When a human body is exposed to bitterly cold temperatures for too long, it can lead to a rapid drop in body temperature. In fact, it doesn’t even have to be the traditional bitter cold winter night that we all think of, but any situation where the body temperature drops faster than the body can reheat. Some ways this can happen are being wet, sweaty, rained on, or trapped in cold water. These things cause hypothermia.
Hypothermia is defined by the Mayo Clinic as when the body loses heat faster than it can produce it, causing the body temperature to fall to dangerously low levels. This is when the body temperature drops below 95 degrees Fahrenheit or 35 degrees Celsus. Most people do not know they have hypothermia until it is too late because it affects the brain, making it hard to think clearly. The bad news is that if it is not treated soon enough, it can lead to heart attacks, kidney failure, liver damage, or even death. I will link to the Mayo Clinic article about this.
The people most at risk of hypothermia are the elderly; babies sleeping in cold rooms; young children; people with mental illnesses that affect judgment, such as dementia or Alzheimer’s; alcohol or drug use; medical conditions that affect the ability to regulate the body’s temperature or exhaustion; and people who are outside for long periods of time. This could be hunters, soldiers, the homeless, farmers, etc. It could also happen to your character’s pets.
The best way to deal with hypothermia is to prevent it. Some tips include,
Stay inside where it is warm.
If you must go outside, layer up; use a hat and mittens over gloves, but gloves are better than nothing.
Wear two pairs of socks.
Do not do activities that will cause you to sweat.
If you sweat or get wet, change clothes, preferably in a warm place, as soon as possible.
Keep moving to create body heat.
Do not eat snow or ice; it will lower the body temperature.
Do not drink alcohol, as it will lower the body temperature.
Go inside to warm up often.
Dress infants and young children in one more layer of clothing than the average healthy adult.
Check on babies and the elderly often.
Bring any children or elderly that start shivering inside to warm up.
As we all know, even the best intentions to prevent things sometimes fail, so your characters must watch out for the signs of hypothermia. These are,
Shivering.
Slow or unclear speech.
Feeling exhausted, or very fatigued.
Confusion or unclear or fuzzy thinking.
Fumbling of hands.
Decreased movement.
Lack of coordination.
Weak pulse.
Shallow breathing.
Memory loss.
Drowsiness.
Loss of consciousness.
And in babies, some different signs to look for are,
Bright red, cold skin.
Very low energy. Remember, each child is different, and your characters must base this on the individual child’s energy levels.
Now let’s talk about what to do if your character has hypothermia. The person should be moved into a warm, dry place as soon as possible. Any wet clothing needs to be removed because it will continue to suck the warmth from the body. Remember that if your character was in the snow, they might have unmelted snow on their clothing, that once they get to a warm place, the snow will melt. Keep that in mind. If possible, give them warm clothing. Even room temperature is warmer than they are. Cover them with blankets or towels to help retain their natural body heat and warm up faster.
If there are things like warm water bottles or electric blankets, remember to focus on warming the core with the vital organs first. Focus on the chest, neck, head, and groin. Also, warm drinks such as water, tea, or coffee. Before giving it to them, remember to have a character test everything so as not to burn the mouth or tongue of the character with hypothermia.
Some things to consider if a warm enclosed area is not available. They still need out of the wet clothing! I’ve heard many tales of men jogging circles around a campfire to make body heat and, importantly, stay awake while their clothing dries by the fire. I have heard it is cold and painful, and no one likes running for hours while the clothes dry! This should only be done to your character as a last resort or if the other person is just cruel. If your character is, you might be a horror writer.
If things are even worse than this, and your characters are in the forest or deep snow, and one cannot physically move around, there is a last-ditch effort. Skin-to-skin contact can help. Remember to insulate them from the ground, as the ground will steal body heat. You also need insulation over both characters. A campfire nearby would be great, but it may be impossible.
If you are writing modern times, calling 911 or whatever the country’s emergency number is would be important. Your characters can get even better care, including a machine that can warm the patient’s blood.
Fun fact: You should never vigorously rub someone with hypothermia to warm them up. This can actually trigger cardiac arrest. Cardiac arrest means the heart suddenly stops pumping.
What could possibly go wrong:
Likely to go wrong: Your character doesn’t realize they have hypothermia, and someone else has to spot it and get them warmed up. Hypothermia affects the brain and can cause poor judgment.
Likely to go wrong: When trying to warm someone up, one of your characters gives someone with hypothermia a too-warm drink, and their mouth or tongue get burned.
Possible to go wrong: Your character not only has hypothermia but gets frostbite. If they are out in the cold too long, they start to lose feeling and might not know they are frostbitten.
Possible to go wrong: Your character doesn’t realize they are tired because of hypothermia and sits down to rest. This could be deadly because they are not moving and generating more body heat. Your character has a high chance of dying like this.
Unlikely to go wrong: Your character gets lost because they can’t remember their way when hypothermic. It could even happen in a place they should know their way around.
Unlikely to go wrong: If your character was drinking alcohol, the stumbling, slurring of speech, and sleepiness might not look like hypothermia but more like drunkenness. If no one sees the signs, this could be deadly.
Improbable, but technically still in the realm of possibilities: Your character is alone and falls into the river getting wet. They then spend an entire night running around a campfire to stay warm and let their clothes dry. It has been done, but not often.
Improbable, but technically still in the realm of possibilities: Your character comes across a parent who froze to death, shielding their child from the cold; however, the child is alive. This has happened in history, but not often does someone get to them before they both freeze. A sad but true fact.
Helpful links to learn more:
Hypothermia 101:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hypothermia/symptoms-causes/syc-20352682
Preventing hypothermia:
https://youtube.com/shorts/21i9XYB8ulY?feature=share
Spotting and treating hypothermia:
What hypothermia does to the body:
