7 replies to this topic

[brockit79]

Hello Para-bods,

I'm a complete para and suffer ice cold feet particularly at night and often wake with my toes, and sometimes even up to my ankles, still ice cold in the morning. I have to massage my lower legs and feet before I go to sleep every night. Last night I couldn't massage my feet as felt very unwell. So I did the minimum and zonked.

I have made a chance discovery that by using a memory foam pillow to rest feet on to offload pressure from my heels retained what little warmth I have in my lower extremities and I woke with warm feet!

I have tried a few things for this including wrapping my feet in a fleece blanket as well as nightly massaging my feet to encourage blood flow which is not always successful. If you get this you will know that despite not being able to feel the cold it is pretty painful, well it is for me. So I'm happy to share my tip with you guys.

The memory foam pillow I got was a free gift with a different purchase that I made but RRP is £20. It was too firm for my head so i thought it a good idea to use for resting my legs on. I previously used an inexpensive pillow. I'd happily pay the £20 though, I didn't even have to wrap my feet in the fleece.

I hope this helps someone.
Broc

[LeahC]

I wear fluffy socks, I have thigh high ones hehe x

[dreamerr]

Glad you found something that works. I haven't found anything that works yet for me as my feet are on da pillow now and freezing and I am incomplete. The body is a very funny thing and ours are short circuited so we never know what is going to happen and what will work.

[kathy.k]

Broc,

I have to agree with you on the memory foam. My husband would get cold when I put him in bed every night and would stay cold for hours. (he's a c4-5). We decided to purchase one of those tempurpedic beds because they have adjustable ones and we needed something that would replace the eggcrate and sheepskin he used on his hospital bed for many many years, and not cause pressure sores. The memory foam holds in your body heat so he stays warm all night. This was great for me because I am a hot sleeper and cannot sleep under all of the blankets he was used to. Also if he raises his feet for a few minutes after getting in bed his feet stay toasty warm. The pillows that came with with bed are to high for our heads so we use them to prop him up on his side if we want to spoon for a little while. Glad to hear that memory foam is working for you.

Kathy

[brockit79]

Leah C: socks do not work for me I always wear them in bed even sexy thermal ones but not the thigh high ones I must admit. I wear socks in bed and wrap my tooties in a fleece blanket; I have/had a real problem with it

wow! i replied when there was one reply then by the end there are more so I'm editing it.

Dreamerr: Nerve that innervate the microvasculature can play a part in this; to be fair I used to get very cold feet prior to my accident as I suffer with Reynaud's Phenomenon, there is a treatment which is a calcium channel blocker to control it. It is possible to have developed this or it could be the SCI, either way try a memory foam pillow.

Kathy K: yes a tempur mattress is on my wish list, glad you and your hubby have discovered a way that works!

Edited by brockit79, 07 January 2012 - 06:04 PM.

[dreamerr]

I am picturing those socks broc lol.

Kathy how comfy is that memory foam bed compared to the other beds you have slept in? I was thinking of getting one but they are so expensive and what happens if I don't like it. I have a brand new bed and mattress but it just isn't cutting it. I do also have memory foam topper on it but a cheap kind. I am not as comfy as I want to be but not sure I will ever be.

[kathy.k]

dreamrr,

Invest in the bed....it is well worth the price. They also have that guarantee that if you don't like it you can return it.....the fine print is.....don't use the pillows at first until you decide you are going to to keep the bed....if you were to return the bed you are charged for the pillows if you take them out of the box because they will not take them back. They sell for about $150 each. Also we didn't purchase the waterproof protective pad that want you to buy....it's $100, when you can go get one at Target for about $50. It also has a warranty for 30 years.(I'm beginning to sound like the commercial) We looked at several beds and did a lot of homework before we invested in the Tempurpedic, we looked at the sleep number bed, a Roho mattress and we kept coming back to the Tempurpedic. The sleep number adjusts to your level of comfort but we were still concerned about pressure sores,it's just like a big air mattress with nice padding around it. The Roho mattress was super super expensive.

We love the Tempurpedic....I cannot say enough good things about it.

[Painted Daisy]

kathy.k, on 07 January 2012 - 07:09 PM, said:

dreamrr,

Invest in the bed....it is well worth the price. They also have that guarantee that if you don't like it you can return it.....the fine print is.....don't use the pillows at first until you decide you are going to to keep the bed....if you were to return the bed you are charged for the pillows if you take them out of the box because they will not take them back. They sell for about $150 each. Also we didn't purchase the waterproof protective pad that want you to buy....it's $100, when you can go get one at Target for about $50. It also has a warranty for 30 years.(I'm beginning to sound like the commercial) We looked at several beds and did a lot of homework before we invested in the Tempurpedic, we looked at the sleep number bed, a Roho mattress and we kept coming back to the Tempurpedic. The sleep number adjusts to your level of comfort but we were still concerned about pressure sores,it's just like a big air mattress with nice padding around it. The Roho mattress was super super expensive.

We love the Tempurpedic....I cannot say enough good things about it.

Thanks Kathy for the info re:Tempurpedic, I will pass it on to my hubby.

And I just wanted to add something I have done for cold feet. You have to be careful but I put a heating pad under my sheepskin at the bottom of my bed to get my feet toasty. And I wear loose wool socks sometimes too.