! i add unflavored benefiber to a lot of my drinks (the flavored ones have added sugar). i honestly could promise you that fiber will help with shedding !bs.

6. drink as much water as you possibly can. yes you can become over-hydrated so add electrolytes or legit just a lil salt to your water here n there. but your body is going to retain water (!bs), and bloat if you are dehydrated.

7. stay distracted! discipline and hunger may hurt now, regret and guilt are going to hurt 50x worse later. get some motivational phrases, tactics, distractions, that work for you and RELY ON THEM. water, i use mio in mine when i’m desperate, gum, diet soda, bubbly water, reading, tv, ANYTHING. i have other reblogs with some good motivational tactics. i also look at th!nspø as well as pics of my own body multiple times per day to keep me on track.

8. exercise if you are mentally & physically able to. i have some other limiting factors which make me unable to go to the gym or get as many steps in as id like. an avg day is 2k-5k steps for me rotting on the couch. i PROMISE like 100% money back guarantee (ik you’re not paying me but istg if there was a r3xie program 100% MONEY BACK GUARANTEE) your diet is 1,000,000 more important than any exercise you’re going to get in. exercise will help with toning so i try to get some laying ones done on the couch but dude you burn calories just existing. so if you eat lower than that which is 1k-2k (you can look it up it’s your TDEE) you will lose weight. give it time.

essentially there’s many different tactics, routes, strategies whateva to l0sing weïght. do what works best for you and give it time. you will not lose 30!bs overnight. just make sure to take your supplement and stay safe <3 I’m currently taking one called “obvi. BURN” it has collagen in it + a bunch of stuff that’s speeds up metab. idk if it’s actually doing anything for my metab but the collagen is amazing.

***special mention: incorporate foods/drinks that speed up your metab. coffee, green tea, spicy foods (pepper, cayenne pepper), cinnamon, B12 there’s sooo many***

[thebibliosphere]

I have a weird health question relating to migraines. Have you ever woken up and felt hungover and developing a migraine but haven’t had any alcohol in ... like forever???

The tight head, dry mouth, and sour feeling in your brain(hard to describe) but completely fine the night before. Also is not your standard oh I just didn’t drink enough water dehydration, like specifically hungover dehydration feeling.

AND IF SO any insight or knowledge you could point me too. A lot of the google searches are just info on hangovers when there isn’t actually any alcohol involved but google is annoying.

Thanks!!

So if you get that feeling right before developing a migraine, that could be your predrome warning signal. Not everyone experiences predrome, but for those of us that do, that’s our signal to take our migraine meds before the headache starts.

Because a migraine is not just the headache stage, it’s everything that leads up to the headache and all that follows as well.

For me that type of dehydrated feeling is eased by adding a pinch of salt to my water, but I also have POTS, and salt and hydration are a huge part of that treatment. My predrome also includes feelings vaguely flu-like, which is absolutely zero fun to begin with but absolutely nerve-wracking in times of corona.

If your migraines are triggered by dehydration, drinking electrolyte drinks might help. Some doctors just say “drink more water”, but sometimes your electrolyte balance can be out of whack, and plain water isn’t enough.

Usual disclaimer here: I’m not a doctor and can’t tel you what to do, just suggest things from my own experiences. Be sure to talk to a qualified physician before making any changes to your prescribed medications, and if you don’t have any, seeing a neurologist can really help. They tend understand migraines a lot better than GPs, who tends to be limited to “have you tried extra strength Tylenol and water”.

I hope this possibly helps you pin down what’s happening. Predrome and postdrome are sometimes worse than the actual headache 🤕

[caffeinatedopossum]

Long post but I feel that this is important

Guys water alone is not enough to keep you hydrated when you're heavily restricting. Please, please, please get your electrolytes and for the love of god don't restrict salt (salt is an electrolyte, it's vital) or carbs. These help your body hold onto water, I know water retention sounds scary but it is NECESSARY. You will be dehydrated if you aren't retaining enough water, no matter how much water you are drinking. Signs that your dehydration is caused by this can include:

-needing to pee frequently and having very pale or clear pee

-symptoms of dehydration even though you drink lots of water such as;

-dizziness, low blood pressure, and fainting

-headaches and muscle cramps

-extreme thirst

-and even death

Please this is so important, this WILL land you in the hospital. The best thing for this in my experience is electrolyte drinks, specifically liquid IV- it's 45 calories but it is basically exactly what you will get in an IV if you were to go to the hospital for hydration. OH and it makes me feel very full ;) other electrolyte drinks may help but they don't have as much salt/potassium/etc. because normal people typically don't need that type of hydration except under extreme circumstances... like starvation for example. Also it is possible that drinking too much water can contribute to this or make it worse by flushing out what little electrolytes you have so just keep that in mind.

[captaincravatthecapricious]

Sick Fic I Didn't Bother To Name

Post canon, Tim comes over to look after Jon while Martin is at work.

cw dizziness, fever, nausea, fainting, mentions of vomit, food mention I guess. Let me know if I should add more warnings, this is just a fluffy little sick fic it might have some light angst I don't really remember.

The thought of moving makes Jon want to cry.  All his muscles hurt.  The worm scars aching like the day they were made.  He’s just going to lie there here until someone makes him move.  

Which will probably be soon, because he’s positive Martin has asked Tim to come over and …water him?  

No, in all seriousness, he can’t exactly recall what Martin told him this morning as he was leaving for work.  Something about not letting him go in to work, no working online, no checking his email, something something Tim?  Not that Jon is feeling well enough to get his computer.  Let alone let it assault his over-sensitive eyes with the harsh light of the screen.  Which is unfortunate, because he thinks Martin probably left him a text about whatever he missed this morning.  

He really hopes Martin thought to email his students.  He’ll try to remember to ask Tim to check.  If Tim’s even coming.  

Christ, he’s not thinking straight.  

He thinks Tim is coming, but if not, he’s got paracetamol, his inhaler, water, a thermos of tea, some saltines, a little cup of applesauce, excedrin, a thermometer (Jon isn’t sure why Martin left him that, there is no way he’s going to use that he just… really really hates thermometers, they mean he’s ill and that meant no school and staying quiet alone and miserable in his room so ill to open a book if he was ill enough for his grandmother to notice, it was less bad when he got to go to the school nurse.  Actually got some medicine sometimes, but they often sent him home too, and then his grandmother was cross that she had to pick him up.  In any case, no thermometer if he has a say in it.), bin, tissues (again Jon isn’t sure why, he’s not particularly congested, but Martin is Martin and is taking care of him even when he’s at work which makes Jon feel warm to his core, not from the fever that he knows he’s running.), lucozade, and his cane.  Everything in easy reach.  

He should probably take some medicine, but even reaching that far feels like too much.  He’s just going to lay here, on top of his blanket pile until the fever chills take him back and he has to burrow under them again.  It’s been the challenge all night to find a comfortable enough temperature to sleep.  A challenge he’s mostly been losing.  Leaving him feeling gritty and heavy and with a headache.  

He just wants to sleep.  Drifting in and out of it with frantic almost laziness.  Rolling heat to biting cold.  He wishes he could get his laptop, willing to bear the brightness if only to get a distraction from his discomfort.  

He’s just managed a trip to and from the loo, when Tim arrives.  Jon’s collapsed back on his blanket nest on the couch when Tim calls out before keys jangle in the lock.  Jon’s too busy trying not to pass out to make out words.  He’s impressed he managed the loo without a surprise nap.  But, he can make no promises that he won’t pass out now.  

He comes to with the inside of Tim’s wrist pressed to his forehead.  With a quiet gasp.  And then a frankly embarrassing sound as he fully absorbs how wonderfully cool Tim’s wrist is.  

“Hey there, bud.  Hate to ask, but did you just pass out from just lying there, because if so, I’m gonna have to be a little worried?”  

Jon tries to focus on Tim.  “No… no got back from the toilet and surprise nap.”  

Tim looks relieved.  

Jon is just relieved that he isn’t alone.  Where he can too easily spiral.  Being alone and miserable leaves it too easy to slip into memories.  Especially with the impressive fever that he’s got to be running, if the agonizing walk from couch to loo and loo to couch is any indication.  His muscles are shaking from fatigue from that pathetically short walk, and he’d had a death grip on his cane and the wall to keep upright.  Christ, he’s really not well.  

Tim makes a big show of wiping his brow and breathing a sigh of relief.  “Hey think you can give me some of the couch?”  

Jon would love to, he nods, but consciousness flutters when he tries to sit up.  Losing his vision to the dizziness again.  Tim catches him against his chest, and gently holds him steady as he slips onto the couch, positioning Jon as best he can.  Jon snuggling against Tim’s hooded jumper.  

He still can’t believe he’s allowed to do this.  A few years ago, Tim didn’t want to be in the same room with him.  But …here he is.  Here when it counts.  (Although Martin would probably tell him that it counted earlier too, that Tim should have been by his side, a thought that he’s been trying to work through in therapy, and Jon is working through in reverse in his own.)  Jon could cry.  Might cry.  Fever’s high enough that he probably will.  

“Got a bit worried when you didn’t answer any texts.  Wanted to see if you needed anything.”  

“‘m sorry.”  Jon really hadn’t thought to check his phone, and even if he had, well not as if he’d been up to reading anything on a tiny bright screen.  Even the thought of doing so makes his head hurt more than it already does.  

“Don’t worry about it.  Have you taken some meds recently?”  

Jon has no idea what time it is, or when Martin left.  Can’t even keep track of how light it is outside with the blinds drawn and his face shoved into Tim.  “Had some before Martin left?”  

Tim’s got an arm around Jon.  He’s rubbing his back.  And there is a tightness in Jon’s chest.  It’s been years.  It’s been years.  It’s been years, and he still can’t believe that Tim is really back and here and cares.  Tim could hold him every moment he can stand touch, and it wouldn’t be enough.  Jon needs.  He needs the attention and care, and just needs his friend in general.  And if he didn’t feel so sick, he could happily live in this moment forever.  If he wasn’t dizzy and feverish and dreadfully queasy.  

Tim’s hand stills, and a shuddery breath escapes Jon with the absence.  

Tim’s heart lurches.  He goes back to rubbing Jon’s back.  He’s pretty sure this is Jon crying and not Jon about to puke.  Jon’s decent at letting him know these sorts of things, or at least is consistent in his physical cues.  “Hey, bud.  Just gonna get you some fever reducers, it’s about time, I think.  Marto texted me when he was leaving.  Sorry about leaving you alone for a bit.  Had to finish up my shift and grab a shower and grab some soup making stuff and some DVDs, in case you wanna watch anything.  But, I’m not going anywhere.  You’re stuck with me.”  

Jon huffs a watery laugh.  Or maybe it’s a sob.  it’s damp, but that’s okay.   

“You just gotta sit up a little.  Wow, Marto really stocked up the coffee table for you, huh.  He loves you a lot.  Also, he worries.”  

Tim tilts Jon slightly more upright, and wipes away the tears, before handing him some medicine and some lucozade.  Martin said Jon had been sick earlier (probably more due to the POTS flaring up, Martin hoped, and Tim also hopes.  Not that a POTS flare up is a good thing, but if he can keep Jon full of salt and keep his feet up, he shouldn’t have any trouble keeping fluids in him, which makes things easier), in any case, the electrolytes are probably a good idea.  

“You thrown up recently?”  

Signs ‘no.’  That’s good.  

“Wanna try some crackers?”  

Jon shrugs.  

“If you’re up to it later, I can make us some soup, ‘kay?”  

Jon nods, looking …faded.  Probably best to get his legs up and him cozy.  

“Mind if I get you in a more comfy position?”  

Jon doesn’t answer, just blinks dizzily, so Tim carefully gets up, and props Jon’s feet up with the decorative pillows that he knows Jon thinks are stupid, and tucks a couple of the blankets around Jon.  Not too many, not wanting Jon’s temperature to climb any higher, but he can’t just watch Jon shiver.  Hurts too much to watch.  

Reminds him of all the times he ignored him.  All the times he hasn’t been there.  And there’ve been many.  He should have been there.  

So he’ll risk a couple blankets, even though Jon is burning away.  Hopefully the fever reducers do their job soon.  He does, however get a damp flannel for Jon’s forehead while he’s up.  

He thinks Jon might be unconscious again, but he won’t worry about that unless he doesn’t come around in a minute or so.  

Jon’s awake again by the time Tim has himself settled back on the couch.  

“How about some TV?  You up for that?”  

Jon just whines.  

“We’ll start some, and if it makes it worse, we’ll turn it off, okay?”  

Jon wiggles a little, getting comfortable.  And Tim chuckles.  

“Okay, bud.  You get some rest, okay?  I’ll make you some soup later, if you’re up for it.  I got ingredients for your favorite.  Or smoothies, if that sounds better.”  

Jon makes a sound of complaint as Tim as started to talk over the intro music.  

Tim chuckles.  “Alright, alright.  Just let me know if you get hungry.  Martin will be home tonight, until then, you’re stuck with me.”  

Jon falls asleep within an episode with Tim gently carding his fingers through his hair.  

[phantomcat94]

Oooookay it’s trauma dump tumblr therapy time because I truly don’t know who to talk to that won’t either be a MASSIVE inconvenience to them or Gaslighting: The Musical for me SO: let’s talk about my health!

TW: s**cidal ideation, failing health stuff, gaslighting, medical gaslighting, me being a dramatic wreck in general, LONG POST

I am so sick and fucking tired of “specialists” just patting me on the head and saying “you’re fine uwu” and “maybe you’re not really sick and you’re just stressed!” Lets break this bullshit down

1. I’ve taken to having fainting spells caused by both postural hypotension and (our working theory) inappropriate sinus tachycardia. Sometimes I stand up and I’m fine, sometimes I have to sit bc I’m lightheaded, but either way I’m gonna get tunnel vision or a full blackout of my sight that slowly returns to tv static. Sometimes I can be active and sometimes it makes me faint. Sometimes I stand too long and my whole body says “sit or be sat bitch.” Sometimes that happens when I’m already sitting. Sometimes my heart races while I’m laying down; it’s just like “what if I went 120” and I’m like “maybe don’t?” And it goes “:3c” last week I fainted while eating soup. SOUP. I’d been sitting for nearly ten minutes!!! There was no cause!!

2. It’s a natural but sudden progression of my lifelong health issues. Chest tightness, shortness of breath while highly active, dizziness, vision fading when I sit up in the morning, heat intolerance, prone to dehydration no matter how much water I drink. Been dealing with this shit for 28 years, just about.

3. Had to stop working out from the fainting. My cardiologist’s genius reply was “you should start working out!” Iconic, next time just tell me to drink lye or fling myself off a cliff. It’s polite to be direct when telling me to kill myself.

4. If it was a matter of poor lifestyle choices then it wouldn’t have started at all. I was working out daily, very active at work, eating well, drinking enough water, taking my meds. My iron was low and I added iron pills. My b12 was low so I added b12 pills. You know what got worse? My health. Iron is now too high? Still fainting. Wearing compression socks and eating as best I can while being dirt broke? Still fainting.

5. “It’s the stress” cool I’ve been cutting stressors left and right. I’m moving in with my mom in January— no rent, constant access to someone when I feel poorly, around the clock free symptom monitoring, and someone with an intimate knowledge of my medical history. No more side hustles, just my job. Easy job where I have tons of downtime that I’m LEGALLY REQUIRED to take. Access to every accommodation I could dream of. Steady and relatively high income. I am fed rested houses and employed. You know what’s getting worse? The fainting.

I am perfectly capable of gaslighting myself thanks. I’ve tried everything under the sun— trying to convince myself I was delusional and not to give into my symptoms. Bending over backwards to keep iron, b12c electrolytes, salt, water, and food in my body. Sleeping so much I might as well be part sloth. Letting others care for me, isolating and trying to deal with it myself. I’ve tried everything. You know what’s still fucked? My health. I’m on the verge of just shutting tf up and letting my body shut down, since it IS, despite everything I’m doing to keep that from happening. I’m dangerously close to dying just to prove a point.

Alternately— I’m ready to become the most UNHINGED psychological terrorist to all of my health professionals. Everything my therapist has said is normal is stuff that alarms my friends and frightens my primary doctor (so far the ONLY person who wants to help me, the person who told me something was wrong in the first place and that I wasn’t supposed to be experiencing this shit at all). My cardiologist turned down the ONLY test my primary ordered and I had to be a bitch to convince her to order it for me and didn’t bother to listen to me tell her what the problem was. I’m ready to channel 28 years of nuclear rage into telling these idiots things that would make me the most loathed client they’ve ever encountered. I’m ready to look my therapist dead in the eye and ask her if she ever wished she was a real doctor instead of a rent a shrink, or if the gaslighting tactic is something she learned in school or if it stems from her fear of relating to someone who’s cripplingly ill and losing her abled privilege. I’m ready to ask my cardiologist if she can access that part of her brain that had 8-10 years of training and schooling and maybe use one of her brain cells to do something besides telling me to do the one thing I told her was causing the problem. I’m ready to ask her if she ever wishes she could actually help people, or if her salary and generic scripted prescriptions and suggestions are enough to let her sleep well at night.

I am EXHAUSTED from doing everyone else’s job. I put the symptoms together and figured out a decent enough answer to springboard off of. I’m doing all the mental work with no help or support from the person I pay to help and support me. Somebody else has to do things now. My job is to stay alive, and it’s MORE than enough work.

[ushidoux]

After the Match - Ushijima x Reader

Summary: There’s an emotional cost to winning, always. (1083 words)

A/N: Have some soft angsty ushi content ; n;

---

Match point.

You hold your breath, your fingers tightening their grip on your kneecaps as you watch the ball sail in an arc into Ushijima’s reach. It feels as though time suspends for a moment as he flies into position to spike the ball - it is one of the very few moments where he looks light, even graceful - and then almost as quickly, time resumes as his hand connects.

And the crowd goes wild with cheers around you, and you find yourself screaming for him at courtside. Another win for your Wakatoshi, and your heart swells with excitement. 

You see him scan the courtside for you, and when your eyes connect you smile, hoping that he can see the sparkle in your eyes, that you’re proud of him as usual. 

Good job, baby! 

You can’t wait to rush and congratulate him, but you quell your excitement as usual for the formalities of handshakes and bows to end before he can exit and accept you into his arms.

However, you notice the sweat in his brow, the hands resting onto his hips and the slight hunch in his shoulders… he’s breathing heavily, and from the way he rapidly gulps down electrolyte-enriched water, you can tell he’s exhausted in more ways than one.

And you’re not surprised. As usual, he was the one designated to carry the entire team. The greatest intrinsic and extrinsic pressures, the fewest opportunities for mistakes, being the last to be swapped out and the first to step up to the plate - that is what it means to be the Ace. 

You turn around quickly so he can’t see the slight fade in your smile. 

When you meet him outside of the stadium, he presses you close to him and you can taste the salt of his sweat on his lips. It’s funny to think that there was once a time, around when you had first met in college, that you’d teasingly insist he not even consider looking in your direction until he’d hit the showers. Now it was all you could muster to let go of him, as you saw so little of him ever since he’d gone professional. These moments of physical closeness were few and far between, especially when he was traveling, even if you now lived together in Poland.

“I’ll meet you at home soon, my love,” he said, planting a kiss on your forehead.

You nodded, and grinned cheerfully. “Great job today, Toshi!”

---

The ‘soon’ he had promised was this evening, just a day after the game. 

You had partially dozed off by the fireplace, a book in your lap, when you heard his keys in the door, and before you could unwrap yourself from the blanket around you, he had already made it into the living room.

“I’m home, ____.”

You shook your head to fully dispel sleep, and smiling, you reached out your arms for him, and he effortlessly carried you in his arms, adjusting your legs around his waist.

“Welcome back, Toshi,” you whispered your reply, nuzzling his neck. You stood together and connected for a moment, him rubbing your back softly. There was something about your relationship recently that had shifted and morphed, and whether or not it was for better or for worse, time would only tell. 

The fact that you seemed to speak less to each other and relied more on the language belying soft and sexual touches, glances, or small domestic actions was one such change that was noticeable and loud. Maybe it attested to the fact that you were starting to laugh less and worry more. Or maybe it was nothing - Ushijima wasn’t much of a talker anyway.

Maybe it was the fact that winter had announced itself since you’d been together in this space for now up to six months, and even though the engagement ring on your finger lent a promise of permanency to your relationship, his presence always seemed to be transient. It was colder more often in your home, and you missed his warmth even more.

Or just maybe, it was the fact that he always seemed to be more than just physically tired these days. Despite the fact that he was doing what he loved, it seemed that by the time he came back to you he was sluggish, and sometimes you wondered if he was expending the very last bit of energy he had to hold you like this.

He sat down in your chair, keeping you facing him as you sat on his lap, and letting out a soft sigh. His eyes closed as he leaned backwards, and his hands softly caressed yours.

“They work you too hard,” you muttered, pressing your head to his chest.

“I don’t work hard enough,” he replied instead, the low vibration running through his chest interrupting you as you tried to focus on his heartbeat.

You disagreed but you remained silent. You’d had one too many arguments about individual practices following team practices and concerns about self-induced injuries prematurely ending his career. Your problem was that he took everything too seriously; his problem was that you never took anything seriously enough.

Wasn’t this a sport? Wasn’t it meant to be fun? Was he still having fun?

“You looked incredible on the court yesterday,” you said. It was both true and what he wanted to hear, and his arms wrapped around you tighter, and you could almost feel the warmth of his smile from where your face still rested against his chest.

“Thank you for always cheering me on,” he replied, just as sincerely.

Something about those words made your heart quicken as his seemed to slow. You raised your head up to look at his facial expression, and saw the genuine smile and appreciation he had for you, accompanying him on this journey, loving him, supporting him. 

It stung.

But instead, you pressed your lips to his again and let yourself be consumed in an intense kiss, one that weaved its way into lovemaking, to an exclamation of togetherness that would be enduring. 

All you had was each other, and even though you were alone often and you were often left wondering, you would never wonder about your place in his heart.

“I love you,” you breathed into the air above you, cheeks flushed as you stared at the ceiling.

“I love you too,” he said beside you, pulling you into a spooning embrace. 

You prayed that this discomfort would be enough, your win condition.

[wanderingandfound]

Does anyone have tips about consuming more electrolytes that doesn't involve sports drinks? Because I'm so done with not being able to bend over without a headache, as well as standing up and having my vision black out. The black outs are getting longer, my balance is getting worse, and the other day my arm that I was supporting myself against some bookshelves with started twitching.

I'm definitely dehydrated. Wearing a mask stops me from drinking water at work or while on a walk, the times when I'm most likely to drink water.

I don't need salt. There's so much sodium in some of my medications and also I eat salt with everything. It's more likely I'm consuming too much salt rather than not enough.

[ricekrispiebonesyndrome]

Waited two months to see a cardiologist for my POTS. I was hoping that he could give me some medicine to help because shit has been getting worse.

I came in, he spent about 30 minutes looking at my files, all the testing, everything. He noted that my heart rate is hardly ever below 100 while I am awake during the day, and that it spikes to 180+ consistently.

Then he said, “I don’t like to give people medicine who don’t need it. - It looks like your body is just depleted, you need to get a jar of pickles and drink out of it every day to get your electrolytes up.”

I informed him that I have been adding salt to everything I eat, I take electrolyte supplements throughout the day. His reply? “Electrolyte pills arent enough!” -- yeah, and your 400mg serving of pickle juice is going to be a drop in the bucket compared to my 6000+ mg daily sodium intake. In case y’all thought I was making this up:

Are doctors ever going to take me seriously? I feel like im just going to have to fight for myself, here. Nobody seems to be able to help...

[pythagoreanwhump]

oh my goodness the ‘tortured for information’ on your BTHB card was really good! Can I request used in a sacrifice/ritual? (With whoever you choose)

Okay I kind of went off topic here, but I really wanted to write something with blood loss, so here we are. Also really wanted to whump my whumpers

——

The whumper wipes sweat off their head. They were so close. They just needed more fresh blood. They had already drained too much of their own, and most of their prisoners are already weak from having their blood taken constantly, added on top of the beatings. There is a new one, though.

The whumpee lifts their head as they hear footsteps approaching. They had seen the conditions of all the other prisoners when they were first brought in, and they had been silently stewing in their fear for the past two days, chained to the wall. The heavy metal door opened to reveal their captor, in a state almost comparable to some of the more fortunate prisoners. The whumpee suppressed an urge to ask them what was wrong.

Wordlessly, the whumper drags a heavy metal tub underneath the whumpee. They took out a knife from their pockets. It was a bit dirty. They wouldn’t really have cared, they didn’t have the energy to, but they needed the blood to be clean. They can’t afford for the cut to get infected. Sighing slightly, they wiped the knife on their shirt, which was dirty anyway.

“Wha… What are you doing?” The whumpee asked in a wavering voice and received no reply. They gasped when the knife sliced across their leg, the bright red blood starting to flow out.

The whumper turned to leave. They can leave the whumpee here and just come back to collect the blood later. When they’re almost out the door, they paused and looked the whumpee up and down. “How much do you weigh?” They asked.

“Um, why?” The whumpee asked, grimacing. It’s less of the pain and more of the disconcerting feeling of their blood leaving their body. They could feel it in all of their leg. Realizing that they won’t be getting an answer to their own question, they replied, “50 kilos.”

The whumper did some quick mental math and sighed. With the amount of blood they needed, the whumpee would end up right on the edge of hypovolemic shock, but they can’t wait another day. It would be a shame if they didn’t get to have some fun with their new victim before they died, but it was worth it if it meant finally finishing the ritual.

They went upstairs to grab a book and came back into the cell. It shouldn’t take very long. They tried to focus on the words, but the basin was already nearly half full and they were still stuck on the same page. Sighing again, they slowly rose up, head still dizzy from all the blood loss. They needed fluids, and if they want the whumpee to survive, they need to get some for them too.

The climb up the stairs seemed to take forever, the natural light streaming in from the first floor seemed infinitely far away, but it guided them forward. They almost collapsed when they got to the kitchen, their hands gripping tightly onto the counter, knuckles white. With a shaky hand, they poured out a glass of lukewarm water. At the back of their head, they faintly remembered being told that salt would help balance the electrolytes, so they open the cupboards, almost hitting their head in the process, and tip the salt shaker over the glass. They down all of it in one go, taking big desperate gulps.

They start to pour another glass for the whumpee, but then decided that there was no way they could hold onto it as they descend the stairs in their current state. After stumbling down the stairs, almost rolling off a few times, they grab the hose, normally used for cleaning the cells after a particularly fun torture session, and walk into the cell again where the whumpee still remained chained to the wall.

The whumpee could barely look up when the whumper returned. Their head was pounding, and they were almost forgetting where they were. Their breath came in quick shallow gasps, made even worse by the position they were chained in. At first, they could feel their heartbeat speeding up, pounding hard, but now they could barely tell if they still had one. The light’s were too bright, but they couldn’t bring themselves to care. They were cold, and the warm blood trickling down their leg seemed to burn.

Something cool was thrust to their lips, and they heard a faint command to drink. Their mouth fell open, their tongue reaching out towards the liquid. They hadn’t felt their throat become parched, but the sound of water made them suddenly aware of their growing thirst. The water glided down their throat without them even having to swallow. It wasn’t nearly enough. The whumper watched with a faint smile on their lips, the whumpee craning their neck forward with closed eyes, trying to get more water, faster.

The whumper held the hose there, basking in the power they felt, having total control over the whumpee and barely allowing them the most basic sustenance they needed to survive. Their pounding headache finally reminded them to check up how the blood. The tub was nearly full, good.

They grabbed bandages, slowly wrapping up the cut, pulling it a bit too tight against the tender wound. They crouched down to pick up the tub, but when they stood up, they stumbled, almost spilling the blood.

They backhanded the whumpee with much less force than they intended. They could barely even lift their hand up. The whumpee whimpered.

“Can you walk?” the whumper asked, receiving a grunt and a nod in return. “Good. I’m gonna unchain you, and you’re gonna help me carry this upstairs. Don’t fucking try anything, and god help you if you spill it. If you follow my orders to the word I might even give you a few days to rest before I start playing with you, but if not, I swear I will whip you so hard you wish I didn’t bandage up that cut there, got it?”

The whumpee whimpered and nodded. The whumper loosened the chains and the whumpee barely managed to stay standing. The whumper doubted if this would help, but, well, what other option did they have? Two people had to be better than one, even if they were both on the verge of dying from hypovolemic shock.

They made their way up the stairs, almost tipping over too many times for the whumper to be comfortable with. Bringing it near the table laid with a mess of candles, spices, and animal parts, the whumpee collapsed on the ground, and the whumper followed suit, collapsing onto the chair.

“If you have the strength, you can go lie down on the sofa, I don’t mind,” The whumper said. They normally never even let their prisoners come upstairs, but they’re willing to make an exception today.

They took a deep breath, staring at all the supplies in front of them. They barely had the energy to perform the ritual, but they had to do it today. Looking behind them to see the whumpee lying on the sofa, their features so completely relaxed and vulnerable, the whumper motivated themselves to get started in the ritual with thoughts of how to hurt the whumpee afterwards.

[freckle-trash]

Advice for Periods/Endo Periods:

I have always grown up knowing I have Endometriosis since I was 11. Most people do not figure this out until their late 20′s or 30′s since doctors generally will not believe you. I just got lucky in the fact that there is a familia occurrence of it and that my doctor herself had it. 

Due to the Endo I actually have muscle relaxers for the absolutely god fucking awful days. But if you're like me you do not like having to be dependent on medicine unless you rly need it. That is why I learned to track my period and changed my eating habits while during it. Also why I found certain products to help me through the pain instead of depending on muscle relaxers.

The Method I used to go about helping with my period:

  Now a major change I made that is the hardest for everyone is that I changed my diet for my period. I’ll usually eat whatever I want the rest of the month but I change my diet to be period and cramp friendly about half a week before my period starts and for about 2 days after it. Why do I do this? Because by doing this i’m removing food and drink items that would actually cause my endometriosis/period cramps to get WORSE. Now, there are certain foods that make it worse that I just absolutely crave during my period but thats when you need to set yourself some food boundaries instead.

A major thing I crave on my period is obviously chocolate and cheese. Problem with that? I’m severely lactose intolerance and these two items of food cause very bad gastrointestinal problems for the majority of people. So not the best foods to eat on your period since gas cramps can actually make your period cramps feel 10x WORSE. 

My method to working around this? I actually go to the store and buy gas medicine and take it before each meal, and then I buy probiotic juice. The gas medicine helps greatly with the gas cramps most females/males with ovaries get when on their period. The probiotic juice is there to help you keep pooping normally because the one thing we generally won't admit is that it hurts to poop on our period. The probiotic juice makes the poop come out for you with no problem, you don't gotta force it or get backed up by a week. Letting yourself get backed up will make the period worse too, trust me.

Now what specific foods am I talking about cutting back on? Here is a list for you:

- DAIRY PRODUCTS

I know we all love ice cream and chocolate on our periods but we have to completely get rid of it during our period or set a measurement of how much we can have a day. I set it to be 5 pieces of chocolate and only a cup on ice cream a day because thats the sweet spot for me. I feed my craving just enough, but I won't screw my body over with more pain by overeating. 

- Bread

We all love bread but BOI does it back you up. backed up intestines means intestinal cramps. intestinal cramps equal worse period cramps. Just completely cut out the bread if you can. If you can't then just have one piece of bread for breakfast so you aren't over eating it.

- SWEETS SWEETS SWEETS 

i mean come on, eating to much of this off your period will upset your stomach to much. Having candy near you on your period is a recipe for disaster since we will just keep eating and eating and eating and eating. Stick to only hard candy or mints.

- C H I P S

Only two bowls of chips a day. Chips do not fill a person, they are expensive, and honestly you feel bad after eating them. I crave doritos dipped in chocolate like nothing else on my period but I also cry after realizing I ate an entire bag in 10 minutes and that I'm still hungry. Just pls save yourself that hurt and don't get chips, or pre-portion them out into baggies so you don't over eat them.

- acidic drinks

This includes soda AND juice. Now my guilty pleasure during periods is Cream Soda. I love it, its all i want to drink on my period. But that is a rly rly RLY big mistake. You'll fall into the craving of wanting something bubbly or acidic and cause yourself so much stomach pain. ALWAYS drink water or gatorade on your period and nothing else. KEEP HYDRATED. Constantly drinking acidic drinks or soda will dehydrate you during a time where you are dehydrated more than usual. Please be kind to yourself and stick to drinks with electrolytes in it.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now, if you stay away from those foods and follow the gas medicine and probiotic routine, you'll actually cut your period pain down by a third. I use to have the most DEBILITATING cramps to the point where I couldn't even move without vomiting, but then i started pre-training my diet before my period and now I can mostly go through the day with just painful ass cramps but not “vomit if I even twitch” cramps. 

The next most important thing to have and take on your period is Iron supplements. 

Most of us don't even think about that honestly. We are just so tired, and lethargic, and dizzy, and in pain that we don't bother to think about it. Why is that? We are low on iron y'all. trust me when I say do yourself the biggest fucking favor ever and buy iron supplements for your period. I use to practically be in comas during my period but now i have more energy during my period than i have normally because of the iron supplements. 

Another Item of advice that I know works for others I know but doesn't exactly work for me is a minor workout routine during your period. It’s never helped me but it helps others I know. The physical activity I have to do though is actually deep cleaning stuff. It keeps me busy and gives me a little bit of exercise while also helping me feel like i actually accomplished something. Some of my friends switched to that method instead of exercising and have said it makes them feel better because they were a bit active and they can see the results of said activity. If you exercise ur just well....exercising. If you clean you are making your space cleaner for yourself and removing some of your anxiety. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This last section is going to be dedicated to a list of items that I and others have found useful to have on our periods. If it helps us hopefully it could help you.

- IRON SUPPLEMENTS

- Gas medication (3 times a day with food)

- PROBIOTICS 

- heat pad stuffy (This thing here specifically --->https://www.amazon.com/Intelex-CP-TUR-1-Turtle-Cozy-Plush/dp/B07D9ZKMTP/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=period%2Bheat%2Btoy&qid=1564873457&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1)

These heat toys are a god damn blessing let me tell y'all. 

- epsom salt baths (I specifically get the rose petal epsom salts because its my favorite scent and the epsom salts are doing their job of releasing tense muscles at the same time.

- Aromatherapy bubble bath/body wash 

you’d be surprised how much aromatherapy actually helps with period cramps. I generally will get anything lavender since a major issue i have is sleeping and staying asleep on my period. 

- Livia period pain device

This item is made for people like me with endometriosis and anyone else with a uterus issue. it works wonders for us so I should help anyone with even just a regular period cramp. 

- get the softest or silkiest pajamas you can find

I know I always feel a fuck ton better being in silk pajamas or wearing a cuddly hoody on my period. find yourself a specific period outfit that you will feel absolutely comfortable in. 

- Get an ice pack. 

This may seem weird since we generally want heat on our uterus during periods but thats not what the ice pack is for. It ice pack is for your neck and face. If you're like me you get terrible headaches and fevers on your period. The ice pack will be a life saver.

- neck pillow.

its good to have support on your neck if you need to curl up in a ball, just sayin.

- tank top with built in bra

this one also seems weird but i fucking hate wearing actual bras on my period, but i also have extremely sensitive boobs so they can't just be hanging or they hurt S O MUCH. So i bought some of these well padded bad bois so I don't have to feel like i’m wearing a bra but my boobs won't hurt either (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q1FT1VD/?coliid=I2EDPG7QCZ7F4R&colid=FY4LAMPX1G21&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it)

Last but not least, a fun fact. Pads and tampons have fucking chlorine bleach in them. u wanna know how i figured that one out finally? I’m god damn allergic to chlorine. Vomiting all over a movie theater bathroom while feeling like you are dying isn't a fun experience - all because I wore a tampon for 5 fucking minutes. But I've fixed that problem because they are finally coming out with bleach free pads and tampons. So if you ever feel extremely sick during your period its probably because of the chlorine in your pads. Do yourself a favor and find the pure cotton bleach free pads and your local store. 

[citizen-zero]

I do extremely poorly in the heat, so I’d like to share some of what helps me. I don’t live in a climate that’s hot year round and I’m not a medical professional—most of these are just things that I’ve found personally helpful after living in an apartment without AC for 14 years.

Drink literally anything you’re able to tolerate, but for the love of all that is good, do NOT drink alcohol. I can’t think of anything that dehydrates you faster except maybe eating, like, a salt shaker. Even caffeinated soft drinks like coffee or tea or soda are preferable because they’re still water-based and they don’t dehydrate you nearly as much. I would even go so far as to say that, if your only options were alcohol or nothing…you might be better off with nothing. Stick to water and water-based drinks.

Hydration alone is not enough btw, you also want to keep your electrolytes up. Salty snacks are good here, as well as citrus juices (lemon and lime have always been best for me—toss some slices in your water bottle). I actually genuinely don’t know if they have Gatorade in the UK or if it’s just a US thing but get some if you can, or something similar to Pedialyte. Anything that’s hydrating that mentions electrolytes. The things one eats when sick might be useful as a reference now that I’m thinking about it…

If you reaaaaally want to go out, and/or you NEED to go out, stay in the shade and avoid direct sunlight at all costs, as much as you possibly can. Heat alone is a killer but the sunlight makes it a million times worse in my experience; even moving around in the shade is significantly better than in the sun. In fact, if you’re able to, just go full vampire for a bit and only go outside at dusk/night.

If you can help it, move slowly and take your time—unless you’re truly in a rush and/or going somewhere with AC, moving unnecessarily fast will drain your energy much more quickly than usual.

Also, make sure you eat well. That’s good advice generally but especially when it’s lethally hot. You’re being weakened by the heat, which makes you more susceptible to injury either from the heat or from the way the heat makes you feel (if you’re faint and dazed, you can’t drive safely, e.g.). You’re losing valuable bodily resources by sweating more. And generally speaking, you feel way shittier when you’re hungry even when it’s normal weather. Eating is crucial to recouping nutrients and maintaining strength.

Obviously some foods will be more nourishing than others, but in this kind of situation all that matters is that your stomach is full. Protein bars/shakes, trail mix, peanut/almond/cashew/etc butters, these are good in a pinch so carry some in your bag—if you can’t find those single serving packs of the butter then yeah, carry a jar. Who cares. I give all of you permission to get fast food or “junk” food without guilt if that’s what it takes. The most important thing is making sure you don’t suddenly pass out or worse because your body was stretched to its limit.

When you’re at home, literally just sit in a tub of cool water or under a cool shower for a bit.

Fill up some water bottles halfway, and then put them in the freezer laying down; half the bottle will be frozen and half will be empty. You can use them as an ice pack against your skin, but also, you’ll be able to drink water more easily as the ice melts into the empty space.

Good fucking luck y’all and stay safe

I need UK journalists to not show 43 degrees is not beach weather like people are gonna die

Americans do not interact

[optomstudies]

Since we’re starting a new year, here’s an updated step-by-step guide on sleeping and waking up early so you can achieve all the resolutions you’ve just set! Hope everyone is having a happy new year! ^_^

THE NIGHT BEFORE

Turn off your devices an hour before sleep. The blue light from your computer and mobile can really disrupt the natural melatonin levels that control your sleep cycle. End the day with some sort of reading, whether that be for leisure or some summary notes at the end of the day.

Swap the tea and coffee for warm milk with honey. If you must, herbal tisanes like chamomile ‘tea’ are soothing. Lavendar essential oils (used as a room fragrance) are also very calming. 

Write down a list of what you want to achieve by waking up early. Having a plan motivates you and stops you from crawling back to the warmth of your bed. When the morning you isn’t able to think clearly, let the motivated you make the decisions!

Pick out the clothes you want to wear for tomorrow, and make sure they match the weather! Like with the tasks you want to achieve, it’s not a good idea to let the morning you fumble with clothes and what matches well. Have a jacket or hoodie on hand to keep you from getting back in bed!

Keep your bed reserved for sleeping. Put your smartphone on the other side of the room so that you aren’t tempted to go and check up on your messages on social media. This will reduce the chance that you start a conversation with some night owl friend that ends up continuing past midnight.

Make sure your room is pitch black. This is so that light doesn’t end up disrupting your sleep cycle and so that you condition your body into thinking that it’s time for sleep. Try to sleep without a night light. 

Clear your mind. Whether you achieve this by meditating or otherwise, don’t think about anything, lest you stay up tossing and turning. This includes both exciting events tomorrow and sad events from today. Staying up late makes your mind more prone to negative thoughts and anxiety that may be exaggerated. Take anything your mind tells you at night with a grain of salt!

Get either 7.5 or 9 hours of sleep. This is because the brain has sleep cycles that are approximately 90 minutes long, so sleeping past will immediately pull you into the next sleep phase. When you wake up in the middle of deep sleep, you end up feeling groggy and tired throughout the whole next morning.

Roll your eyes up a fraction. Not sure if this will work for you, but I find doing this, just so that your eyes naturally rest as if they’re looking up a little (don’t look up too much) helps me to get to sleep. Possibly related to Bell’s phenomenon, but give it a go! 

IN THE MORNING

Reset your sleep cycle by waking at the same time each day. We all have those nights where we absolutely need to finish something by tomorrow but try to keep it constant when you wake. So if you miss the point where you would’ve slept 7.5 hours, go for 6, since you still have a complete sleeping period, and usually that extra hour or so is enough to get the work finished. So don’t think about sleeping in for afternoon classes, because you’ll just feel worse for wear the next time you have morning classes.

Go cold turkey. Willpower is like a muscle, the more you exercise it the stronger it gets. I have tried the gradual method of waking up at 7:30, 7:15, 7:00, etc. but I found the best way is to just so straight to your target wake up time. As long as you sleep early, there shouldn’t be a problem. The first day you feel tired in the middle of the day, but it’s easier than adjusting to a slightly different sleep cycle each day.

Wake up with a full blast of natural light. If your bed is next to a window like mine, then pull up the blinds to let as much natural light in as possible to stop the production of melatonin. This seriously works. I have slept at 2:30am and woken up at 6am refreshed without an alarm. 

Set an alarm that you know will wake you up. Whether it be an uplifting song you like or a super annoying alarm bell, choose something that you can associate with waking up in the morning. 

Wake up the first time your alarm rings. People who are reliant on their snooze button can diminish the positive effect of a good night’s rest because they are constantly drifting back to sleep only to be abruptly woken up a few minutes later. This causes a shortened, disrupted sleep cycle right before a person starts their day. 

Jump out of bed immediately. Don’t lie in bed thinking; you’ll just drift off again.

Have a glass of cold water, but don’t just down a whole bottle in one go, because your kidneys are remarkably good at preventing our electrolyte balance from being thrown out of homeostasis, so downing a heap of water will just make them overwork to reduce the water levels. Best to keep that glass of water next to you as you work and drink a few sips at a time while you are working. If you drink an excess of water, you have diluted the careful balance of electrolytes. Your kidneys will rapidly dump that water to ensure these electrolyte concentrations are not diluted.

Put on your clothes quickly! This one comes from personal experience. Doing it quickly is like a burst of energy to get you going for exercise.

Finish what you were going to do. Remember that list we wrote last night? Do it now and feel great about doing at least one thing extra this morning.

Don’t have a cup of coffee (yet)! On waking, our bodies stop the production of melatonin and start the production of cortisol to get you going. Cortisol isn’t just for stress, it also starts gluconeogenesis to increase your blood glucose levels (which is important for your brain function) and increases your metabolism. Drinking coffee will disrupt this natural waking hormone, and it also reduces blood flow to the frontal cortex which is responsible for higher order thinking and cognition (source). What this means is that although there is more sugar available, oxygen supply decreases. If you do drink coffee, it’s recommended to drink it around 9:00 or so, after the natural cortisol kicks in. 

Have an apple instead. It’s been shown to keep you awake better than coffee!

Exercise. There’s no need for me to explain that this is the best way to feel energized and refreshed for the rest of the day and to get your heart pumping! The morning air is dewy and hasn’t yet been tampered by the smell of car fumes and other pollution, so breath in :) Play some music with beats that will get you moving. 

Enjoy the benefits of a job well done. Give yourself a pat on the back, because it’s tiring to get up at 6am or earlier! You’ve got your study space all to yourself, enjoy it with a cup of orange juice, and some peace and quiet. Get to work/uni/school nice and early, ready to learn something new and feel proud that you aren’t one of those groggy students with their heads glued to the table!

Latest MasterPosts: Awesome Things to Look Forward To At College/Uni + Minimalist Studyblr Challenge + Bujo Ideas Masterpost

Follow optomstudies for daily original posts and study masterposts! Links: all originals + langblr posts + 15-part college 101 series + web directory!

[bethmariepotter-blog]

To Toss the Salt- or Pass it on over…..

This week I wanted to dig deep into sodium. I personally feel like there is this big stigma on salt and while we can have too much in our diet, I am finding a lot of OUR clients aren’t getting enough….

Each week we PREACH hydration, after all it is what helps us metabolize fat, right?!?! But what happens if you are continually drinking and yet your scans are reading that you are dehydrated? It can be so frustrating to see your water levels decline when you know you are killing yourself in the gym and in the kitchen. To make matters worse, we all know that if our water is down than our body fat READS higher and our lean muscle mass READS lower.  This combination can wreak havoc on our emotional state no matter where we are in our fitness journey. 

So here's the skinny on sodium…..

Unlike sugar, which has virtually no nutritional value, the body needs 500 milligrams of sodium daily to function optimally. The American Heart Association recommends consuming no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day, but it's best to keep your intake below 1,500 milligrams, if possible.

Here are a few reasons you may need to ADD  sodium to your diet...

If you are an athlete (which come on, we all know you are) then there is a good chance you are sweating out too much salt and you are not replenishing it and if you are drinking a lot of water (like we all know you should be) , that could lead you to an electrolyte imbalance. Even if you aren’t an athlete, and you normally just sweat a lot, the same could be happening to you. 

If your diet is SUPER clean…..( I mean give me all the chicken, fruits, veggies, egg whites and oatmeal, am I right?) there is a good chance you aren’t getting the recommended minimum of 500 milligrams of sodium each day.

Maybe you are TERRIFIED of becoming bloated so you skip the salt all together? I know a lot of people that are convinced if the number on the scale goes up it’s because of added fat to their  body, when it is in fact retained water.  Don’t focus so heavily on the number on the scale. Water and sodium are not fat...You will sweat it out as long as you are exercising properly. 

 If you are struggling with any of the above try adding in a few shakes of Himalayan sea salt to your gallon of water. You might be surprised on how better you feel!

[cassolotl]

POTS

So I’ve been thinking all my life that I don’t really understand food and hunger and appetite and things.

There’s a sort of urgent bodily need feeling that I get sometimes, that’s kind of light-headed and unpleasant, and it sometimes goes away when I eat so I assumed it was hunger. When it didn’t go away after food I assumed maybe I ate the wrong thing, or I ate too much sugar, or not enough carbs, or... whatever. I basically felt like I must be doing something wrong, and being really bad at food.

But since I’ve been getting to grips with EDS and the oft-associated postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), I’m thinking maybe I’m not hungry and it’s not my fault - maybe it’s because I feel dizzy and tired because of POTS.

There are some at-home easy remedies for POTS.

Adding salt to food (unless you already have high blood pressure) - because it increases blood pressure

Drinking more water than most people need, especially just after waking (8-10 cups) - because it increases blood volume

Sports drinks that aren’t caffeinated (electrolyte solutions, basically)

Increasing your activity really really gradually

I’ve always said coffee and black tea make me sleepy, and Wikipedia tells me caffeine makes POTS worse, so that fits. I’ve never gotten on well with alcohol, and that’s also meant to make POTS worse, so that fits. I can’t sit or stand for very long before powerfully needing a lie down, so that makes sense too.

Gotta say, I’m not going to be able to increase my activity to improve the POTS situation unless... the POTS situation improves. Woooo. But I can try sports drinks without caffeine and see what happens!

So next time I feel woozy, I’m gonna drink water or a sports drink, and eat something salty. And I need to be adding salt to every meal. Ugh. *cries*

[gallopinggold]

How to survive the summer as an equestrian

It’s already hitting the 90’s with 75% humidity here in the south, so I figured I would put together a list of all the tips and tricks I’ve heard over the years on how to manage participating in a sport that requires us to be in long pants, boots, gloves, and helmets without getting heat stroke:

For the rider:

Invest in some wicking shirts:  they really do make a difference compared to a plain cotton t-shirt.  Sun shirts can help too, but only for dry heats.  I’ve found in my personal experience that they make it worse when it’s humid out, but to each their own.  You can get equestrian specific ice fil shirts, but generic exercise clothes from goodwill or Walmart work just as well if you’re on a budget.

Take multiple water bottles to the barn with you:  I recommend bringing a refillable one from home, and keeping a pack of disposables in your car as back up.  Not all hoses are safe to drink out of, so don’t rely on that as a water source if your barn doesn’t have a tap or kitchen.  Be mindful of the heat index and the duration of your time at the barn; one 16 oz water bottle will not be enough if you’re going to be at the barn for multiple hours riding multiple horses.

Water is not enough:  water is great, but when you’re outside sweating for hours, you’re losing valuable salts as well.  Gatorade is an option to replenish these electrolytes, or coconut water for a more natural alternative.  If you’re prone to heat headaches, look for brands of coconut water that are high in magnesium.

Baby wipes are your friend:  If you run other errands after the barn, get some baby wipes to keep in your tack trunk. They’re cheap and will get rid of the nasty sweat and scent.  Trust me, the other people at the grocery store will appreciate it.  Get some make up wipes for your face if it’s sensitive.

 Sun hats are silly, but necessary:  The shade they provide really will make a difference.  If you teach lessons or are gonna be out picking paddocks in the hot sun, find one with a bigger brim.  You could pick a small brimmed one up at Dollar Tree, or get a fancier one form target for $5. Personally, I recommend the Dollar Tree ones, because it’s not gonna matter if they get ruined and you need to pick up another one.  Baseball caps are not as good because the brim only covers your face, whereas a sunhat will protect your neck as well.

 Sunscreen: Reapply often, as most only last 40 minutes when wet (i.e. from sweat).  You’re going to get a bad farmers tan regardless, so might as well try to not make it worse.  Sunscreen is also a good idea for white pony noses, they burn too!

Use a vented helmet:  sorry Charles Owen, you work better as a winter helmet.  Don’t necessarily go out and buy a new helmet, but if you’re prone to overheating, look into helmets that are vented for your next one.  Certain models of Samsheild, GPA, One K, and Ovation have good vents.  Get a helmet appropriate for the summer, instead of riding without one because you’re too hot.

Speaking of helmets, clean them:  Seriously, they are going to get to sweaty and gross, if you have a removable liner, wash it weekly. On days you’re not washing it or for non- removable liners, put some rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle and give it a spritz after each ride.  This is especially a good idea if you get forehead acne.  Keep your helmet clean to keep your face clear. Never run a helmet through the dishwasher, you will ruin the interior and it will not be safe to ride in

Keep things washed:  Wash riding clothes frequently, don’t re-wear sweaty clothes, especially sports bras. You’re just asking for an infection.

Store items appropriately:  Helmets have a limit on temperature for them to be safely stored.  Cars and non-temperature controlled tack rooms can easily exceed these temperatures, essentially melting your helmet.  It may look fine on the outside, but the inside has air pockets that can warp with heat.  It’s not worth risking your head.  Keep helmets inside when you’re not using them, as well as anything else like that

Fly spray isn’t just for horses: Don’t spend the summer being attacked by bugs.  A good homemade bug spray that is safe for both you and your horse is one half water, one half white vinegar, and essential oils of your choice.  Pick oils that repel bugs that are specific to your region.  Citronella, peppermint, lavender, and rosemary are good places to start.  Add drops of each oil until you’re happy with the scent.