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Dealing with Frigid Temperatures
Hi Everyone,
If you’re Canadian, you know that this winter has been exceptionally cold and frigid. Some evenings in December, January and even so far in February, evening temperatures have dropped to -38C. While I never really tolerated the cold well, since being diagnosed with IPF, I find the winter months so much harder to deal with. It feels as though I cannot get warm no matter what I try: heated blankets, warm bath, heating pads, expensive leather gloves and hats, a warm coat, pre-warming my vehicle, etc. Not only do I really feel the cold in my lungs, making it harder to breathe and causing a dry cough; I also find my extremities are extremely sore and it takes a long time for my fingers and toes to warm up. When my hands and fingers are so cold, it does prevent me from doing fine motor tasks such as typing, dialling on the phone or hanging onto things like my keys, as an example.
Does anyone else experience this since their diagnosis? I did notice it last year, which was my first full winter with IPF (2016-2017) however this year, my pain from the cold and the intolerance of cold temperatures is significantly worse. If you have experienced this before, is it something that typically remains the same for you or has it worsened over the years? I look forward to hearing from others about their experience in the cold Canadian winters, and if anything in particular is helpful for you managing the frigid temperatures.
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