AIBU to ask for heatwave coping tips / purchases that help?

[CassandraWebb]

I have a neuromuscular junction disorder called Myasthenia that means my body pretty much stops sending signals to my muscles the heat so I am pretty worried about next week.

So I am looking to gather all your best tips /advice /purchases!

I know someone will come and lecture about "hysteria" around the heat but it really does affect me very badly- in particular it gets scary when it causes a flare that means I cannot swallow safely

I have an air conditioner in the sitting room so I will work in there. And I know work will be happy for me to work from home (as I will rapidly get to the point I cant function otherwise). But there will still be times I have to leave my air conditioned bubble

I do have a neck fan, and some cooling neck tubes that last 30 mins or so. Spray bottles of water help a bit.

But I am sure there are other tips that might help me (or others!)

My heatwave tip is to put an ice pack under my pillow so I can keep flipping the pillow over to the cold side.

Hope you get through okay OP.

Oh I like that idea, thank you !

My speech was slurring today and we are nowhere near peak temperatures so I just want to be prepared

We were in France a small hotel room with only an electric fan during the heatwave last year, and I wrung out my towel in cold water and slept on it.

I sincerely hope no one belittles your condition on this thread. If possible, keep windows open overnight and close once it starts to heat up in the morning, closing curtains and blinds too. This keeps cool air in. Open them up again when it starts to cool down later on. That said, if you have a north/south facing home, it’s good to have windows open on the north side if there’s a breeze, to let cooler air in. Hope you get through this week ok OP.

Sleeping with a wet towel instead of cotton sheets. It's incredibly cooling, especially with a fan going.

Sometimes I also use it during the day like a blanket over my knees. You could try it when you're at your desk.

I saw a doctor on instagram suggesting that we 2/3rds fill a hot water bottle with cold water and then freeze it. Not sure how it will help when you need to leave your air conditioned bubble but it was a damn game changer for helping us to sleep.

Ocoopa mini fan Amazon is amazing in power

We've ordered some "cooling towel " toddy 15 quid no idea what they are but people are raving about them and also going to do the cold hot water bottle advised on here ,put hot water bottle on freezer

I keep wondering about those cooling towels but they seem to require some vigorous "wringing out" and I have to avoid any exertion in the heat. I would be interested to hear how well they work though!

Best thing I've found is hanging sheets outside the windows on the south side of the house so the sun doesnt hit the glass. Makes an enormous difference.

An alternative to the cooling towels or bathtowels is a big damp muslin cloth - like the ones you can’t live without as a new mum - draped around your shoulders and legs. My son is eight now and I purposefully kept the best ones for this very reason!

The cool towels stay cool lot longer than normal towels or flannels in my opinion

I rate running a cold shower over a flat sheet so its about 50% wet, laid over me in bed with the fan on. Not as heavy as a towel.

https://www.fruugo.co.uk/chillow-cooling-pillow-sleeping-cool-pillow-pads-for-night-sweats/p-358717136-780310810?language=en&ac=google&utm_source=google&utm_medium=paid&asc=pmax&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20650455096&gbraid=0AAAAADpXug1q-1hz_VFN5rLtMIwvydB04&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI75PNsoqZlQMVMpFQBh0I6AAxEAQYAyABEgLWCvD_BwE

Honestly I don’t think any purchase helps besides AC units or good fans. Keep your windows and curtains closed when the sun is on them, and open when the air cools. Aim a fan at the external wall in a room to bring the temp down a little, and run your AC in a shut room to get it chilled then shut the room down and blast the fan.

Do you really need to leave the AC bubble? Order food and essentials online, and try not to leave? If you let us know why you need to leave the house we can maybe make some suggestions for alternatives?

We also do this I am able to feed it through the window . Anything to stop the sun actually touching the glass
..

Op re vigourous ringing out I hope not !!😂
However I can highly recommend the fan . Others seem weak on compassion

Frozen hot water bottle really helps me. Running pulse points under the cold tap and cold compress/towel over my head or neck.
Also resting my feet in a basin of cold water

It's been 30-35c while I'm on holiday this week and I've had a wet silk scarf round my neck to stay cool, re wet it often. I don't care if it drips on me. Also had a usb fan pointed at it sometimes

We have cooling scarves , they are some artex type synthetic material which stays pleasantly damp..
They don't require heavy duty winging out.
I bought this
https://www.amazon.co.uk/CHOSHOME-Snowflake-Self-Cooling-Lightweight-Double-Sided/dp/B09N6J25FC?pd_rd_w=JNVfx&content-id=amzn1.sym.78b0bdd7-576f-4fba-bf6f-9c75764ba564&pf_rd_p=78b0bdd7-576f-4fba-bf6f-9c75764ba564&pf_rd_r=PRNNDTGAGCQR6C7EQV5F&pd_rd_wg=66EoL&pd_rd_r=51d3c34d-9857-4cb9-a0bb-88f6b1c5f766&pd_rd_i=B09N6J25FC&psc=1&ref_=pd_basp_m_rpt_ba_s_1_nped_pr_sc

Son says it's good.

For me, the cooling cloths work best. Im in Scotland and find 20 C too warm; I I just googled and it’s going to be 39 in London mid week: that sounds horrific

We have a very big loose sheet we sleep under when it’s hot. In the past I’ve been known to put it in a plastic bag in the freezer in the afternoon!

I keep a misting bottle filled with water in the fridge so I can grab it and cool myself down instantly. You can buy an aerosol version of this on Amazon but I’ve personally not tried it.

I spray my pillowcase with water and put it in a freezer bag in the freezer for 15 minutes before bed.

We have a tower fan next to the bed on full power all night with the window wide open.

windows open + curtains shut all day until evening to keep sun off.

You're right and I shall try and minimise it
But I have a hospital appointment and I also have to take a child to a hospital appointment and I think the hospital will be horribly hot (sympathies to those who have to work there) and it's a walk from the hospital car park to the entrance as well

How exactly do you do this?

I have a relatively mild chronic health condition which means that I don’t feel very well when it gets above 34 degrees (forecast for my home area for four days this week). I find electrolyte tablets in water help. I also have some sweet cold drinks rather than just water which I wouldn’t normally do.

Night is the biggest issue - I have a shower so my hair is wet, and then have a water mister spray. As the water evaporates off your body it cools down which can help. Good luck OP. When the house got above 29 in May I just couldn’t get to sleep, but the spray did help.

i have some cooling scarf thingies, they don't need much wringing out at all, just enough so they aren't dripping wet to start with, then when they start warming up you give them a shake to cool them down again. I tend to have one across the back of my neck when at home, and if i need to go out I'll wrap it around my head.

I've also got a couple of cooling gel pads, a huge one from silentnight for my bed, and smaller ones for pillows. I do normally wake up a couple of times at night, the first time i take the heated up pad away, then the next time bring it back after it's cooled down again.