To think there must be something wrong with me because I absolutely can not tolerate the UK heatwaves - anyone else?

[Saywhatnowhey]

I am 53 and in perimenopause so that is not helping at all but I have always been like this.

As soon as summer hits and these heatwaves come out of nowhere I feel dreadful. I have never been able to tolerate either cold or hot weather at all, even when I was younger. As a child I preferred winter over summer so I could cover and layer up.

Where I live in the UK it is often the most hot and humid weather during the summer months and it makes me feel so physically unwell. I have some existing health issues but none that are related to temperature intolerance so no idea why I get like this. It's only 9.30am and I have already had to sit down with my neck fan on. Just hanging out a few loads of washing and tidying up the kitchen has left my heart racing, my stomach churning (I do have IBS which gets worse in the summer) and I feel so nauseous (I always feel so sick in the heat). Other than pace and fan myself there doesn't seem to be a lot I can do to dampen down the ill feeling I get.

No one else I know is like this, everyone adores this heat and really looks forward to it, some saying the hotter the better but I just want to lay on my bed and lay with the fan on all day, I feel so lightheaded and weird.

I have mentioned this numerous times to my GP but my blood levels return ok so they don't have any suggestions.

Is it normal to feel so unwell during the summer months? Does anyone else get this?

I freeze during the winter, like to the bone frozen but I would rather take that over the summer because at least I can carry my trusty hot water bottle around with me and layer up. The sticky, humid UK summers make me want to rip my skin off. It really annoys me because I love warmth and sunshine - I could happily reside in September and October for the rest of my days, I am at my most comfortable in Autumn.

Its shit @Saywhatnowhey Top floor one bedroom flat

1. Bath not shower.
2. Health and safety regs like no gaps under doors and window restrictors have turned these places into even hotter sweatboxes.
3. The fridge freezer cant take it and stops working.
4. It affects my bowel issues.
5. the kitchen is very small so nowhere for heat to go when you do cook see 2 and 3

I live in central Scotland and I’m still wearing a hoodie today. It very rarely gets hot enough for me to even consider shorts. I think I run cold but I often look at what people are wearing and wonder how they aren’t freezing. It’s very rare for me to get away with a single layer. I have Raynauds and mild arthritis so winter is more problematic for me.

But you get so so ill in temps above 20 (so it seems), which means that an AC until is a medical necessity and you just need to find a way to buy one. Even if it's a few years of saving up. There is no other option for you OP, I'm not saying this to be mean, but you don't really have any other choices

Our previous house had a big loft extension and it was boiling hot up there in the summer. The previous owners left us an air conditioning unit but it was so noisy and made the air so dry, we didn't use it.

Could you have Pots or Mcas?

I have to say we want to the beach today and it was beautiful, even went for a swim, but that’s the only time I managed to cool down, that’s an understatement the sea was cold 🥶 did the trick though. It says it was 13.2 to 14.7 so not freezing !
Hope your daughter is okay, holiday parks are hard work

Completely sympathise. Been heat intolerant all my life to the point at nine years old my worried parents took me for a blood test as I kept passing out one summer. The doctor confirmed that although a very healthy child , hot weather was always going to be problematic for me but there has always been a puzzle as to the exact cause.

I’m the same with the feeling of the sun on my skin, I can’t quite describe enough for people to fully understand but it almost makes me panic, I really don’t like the sensation at all. I have adhd and often wonder if I have asd too. I have a lot of sensory issues.

Yes, the brightness is a thing for me too, I find it overwhelming and over stimulating, I feel much calmer and at ease come evening (maybe I’m a vampire lol).

I am very short sighted and prefer brighter weather as I don't see well in dim light. It just goes to show that there are a lot of genuine physical reasons for preferring different weather types.

But I can’t go carrying an air conditioning unit around with me, nor can I sit all day in one room so it simply isn’t an affordable option for me. I certainly don’t have the funds for air conditioning units in every room or at my parents house where I care for my mum. I get by within my budget and for me that means hand held fans, drinking as much water as I can and wearing cool clothes. I just can’t afford air con, sadly it is that simple.

Because the heat makes me so unwell I carnt carry out normal daily tasks.

Can you stretch to £26 ? I got one a bit like this and it does give some respite at least
https://amzn.eu/d/0g7GkCjH

It is relentless if you have to do things in this heat though and you have my sympathy

I haven’t been diagnosed with these conditions but I believe I may have, at the very least joint hyper mobility but potentially EDS and I know those two conditions are related to connective tissue disorders. I have IBS, Raynauds, endometriosis and adhd. The latter two I was only diagnosed within the last 2 years so I’m still trying to piece together my health issues to see if there is any connections which I’m certain they are but I’m struggling with the EDS issue atm as my GP isn’t too helpful.

I have never been good in the heat.

I'm very pale skinned and burn easily no matter how often I re-apply sunscreen, so that doesn't help, but I think it's mainly a sensory thing for me.

I am Autistic and have high levels of sensory sensitivity so absolutely hate the feeling of being too hot. I used to think that the hot weather made me feel physically ill, but what I've realised over time is that because I hate the sensory feeling of being too hot it makes me feel panicked, and it's the anxiety that causes a horrible sick, dizzy feeling. Anxiety (on top of the heat) is also exhausting so I feel tired and like I can't concentrate on anything. It's not that the physical symptoms aren't real, they definitely are, but for me they're not caused by illness. I'm not saying that's also the case for you, but if you're someone who is sensitive to sensory stimuli anyway it could be.

Things that help me cope in heat-waves are

Carrying around a big water bottle, one of the ones that keeps ice water cold for hours. I'm not great at staying hydrated at the best of times and need to remind myself to drink more than my 'normal' intake in hot water.

A neck rechargeable neck fan. I was embarrassed to wear it in public initially but now I don't care if it looks daft, it's the best thing I've ever brought and the only comments I've ever had have been people saying "that's such a good idea, where did you get it?"

I got a Meaco fan for my bedroom (I think it was about £100) and it was such a game changer I ended up getting one for downstairs as well. One of the best things I've ever brought.

Fruity ice lollies for hydration and to help with nausea.

I have some of those cooling gel packs (like you would use for an injury) in the freezer and I take one to bed with me like a reverse hot water bottle.

I can empathise Saywhatnowhey as I have some kind of dysautonomia condition (still trying to find out what exactly) but heat over around 20 degrees makes me miserable.

Being out in the sun & the feeling of the heat on my skin makes me feel sick & because I can't regulate my body temperature properly I get shortness of breath, tachycardia, dizziness, & excessive sweating (hair literally wringing wet). Oh & my eyes are chronically dry during spring & summer & can't stand bright light.

Summer is hell for those of us with these conditions & I wish I could just hibernate between May & Sept. Others have given some good ideas for coping, & I would second cooling packs, staying hydrated, & there are some cooling pillows etc for sleep.

I think your gran would've been more accurate if she'd said that those born May to September enjoy their birthday weather. I was born in February and I can guarantee you that I wish I'd been born in July 🤣.

No you are letting hot air into the house
Shades drawn and windows closed during the day
Open the windows and the cooler air rushes in at night
Just use a fan for breeze

Exactly this. South African friends who visit really struggle in our heatwaves. And they literally live in Africa on the Botswana border!

Ditto my colleagues from Joburg and also from Texas - they also struggle and say the heat in the UK is worse

I love the way people suggest moving house like it's going out and buying a pint of milk.

There are loads of reasons why some people don't or can't move. Work, support networks, friends and not least it costs a lot of money to move. That's assuming you own rather than live in local authority housing or rent, which has its own set of restrictions and complications.

Plus you don't get really hot days very often.

I spent about fifteen minutes outside at 7pm lastnight filling some pots with compost and honestly I was so unwell overnight I contemplated ringing 111. It’s not super hot here in the NE but combination of kidney disease and POTS from suspected long Covid made it unbearable - today I’m going to have to stay indoors as forecast for much higher temps.

Sorry to be a troll but the idea that 28 degrees is a heatwave is hilarious to me as an Australian. That's sometimes the daytime temp here in the middle of winter! Seriously though it's never that hot in England but not you are not being unreasonable because it is what you are used to. If I had to endure an English winter I might actually die.

I do sympathise with you, but for me the hot weather is wonderful. I would live in a climate where it's 28c quite happily. I hate the cold, dark evenings are depressing and having to wear layers of clothing just awful.

I wouldn’t suggest moving at the drop of the hat but OP is painting a picture of an all encompassing stress and inability to think of anything else. In those instances, I think considering moving is sensible. And if it’s not many days in fact, then the whole premise of the post is daft as surely the OP can cope?!

Love when it’s sunny but I absolutely hate the heat in the UK although I’m very heat tolerant in my home country, where it regularly stays in 40° during the summer.

I think a big part of it is that houses here are obviously designed to stay warm. I am actually dreading work this summer to the point I feel almost in tears just thinking about it (workplace refuses to install air conditioning) and praying they actually come out with a law regarding maximum temperatures at work. It needs to happen, it gets hotter by the year.