Ay regarding this post ^ are blankets warmed in the dryer direct heat and therefore dangerous? Sorry if this is annoying, you seem knowledgeable. No pressure to answer me at all
No problem at all!
Honestly, I wouldn’t want to risk direct heat from warmed blankets. Part of the issue is that the person needing warmth may have decreased ability to determine what’s too hot. There’s also the risk of warming someone too quickly. During hypothermia the blood vessels in the extremities constrict, which helps send blood to the core/trunk of the body and all the good stuff there to keep core temperature up. If someone is warmed too quickly via direct heat, the body can open those constricted vessels too quickly, dropping blood pressure to possible shock levels.
Once you have the person in a safe, warm place, the best thing to do is to get them out of any wet clothes, give them warmed, not scalding, decaf and nonalcoholic liquids (if they are coherent and can drink them unassisted. If someone is in an altered mental state, low responsive or unresponsive, do NOT give them anything by mouth as they could choke), and get them under some dry blankets/sleeping bag, with something underneath protecting them from the cold floor/ground.
Then you do the awkward bit. Climb under those blankets with them with you both in your skivies! The whole movie cliche where two people have to get naked to get warm isn’t that far off, though you can keep your delicates on. Sharing body heat is a good way to warm someone up, and just laying under blankets or in a sleeping bag with bare backs pressed together can help quite a bit! The surrounding blankets/bag insulate and prevent much of the body heat from escaping so it’s much more efficient that way, and it decreases the time for the patient/cold person’s body to warm up with your added heat.
If you’re interested in survival stuff like this, I would recommend the book ‘Will to Live: Dispatches from the Edge of Survival’ by Les Stroud. He goes over several real stories and experiences by usually regular people forced to survive in unexpected circumstances, analyzing them with his professional knowledge and explaining why some things worked, why others didn’t, what else could have been done to improve the situation, and other tips. He mentions hypothermia frequently in the chapter on the Andes crash if I’m remembering correctly, but there might be more instances of it coming up.
Also, thanks for the ask! I’m a little surprised that so many people have been interested in my reblog of the original post. I’m not an expert in any of this, I just read a lot and dabble in multiple topics that can be useful for that kind of info. So, thanks for the interest I guess! I love sharing!
