HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

How to keep Warm in Winter

Support Forums
>
Fibromyalgia
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 11/20/2013 8:28 PM (GMT 0)
While we enter the winter slowly, my wife symptoms started to worsen ... She is saying the cold impacts her a lot .. Anything for recommendation to warm up specially outdoors... Is there any type of glove or foot wear socks types that can warm up and help reduce this situation of the cold weather at winter....
Posted 11/20/2013 8:44 PM (GMT 0)
It's good to layer clothing.  She can wear thermal underwear under the layers of clothing.  They have insulated gloves and even special socks that have more insulation...and even some are heated.  I never tried those but I did layer my clothing.  This traps the warm air and helps keep you warm.

 

Also, she should wear a hat or scarf on her head when outside.  You lose a lot of heat from the top of your head!

 

If she takes a hot shower before she dresses in the layers, that can help too.  Hope some of this helps her.

 

Sherrine

Posted 11/20/2013 9:03 PM (GMT 0)
Sherrine has some great suggestions. yeah

  I really like wearing wool socks and wool sweaters. Flannel-lined jeans or slacks are good, too. Also, wool mittens are great.

There are heat packets you can put in your boots or shoes, but I haven't tried them. I believe they are called Toasti-Toes or Foot Warm Up foot warmers. For hands, there are Hothands. Farm or hunting-related stores often carry them. 

If a person has diabetes or circulatory issues (or any other concerns about using these), check with your doctor, first. I have heard they get pretty warm, so that's something to be aware of, too. Use caution, obviously.

  I really don't know how well these work, but have heard hunters use them pretty often.

Wearing a scarf around your neck helps keep you warm, too.  And it helps to wear a knee-length coat, rather than a waist-length one.  I've found some good deals on coats at church rummage sales and second-hand shops.

Long underwear helps with the layering.  There are now some pretty colors for women, rather than the usual plain ol' white.

Don't forget warm boots if you live in a snowy area--they are wonderful! I always make sure I buy some that have soles that are good on ice, for obvious reasons!

Good luck and best wishes. :-)

Posted 11/21/2013 6:21 AM (GMT 0)
I wish I had some ideas for you - I'm always cold myself. I'm known for wearing a coat when no one else is, things like that....being miserable because the AC is on and everyone else is still hot...etc. etc.

My hubby is hot-blooded, and he just can't understand why I don't want to go up to 8500 ft, to an uninsulated cabin with only a fireplace, in the Winter. He barely feels it! Sometimes he can perceive that the air is cold, but it doesn't penetrate his skin.

People sometimes say, "You can always put on more layers if you're cold, but you can't take off all your clothes if you're hot," as if solving the problem of being cold is easy. Not so! (You really can't function while wearing 7 layers of clothing...)

I wish I could wear wool, Luvzminis, because it's not only warm, but light, and so often beautiful. But it makes me itch like crazy. I've learned I just have to avoid it. Same with most acrylic. I pretty much have to stick to cotton/polyester. Boring but comfy (for me.)

I would echo Sherrine's layers suggestion, and also make sure the layers aren't too tight....there has to be room for the air that helps create warmth.

Good luck.

Debbie
Posted 11/21/2013 10:34 AM (GMT 0)
I am not sure what state you live in ? I live in Alaska on a iceburg! Lol
So keeping warm is essential to me. Cuddles clothing help. They are a thin warm layer you put on under your clothes. They are great and not so tight. I buy wool socks and you need to buy good quality. We have Costco and I get them there. Good set of gloves and those hand Warmers for outside are good.

I wouldn't give anything for my heating blanket. Even if it's hot I use it. It help relax my muscles at bed time. I have known to turn the fan on with the heating blanket. The small throw heating blankets that you can put on your couch are a nice present too. Good heating pad is essential. Using quality winter clothes makes a difference. Layers is how I dress.

I also bought a space heater for extra heat from Costco. When I sit in a chair for any length of time I seem very stiff. This really helped my stiffness. I bought one that has some real heat to it.

Post Edited (ak angel) : 11/21/2013 3:40:07 AM (GMT-7)

Posted 11/21/2013 1:22 PM (GMT 0)
Yep, Debbie, wool can certainly be itchy! I wear something underneath it (except for when I wear my wool mittens!) so it doesn't bother my skin.

Merino wool doesn't bother me, though. Also, there's something I've heard of called Smart wool that isn't supposed to itch, but I haven't tried anything made with that yet. Maybe I'll break down and buy a Smart wool product and see how I like it.
Posted 11/21/2013 5:23 PM (GMT 0)
I tend to be always cold when others are just fine. A few years ago I found some underwear that actually keeps me warm! It is called DuoFold and has two layers--the inner layer is 100% cotton, the outer layer is 65%cotton, 25% merino wool, 19% nylon. I, too, have allergies to wool but I can wear this with no problems.

I then top it with a 100% acrylic sweater. I've tried acrylic with mixtures of other things but only the 100% seems to keep me warm. I wear this combination of underwear and sweater from fall thru winter and on into spring, all day, in the house. Outside, I wear a knee length 55% polyester, 45% nylon (inner and outer shell) with 100% polyester filling, a poofy-kind of coat, which I always buy with a hood to cut the cold from the wind. Gloves, of course! Yes, I know I'm a nut case, but, hey, I'm warm.

Yoyo
Posted 11/21/2013 7:09 PM (GMT 0)
Yoyo: No, you certainly DON'T sound like a 'nut case' (if you are, I am, too!); you just sound comfy and yes, warm! :)

Like you, I also like to dress as warmly as possible in the winter, and it hopefully keeps me just a little healthier. I see too many people running around without hats and gloves when it's 10 degrees. It just doesn't make any sense to me. I say it's winter, so hey--dress for it!

Thanks for the DuoFold info--had never heard of that.
Posted 11/22/2013 5:36 AM (GMT 0)
I keep a pile of small blankets/throws in the living room to cover up with when I'm reading, watching tv, etc. It makes such a difference in how comfortable I am in the winter!

I also bought microfiber sheets for my bed. I couldn't tolerate the wires and weight of electric blankets and heated mattress pads, but these sheet are incredibly soft and warm.
Posted 11/22/2013 12:57 PM (GMT 0)
AustenFan: I do the same thing when sitting in the living room: my "blankies" are always close at hand. :) I think I just feel better in general when I'm warm.

Warm sheets on the bed sure do make a lot of difference. I take out the flannel sheets every Fall, and put away the cotton ones.

I hadn't heard of microfiber sheets, so will check them out.
Posted 11/22/2013 7:33 PM (GMT 0)
Actually, I think I named the sheets wrong. There are "microfiber" sheets, but the ones I have are "microplush." They are super soft and warm.
Posted 11/22/2013 9:54 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks--will check them out. "Soft and warm" sounds wonderful, especially when it's about 20 degrees outside like right now... rolleyes
Posted 11/22/2013 11:54 PM (GMT 0)
Austin, are they like a fuzzy stuff animal? I found a blanket for my bed that makes me think of my stuff animals when I was a kid. It feels very soft.
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply