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From:	Rima (144.142.21.43)
Subject:	am i really dehydrated?
Date:	January 17, 2009 at 9:17 pm PST

Jeff, I hope this isn't too far afield, but here goes:

I'm 5'2", 107 lbs and drink at least 48 oz. of water a day, more with exercise.

Yet whenever I get a massage or a facial, I'm told I seem to be dehydrated. "Are you drinking enough water?"

Also, and more important, whenever blood is drawn from me for blood work, it is a torture session because of the difficulty in finding a vein. So my doctor advised me to be sure to drink a lot of water before getting my blood drawn.

So last time, a couple of weeks ago, I chugged 48 oz. in the hour before going in at 9:30 a.m. (I prefer to go in early in the day so I can do my fasting in my sleep instead of during the day when I'm accustomed to eating). Well, it was a worse torture session than usual.

The phlebotomist said I seemed to be dehydrated. When I told him about chugging 48 oz. in the hour before I arrived, he said, "That's not enough time for your body to absorb it. You should have started last night."

Now, how am I going to do that? The night before, I went to bed, as usual. But I had had my usual 48+ oz. during that day too.

What is the problem? My spouse theorizes it's because I have relatively low blood pressure, usually about 90/60, though the most recent reading was 110/80 or 90.

Anyway, because I have to have my blood drawn again soon, I've started trying to increase my water intake, aiming for a gallon a day without exercise; but it is an ordeal: making me uncomfortably full of water, and, of course, sending me to the bathroom inconveniently often.

Am I really dehydrated, or does my spouse's theory have merit? What else can I do to make blood draws less torturous?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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