I posted this over in Blade Forums as well for those of you here that go over
there on occasion. Cheers.

I want to underline the importance of hydration in this post.
While not exactly a "survival" experience in the manner that most people
on here would term survival, this is none tne less as important as any
other experience.

Over the last couple of days, I have been experiencing cold / flu like symptoms.
Not pig flu, but just a regular type of flu, although no less severe.
Anyway, after coughing, feeling like crap, having sore achy muscles and
a chronic lower back condition, I spent a fair bit of time in bed.
Last night was no different. Was in bed early, getting lots of rest, had
taken some ibuprofin for the back pain, but was generally just being one of
those sick guys that drive their wives nuts when they get sick.
About 3 am, I had to get up to go to the bathroom, so I hauled my carcass out
of the bed, plodded to the bathroom and relieved myself.
While sitting on the toilet, I experienced a very dry mouth, so I finished up
in the bathroom and went to the kitchen for a drink.
No sooner did I get a sip down my throat, that I started feeling like I was
going to throw up, so, cup of water in hand, I plodded as quickly as I could
back to the bathroom.
Very suddenly, I got extremely dizzy, and heard the sound of a thousand rivers
rushing wildly past my right ear.
I realized that I was going to pass out, so my thought was to get to the
bedroom and get horizontal as quickly as I could. My body thought otherwise
however, and I bounced off the bedroom door frame and collapsed on the floor.
Everything went black, and then I hears my wife yelling at me. Everything
went black again.
Finally, I started to become conscious again, and after a few minutes, was
able to crawl back into bed.

My wife (who has medical experience) said that she asscertained I was breathing,
and that I wasn't hurt badly, and had just phoned 911 when I became lucid again.
From their questions, it was determined that I didn't suffer a heart attack or
a stroke, so they told me to stay at home, and if there were any other incidents,
to phone them back and they would dispatch an ambulance.
After talking to the doctor this morning, it was determined that my situation
was caused by dehydration.
Foolishly, I thought that I was getting enough fluids in my body, but I didn't
take into account that my tea with lemon and honey was actually dehydrating me
(the caffeene), and that my body was using up fluids at an alarming level due
to fight off the illness.

Survival can happen anywhere, at any time, and under any circumstance.
Mine was luckily, in my house with medical attention handy.
If this had happened in the bush, the possibility of getting seriously hurt
would have been far greater.
A lesson learned, by me at least, and I'm thankful that the circumstances in
which I learned it were as good as they were.