One of the biggest problems I have with my MS is my moodiness, but there is a HUGE reason for it. When I over heat, my body just doesn't quite know what to do, so it doesn't do anything but hold onto it. I know I'm over heating when my hand and feet (mostly my toes) turn red and I start getting irritated very easily. Then there's also the whole being incredibly cold part. With MS my body doesn't know how to hold onto my body heat and keep me warm. So I really do get VERY cold. The cold part is what has done the most to my since being diagnosed though.
I first noticed being irritated easily and my toes being red before I was even diagnosed with MS, but I thought it was just because I was a girl and it happened to everyone. I did notice that I always seemed to have less energy in the sun as everyone else though. I thought I was just out of shape or something. The only time I've really had anything scare me with the warm part was a few summers ago when I was going on a short walk up the hill I live on. I noticed that as the hill got steeper it was harder for me to breathe. It was like breathing threw a small straw and something squeezing my lungs at the same time. Later I found out from my doctor that that is called the "MS hug". Now I don't go for walks when its above 87 degrees outside. When I go shopping, I usually wear flip flops so that I can tell when I'm too warm and when to shut up so I don't snap at anyone. Its happened more than once while shopping with the hubby. Sadly sometimes just trying on clothes over heats me and cuts the trip short.
When I was 18 and still somewhat newly diagnosed I went to visit my brother who lived in Washington state (the dry ugly part on the other side of the mountain range). It was in January and it was more than a little cold there, but no one else seemed to be as cold as I felt. I just went with California had made me a wimp with cold weather. I would go and hang out with some old friends that I had grown up with and after being there for about 5 or 6 days I started feeling sick. I was only visiting my brother and his family for a couple weeks, so I was going to stick it out and not say anything about not feeling well. Then about on day 3 or 4 days before I was supposed to go home, I started throwing up. It didn't matter what I ate, drank or didn't, I just threw up. I felt miserable to rest of the time. Then I got back to California where it was warm(er) and humid. I felt fine. I wasn't sick, I wasn't throwing up and I didn't even feel the need to throw up.
At age 21 I was staying in Utah for awhile with someone my family. I had been there for almost 4 months when I started feeling sick to my stomach. I hadn't changed anything I was eating or drinking, so I just went with I was being a wimp again. So I of course was still going out with friends, going to the gym, and hanging out with family, but then one night at a friends house I threw up. I didn't say anything for my friends and just kept sneaking off to throw up. I got back to my brother and started throwing up again. Not sure, but once again I did go home to California shortly after that and felt fine. There were some other factors in there while going home but I'll talk about those another time.
I was 23 and nearly married. I had lived in California just shy (by a month) of 7 years and didn't own a coat, just hoodies. My husband moved my to Indianapolis and wanted to show me where he had gone to college. We drove up to Muncie, IN to check out ball state. Only yet again, it was January, cold and incredibly windy. By this time I had put the pieces together of how and why I was throwing up for no reason. The other places were cold, dry and almost not humidity. Northern Indiana isn't dry but oh my gosh is it cold in the winter. I only wore a hoodie since I didn't really think I was going to be doing any walking around. We did. We walked around and looked at some statues and building that he lived in and had classes in. When I finally had him convinced that I was cold and we need to start heading back to Indy, I was really cold. Then he did something I had told him not to do. We got in the car and turn the heater on full blast to warm my up faster. By the time we got back to where we lived I just went straight to bed with a bucket. About 15 or 20 minutes later, I was throwing up.
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