Dominic Smithers
The family of a woman who died after drinking four bottles of water in 20 minutes has spoken out.
Ashley Summers had been celebrating the 4th July weekend with her family at Lake Freeman near Monticello when she began feeling unwell.
During their trip, the mom-of-two had been complaining about being severely dehydrated, unable to quench her thirst.
After feeling light-headed, Ms Summers began suffering from a headache, which led to her downing four 500ml bottles of water in a matter of minutes.
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And tragedy struck when the 35-year-old mysteriously collapsed in her garage after arriving home on the Tuesday evening.
Sadly, despite being rushed to IU Health Arnett Hospital, Ms Summers died from water toxicity.
Speaking to WRTV Indianapolis, Ms Summers' brother Devon Miller said he was devastated by the loss.
"My sister, Holly, called me, and she was just an absolute wreck," he said.
"She was like, 'Ashley is in the hospital. She has brain swelling, they don't know what's causing it, they don't know what they can do to get it to go down, and it's not looking good'."
Recalling the heartbreaking incident, Mr Miller said that someone had told him Ms Summers had drunk 'four bottles of water' in 20 minutes.
"I mean, an average water bottle is like 16 ounces (0.4 litres), so that was 64 ounces (1.89 litres) that she drank in a span of 20 minutes," he said.
"That's half a gallon. That's what you're supposed to drink in a whole day."
Mr Miller said the loss of his sister had been 'a shock to all of us'.
Water toxicity occurs when the body consumes too much water too quickly, meaning it's unable to replace essential minerals quickly enough.
IU Health toxicologist Dr Blake Froberg explained this to WRTV, saying: "There are certain things that can make someone more at risk for it, but the overall thing that happens is that you have too much water and not enough sodium in your body.”
Symptoms can include headaches, nausea, muscle cramps, confusion, seizures and vomiting.
In severe cases like Ms Summers, it can also lead to swelling in the brain and tragically, death.
To counteract this, the doctor advises people to slowly drink regularly throughout the day and ensure that they have enough electrolytes, sodium and potassium in their system.
Now, the family are honouring Ms Summers by raising awareness of water toxicity after her sudden passing and a Venmo account, @Cody-Summers-16, has been set up in her memory to pay for medical bills.