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Outdoor Survival Three key hazards: 1) Hyperthemia, 2) Dehydration, 3) Hypothermia. 1. Hyperthermia: Overheating your body can be as disastrous as overheating an engine.
Heat stroke is overheating to the point your brain stops functioning and you stop sweating, becoming flushed and dry. You can't treat hyperthermia yourself. You must prevent it by 1) limiting physical activity, 2) staying in the shade, 3) Drinking plenty of water, 4) Wearing loose clothing--you want your sweat to evaporate, not roll off your body. 5) Balance your electrolytes (salt). 2. Dehydration: Your body sweats to prevent hyperthermia, but it dehydrates itself in the process. If you're active and sweating, you're losing fluid. Every breath exhales some water vapor. Digesting food uses fluids. Thirst is the first indicator, but in a survival situation you may be distracted and only drink a few sips--enough to quench your thirst. But if you don't drink enough to rebalance your system and electrolytes, you'll soon notice a vague discomfort. 1) Your skin may flush, 2) next is a loss of appetite, 3) increased pulse and respiration. At the point you've lost fluid amounting to five percent of your body weight, you'll get sick--miserably sick. Nausea will destroy your desire to drink. You'll vomit and lose more fluid. Further symptoms include, dizzy, severe headache, short of breath, thick speech, and eventually you won't be able to walk. Dehydration at this level is extremely dangerous. You must prevent dehydration. Unless you have lots of water, eat little and don't work up a sweat. 3. Hypothermia: This is a matter of lowering your body's core temperature. You're designed to function at about 99 degrees. Drop your temperature a few degrees and you start to malfunction. It doesn't even have to be that cold to induce hypothermia. If you get wet and the wind is blowing, and you start shaking like a leaf, it could be the beginning of hypothermia. In a survival situation, hypothermia can be a killer. Your body is like an engine, generating both energy and heat as it burns fuel. When you're shivering, your body is telling you that it's losing calories (heat) faster than they're being replaced. The fuel is food. You need dry clothes, warmth and food. If you don't stop shivering, your body will choke off circulation to your hands and feet, and you're going to need them both to light a fire and survive. What's happening is your automatic reflex is trying to keep your vital organs warm. Hypothermia takes away your desire to help yourself. About the time you quit shivering, you also stop being concerned. You're dying and you don't care. You must prevent hypothermia. Survival Supplies To Keep In Your Vehicle
________________________________________ You may want to add: 1) Survival food packets, 2) Jumper cables, 3) Portable CB radio, 4) Some sort of weapon--ideally a rifle, 5) Compass. Sources: Desert Survival Handbook The SAS Survival Handbook
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