Weather and Temperature

Having a SCI and being on a ventilator is no match for extreme weather changes, although that’s what Minnesota is known for. Because of my injury, I’m not able to feel if I’m cold or hot. The only way I know is if I take my temperature or my body starts spasming. Also, the cold air can be very hard on my lungs. When the vent pulls the air in, it goes through the tubing, then my trach and into my lungs. There is nothing to warm the air up so it feels the same in my lungs as it is outside. When someone breathes through their nose, the hairs warm the air up so it’s not such a shock.
 
Many people with spinal cord injuries, as a result, have trouble regulating their body temperature. Here's what it says about it on Apparelyzed.com

"A normal, healthy human is able to maintain a constant body temperature of approximately 98.6F despite the temperature of the environment. In a hot environment, the body sends a signal to the brain via the spinal cord to say the body is overheating. The brain then sends a signal back down the spinal cord and tells the body to cool itself by perspiration which evaporates and cools the skin. In cold weather, the body senses the lower temperature and our brain tells us to put more clothes on to warm ourselves up.

Most people with complete spinal cord injuries do not sweat below the level of the injury and many quadriplegics cannot even sweat above the injury (even though they may sweat due to autonomic dysreflexia). With loss of the ability to sweat or vasoconstrict within affected dermatomes the patient becomes poikilothermic and needs careful control of their environmental conditions. Therefore, if a high paraplegic or quadriplegic is in an outside temperature over 90 F, especially when the humidity is high, the body temperature will begin to rise (Poikilothermia). Likewise in a cold environment, the body may not be able to get the messages through to the brain that the body is cooling down, and if left untreated, the person will soon become hypothermic."

When I’m inside even if the temperature is left at a normal 72°F my body still gets cold, especially because I’m not moving around. I usually have a blanket on and am usually by my electric fire place which I can flip on and off when needed. Despite getting cold easily, the low temperatures don’t stop me from going outside. I just bundle up with a hat, scarf, jacket, and warm blanket in order to keep the heat in.

I love taking my dog Brody for a walk and getting out in the community. This is one reason why the hot or cold weather doesn’t stop me from getting out. As long as the temperature stays above 0°F and below 100°F I’m willing to venture out. It’s definitely not the same to just look out the window as it is actually going somewhere.

Jenni