Fainting - First Aid and Emergency Treatment Guide

About Fainting

• Fainting occurs due to decreased blood supply to brain
• A fainting spell is usually very brief
• It may or may not have medical significance

Common Causes

• Anxiety
• Emotional upset
• Stress
• Severe pain
• Skipping meals
• Standing up too fast
• Standing for a long time in a crowd
• Some medications
• Diabetes
• Blood Pressure 

Symptoms

Before fainting, a person may experience the following:

• Nausea
• Giddiness
• Excessive sweating
• Dim vision
• Rapid heart beat or palpitations

Treatment

• Fainting is a medical emergency, till proven otherwise
• When a person feels faint:
1. Make them sit down or lie down
• If sitting, position head between knees
• When a person faints, position him on his back
• Check to see if airways are clear
• Restore blood flow by
1. Loosening clothing/belts/collars
• Elevate feet above head level
• Patient should become normal within a minute
• If not, seek medical help 
• Check if breathing/pulse is normal
• If not, do Cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR)

Prevention

• When symptoms appear, lie down
• Try do avoid stress and anxiety
• Carefully evaluate your medications
• Take care of underlying medical conditions