This lovely lady named Linda sent me right to one of the cots inside the tent. The shelter from the sun brought nearly immediate relief of my weariness. As we were filling out the forms, I unlaced my shoes and took them off. She put bags of ice on both my calves and told me to lie down.
She took my vitals and left for a minute to talk to the head medic. She came back and asked how much I was drinking. I was honest. I was not drinking nearly enough. They made me drink my entire 27 oz water bottle full of Gatorade before I could go.
After about half an hour, Linda was taking my vitals again. She said they were better and that I wasn’t so hot and sweaty any more. I said being in the shade had helped and I asked her if my face was still red. She asked what I meant. I said when I exercise, my face turns beat red and stays that way for at least an hour after I stop.
She said your face isn’t red, dear. It was pale when you came in. That’s why we were concerned. Pale skin, heavy sweating, rapid pulse… you were suffering from heat exhaustion, girl. Your pulse is down now and your color is better. I want you to drink an entire bottle of Gatorade between pit stops. If you are staying properly hydrated, you should need to hit the port-a-potty at every pit stop. Drink the Gatorade and eat the peanuts and pretzels and chips for the salt. And stretch every hour.
Then she asked if I wanted her to get me a ride to camp. I told her no, I wanted to walk, that I was ready to walk again and I wanted to finish. She gave me a hug and told me to go directly to the beverage tent and fill my canteen.
As I got myself together and headed out for the last leg of the walk, Linda waved and said see you at camp.
And in the background were 4 of the other medics, arm in arm, doing a cheer I’d been hearing the entire 45 min I was in the medical tent:
HYDRATE!!! URINATE!!! STRETCH!!! STRETCH!!! STRETCH!!!
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