I just thought I would post my story so that others could be aware of the
dangers of Hyponatremia. This is also called water intoxication and is a result
of low sodium in the blood and can be deadly. It is caused from drinking an
excess of water, without replenishing enough electrolytes. During the first two
legs of the race I drank water and 32 oz of gatorade. Also had 3 Endurolytes
and a package of Luna moons. After the second leg of the race, I was feeling a
little bad, so I ate half a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich, half a turkey and
cheese crouisant and half a snickers bar. Still not feeling well, I went to see
the medic on hand and he thought I was over heated and needed water. I drank a
couple bottles of water and by then the food kicked in and I was feeling better.
I filled my camelbak up with 100 0z of water, grabbed a 16 oz gatorade and took
off again. Concerned about getting dehydrated, I sucked on my camelbak not
realizing how much I was drinking. About 2 1/2 or 3 miles into the bike ride
(we turned around at that point because I was starting to feel bad again) I
realized I had drank the entire 100 oz of water. I also drank the bottle of
gatorade, but it just wasn't enough to balance out all of that water. I saw the
medic again and he told me I needed to drink water, so I did. I started to
drink a recovery drink, thinking maybe that's what my body needed, but was told
your body is not ready for that, just stick to water. I did drink a caprisun
electrolyte drink and another electrolyte mix that Rhonda gave me, but by then
my stomach was just too full. I ended up throwing up, and started having
diarrhea. After throwing up I felt good enough to get in the car, so my husband
drove us back to Austin. By the time we got into town I told him to take me to
the hospital (I could tell my body was swollen, I was starting to get a headache
and I felt awful). I ended up in Intensive Care overnight because my fluids
were so diluted and my sodium was so low. The doctors were concerned that I
could have seizures and brain swelling, so that is why they took me to ICU.
During the night I had a CT scan of my brain to check for swelling, but
thankfully I did not have any swelling. If so, they would have had to drill a
hole in my head and drain it out. For treatment they gave me an IV with a
saline solution, but they said they have to slowly increase the sodium levels in
my body. By the morning I felt fine and back to normal. But, had I not
listened to my instinct and gone to the ER, I could have been in a deadly
situation. I know I posted a lot of information in this email (what I ate and
drank), but I thought it was important to show that I was taking in electrolytes
and adequate food (the doctors said my liquids and blood sugar were fine), it's
just that the liquids were too diluted. From now on, I will never go without
electrolytes mixed in with the water in my camelbak. I hope you read this and
make sure electrolytes are a big part of your hydration plan during and after
racing or training. And also beware, that the symptoms of hyponatremia and
dehydration present themselves almost the same. What really clicked in my head
that I had water intoxication was when I had to use the restroom to pee while
waiting in the ER. If I was dehydrated, that would not have been the case.
Thanks for reading my story - Tehra