If you have a lot of confidence in your doctors and the medical professionals and want to try and help yourself within your capabilities, you can play a vital role in your journey toward healing. It may be useful to reflect on your lifestyle, consider any changes you wish to make, have some counseling about issues that are extremely worrying for you, and get out there and help yourself get better. Trying to be optimistic about your future and about getting well will give you the freedom to do the best to your ability and not to the expectation of others.

Have the confidence to be a vital part of your health management team as only teamwork can fast track your path back to full recovery and survival. Be prepared before each appointment with questions or other concerns. Avoid blaming ‘others’ if things do not seem to be progressing, as you would wish. It may be a normal part of the process. Health teams occasionally talk of the patients who threaten to litigate, abuse and are generally most unpleasant to deal with. This is often an indication that the person is venting their fear, frustration and anxiety toward those who are working to getting you well again. Being reasonable will not only use less of your energy, but improve your relationship.

If you have a lot of confidence in your doctors and the medical procedures and try to help yourself within your capabilities, you can play a vital role in your journey toward healing. It may be useful to reflect on your lifestyle, have some counseling and get out there and help yourself get better. Just try and be really positive about getting well and don’t get bogged down in other people’s expectations of you. You have to do the best to your ability, not theirs.

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Too hot for comfort and safety

Heat exhaustion occurs when your body is not able to cool off and maintain a comfortable body temperature. Hot weather, excessive exercise and dehydration can cause the body to overheat. Small children and people who are frail, are older adults, are obese or have a chronic illness are at risk, as well as people in poor condition who overexert themselves.

Note your symptoms

Headache

Weakness

Fatigue

Dizziness

Nausea

Shallow breathing

Muscle cramps

Profuse sweating, cool, clammy skin, or body temperature slightly elevated or lower than normal

What you can do

If you are overheating:

Move to a cooler place and remain quiet.

Loosen clothing.

If dizzy, lie down with head lower than feet.

Drink small amounts of liquid frequently.

Place cool, wet cloth on forehead.

Watch for signs of shock and heat stroke.

Do not consume alcohol or apply it to the skin.

Seek emergency help

Heat stroke is the critical stage of heat exhaustion and is a medical emergency. All of the body’s cooling systems are overloaded when the body temperature reaches 104° F and continues to rise. Symptoms of heat stroke are:

Hot, dry skin

Bright red or flushed skin

Body temperature of 105° F or greater

Person becomes delirious, disoriented or unconscious

While waiting for help, sponge the person’s body with cool water or apply cool, wet sheets and monitor the person’s temperature every 10 minutes. Stop cooling if temperature drops suddenly or signs of shock develop with cool, clammy skin and weak, rapid pulse.

Call your doctor now

If symptoms are severe, become worse with self-care or last longer than one hour, seek professional medical care quickly.

Prevention

Drink more than 10 eight-ounce glasses of water a day if exercising or working in hot weather.

Stay in the shade or air-conditioned areas. Avoid sudden changes of temperature.

Wear loose-fitting, light-colored clothing of natural fibers such as cotton or linen.

Limit your activity and exercise during the hottest time of the day.

Never leave an infant or child alone in a closed auto in hot weather.

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Importantly, the delusional thinking that occurs in BDD usually isn’t bizarre, as it is in schizophrenia. In addition, other symptoms of schizophrenia (prominent hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized behavior, and negative symptoms) are absent in BDD. Data on the cooccurrence of these disorders strongly refute a close relationship between them: in my series of patients with BDD, none were diagnosed with schizophrenia, nor have other researchers found coexisting schizophrenia in people with BDD. Similarly, schizophrenia

Treatment response also differs. Antipsychotic medications (neuroleptics) are the mainstay of treatment for schizophrenia and are often effective. In contrast, SRIs seem most efficacious for BDD, whereas antipsychotics alone appear ineffective.

Conclusions: Overall, BDD doesn’t appear to be a symptom of schizophrenia. Nor does BDD appear closely related to schizophrenia.

Practical Implications: Even though BDD is misdiagnosed as schizophrenia less often than in the past, it still happens. It’s important to differentiate these disorders from each other, especially because effective treatments differ. If a person has both disorders, each disorder should each be diagnosed and targeted in treatment.

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