Too much heat??

Hi All,
This past wk I had to work in a large room with no AC, just "barn fans", it was very hot and humid (just before a storm) and of course had to wear my lab coat which is like wearing a raincoat (does not breathe). I had comsumed about 60oz of water before starting work, religously taking my vitamins and had a high protein shake for breakfast. I had lost about 20# since May (pre-op) and had been feeling wonderful.
Well....after a few hours of fast and furious work, I became dizzy, sl. disoriented, my face was beet red and hot. I ate a protein bar on my 15min break and downed alot of water all day. Was I overheated? I then developed a headache. I was kinda shakey until I got into an AC vehicle and we stopped at a nearby restaurant which had AC. I drank about 3 more large glasses of water, ate some grilled chix breast and veggies...felt better after about 45 min. This had not happened to me in MANY year. Maybe I didn't eat enough?
Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
PS...that site should not have been approved due to the extreme heat and humidity that day...we ended up having a tornado go through and had to close down anyway.
Alice

 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  Alice, I'm no medical person but it sounds like you did all the right things.  Because of the weather and the building conditions you may not have been able to prevent what happened.  The only thing I would do differently is have more solid protein instead of the shake and bar.   I use to dehydrate very easily so I know first hand what you were feeling.  Hopefully, you won't have to work there again.  Best Wishes....  Millie

Hi Alice.....wow...that is wicked working conditions!

I think you did the right thing. Plenty of water is the best. You do not want to dehydrate. However,I agree with Millie....you need more dense protein. The liquids just run right through or you sweat it out. Try to keep a little cooler with some cheese sticks, beef jerky or something like that on hand.

Hugs, connie d

You probably got a little too hot.  Drinking water was the best thing and then, of course, adding a little salt through the food was also good.  Are there labcoats that are made of thin cotton that you could buy just for these occassions?

Thanks everyone. I usually do take jerky with me since we only have 1-2 15min breaks a shift but did not have any that day. Our lab coats are company produced so we are at their mercy. I cannot say the organization I work for cuz it is national but things go on like this all the time. I've recently had specialized training that'll eventually put me in a nicer environment to work in.
I've been a nurse for many yrs but thi**** me so unexpectedly. I'm looking forward to the "thinner" yrs when heat is not so difficult to tolerate. They've just started to allow us to have drinking water nearby during the shift, before we could only drink fluids on our break.
By the way, I had to shut down my computer earlier cuz of a storm that went over...couldn't thank you then.
Thanks again,
Alice