by Lori Shevokas

Created on: February 15, 2007   Last Updated: April 18, 2007

The Ups and Downs of My Ups and Downs:
I honestly believe if there were an award given for the greatest number of reasons a single person has fainted in a year or even a lifetime, I might actually be a contender for first place. When I was a teenager, I was a certified Medical First Responder. The classes were intense and covered many reasons why a person might lose consciousness, but to tell you the truth, most patients I encountered with those conditions did not lose consciousness. For our training and practical exercises, someone would always volunteer to be "the patient." We were even taught how to tell when someone was faking a loss of consciousness (something for which I never quite understood the motivation."

When I was pregnant, before I knew I was pregnant, I had fainted for the first time. In fact, after I learned I was pregnant, and the date of conception was approximated, the date matched up with the night I had fainted. Theory number one: women may actually faint at the moment of conception. [I am not a doctor, and received no medical treatment for that fainting spell.]

During that same pregnancy, in the heat of the summer, I had fainted at a local carnival. I was told I was dehydrated. Theory number two: people faint from dehydration. The interesting thing is that most Americans do not maintain proper hydration in any given day (6-8 glasses of water, 8oz each, per day.)

Near the end of this same pregnancy, I had become very ill. I spent a week and a half in the hospital. When my fever spiked 103 degrees, I had fainted. Theory number three: sick people with high fevers faint.

During my second pregnancy, I was working as a cashier, and fainted while ringing up a customer's order. Luckily, I knew the customer well - he had been the best man at my wedding, and was my husband's best friend. At the hospital, I was informed that my blood sugar had been dangerously low, and I was diagnosed with gestational hypoglycemia. Theory number four: People faint when their blood sugar is too low.

Several years later, I had enlisted into the Army. I was at AIT (Advanced Individual Training) when I caught the crack of a sidewalk wrong in the dark, and snapped my ankle. Upon finally placing my full weight onto the injured ankle, I instantly changed colors and dropped. I was in shock. Theory number five: people faint from shock.

A couple years later, in the Republic of Korea, still in the Army, I dislocated my shoulder. I did not faint from the pain or the shock. In fact,

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