Raynaund's Disease: Outdoor Weather Tips

One of the advantages of living with an inflammatory arthritis like rheumatoid arthritis for many years is you start to figure things out.   About two years after my rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis in 2004, I experienced my first episode of raynaund's disease.  Even with gloves on, my fingers looked like hotdogs and I had an extreme urgency to get out of the cold as quickly as I could.  The experience was beyond scary.

It took me a while to figure out how to live with Raynaund's disease, but I think for the most part, I've got it figured out.   With the following steps I have been successful in maintaining my daily walks each and every day no matter what Chicago's winters decide to dish out.

The key is to stay warm.  If you are warm from head to toe, it makes it more difficult for the hands and feet to get cold and that is the goal.  Don't let them get cold!!!

• Keep your head warm.  We were told growing up that if your head is warm, you will be warm. I never knew how true this was until I was hit with Raynaund's.   I know women especially shy away from hats, but find several you love and make them your friends.  I always have a winter headband and hat with me because a hat doesn't seem to keep my ears quite warm enough and like my fingers and toes, they scream in pain when cold. On daily walks when I will be out for about 40-45 minutes, I really layer my head.  I start with a face mask, followed by a head band, and finally covered by a heavy duty hat.  It isn't pretty, but getting outside and moving is worth it!   

• Wear layers.  You can always take things off if too hot, but once you are cold, it takes forever to warm up.  Besides my layered headwear as mentioned in #1, I layer my upper body.  I start with a cotton undershirt, then a hoody, and finally a quality winter coat.

• Buy a nice pair of lined pants.  I have a pair from Eddie Bauer that I basically lived in last winter with the extreme cold temperatures.

• Invest in a boots/shoes that are intended for outdoors.  I fought this for a long time but once I bought my Ugg boots, I knew they were priceless.

  

  So warm inside.  I also like that
  they are  rugged for snowy days.

   Not only are they roomy for my wonky feet, but they keep my feet 100% warm.  I don't even need socks!

• Buy a variety of gloves - I keep a pair of gloves in every coat/jacket, two pairs in the car, in my purse, and even next to the dumbbells,  (Those things can be cold when you first handle them.)

• 

  Just a few of my gloves!

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• Invest in some gadgets.  My husband bought this little gadget for me last winter at Eddie Bauer's. It is nice, but you have to make sure it is charged.  I also keep a couple of packets of HotHands in my purse.  

• Take advantage of belly fat.   This is the time of year that you want to be thankful for the roll of fat that has accumulated on your belly.  If all the above steps have failed me, I am not embarrassed to say that I stick my hand under my shirt and let the warmth of my belly warm my hands up. (Sorry, no pictures!)

• Hot/Cold Showers - To keep the circulation going, I take hot/cold showers several times a week.  2-3 minutes of really hot water followed by a minute of really cold water.  Repeat.  Not environmentally friendly, I agree. 

• Expose your face and hands to the sun when possible during the winter to make sure you are still absorbing some vitaimin D.   

It did take me several years of accumulating my winter gear because staying warm can be expensive.  But now that I have it all together, it makes a world of difference in my outdoor experiences.  In the past, I reduced my winter walk distance and avoiding outdoor fun with my family in fear of my hands, feet, and ears getting cold.  No more!  

Good luck this winter.  Keep warm. Don't let Raynaund's keep you inside.  

I HATE winter!

My family and I have lived in the Chicago area for almost 15 years now.  The first few years I kind of liked winter here.  Lots of snow was exciting and fun.  However, over the years, I have found myself in a love/hate relationship with winter, leaning more on the HATE side.  The first snow, I love.  I get up early to make sure Izzy and I are the first walkers of the day.  There is nothing better than the calm that comes after a snow.  I come back from a long walk refreshed and happy, marveling in nature.  It's the preceding days that I hate.  The snow melts a little and refreezes.  Each footprint in the snow has frozen over so when you try to avoid the slippery sidewalks, you end up nearly twisting an ankle as you walk on top of previous walker's boot prints.   I find myself silently yelling at neighbors who don't shovel their sidewalks and neighbors who let their sump pump empty directly onto the sidewalk so there is a heavy sheet of ice.  I end up returning home angry at the world and often that attitude stays with me all day.  This is what happened yesterday.  I took a walk and felt angry all day. My walks are what generally calm my mind and make the rest of the day doable.  I feel like this time of the year, I struggle.      

Yesterday, after it had rained the night before, my walk was miserable.  A lot of the snow had melted but there were so many patches of ice on the sidewalk and in our yards that walking was more like participating in an obstacle course than being a serene time of the day.  I worried about my border collie Izzy and myself slipping. I came home and told my husband, "I hate living here."

As I reflected on "I hate living here" later in the day, I realized I hate many things about winter.  It seems like forever since we have had sunshine for more than a few hours at a time. Whenever the sun is out, I want to absorb as much as I can, as if my body is starving for it. By February, I am absolutely sick and tired of putting on four layers of pants, two shirts and my coat, a face mask, a hat, and then a big hat over that one along with big clunky gloves and boots to insure the Rayaund's in my hands and feet can make it through a 35-45 minute walk.  I am tired of wiping down my border collie when we get home because she smells like a wet dog who then rubs herself all over the furniture.  I am tired of having smashed down hair from wearing a hat everywhere I go, but know that without it, my ears which also seem to deal with Rayaund's, become so painful I can't handle it.  I'm tired of brushing against a dirty car and looking out of windows that have dirt, salt, and other winter debris. I 'm tired of everything just being dirty!  By February, whether we have tons of snow or not, I am tired of living in the Chicago area.  I told my husband that I could handle the cold and snow if the sun was out.  I think it is true.  I think more than anything, I just miss the sun.  I need it in a bad, bad way.  

Today, I am going to focus on getting my mind out of the "hate" mode and back to a happy place.  For starters, I am going to focus on the positive of winter:
1.
2.
3.
Help!!!!!  I can't think of anything today!  I know there are a few.

Ok, change of focus.  Rather than focus on what I like about winter, I am going to spend time today visualizing myself on a beach with the sun shining down on me.  I am going to take time to read encouraging words, meditate, make delicious food, and laugh (even if I have to force it).  I'm going to clean the house and declutter my desk, because even though I can't take away the dirt outside, I can clean it up inside.

What do you do about winter blues?

Stomach Fat to the Rescue

This morning I woke up and thought, "Oh poop, this extra layer of holiday stomach fat didn't disappear overnight as I hoped."  Oh well, what can I expect when I continue to eat additional holiday foods after the holidays?

Rather than reflecting too long on my stomach, I headed out for my morning walk with Izzy.  I was determined not to let the low temperatures of the morning stop me from walking my usual 40-45 minutes.  Several times on my walk my fingers became super cold and I knew I either had to head back home fast or I had to once again use my stomach to warm up my hands.  I chose my stomach.  Oh boy was I glad to feel that extra layer of fat as my cold hands slipped into my shirt.  Thank you stomach and all your beautiful layers of fat.  You instantly warmed up my hands and I was able to enjoy another beautiful morning walk with snow flakes falling all around me! 

I'm so Smart: My Response to Raynaud's disease

Winter and morning walks are not a good combination for Raynaud's disease.  However, the many benefits of getting outside everyday and moving outweigh the side effects.   The other morning I was out for my walk with Izzy.  I was dressed in layers and had on my warm winter gloves.  However, about half way through the walk I could feel the tips of my fingers getting really cold.  Rather than go into a panic which sometimes happens when they get this cold, a super smart idea came to me, "use your body."  I took off my gloves and placed my hands on my warm stomach.  Of course my stomach wasn't too pleased at first but within a few minutes my hands were toasty again and I was able to put my gloves back on and head home without a problem.  Thank you stomach for staying so warm and helping my fingers.