Sweating and perspiration!

By Dr. Muhammad Hafizullah

The difference between perspiration and sweating became easily understandable in two hours of power outage. Though we are victims of these power shutdowns on a daily basis, sometimes it becomes simply unbearable. In the month of July when temperature soars up, humidity renders life more difficult.

One feels exhausted and even a normal job seems a Herculean task. In our clinic there is rush of people and human beings generate their own heat.

Put a few people together and the heat becomes intolerable and air conditioner loses its vitality. This was one of the unusual evenings and our transformer developed some problem. Normally the air circulation supported by two fans during one hour of load-shedding keeps the temperature bearable and by the end of the clinic hour one may perspire.

Today it was different, in the absence of aircondition; even fans seemed to blow hot air. It was almost suffocating!  I needed a tissue paper to wipe off my ever flowing sweat every two minutes. I was feeling exhausted and no wonder tempers were running high.

It must be last year when the air conditioner in the cardiac catheterisation laboratory became dysfunctional.

The heat generated by the machine is exorbitant; on top of this we have quite a few doctors and catheterisation technicians performing the procedure. We have to wear a heavy lead apron to protect us from the rays plus a thyroid protection lead shield in neck and top it up with surgical sterilised gown. It was a difficult case and needed longer time to open the vessel. During the procedure the patient developed some complication which was tackled properly. By the end of procedure when I took my lead apron off, water was virtually dripping from my surgical suit.  The heat was most excruciating!

In yesteryear, our outpatient clinics used to be non air-conditioned. There used to be a lone ceiling fan trying in vain to keep air in circulation. A few years ago due to internal circuit fault we did not have electricity for three hours. An ordinary sized room was full of people and where most other doctors 'walked out' of clinics, I kept on seeing the patients. I remember sweating profusely in that stuffy heat. I tried to preserve a smile on my lips and greet the patients and keep behaving as nothing untoward had happened. Most patients were very nice and appreciated our hard work and dedication to job.

A middle aged patient accompanied by two relatives started complaining about heat and unavailability of facilities. Though I was able to keep my calm, one of my associate doctors could not control himself and asked, "If we are sitting in this heat, without light and soaked in sweat, and are not complaining, you should not be complaining as well!" But of course the heat was intense and most unforgiving, but such is the life of doctors!

We were flying from New York to London and as we entered the plane high temperature and airlessness welcomed us. As the luck would have it, the departure was delayed by 50 minutes. A stereotyped answer was offered by the cabin crew, "there is some technical fault and engineers are trying to fix it up." I do not remember sweating so profusely, in the company of so many, in my life. Poor children were most distressed and elderly people found the heat unendurable. Two things were in great demand -water and tissues. Water to quench thirst and tissue to wipe off the ceaseless sweat. Those fifty minutes have occupied top of the line slot in my most unforgettable moments. The temperature improved as the plane gained some height!

The stories of gruesome heat of Delhi have been part of Urdu literature but our first hand experience was very gruesome. Worse was the experience in Agra and Fateh Pur Sikri. We left Delhi early morning by 'Shitabi express' meaning fast express and reached Agra by ten thirty. We had to explore the mysteries of Fatehpur Sikri and Mughals in the scorching heat of August. We were looking for shades and tried to confine our discussions to 'airy and shady' stops. We were thirsty and consumed many litres of fluid to prevent the disastrous effects of heat. When we reached Taj Mehal we were exhausted and we had to take an hour's rest in the shade to recover. Even the beauty of Taj Mehal could not excite the spirits dampened by heat!   

I could never understand as to why people form southern areas of our province consume many yards of cloth to make a turban? It became obvious to me, as I was attending the Nimaz-e-Janaza of our neighbour's father in Lakki Marwat. The heat was so intense as if would pierce through head. Only a few second's exposure to sun was sufficient to cause giddiness. I must have looked the odd man out and quite off coloured as someone took pity on me and lent me a white sheet which I used to cover my head and neck. Analogous to Arab scarves, many layers of clothes are required to deflect the extreme heat.

These few exposures to heat have formed a nook in the unpleasant memories in my mind and I can vividly remember all of them and recall the experience! This opens door to imagination as to how many other human beings go through these experiences on a daily basis. For whom these experiences are not exceptions but the norm of the day.  Imagine people working in sun and sweating. Think of people who do not have access to tissue papers for wiping sweat. We should think of the majority of our countrymen who do not have electricity what to think of fans and air conditioners. Worse, even when one has fans and air conditioners but no electricity for hours to run them. Outages of electricity should make us think of our deprived brethren and in the spirit of Ramazan feel more sympathetic towards them.