Heat Exhaustion

Thought I would share this information for coaches and parents.

Today we were playing in the lovely town of Norco when it was 100 degrees. In the short time we were there I saw 2 ambulances/fire trucks drive up.

I also saw my daughter who is a Keeper not thinking correctly and literally just standing there as a ball was kicked passed her and not even lifting a hand. So uncharacteristic of her and then as I watched further, I saw many things that were uncharacteristic of her so at water break I asked her if she was okay. She told me she had abdominal cramps and she was dizzy. It was obvious she was fatigued too. Obviously she needed to get off of the field immediately. Upon telling the coach, nothing immediately happened. I tried to have my daughter just walk off of the field and she wouldn't do it. My daughter has never missed a game and I have allowed her to play through so many different things like the flue etc.. I have never pulled her or asked her to be pulled.

You don't mess around with being overheated. A soccer game is not worth any amount of risk. I talked with her and shared the following information and went over what she should do the next time she feels these symptoms. While she will push through so many things, this is not to be pushed through. It is too dangerous to push through it!


Complications
On its own, heat exhaustion is not considered a major health concern. If left untreated, however, heat exhaustion can lead to heatstroke and further complications, including brain damage and organ failure.

In rare cases, when heat exhaustion is accompanied by intense exercise or other medical conditions, it may cause a serious health risk.

Potential complications of heat exhaustion include:

  • severe kidney injury
  • rhabdomyolysis, which can cause kidney failure, tea-colored urine from an increase in the muscle protein myoglobin, irregular heartbeat, muscle pain, and vomiting
  • liver failure
  • arrhythmias, or a heartbeat that is either too fast or too slow
  • delirium or coma
 
Did you pull her off the field? I saw a parent walk on a field during play and help his daughter to sit down and give her water. This was during that really hot weather we had in August. The referee handled it correctly and called for a trainer and thanked the father for helping out. Next time just yell for the Referee and go onto the field and get your daughter.

If it was me, I would be having a conversation with the coach and DOC about player safety. That coach needs a kick in the ass for not immediately pulling your daughter. No soccer game is more important than a child’s safety.
 
My DD, also a GK, had this happen to her during CRL in August at Silverlakes. 2nd half about halfway through she vomited at the top of the 18. She continued to play and minutes later vomited again near one of her posts.

Our parents were on the opposite half of the field and never saw either occurrence because both occasions where when the ball was on the other half.

Thankfully we had one of our parents sitting by the corner flag with the opposing team. She ran behind the goal and asked my DD if she was okay and my DD was in a daze. She then immediately called to the ref. My wife was called over, we had a trainer sprint over and my DD was pulled without hesitation.

We got her under a canopy, stripped her down and used cold towels to bring down her body temperature. Once she was in the shade and started to cool down, she began to look a lot like her usual self.

We got her home into an ice bath to bring down her body temperature and she was on a steady hydration cycle the rest of the weekend.

"It'll never happen to us..." isn't an excuse to be dismissive of the consequences and the necessity to have your kids take ownership of how to take care of their bodies before / during / after this events.

Safety first!
 
Did you pull her off the field? I saw a parent walk on a field during play and help his daughter to sit down and give her water. This was during that really hot weather we had in August. The referee handled it correctly and called for a trainer and thanked the father for helping out. Next time just yell for the Referee and go onto the field and get your daughter.

If it was me, I would be having a conversation with the coach and DOC about player safety. That coach needs a kick in the ass for not immediately pulling your daughter. No soccer game is more important than a child’s safety.
My daughter is fine now and said the cramps in her stomach went away after 20 minutes sitting down. I have replayed the scenario so many times in my head and now realized I should have pulled her off the field regardless of anything. I tried to get her to come off of the field even though no coach called her off but she refused. It is one of those things that hind site is 20/20. I should have demanded it and why I didn't is beyond my understanding right now. I let an 11 year dictate what was best.

She now understands why that wasn't a good choice and I now know what I would do in the similar circumstance.
 
"It'll never happen to us..." isn't an excuse to be dismissive of the consequences and the necessity to have your kids take ownership of how to take care of their bodies before / during / after this events.

Safety first![/QUOTE]
This was a big lesson for my daughter. She brought up many things that she could do differently. She also got to see that NO SOCCER game is worth putting your well being at risk.
 
My DD, also a GK, had this happen to her during CRL in August at Silverlakes. 2nd half about halfway through she vomited at the top of the 18. She continued to play and minutes later vomited again near one of her posts.

Our parents were on the opposite half of the field and never saw either occurrence because both occasions where when the ball was on the other half.

Thankfully we had one of our parents sitting by the corner flag with the opposing team. She ran behind the goal and asked my DD if she was okay and my DD was in a daze. She then immediately called to the ref. My wife was called over, we had a trainer sprint over and my DD was pulled without hesitation.

We got her under a canopy, stripped her down and used cold towels to bring down her body temperature. Once she was in the shade and started to cool down, she began to look a lot like her usual self.

We got her home into an ice bath to bring down her body temperature and she was on a steady hydration cycle the rest of the weekend.

"It'll never happen to us..." isn't an excuse to be dismissive of the consequences and the necessity to have your kids take ownership of how to take care of their bodies before / during / after this events.

Safety first!
I've posted this before. Look into Endurolytes from Hammer Nutrition. You can normally find them at your local bike shop or online.

I raced Mountain Bikes for a dozen years and always used them. All four of my kids used/use them and I still use them today when I ride on hot days.

https://www.hammernutrition.com/pro...HtTki6dwtR01pjObZv4i2NNnkBmvXeuoaAu6kEALw_wcB
 
Hope she’s ok.
Was she on grass or turf?
What was her hydration like? (In the days leading up to the game. And the morning of).
In that kind of heat, it might not make a difference.
 
Best thing for next time is to immediately stop playing, hydrate, and get out of the sun/heat and into a cool/shaded environment (which in Norco means get into a car with AC on max). If symptoms are beyond what your child was experiencing (vomiting, lethargy, confusion, headache), I would go to ER.

I'm surprised there aren't more heat-related issues among youth soccer in this climate (with all the layered meanings of that term).
 
This looks like a good thing to have on hand...especially for girls
I don’t know about that;

IMPORTANT NOTES:

  • Many variables - body weight, fitness level, weather conditions, acclimatization level, and physiological predisposition - affect individual electrolyte requirements, so you must do your own trials with Endurolytes dosing, under a variety of conditions, to determine what your individual needs are.
  • Endurolytes DOES NOT prevent heat stroke, hyponatremia, or any other dangerous physical condition resulting from overexertion in the heat.
  • The amount of salt (sodium chloride) you habitually consume in your daily diet largely determines the amount of salt, you will need to consume during exercise and races. If you consume a high-salt diet, you will either need to increase your hourly dose of Endurolytes or use Endurolytes Extreme.
 
I don’t know about that;

IMPORTANT NOTES:

  • Many variables - body weight, fitness level, weather conditions, acclimatization level, and physiological predisposition - affect individual electrolyte requirements, so you must do your own trials with Endurolytes dosing, under a variety of conditions, to determine what your individual needs are.
  • Endurolytes DOES NOT prevent heat stroke, hyponatremia, or any other dangerous physical condition resulting from overexertion in the heat.
  • The amount of salt (sodium chloride) you habitually consume in your daily diet largely determines the amount of salt, you will need to consume during exercise and races. If you consume a high-salt diet, you will either need to increase your hourly dose of Endurolytes or use Endurolytes Extreme.
Would be interested if you can find any product that will claim that it does.
 
No. I don’t think there is. Kind of my point. We can arm ourselves against the elements in the days leading up to the event, but still no guarantees. I encourage my kiddos to make wise choices, as far as food and drink, a couple days ahead of what we know is going to be an extremely hot environment. NO CAFFEINE or any other dehydrating drinks, is always #1.
 
What age group / division?
Was this one with limited substitutions? No reason to expect youth to be able to play anywhere near a full game in extreme heat.
I’d argue no reason to expect a youth (under 18) to play a full game without being able to grab a rest and a drink more than just at halftime.
 
Hope she’s ok.
Was she on grass or turf?
What was her hydration like? (In the days leading up to the game. And the morning of).
In that kind of heat, it might not make a difference.
It was grass. She is okay today and was pretty much okay after about 30 minutes off of the pitch and in the shade with cleats off. She brought up a good point that she is used to being home and drinking water throughout the day and now that school has started, she isn't doing that. That probably was one part and there was a perfect storm of sorts the week leading up to the game that individually not usually an issue but should have been considered in totality when playing in extreme heat that I didn't even think about because where I live, it really wasn't extreme heat. You will find me being over prepared from now on. There are many kids that have died from heat exhaustion from playing sports. I had no idea until I started looking up the facts to show my daughter so she makes wise choices to speak up and not play through it for the sake of her team.
 
I was on the bench with one of our teams yesterday. Girl subbed out and said “I feel like I might throw up.”
Asked her a few minutes later what she ate for lunch. She had a tuna sandwich a few hours before the 3:30 the game. It was damn hot.
2004 age group.
The only thing that might be worse than a tuna sandwich on a hot day might be an Italian sub covered in peppers.
The go to meal for pre game on a hot day for me is peanut butter and jelly.
 
A few of the above mentioned incidents involved GKs. Some people think that because they aren't running all game that things are easier for them. Long pants, long-sleeve jerseys and of course gloves all contribute to heat related issues for them. My GK refuses to play without pants/long sleeves on turf. She has an afternoon game today on turf. Not thrilled about it. But she knows what she needs to do to prepare but I still follow up either way to be sure.
 
A few of the above mentioned incidents involved GKs. Some people think that because they aren't running all game that things are easier for them. Long pants, long-sleeve jerseys and of course gloves all contribute to heat related issues for them. My GK refuses to play without pants/long sleeves on turf. She has an afternoon game today on turf. Not thrilled about it. But she knows what she needs to do to prepare but I still follow up either way to be sure.
Yep...my daughter and I talked about the long pants and if we should change that...even if not on turf, many fields where she has played are essentially dirt and rocky around the goal so it is pretty easy to get cut open especially because my daughter is a slider and diver on a regular basis. Where she practices is terrible and we go through gloves like never before. The pants she wears has built in ventilation so I think it is safer for her to keep them on.
 
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