You have to remember that while we may be working or just up and walking around our elders are mostly just sitting quietly. I usually take my mom's hand when I visit her and it can feel like ice, that usually means that her feet and lower legs are popsicles too.
(sigh); When I'd visit my mom in Independent Living, I would open and door and stagger back from the heat.
I'd be there in May, and she'd have the heat on. The thermostat in the apartment generally read in the high 80's, low 90's.
I got mom's doc to tell her that this was unhealthy (it was, she had high blood pressure, but he was wise enough to know that HE wasn't going to be able to change her habits).
Is that the reason she had stroke on July 1st? We'll never know.
Yup, they're cold. As you age, your activity level drops so your body isn't making "heat" by burning energy.
Also, circulation slows down, so the blood isn't circulating as fast as it used to. The feet and fingers are the farthest from the heart. Most elders have cold feet and hands.
Certain diseases like anemia, anorexia, Raynaud's, peripheral arterial disease, diabetes and fibromyalgia also can make you feel cold, hypothyroid and hypothalamus dysfunction can also leave you feeling too cold.
10 years ago (I was 51), I was no where near as cold as I am now. Hubs is as hot as a toaster, so we have a dual control electric blanket. He radiates heat and my feet and hands stay cold. We're retiring in a warm region. He'll just have to sweat.
Bring your blanket because I live in a warm climate and I’m always cold too. I was calling my cat yesterday to come lay on my feet to warm them (a little animal training there). Not yesterday, oh no!
Bring a nice hooded medium weight neutral color jacket for Spring and Fall. Lots of windy rainy days when you’ll need it.
Florida? It’s hot June through September. Bathing suit with a gauzy cover up.
Thank u all i knw now whr to get quik n honest answers as im new to this n providing for both my parents without anybody elses help im 53 yrs n number 9child we were 11 altogetthr 3older sisters 5 older brothers n 2younger sistrs. But no help frm any of thm since parents signed every thing over to me which isnt very much but to my siblings its they handed over the entire world.Its only 4 lots mobile home tht i live in n the house right beside it which they live in but oh well since i hve power of atty.Fr both my siblings think i should take care of thm both entirely how can they b so confused. R they just act thts wht tht paper means tht my parents turned their lifes to me.amyways as i am new to this im gonna b askn questions n thank uall for ur answers greatly appreciated.
Apparently they’re still angry over the property and feel it’s unfair. They have no idea what you’ve been burdened with and don’t care. Ugly jealousy.
I’m assuming you’ve tried to talk reasonably to no avail. Fortunately there is outside help, especially if there’s very little money. There are articles on this site that give good ideas and many of our members know invaluable financial information.
It will still be difficult but doable with outside help!
They are really cold. So let them have their sweater but DO NOT allow them to touch the home thermostat because other people live there too.
I’ve been burned up at various elderly relatives houses. One of those Amish small heaters in whatever room they are occupying is a good answer. Safe, effective and inexpensive to run.
If your father is turning red in the face and sweating profusely while stating that he is cold, then you can assume there is a perception problem and not a cold problem and you might want to persuade him to wear alternative clothing - maybe he'd swap the jacket for a safari shirt or something like that.
But if he appears normal for him and he's comfier in his jacket, let him keep it on.
Perhaps the basic issue is whether or not we can really tell how a person feels. My father was cold, as was my mother. My sister and were both hot (not in the normal sense of being a "hottie"). There was one time when we both had to escape from our parents' house and get outside b/c of the high heat in the summer. Mom and Dad were comfortable; my sister and I were sweating.
But that changed when she developed cancer, and it changed for me when my activity level segued from outdoor work to sitting inside in hospitals and nursing homes.
I think it's both a function of age, activity, and personal body composition. But, if someone feels cold, then I think the right thing to do is accept and address it, especially if with an elder whose activity level has lessened and he/she lacks the capacity to work out.
Drinking warm fluids can help though. Hot chocolate and honey/lemon tea works.
Ng, any time I went to visit my elderly parents the inside temp was like that of a rain forest. There Mom sat with a thermo undershirt, a long sleeve shirt, a sweater over that, long pants, and knee socks. And she was still feeling chilly.
And there my Dad sat wearing outdoor shorts and nothing else because the house was too hot. I found I could only stay to visit for maybe 15 minutes as the heat was getting to me.
Now, medicines and certain illnesses can make a person feel very cold. Thyroid is one condition that can do that.
Another thing, a few years ago my Dad went around and changed out all the old fashioned light bulbs and had put in those newer twisted type bulbs. He was thinking how much electricity he could save. Well, that backfired, as my Mom was now feeling much colder because there wasn't the heat which would come off the older light bulbs. Thus, Dad had to raise the heat temp on the furnace, there went his savings.
My mother is 88 and is cold all the time regardless of the temp indoors or out. She always has a throw wrapped around her when she reads or watches TV. Her feet and hands are always cold but she has poor circulation and a low thyroid which contributes to the problem. She always takes a sweater when we go out but, here in Texas, businesses tend to keep their building temperature set to "freezing"!
I am only 72 and most of the time I am cold (when everyone else is hot)
We have an electric over-blanket. I have to have this one every night for at least an hour. Luckily we have one that has duel control, so he doesn't suffer my blanket.
Occasionally I have ' a bit of a sweat' but I have a mini fan for those. I have to have my socks on every day, even the hot ones. My hands and feet get (or are) cold most of the time.
I call it old blood. :) I never used to feel the cold so much until the put me on BP tablets because mine was high.
If the back of my neck is not too hot then I am comfortable. Ha ha ha like I used to check the babies. :)
If he is happy and comfortable, that is all we can ask.
My mother wore a sweater every day. She wore fingerless mittens. She used a lap blanket. And most of the other residents appeared to be dressed similarly, no matter what the building temperature was. The poor aides couldn't have the building comfortably air-conditioned for their active work.
I believe they are really cold, as the body apparently loses a lot of the fat layer under the skin as one ages. Jackets, sweaters and other layers are a great idea.
I'd be there in May, and she'd have the heat on. The thermostat in the apartment generally read in the high 80's, low 90's.
I got mom's doc to tell her that this was unhealthy (it was, she had high blood pressure, but he was wise enough to know that HE wasn't going to be able to change her habits).
Is that the reason she had stroke on July 1st? We'll never know.
As you age, your activity level drops so your body isn't making "heat" by burning energy.
Also, circulation slows down, so the blood isn't circulating as fast as it used to. The feet and fingers are the farthest from the heart. Most elders have cold feet and hands.
Certain diseases like anemia, anorexia, Raynaud's, peripheral arterial disease, diabetes and fibromyalgia also can make you feel cold, hypothyroid and hypothalamus dysfunction can also leave you feeling too cold.
10 years ago (I was 51), I was no where near as cold as I am now. Hubs is as hot as a toaster, so we have a dual control electric blanket. He radiates heat and my feet and hands stay cold. We're retiring in a warm region. He'll just have to sweat.
Bring a nice hooded medium weight neutral color jacket for Spring and Fall. Lots of windy rainy days when you’ll need it.
Florida? It’s hot June through September. Bathing suit with a gauzy cover up.
I’m assuming you’ve tried to talk reasonably to no avail. Fortunately there is outside help, especially if there’s very little money. There are articles on this site that give good ideas and many of our members know invaluable financial information.
It will still be difficult but doable with outside help!
I’ve been burned up at various elderly relatives houses. One of those Amish small heaters in whatever room they are occupying is a good answer. Safe, effective and inexpensive to run.
But if he appears normal for him and he's comfier in his jacket, let him keep it on.
But that changed when she developed cancer, and it changed for me when my activity level segued from outdoor work to sitting inside in hospitals and nursing homes.
I think it's both a function of age, activity, and personal body composition. But, if someone feels cold, then I think the right thing to do is accept and address it, especially if with an elder whose activity level has lessened and he/she lacks the capacity to work out.
Drinking warm fluids can help though. Hot chocolate and honey/lemon tea works.
And there my Dad sat wearing outdoor shorts and nothing else because the house was too hot. I found I could only stay to visit for maybe 15 minutes as the heat was getting to me.
Now, medicines and certain illnesses can make a person feel very cold. Thyroid is one condition that can do that.
Another thing, a few years ago my Dad went around and changed out all the old fashioned light bulbs and had put in those newer twisted type bulbs. He was thinking how much electricity he could save. Well, that backfired, as my Mom was now feeling much colder because there wasn't the heat which would come off the older light bulbs. Thus, Dad had to raise the heat temp on the furnace, there went his savings.
We have an electric over-blanket. I have to have this one every night for at least an hour. Luckily we have one that has duel control, so he doesn't suffer my blanket.
Occasionally I have ' a bit of a sweat' but I have a mini fan for those.
I have to have my socks on every day, even the hot ones. My hands and feet get (or are) cold most of the time.
I call it old blood. :) I never used to feel the cold so much until the put me on BP tablets because mine was high.
If the back of my neck is not too hot then I am comfortable. Ha ha ha like I used to check the babies. :)
If he is happy and comfortable, that is all we can ask.
Hugs.
I believe they are really cold, as the body apparently loses a lot of the fat layer under the skin as one ages. Jackets, sweaters and other layers are a great idea.