Fibromyalgia is mostly known for the pain, fatigue and discomfort it causes a person, and several factors can increase the risk of having it or increase the pain. Many patients have reported that being exposed to different kinds of weather makes them feel more pain.
For example, being outside on a sunny day, or if is raining, or if the day is too cold, could all affect someone with fibromyalgia. Any possible change can cause an effect; even being in a bank or a store with the air conditioning on too low can make a fibromyalgia patient feel pretty bad. Scientifically, it is shown that weather; pressure, altitude, humidity and gravity can make changes to muscles, and the tissue causing different reactions between hot and cold.
The reported issues said that being in control of the situation is key to not let the weather affect a patient. It’s better to say that being in more neutral or fresh weather is best to avoid an increase in pain. A lot of people have said that they had to make a change of place due to climate conditions because extreme weather makes it hard to deal with fibromyalgia. It is hard to move for some patients, for example, because they enjoy more being in cold weather than in a hot environment.
They can’t stand the pain, so there is not another option. The contradictory part is that some studies found a few relations between fibromyalgia and the weather, but the worrying part is that people are feeling it, but a later research shows that weather could be one of the conditions that increase pain and other symptoms like fatigue, muscle pain, bad sleeping and headache. This is what different weather conditions do to the body.
Effects of humidity on fibromyalgia
Humidity is the presence of water vapor in the air. So, it makes a lot of sense when they said it affects people with fibromyalgia because humidity makes it hard for the body to cool down, and it makes heavy the ambient. When it is low, patients report that they suffer more headaches, stiffness, widespread pain and flares.
People who have fibromyalgia are disturbed due to various natural factors. Some of the factors can be a disturbance in the weather conditions. Both too much of cold and too much of heat can trigger or increase the pain symptoms in fibromyalgia. Change in air pressure can be considered as one of the reason why people experience change in pain symptoms. It is not necessarily be the case that only people who have fibromyalgia will have problems when humidity level is high in the atmosphere.
There are also people with other problems like asthma, allergies and other respiratory problems who find humidity difficult to manage. When absolute humidity in the air is low, people with fibromyalgia witness some of the problems like headache, fatigue, widespread pain in body parts, stiffness etc. In some rare cases, breathing difficulty is also seen.
How to minimize the negative effects of changing seasons
The most evident offer is to find a place where the weather is mild year-round and shift there. Or possibly break up the year, live in one spot for the spring and summer, and live somewhere else for the autumn and winter. However, that is not a practical solution for many of us.
So, we see that everything that makes the body change for external and extreme conditions are the ones that cause more trouble to people with fibromyalgia. The best options are always to be in a very temperate and comfortable zone where you can constantly be in control of the different situations. Hydration is an important habit for everyone. Drink a lot of water and the amount depends on where you live, if you live in warmer areas you are going to need more water.
Do it continuously and it doesn’t matter if you are not feeling thirsty, do it anyway. Don’t drink alcohol, quite it, avoid cold beverages and the ones with a big amount of sugar. You must drink water before, during and after every hard activity you do and we you are doing exercise is very important too.
Always have a bottle of water next to you. Wear comfortable and cool clothes. Take several cold showers during the day. If you can afford an air conditioner, don’t doubt it, buy it.
Go swimming, and if you are in pain, it is a good idea to wear clothes according to the weather. If you are in a hot weather, try to use light clothes and bright colors – everything made with light and fresh fabric. Try to wear shorts and t-shirts. If you are in a cold environment, use jackets, long pants, and gloves if necessary, and wear something on your head. Take long walks to breathe fresh air, and it is a good idea to take walks during the night.
Be careful about where you are, and avoid risks. It is very important to put attention in what is affecting you, where you are living, your home, and your city, what is around you. Look for the places you think you can have a better life and a better relation with fibromyalgia. Prevention is always a big key to fight back. The effects of change in weather are not identified completely.
Researchers are continuously working on this to identify the exact reason and ways to handle the problems. It is totally dependent on an individual as people who have problems with cold will find heat to be comfortable, people who have problems with heat will find cold to be comfortable. The preferences change from one person to another.
References:
- Does Summer Heat and Humidity Affect Fibromyalgia? via Find a top Doc
- Possibilities for humidity to affect fibromyalgia individuals via Fight Fibromyalgia
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