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Spotlight: Temperature and Weather

Whether it's the summer heat or the winter cold, temperature and weather can have a BIG impact on many living with MS. We want to hear from you! Does the heat or cold affect you more? Or, do you struggle with both? How do you manage temperature and weather? Join the conversation here and let us know!

  1. I think both affect me but summer I get so dizzy and off balanced especially if it's just really hot and humid but winter I get cold I'll dress warmer and be okay go figure

    1. Tiffany-MS-MOM, the humidity and the heat can be so hard to deal with, but the cold can have its own unique impact as well!

  2. The heat is the worst thing for me. I live in Maryland and in the summer the humidity is terrible. I try to stay indoors if I can. I go to work before the temps are extremely high and go straight to the garage and turn to the air on in the car when I leave.
    I can deal with the cold so much better.

    1. So, does this sound like MS-related fatigue and mood swings, or just me? I have RRMS, and work at a historic park, where I dress in 19th century clothing for work. I do tours and school programs in non-airconditioned buildings. I find that numbness and pain are more common with cold, but after working in the heat, I come home and am tired enough to want a nap, and incredibly irritable -- yelling at my kid over little stuff, nearly bursting into tears. Just me, dehydration, or MS??

      1. Hi Sara -
        Unfortunately we are unable to provide any medical advice for our members. It sounds as though you do lots of work in the outside weather, which would be very difficult. We would like to encourage you to speak with your physician in hopes of some answers to your question!
        Thank you for coming by -
        Meagan, MultipleSclerosis.net Team Member

    2. So, I'm in Central Texas... so I don't think I've ever dealt with the kind of COLD that many others deal with that have MS. So I can't say that it really affects me all that much. I really enjoy the cooler weather.... Mind you, I get cold if it's 70 degrees or below.

      But I do deal with the extreme heat a lot, especially right now. Having those over 100 degree days is brutal. It makes you feel like you're just sluggish, and very fatigued. Although, I've dealt with hot weather, but it was a dry heat... and it didn't bother me AS much...

      I feel like I sweat really quick when it comes to the heat, then for some reason, along with the fatigue, the muscle spasticity kicks in, and sometimes numbness. It's not every time it's extremely hot outside. It just depends on what kind of activity i'm partaking in, during those extreme temps.

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