An oldie but goodie for dealing with fever & sickness - overcoming that horrible cold feeling

Over the last few years I've had a few occasions where I've had either the flu, a severe cold or maybe food poisoning and in all cases I felt like I was freezing and could just not get warm. Even putting on layers of long sleeve shirts, sweaters, sweat shirts, didn't seem to work very well, so I'd bundle up with heavy blankets and down comforters. These usually did the trick but they take time (like 20-60+ mins) for the heat to build up under the covers. Even with electric blankets I found those largely lacking compared to the other option I found, which was a staple of treating these conditions in the past - which is hot water bottles/bladders and some even used metal enclosures with coals inside (with an insulation layer inside & they were 100% sealed from letting air in, so no burning inside of these).

So I took a few 2L soda bottles and filled them with hot water, regular tap water (usually varies from 120-150F depending on house and water heater settings). I placed these under the covers with me, to either side of my body and one between my knees. I can say that I've never felt such relief so quickly while being very sick. As the heat transfers to under the covers, your body absorbs it and the water slowly cools. With these you can't fall asleep and wake up absolutely baking like you can with an electric blanket, which has happened too many times in my experience, but maybe some blankets have a timer but many/most seem not to.

I also found another very odd added benefit which was a decrease in muscular pain in much of my body which had been fairly bad before applying the heat. I never experienced this with electric blankets, but it has been a much appreciated side effect each time I've used hot water bottles. I guess this is similar to applying hot/cold for muscular injuries. I also have noticed much clearer sinuses after doing this, which is another abnormality.

So while it may not be the most high tech solution, it has been a saving grace on numerous occasions for me and I'd never go back to using an electric blanket after experiencing this.

One thing you should be aware of is that the bottles should not directly touch the skin and is best to have some kind of blanket in between, or you might experience almost rash like symptoms where the heat was much higher on the skin - I've never experienced this when separated by a thin blanket (thickness similar to that of sweatshirt material).

I've also tried using double seal ziplock bags and never had a problem with one leaking. These might be more comfortable as you don't have the hard plastic body poking or pushing onto you.

a reply to: DigginFoTroof

I hardly ever get sick. But in the winter times I like to take a nice hot soak in the tub. Seems the only way to get that warmth into my bones in the cold months.

originally posted by: cognizant420
I hardly ever get sick.

Same. I mostly attribute this to licking the tray tables on my several flights I take weekly and also sucking stem cells out of children's necks with my 24kt sippy straw when I'm home.

a reply to: DigginFoTroof

Have you ever heard of a hot water bottle? They are made for this exact purpose.
They are also made in a way that the heat will last a very long time, are easy to fill, are flexible and
you can put cold water in them too.

a reply to: JAGStorm

Yeah the rubber ones. Kept me warm in winter without heating. I could make hot water but not heat for a week, no chimney in the flat and I could not afford to buy an electric heater. I got two of these for 5€ in a thrift market. Filled with boiling hot water, wrapped a towel around them so I will not burn myself in the first 3-4 hours and went to bed with them.

It is so nice in the morning to stick the feet under them or hug them



Today I sleep on a huuuge water bottle => waterbed

When I'm sick, which isn't too often, I also like strategically applied heat.

Except not the way hot water bottles radiate it, and I can't get them to the temp I prefer anyway (just shy of being burned) I could easily sit in a very hot bath, which I have, but that much of me being submerged in very hot water makes me feel much worse (it's not good for us high BP folks)

My ace up the sleeve for myself when sick is to take the protective fabric sleeve cover off an electric heating pad, and crank it. Diffused heat with the cover on, and also with it laying flat without the cover, doesn't get hot enough, so I tend to fold mine in half gently and get a sort of concentrated, consistent blast furnace of heat on one specific area. I tend to place it over my forehead, or alternate between forehead and under my neck. That does the trick for me, works like magic to have me feeling better within an hour. Not back to 100%, but definitely feeling better.

a reply to: Nyiah

I put very hot chilli powder in my soup (if stomach is okay) and dress up in layers. Makes the fluids run haha.

What you write about the forehead and neck is making sense. Maybe you find this interesting, maybe others too:

It is a study about heat maps from the human body. Very interesting! Heard about chi before? This is connected in my opinion, I do chinese self defense.

digest.bps.org.uk...

a reply to: Oleandra88

That's pretty interesting. It corresponds with facial and body language locations for the emotions, too. Makes sense, but I never really thought about it before

I spice things up when I'm sick, too. Cayenne is a my staple in our cupboard, I put it on nearly everything already. If I have them (from the store or home grown) I also will eat 1-2 habaneros raw when I'm sick (the vitamin C and anti-inflammatory properties are really beneficial)
I've got a couple of ghost pepper plants going right now, they're finally putting out peppers (a little slow this year, spring was too cool for too long) I'll be making hot sauce with them, it should come in real hand later this year if/when I catch the next bug

a reply to: Nyiah
I just made the final connection because of your post so thank you

Ghost peppers? These white ones? I never touch them again. I mean in the literally sense I wrote it. These are hell for me. I love spicy food but that is too heavy for me. I can dig the masochistic side but ghost peppers are too much for me.

originally posted by: Nyiah
Cayenne is a my staple in our cupboard, I put it on nearly everything already. If I have them (from the store or home grown) I also will eat 1-2 habaneros raw when I'm sick...

I just take the bottle of hot sauce that I carry with me everywhere out of my purse and slurp that stuff down.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: Nyiah
Cayenne is a my staple in our cupboard, I put it on nearly everything already. If I have them (from the store or home grown) I also will eat 1-2 habaneros raw when I'm sick...

I just take the bottle of hot sauce that I carry with me everywhere out of my purse and slurp that stuff down.

And I thought you would be the one to take a warm lifeless body to bed with you, and

As the heat transfers to under the covers, your body absorbs it and the [body] slowly cools

tsk.

Eta, AM probably: "What makes you think I haven't."

A couple of Hot Toddy's and you don't shiver much anymore, in fact, if you make them strong enough, you feel no pains.

originally posted by: Oleandra88
a reply to: Nyiah
I just made the final connection because of your post so thank you

Ghost peppers? These white ones? I never touch them again. I mean in the literally sense I wrote it. These are hell for me. I love spicy food but that is too heavy for me. I can dig the masochistic side but ghost peppers are too much for me.

Otherwise known as Bhut Jolokia peppers, but yes, I do believe there's a white variety of them.
I've had them in sauces, but never raw or in my own homemade sauce before. Knowing they're at minimum 4 times hotter than habaneros, I know I'll have to tread carefully with how hot I make the sauce. I can put up with the heat well, it's the digestive end that gives me grief.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: Nyiah
Cayenne is a my staple in our cupboard, I put it on nearly everything already. If I have them (from the store or home grown) I also will eat 1-2 habaneros raw when I'm sick...

I just take the bottle of hot sauce that I carry with me everywhere out of my purse and slurp that stuff down.

If "hot sauce" is code for the chloroform bottle you carry to surprise cute virgins with, you're not supposed to drink that!