Have you ever been in one of the following situations? If you've ever been in situation like those mentioned above, then there is a good chance that you have also experienced that light headed feeling that comes from being in a stuffy environment with no chance of moving around to get some circulation going.

Well here is a tip on how to cope. Wiggle your toes vigourously. I kid you not.

This tip was passed on to me by an Army friend of mine. He said that when they have to stand at attention for long periods of time in the sun (like on parade or inspection), they were told to wiggle their toes periodically. This forced their blood to circulate around their body and prevented the soldiers from fainting.

Try it, you'll find it helps!

For most people, the best way to prevent this sort of fainting, is to not lock your knees back. Generally people unacustomed to long periods of standing will lock their knees. It takes less effort to stand in this manner, unfortunately it cuts off return circulation of your blood from your feet. Wiggling your toes will certainly help, but straightening your knees will go a lot longer towards helping you maintain consiousness.

There are a few people who don't have this problem. I am one of those people. My knees lock straight back and my circulation is not affected. This aided me well in my military career as I could stand at attention for many hours without moving.

It turns out that I can only perform this action because my knees don't fit together properly. Either by abuse or birth I have a wide range of lateral motion in both knees and my patella tends to occasionally not move properly. So, I have been gifted with the ability to stand for long periods of time, and the Army gave me a big fat check to go away.

On the down side, I can barely run anymore, I can't sit for too long, and two flights of stairs will make me tell you all my secrets.

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