Mental Health in the Heat

Keep out of the sun if you can. When you have to go outside, try and stay in the shade, especially between 11am and 3pm which is usually the hottest part of the day. Protect your skin by wearing sunscreen, hat and lightweight comfortable clothes. 

Many homes and buildings in Scotland are built to trap heat. It’s helpful to act before the day heats up – open windows at night, and keep curtains or blinds closed through the day to keep the sun out. If your building is well-insulated and it’s cooler inside than out, you might want to close the windows to stop hot air coming in and getting trapped.

If you work somewhere that’s too hot, see whether you can move to a cooler place (perhaps working from home, or from a library or public space where there’s air conditioning) and talk to your employer or union about what can be done to cool down the space.

If you can’t change location or cool the room, focus on cooling yourself. An electric, USB, or hand fan can help, as can an ice pack, especially on your pulse points (inner wrists or neck). If you know it’s going to be hot tomorrow, put a half-full water bottle in the freezer overnight so you can have ice water through the day. Where possible, scope out cooler places nearby and take plenty of breaks.

Symptoms of dehydration include a dry mouth, dizziness or confusion, and headaches. If untreated, dehydration can lead to heat exhaustion and delirium.

Keep rehydrating through the day. Water or isotonic sports drinks are best, but any (non-alcoholic) drink will help. Caffeine can be dehydrating, so limit intake if you can – but if having a million cups of tea or litres of Coke is the only way you’ll be motivated to keep drinking liquids, it’s definitely better to drink caffienated drinks than nothing.

Don’t chug down your day’s water in one go – take lots of sips through the day. Water-rich foods like lettuce, cucumber, soft fruits and soups can help if you can’t stand to drink anything else.

Your body will often cue you in to what it needs. As well as water, your body needs to replenish salts, sugars and acids – sports drinks are good for this, but if you’re craving salt, make sure you get it.

When the sun is shining brightly, and people’s spirits are high, people are often led to one of the many pop up beer gardens that appear at this time of year. 

Unfortunately, the sun and alcohol are not always the best match. Alcohol causes dehydration which can be felt even more when your body is already trying to adjust to the hotter weather. Drinking alcohol might also make it more difficult to sleep well at night, which is already a challenge in warm weather. Although you may sleep quickly, the quality of your sleep is likely to be lacking and you’ll probably wake up earlier than usual.  

Try to drink in moderation and remember to drink plenty of water too. 

Physical activity is often good for our mental health, but it’s important to avoid exercising during the hottest parts of the day during high heat. Although it’s best to avoid too much disruption to your usual routine, sometimes it has to be done.

Take the temperature into account when planning your day and limit your activity to when it’s cooler. It will get hotter through the day as the air warms up. Evening is cooler than the daytime, but early in the morning is the coolest time.

It may be hard to convince yourself to go for an early morning run when your bed is calling you, but exercising in the middle of the afternoon can be dangerous and you may run the risk of dehydration, heat exhaustion or heatstroke. 

If you have to be out and about during the day, especially if you’re being physically active (eg working outside) make sure you drink lots of water, seek shade, and take plenty of breaks. 

When you’re experiencing heat stress, you will often not have a lot of energy. You may feel tired and sluggish all the time, and just want to lie down in a quiet, dark, cool place and do, say, and think nothing.

This is normal. Resting is part of keeping yourself safe from heat exhaustion.

It can be important to make the effort to stick to your normal routine, especially if you struggle with depression or isolation or find structure helps you manage your wellbeing, but don’t beat yourself up for doing less than you normally would. Give yourself permission to take things at a manageable pace.

It can be hard to sleep when it’s hot, and sleepless nights can leave you irritable, overwhelmed, sensitive, and even trigger symptoms of psychosis.

There are things you can do to keep your bedroom cooler – draw the curtains while the sun shines to keep the room from heating up, open the windows if you can, and try and use light bed coverings like a sheet. A fan in the room or even an ice pack (well wrapped) in the bed can help keep you cool while you try to settle.

In summer, light can disrupt your sleep. Summer days in Scotland are some of the longest in the world after Russia and Scandinavia – even in August, months after the solstice, it’ll be light well before 6AM and won’t get dark until close to 9PM. If you’re used to longer nights, make sure you draw the curtains or close the shutters if you can – you might also want to try a sleep mask. 

If you can’t sleep, don’t panic – get up, do something quietly for a bit (like walking or reading – avoid screens, if you can), drink cold water a bit at a time, then go back to bed when you start to feel tired. Remember, even if you can’t get a full night, any sleep is better than none. Resist the urge to nap during the day if possible – it can help to keep up a routine when you’re struggling with sleeplessness.