HYPERVENTILATION

1. Step 1

   Look for any of these signs and symptoms of hyperventilation: high anxiety, rapid and deep breathing, rapid pulse, a feeling of suffocation, dizziness or faintness, dry mouth, numbness in the hands and around the mouth, a feeling of paralysis in the hands, stabbing chest pain.

2. Step 2

   Calm the person down by identifying the source of anxiety and addressing it. Hyperventilation is often triggered in wilderness settings by a fear of heights, by equipment failures, or by a minor injury that causes anxiety.

3. Step 3

   Communicate continually with the injured person: explain that even though he or she feels a need for more oxygen, the problem is that he or she is getting too much of it, and that the symptoms will go away as breathing calms down.

4. Step 4

   Have the person breath into a stuff sack or other bag, covering both the nose and mouth