Soaking in a hot bath with Epsom salts, scented oils and candles is one of my weekly pleasures. It is a great way to relax while helping your body detox as it raises your core temperature, dilates your blood vessels, aids blood circulation, lowers blood pressure and draws contaminants out through your pores, along with many other benefits.
But there are just as many health dangers to hot baths as there are bonuses. At the risk of getting too personal, I’d like to share a recent traumatic experience with a cleansing hot bath so that others are aware of the dangers and can take the necessary precautions.
This post was updated with photos on November 4, 2009. It took me awhile to get over myself before publishing them. 
My Bath Tub Trauma
Normally, Sundays are my bath night so I can wind down the weekend and gear up for the week ahead. But this week was different. The weekend was exceptionally busy and by Tuesday morning, I woke up with a sore throat. I called in sick so that I could rest, give my immune system a chance to attack the virus and escape the otherwise inevitable cold. A cold would certainly slow me down – the last thing I needed or wanted.
Drinking plenty of liquids and grabbing lots of sleep, the afternoon brought an impulse to have a hot, steamy bath with Epsoms salts. I thought, “This’ll take care of any nasty cold virus; I’ll flush it out!”
The bath was heaven and a half an hour later I stood to get out…and fainted! I was lucky: my face broke my fall. It could have been much worse since we have a narrow bathroom and I missed hitting my head on the porcelain sink, toilet and heat register.
When I woke, which was only seconds later, I was on the floor. I lifted myself up slightly, blinked, and blood started falling to the floor in big drops. Disoriented, I stood and looked in the mirror and sure enough, I was bleeding through my mouth and nose. Grabbing a clean facecloth, I soaked it, held it to my face and stumbled into the living room to grab the phone.
I had no thought processes at this point, by the way. I was confused, I couldn’t get a handle on what happened, and all I knew was that I needed help. It was pure instinct that led me to grab the phone and call my hubby on his cell. I got out, “I need your help. I’ve fallen.” And before he had a chance to respond, I was out for the count again.
He was able to call 911 and told them our address before I awoke and called him again. As I tried to talk to my Love (he spoke to both 911 and me at the same time), I staggered around, naked, dazed and confused, attempting to figure out how to get dressed. I managed to get downstairs, unlock the door and greet the E.M.S. guys with clothes and with a VERY crooked smile on.
An ambulance ride over to St. Joe’s Emergency, an ECG (electrocardiogram), blood work and 7 hours in the Emergency and we’re still clueless to exactly how it all happened. My face is smooshed in. My nose escaped being broken but it makes a funny crinkly sound now, and it’s bruised and swollen. My lips, the same and split open.
This photo was taken the day after the accident. I was on the phone with my Mom getting the TLC I needed. By the way, my nose is usually NOT that big.
I’ve been singing, “all I want for Christmas is my two front teeth” in my head since because they are what took the brunt of my fall. You might not be able to tell from the picture but they were in the middle of my mouth.
At least until $800 worth of oral surgery (so far) and a lot of pain as the dental surgeon (thank you, Dr. Pain!) reset them by pushing them back into their sockets. Two of my front teeth are chipped and Dr. Pain used a metal splint and wired the front four teeth together for stability while they heal.
Here’s me after oral surgery and a trip to my dentist for repairs to the chipped teeth, 3 days after the accident. Much better, wouldn’t you say?
Health professionals suggest hot baths may be dangerous for individuals suffering from obesity or having a medical history of heart disease, low or high blood pressure, circulatory system problems, diabetes or pregnant women and their fetuses.
So, this bath tub episode of mine is a complete mystery. I JUST had a physical examination on Saturday with my Naturopathic Doctor and I’m in top physical condition (my blood pressure was perfect). I’ve never fainted before and am a bath-time master. Now, the bath was hotter than usual and I did a bunch of abdominal exercises before I got up. Exercise has the same effects on the body as hot baths so perhaps I lowered my blood pressure double-time and coupled with getting up too fast…
I have an appointment with my G.P. tomorrow for more tests to make sure it was the circumstances and not an underlying health problem.
Will I ever enjoy another hot bath? Certainly! The benefits of baths far outweigh the slight possibility of this ever happening again. Do I recommend hot, steamy baths for others? Definitely for healthy people! Just do what my friend Denise suggests: pull the plug and pour cold water in to gradually bring your core temperature down. And get up slowly.
Man, what a way to learn a lesson! Please, please, please be careful with your bath-time fun!
Did you enjoy this post? You may also like to read about another accident I had more recently, “My Buns of Steel vs. An Automobile (or How Important is Fitness to Survival?)”
If you like reading about natural health & wellness, subscribe to Live Lighter’s RSS feed or via email. And if you think someone might benefit from my lessons in bath-time fun, please feel free to share it on your favourite social networking sites!
Related posts:
{ 102 comments… read them below or add one }
← Previous Comments
hey everyone this has just happened to myself about 20 mins ago exept i didn’t pass out i got my bath and then felt the blood rushing to head every thing in my vision went bright and distorted as-well as my hearing went completely death as well as my tongue and nearly my hole body were numb i nearly rang 999 but decided not to it took about 10 mins for my hearing to come back properly and i have never been so scared for my life until today when i had this experience i hope this was just the bath fault and nothing else.
dont worry marc, it’s just the bath ; and take some vitamins
Marc, so sorry to hear about your hot bath episode, yes, very scary but you didn’t faint and so that’s a blessing (saved you about $2K in dental bills!)
I think Alex is right, but I’d follow some of the tips other readers have suggested in the comments above and also see your doc about it so you can get tested like I did (my tests turned out well and it was just the circumstances but it can’t hurt, right?).
Thanks for the advice i visited my doc & every things ok
Great to hear!
My 16 year child took hot baths daily. He recently lost his life while becoming unconius. He was taken to hospital unfortunately they could not save him. in
Pam, I’m very sorry to hear about your loss. How are you coping? What did the docs say was cause of death?
This is interesting, I have the answer to all of your questions as to why I faint, pass out, or tremble after a hot bath.
It happened to me, now it does not. Its rather simple.
Also its really common sence, How oh how does a hospital with allll there machines, and great minds not figure this out!
Here is some back ground on me.. Im into fitness, never had any type of physical problem before, however one day after taking a hot bath, I got up to towel dry and all of a sudden, i could feel feeling going away from my face, then my mouth..my legs started to shake, and I went down but controled. I figured this is what death probebly feels like if you loss blood.
So Nigel, please tell us the answers you discovered!
Wow I just took an Epsom salt bath an hour ago for the first time…and after 15 minutes the warm water was no longer comfortable, but making me too hot, so I decided I was over it. When I got up I was very dizzy and disoriented (fast heartbeat, ringing in ears and shaky)…luckily I made it to my room and just laid on my bed until I felt like I could manage getting dressed and not pass out (5mins). A few minutes later I was pretty much back to normal, but I wanted to come online and find an answer…so thank you very much for writing about your experience! (:
- a very active and healthy 22 year old
Hi Priscilla, thanks for popping by Live Lighter and sharing your experience. So… do you think it’s the epsom salts or the temperature of the water?
So sorry to read about your painful experience Steph!! Luckily your teeth weren’t knocked out when you went down for the count, and you lived to tell the tale. Based on the huge number of comments your ordeal may save others from a similar fate ~ or even death!
I learned my lesson several decades ago as a squash player who always enjoyed a few minutes in the women’s changeroom jacuzzi. after showering. Once while visiting a new club for a tournament, I was startled to discover that their whirlpool was “co-ed” when men in swim trunks jumped into it, and there I was up to my neck in hot water ~ and nothing else!
Every time the last guy would leave, another would arrive, forcing me to stay put. After 1/2 hr in steaming bubblies (an eternity!) I felt so over-cooked that I finally HAD no choice but to leap out in my blushing pink birthday suit. I felt so light headed but managed to just get back into the changeroom before fainting. Luckily, the tiled wall caught me as I fell backwards, slithering onto the floor like a wet noodle. Regaining consciousness, I found myself covered with a towel as a nice woman took my pulse. I was so grateful, I vowed then & there to never risk my health or life like that again! Perhaps my story will save someone from nearly dying from embarrassment too. :O
Oooo… Woozy Suzy, your story sparks giggles from me but I know how serious it could have been. Thank goodness you were ok in the end. Hey, just imagine your embarrassment probably gave the guys a little thrill and something to talk about for days (or years) later!
I always enjoy a hot bath, so I couldn’t imagine it was the temperature. My boyfriend thinks it was because I was just getting over being sick and probaly still a little dehydrated. He also so told me when it used Epsom salt baths for sports related injuries…he only soaked different body never his whole body.
Ah, thanks for this Priscilla. Yes, that makes sense from my experience too because I was fighting a cold at the time but before the incident I took weekly hot baths with epsom salts on a weekly basis with no problems.
I have an esophogeal ulcer and will have a severe nauseous episode at leastonce a month. I was taking HOT showers for awhile and thats the only thing that made me feel better. But there is only so much hot water in the tank, and if I wasnt under hot water I felt horrible. Now I came to my senses and after about oh, 25years, I decided to soak in a HOT bath. BINGO! Felt better instantly! And Im not talking about your average 30min bath, I’m talking more like 1.5 – 2 hours. Just soaking and adding hot water every 20 mins or so.
My girlfriend thinks I’m crazy and that the hot water making me feel good is all in my head. I love them and they relax me and almost instantly kills my nausea.
I would just like a little professional outsider advice or comment. Thank You!!
Hey HotTubBill, thanks for chiming in on Live Lighter and sharing your story! You’re absolutely right, heat relaxes muscles. And coming from a history of IBS, I found hot baths (as well as heating pads) to instantly relax my intestines and offer relief. I say that as long as you aren’t feeling dizzy or otherwise being negatively affected by the hot baths, then keep on soaking, Brother!
Hi, I am 39 and have alot of joint & back problems. (Ehlers Danlos Syndrome). I have taken a 1 hour… sometimes more, bath every night for several years now. It helps my aches and pains tremendously! I cant live without my baths…. matter of fact Im taking one now and just had to add cold because im just starting to get that over heated feeling. Over the years there have been a handful of times when I had to basically fall thru the bathroom door onto my bed becasue I felt I am going to pass out because the water was too hot. Guess those were days I felt so horrible, and the hotter the better was my thinking. I never have totally passed out luckily. I try not to push it that far anymore as it is very scary. I have a couple other issues that have stumped myself and my Drs and thought as my latest possible idea… maybe my hot baths were contributing. I have not had periods for about 5 years now. They have checked my bloodwork and assured me Im not in menopause. I dont exercise much, nor am I underweight like Ive read can cause this. Anyways… I just wanted to put that thought out there and see if anyone else has heard of this. I dont know… maybe Im cookin my insides nightly…ha ha.
Hi Heidi, thanks for sharing. Hmm… maybe try other pain relief options throughout the week and slowly reduce your hot baths down to once a week. You can experiment and see how you feel!
Hello,
I’ve just stumbled upon this blog after experiencing similar post-bath problems. I took a nice , slightly hotter bath than I usually do and after like 20 minutes I started to feel uncomfortable. My heart rate sped up and the water was literally burning me inside instead of soothingly relaxing my limbs.
I got myself out as soon as possible and began shaking uncontrollably, feeling dizzy, weak and disoriented. I almost fainted as well, luckily I managed to curl in my bed in time and wait for the symptoms to go away on their own.
I am also curious as to why this happened, my theory is subjective. I have been diagnosed with chronic mycoplasma as co-infection to chronic lyme which I’m currently battling, so as my body and antibiotics fight these microbes, hot water helps to release toxins from them. This may lead to something like acute herx reaction, dunno. This is the farthest I got while thinking about this strange occurrence in bath.
Wow, that didn’t exactly happen to me, but everytime I get out of the tub I can’t barely walk and it gets blurry for my eyes. I don’t really know why, I’m in a great condition, and I don’t suffer of any kind of sickness. I’ve fainted several times before, due to intoxication and other things, and everytime I get out of the tub, I tend to faint. But I quickly take some cold water and throw on my face, and it really helps! I’m sorry for your ”lesson”. Great site you have!
Hey Madalina! Thanks for sharing your experience and solution. Is your bath water really hot? Do you use any epsoms salts?
Hi everyone!. wow this website is very helpful!. a couple of hrs ago I had experience the same problem and I was thinking it was because I didn’t eat enough the past few days but now i know it was because of the temperature of the water. Well I haven’t been feeling well since 3 days ago. My stomach has been hurting so I have been in bed since then. I was feeling durty and I decided to take a bath while my husband was gone. I was taking a bath with not to hot water but then i started getting cold and added more water. everything was so relaxing. When it was time for me to get up and rince….surprice!! I started seing orange and everything was going around me. I squaded so the fall wouldnt be as hard then I got out the tub. but I was still dizzy!. I walked around soaked in water because I was feeling so hot and sweaty. I lay on my bed as staring at the ceiling while called my hubby to let him know. All I wanted is someone to be there in case of passing out. but as I was laying in my bed I started feeling better. (I was thinking I was pregnant!) but thank you guys! next time I know the wanter should be not to cold.
Thanks for sharing your experience, maleny! Looks like we all should be wary about the temperature of our bath water.
Hello well i am a pretty healthy 29 year only problem i really have is a curved spine. anyways all my life when I’ve gotten sick I’ve taken a hot bath to sweat it out but there are times on occasion when i get out and instead of feeling better my whole body aches jgjd 5 to 15 minutes later. and its random too though today woke up with a sore throat and halls cough drops weren’t helping so too a bath and though i kinda feel better muscles all over my body are telling me otherwise. curious if anyone’s heard of this or gas any helpful advice
Your experience is very curious indeed, Chris… usually hot baths relax tense muscles and aches are relieved rather than induced. And it’s random? Maybe another reader has had an experience like this? Have you gone to see a doc about this?
Sorry autocorrect messed up my thing suppose to say 5 to 15 minutes later
I generally feel dizzy after my baths but then I do have then scalding hot!!! Like I get in while it’s filling so I can gradually turn it hotter and hotter. I just had the worst dizzy episode saw blotches felt faint and am instant headache….couldn’t even get dressed had to make a b line to my room beside and layed there till my heart stopped trying to beat through my chest cavitiy. Will I stop my hot baths? Nnnnnnnever!
it’s like cardio for me lol
Ah, Jo, as well as you like ‘em hot, then have ‘em hot! But me, man, I can’t afford another set of teeth. Actually, I’m still saving to get my veneers which are more permanent than the caps they put in place after the accident. I love my teeth (and general safety) more than my hot baths. lol
I’ve read all the comments and feel my fainting was quite delayed from the period of my bath to the time I had passed out. I had worked this past week 5 consecutive shifts of 12 hours. Kind of had a calm Saturday, we went out for breakfast and a cup of coffee. Did not do any work and enjoyed my guitar for awhile. We had a good supper and I had a hot bath to ease my legs from all the walking I do at work. Afterwards I felt very relaxed and happy. Later I picked up a friend and we went out to play guitar with some friends, after drinking half of my first beer I felt I needed to get some fresh air and grabbed my coat. After only a short time being outside, I was talking to my friends wife and felt as if I was going to pass out. When I did, I could hear my friend calling out to me. I was so worried for myself since I am in good health. The time from my bath was about 2 hours, does this seem to be related to the bath or could it have been something else like diabetes or low blood pressure
Hi Gary, thanks for sharing your story. I’m really not sure about how to answer your question, I think it’s best to visit your doc for this.
Hi everyone, I stumbled across this as I was looking for some tips on health benefits of different bath ingredients like dead sea salt etc. In any case, I just wanted to add something to the discussion that I feel was not being addressed enough. First, I am not a doctor or an expert on these matters. Most of what I say here is based on my personal experience, common sense, and my comparisons between taking hot baths and my active athletic life.
I have been an active runner for most of my life. My stamina has varied over the years, but I have always been in pretty good shape. I am thus used to listening to my body when it comes to physical exertion and how to get ones body from point a to b in terms of endurance and physical health. I only started taking hot baths about a year ago, but I was immediately struck by how similar a hot bath is to a cardio workout like running and how it is incredibly important to use the same prudence and process to build up stamina and prevent injury. This may seem obvious, but I feel from reading these posts that it may be helpful for me to focus on this and really make a comparison here. When you take a bath raised to a temperature to induce a sweat your body is not really relaxing. It is hard at work. Circulation is up immensely, your heartbeat goes up and can vary greatly, you are transpiring a lot and loosing fluids, you are exposing yourself to high temperatures at which heat strokes are also possible. Think of it this way, while you feel relaxed your body in some ways is actually running down a street at high velocity doing some real hard work! This is not a problem, but just as you wouldn’t be able to keep on running for hours without paying attention to your condition, you also can’t take a hot bath without paying attention to your body state. So, here are a couple of points I find useful to make sure you get a healthy experience out of taking a hot bath: (again, this may not be suitable for everyone with certain conditions and health states!)
Its very easy to increase your body beyond safe limits this way. if you want to keep it at temperature, invest in a thermometer that can help you manage that.
1. Keep an eye on a clock or set a timer/alarm. I know its not exactly relaxing to keep looking at a clock while taking a bath, but you should really time yourself just as you do in the gym. If you know you can go for 30 min at a certain temperature, set an alarm that tells you its time to take a break from hot water running!
2. Keep an eye on your pulse. You don’t necessarily need to calculate your heart rate, but make sure you check your pulse now and then to see how your body is working. I have found over the years that I don’t even need a stopwatch to figure out if my heart rate is substantially beyond rest rate. If you become familiar with your own heart rate while resting and what it is like when you are in a hot bath you’ll know immediately if you ever work “too hard”.
3. Don’t keep adding hot water forever. Google “boiling frog” and you know what I mean
4. Keep a drink next to your bath. Just like we do when we go to the gym, keep a gatorade or electrolyte enhanced drink ready and periodically take a sip. This way you are replenishing your body as you go and it will be able to last longer. When you do ever feel you start fainting, it can also safe you! A high glucose drink like Cola is a good emergency drink too.
5. Have a book or magazine ready. If you read a book in bath and you feel you can’t comprehend or can’t focus on the words anymore, you’re body is overexerting itself. This you can only do for a short period of time! it’s a clue to take a break or really watch that clock.
6. Don’t take a hot bath if you don’t feel in physical condition to take a run, bike, etc either! (e.g. if you are sick, dehydrathed, etc you should don’t go out running, co wait until you are better to take a bath)
7. Build it up! Just like you don’t start out running for 2 hours straight when first hitting the gym, you need to really keep to the minimum times when first starting to take baths. listen to your body and only gradually increase to safe levels.
Ok, that’s all I can think of. Just wanted to share this with all you bubbly soaked hot bath folks out there
Stay healthy!
Hi Dennis, thanks so much for contributing your expert advice on this subject! Everything you mentioned makes perfect sense and we appreciate your tips for healthier bath-time fun!
hi ya, just to let ya all know, ive always preffered a bath to a shower, and its ironic because cold and hot baths have different benefits, apart from the obvious like cleaning out your pours, (hot water vapours good for your respiratory system) and its good at flushing out a cold, anyhoe the reason why people faint sometime, and it can effect the most healthiest of people, this is because you raise your body temperature and blood pressure very quickly in the hot bath and as you get out it starts to drop rapidly (all of your dilated blood vessel contract very quickly), sometimes to fast for your body to cope so it send it into shock, thats why you get that light headed feeling, blurred vision and fainting (just like a head rush), you should take your time so your body can adjust to the change in blood pressure, this should prevent this from happening
Please don’t think there is only a slight chance of this happening again! This happened to me today for probably about the fifth time in a year. Today I knew I was going to pass out because of recent experiences, and I was trying to quickly eat something to see if it would keep me from passing out but I ended up dropping the bowl of cereal on my table I think. I managed to sit down (I’ve passed out from both standing and sitting positions- once I fell out of the chair) and I woke up to my face bashing off the bowl. I had heard my phone go off right before I passed out and when I woke up it was like ten minutes later so I was out much longer this time than I have been before. I don’t have any health problems, my blood pressure is really good.. I don’t know. But it can definitely happen again. My eyes start to see black and my ears start ringing right before it happens to me.
A similar thing happened to me last year. I had just finished stressing out over undergraduate finals and graduate school entry exams so I decided to drive home during the school break. While taking a hot shower (which I LOVE), I began to feel super light headed and decided to add a little more cold water. Of course, that didn’t help at all so I got out of the shower…that’s the last thing I remember. I woke up on the floor with blood EVERYWHERE. Apparently, in the process of leaving the bathroom, I fell forward and hit my head on the corner of the bathroom door (resulting in the corner splitting my forehead open). Luckily, I was able to crawl to the living room before passing out again. My granny called 911 and after a trip to the hospital and stitches, everything was okay. Luckily, the door gave me a nice clean cut so my scar isn’t all jagged and ugly. But overall, the experience was pretty scary. I was told that stress, dehydration, and super hot water is a bad mix. My blood pressure dropped really low causing me to pass out. Moral of the story: school sucks and take cooler showers.
← Previous Comments
{ 3 trackbacks }