The Summers family visited Lake Freeman, a popular summer destination located about 80 miles north of Indianapolis, on a weekend holiday boat excursion.
The family had been vacationing at the spot from Saturday, July 1, through Tuesday, July 4.
On Tuesday morning Ashley Summers, 35 began feeling dehydrated and could not drink enough water to quench her thirst. She felt lightheaded and had a headache, symptoms of dehydration, but no amount of water could satiate her thirst. She drank the equivalent of four 16oz (500ml) bottles (four bottles of water).
When Ms Summers returned home, she collapsed in her garage, having suffered severe brain swelling. She never regained consciousness.
At the hospital, doctors diagnosed her with water toxicity, also called hyponatremia, which develops as a result of there being too much water in the body and not enough sodium.
Ashley Summers, 35, was a daycare worker and mother of two. She passed away soon after the July 4th holiday from water toxicity or hyponatremia
Ms Summers loved being on the water. On the last day of their trip, she complained of feeling dehydrated with a headache and lightheadedness
Hyponatremia is characterized by insufficient levels of sodium in the body, an essential electrolyte that helps to regulate the delicate balance of fluids in cells as well as maintain proper nerve and muscle function. Drinking too much water dilutes concentrations of sodium in the blood
When Devon Miller, Ms Summers’ brother, heard of his sister’s condition, he was in disbelief. He said: ‘It was a big shock to us all. I was just like, this is a thing?’
Mr Miller added: ‘She just felt like she couldn’t get enough water… When they left the sand bar to when they got to the dock, it was about a 20 minute boat ride … she drank four bottles of water in that 20 minutes.’
Ms Summers never regained consciousness and doctors diagnosed her with water poisoning, or hyponatraemia.
The condition occurs when someone drinks an excessive amount of water in a narrow window of time, which overwhelms the ability of the body’s complex organ systems, primarily the kidneys, to regulate the balance of fluids.
