Things Everyone Should Know

Why would I even step out with such a title? Well, it’s the beginning of a series that will point out some very important comment sense things to know that perhaps somehow you missed. I am going, to begin with one that clearly I should have known about and I was clueless. My lack of knowledge was harmful to my brother. I didn’t know how to help and what to do. I should have known this. 

Do you know the signs of dehydration? Do you know the color that urine is supposed to be? Do you take notice of what color your urine is?

I knew nothing about most of this and I want to prevent anyone from having the issues that he struggled through which could have been solved so quickly and not turned into a hospital visit and a superinfection he got at the hospital. For me, this is important to share.

If you know my bothers story, he is living on God’s time. His body is attacking itself with SLE Lupus, congestive heart failure and seizures just to highlight a few. It’s a mental struggle every day and decisions are had to make. 

I didn’t catch one simple problem and because of my lack of knowledge, we almost lost him. That is a heavy burden. 

Here is what I want you to know about dehydration and what should be done when you even think it could be part of the equation. I didn’t know all the signs to look for and I am going to share them here.

~ Nausea

~ Dark or yellow urine (it should be clear and we should be looking)

~ Constipation

~ Headache

~ Irritability

~ Brain fog

~ Thirst

~  Dry Mouth

~ Dry skin, cracked lips and hands

~ Dry and irritated eyes

~ Dizziness

~ Indigestion

~ Cramps (anywhere in your body)

~ Rapid heart rate

~ Urinary tract infection

~ Can’t drop any weight

I don’t know if your reaction was the same as mine when the doctor went over the list. I said, “Almost anything can be dehydration.”

“Great, you got it. So here are some things I want you to do every day.  Start each day with a warm cup of bone broth. It’s comforting. It’s good for you. It’s liquid.

Limit caffeine, eventually, the goal would be to eliminate it altogether.

Check the color of your urine every time you go to the bathroom. If it is not clear drink a glass of water. If you are not feeling well add the juice of ½ a lemon and a pinch of salt to the water. 

Set a timer and make certain you are drinking at least 4 ounces of water every hour. That is not nearly enough, and still, it’s a good habit. Once you have the habit of drinking every hour you are awake, adding a few more ounces in a simple transition.

Yes, you can drink too much water. It is very rare in adults.  The normal recommended amount for a healthy adult person is 64 ounces of water per day. 

The next time you visit your doctor, ask the hydration question. “For a person with my specific conditions, how much water should I drink daily to be healthy and then just do it.