I know that I have talked about water intoxication before, but it was recently in the news again. Essentially water intoxication is when a person's electrolytes are so out of wack that the brain swells, causing seizures, internal organs to shut down and possibly death. A woman in the states was in a contest and drank a bunch of water ( I can't find exactly how much) and was later found dead.
Some of you might remember that a few years ago I volunteered at Riverview on the Self-Induced Water Intoxication ward. The people in Riverview drank water for the high they got when their brain started to swell. It was due to a compulsion to drink water similar to the compulsions people with OCD experience. Most of the people on the ward were schizophrenic with OCD. Sadly Self-Induced Water Intoxication is very difficult to treat and most people who suffer from it, spend their entire lives in a secure facility.
Water intoxication also happens to athletes, usually runners and endurance athletes. Usually their get severely dehydrated and then chug water, which causes a change in electrolytes that is too fast for the body. Which is why you are supposed to drink water before, during and after you exercise.
Bonus points for anyone who can tell me what the fear of drinking is called.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Water Kills Woman
Posted by Hilary at 10:47 a.m.
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7 comments:
I'll play your game......
Dipsophobia- Fear of drinking
Also here are two I found that I find quite amusing:
Aulophobia- Fear of flutes
Geniophobia- Fear of chins
hmmmmmm fear of chins......how does that work???
Very interesting post about phobias!!!
bonus points for Karen!
Dipsophobia is actually a horrible phobia to have, think how often you drink something! They usually aren't afraid of the water, but afraid of choking while drinking.
Fear of chins, I thought was a good one too. Maybe they are afraid of certain chins. Like John Travolta's. That chin is scary!
does it matter what you're afraid of isn't the sickness the fact that you have a phobia. just call them all sick and save you a years worth of studying?!?!?
There is a short and a long answer to that. I'll try the short one.
Phobias are a learned response to an object. Treatment-wise, it doesn't much matter what the object is.
Phobias are very easily unlearned. It takes anywhere from a day to a few weeks to be completely free from phobias. But most people don't believe this, and instead they suffer.
see its all just in your head, oh if comedy paid.... yah i'd still be poor. but i actually never new it was THAT easy to talk people out of them ( ie. days, weeks). this must be where reverse psychology comes in.?!? k, i'll stop babling i'll go back to drinking my wine! hope your having fun with those phobias
I am guessing this post comes from that woman who died drinking water for the radio contest?
You can hear the whole thing on the internet and aparently a woman even calls in and tells them it is dangerous and the DJ's just laugh it off with talk of release forms.
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