Hi Mama, I dont seem to have too much problem with cold in & of itself; I have problems when it rains or snows or when theres alot of humidity (it doesnt seem to matter what season of the year it is).
My joints feel extremely stiff and pressurized (as if they were overfilled balloons about to explode). I feel this in my ankles, sometimes my knees, my hips, almost my entire spine, neck, jaw, left shoulder, and my hanRAB. I feel like the Tin Man even more so with this kind of weather. I've also noticed that if Im having nerve pain or even barely any nerve pain, that this kind of weather increases that pain. With this weather it is pretty constant all day. If it's dry out and low humidity, I still get these symptoms, but not always as severe, and it helps more to get up & move around. It may hurt to move around but if I dont, it makes the stiffness & achiness worse.
Unfortunately, I myself haven't found anything to relieve it that I can just take or use when I need to. The only medication that's ever helped greatly with all this has been oral prednisone , and even the ESI's help me alot. The ESI's help alot with my spine stiffness and nerve pain. But of course I cant just do these on my own when I want to. Moist heating paRAB seem to help soothe my muscles more than anything, but maybe it might help someone elses stiffness? Other than that, I make sure to get up and move around as much as I can for short bursts. Like I said, its hard to get up and it may hurt, but if I dont get up at all, it will be 100 times worse. I still do my PT exercises & stretching as long as Im not in acute, severe pain with nerve issues. I've been doing them since April of 2006. So i just wonder if I would be worse if I hadnt been doing this all along.
How and/or where does the weather affect you?