Poor Tom's a-cold

[flemmings]

The common wisdom is that menopausal women are always too hot. Pfui. I've always been too hot. Can clearly remember in my 30's wondering what was this notion people had that t-shirts are cool. Thick heavy cotton, making you sweat any time the thermometer goes over 70F/ 21C. Mind you, that's a TO 70/21, meaning humid sticky and generally feeling like 86/30 or more. So yeah. I'm a sweater, meaning that in any season but winter I sweat; and in winter I sweat for other reasons.

Why then, in my late 50's, am I suddenly too cold?

I remember perfectly clearly when I couldn't bear to have anything around my waist or between my legs in bed. I remember it because after I had my hernia tucked back in '04 my poor bandaged tum wanted protection from the vile sheets and duvets and I was hard put to find something that would keep both of us happy. (Old pair of floppy shorts was the answer. They still rode up at night.)

I remember perfectly clearly my discovery, quite by accident in Japan, that if my head was warm the rest of me would be fine. Thus began a series of outsize fuzzy hoodies that were perfect until, paradoxically, I started getting too cold in *summer* with the window fans, when fuzzy hoodies are not what I want on me. That was solved splendidly by the loose-knit balaclava kintail made for me last year. Then the window fans were too cold on my *arms*, so I replaced my tshirts with ratty old long-sleeve tops. (Never throw *anything* away. This is why people live in houses.)

I hope you see the progression here?

Last night it was in the low 40s, and I wore: fuzzy socks, flannel pyjama pants, long sleeve shirt, fuzzy hoodie and my balaclava. (Yes, both. The hoodie alone lets the cold air onto my poor frostbitten ears.) With a hot water bottle. And feather duvet. And flannel sheets. And the heat on, which I call a luxury above 40F, 10C.

And my hands were too cold, dammit. Next up- mittens.

Comments

[bunnydoll.livejournal.com]

I've spent my whole life being too cold, and now the double-whammy of hysterectomy and pain medication make me burning hot all the time. I never did a lot of sweating before, but now--especially when lecturing--I am constantly dripping like crazy.

I hate it! At least when you're cold you can bundle up.

[flemmings.livejournal.com]

Recent hysterectomy? I hear overnight menopause is unadulterated hell. 'Now I know where those stories of spontaneous combustion came from,' said a friend who went that route. I've never had hot flashes at all, merely a vague 'getting kinda warm in here, what?' sensation at times, but that's down to fifteen years of soy shake for breakfast.

[bunnydoll.livejournal.com]

Well, it's been a couple of years now, but especially at first it was unbearable, this prickly crawly heat coming out of nowhere. It's funny how much it dictates how I dress, too--I went from wearing winter clothes in summer to being the reigning queen of the layered look. :)