Winter Tips
for Lymphers by Tina
Most of us have seen the preventative tips and
heard what we should and should not do regarding our limbs
and
swollen areas. We all must be careful in the summertime about overheating,
sunburn, and warmth along
with humidity. But what about
winter?
Winter is an equally important season in which we must be
careful. After trial and error I have come up with
a list of things
I’d like to share:
1. Be very careful of ice. Remember you can’t always see ice, it can be what they call black ice, a very fine
coat. Walk
on surfaces very carefully. You don’t want to fall.
2. Dress
appropriately. Keep your limbs comfortably warm but not too warm or too tight.
Remember that
you can swell in wintertime as well. Think of the hot
malls when out shopping and dress appropriately.
3. Always wear
appropriate footware. Make sure you have worn and broken in your boots,
sneakers or
your winterwear before you tread out. Awkward foot gear
can cause falls, and again on ice it’s dangerous.
4. Moisturize!
Remember in wintertime skin can be extremely dry with the furnace air
blowing.
5. Make sure if you happen to get your garments or socks wet,
change them as soon as possible.
Remember we lower lymphers are
prone to fungal infections as well as skin irritations from wet materials.
Waterproofed and insulated boots keep the feet drier than plain rubber
ones.
6. Remember the sensible tips for avoiding illnesss, if you can
get inoculated for flu/pneumonia. Wash your
hands after touching
things someone sick has touched. Try not to have sick people breathe in your
face.
Wearing a scarf helps warm the air for those of us who have
breathing problems as well as keep out germs.
7. Eat a healthy well
balanced diet as usual.
8. Remember that hypothermia and frostbite are
dangerous. Note that wind speeds can make for
dangerously cold
conditions even if the temperature is not below freezing.
9. If you can
wear mittens, they provide more warmth than gloves. Gloves can also become
tight on the
fingers if you swell.
10. Get lots of rest,
drink plenty of fluids, and if you think you are or someone else is
experiencing
hypothermia, avoid caffeine. Warm up slowly with a
blanket and by drinking fluids slowly.
11. Keep a lymphedema and winter
survival kit in your car. Try to carry extra medications, bandages, extra
blanket, batteries, flashlights, etc with you in case you are stranded
somewhere.
12. Keep a list on you in a wallet or purse of emergency
contacts, medications you are on and your doctors
name and
number.
Lymphedema Gardening Tips
Wear gloves that actually
fit, make sure they are not too loose or too tight.
Leather gloves with
a cloth back are a good general purpose glove.
If you plan to work in
wet soil, select rubber gloves with cotton lining
Wear Neoprene gloves
to use when spraying or working with pesticides.
If you are pruning or
trimming shrubbery, wear gloves that have long wrist protectors.
If your
gloves get muddy you can washing the gloves while on your hands!
If you
wear your compression garments under the gloves, make sure you don't
get
them wet, if wet, change immediately.
Avoid direct sunlight, even Spring
sunshine can cause sunburns.
Always wear sunscreen.
Wear
comfortable clothing.
If you get overheated, take a shower in cool
water, not cold, you don't want to cool off too fast.
Make sure you
don't get dehydrated! Drink lots of water and/or gatorade.
Work at a
steady pace with frequent breaks, switch gardening chores often to avoid
repetitive injuries.
Warm up before you garden.
Use as many
ergonomic tools as possible.
Wear shoes that will protect you from
hazards such as nails, sharp objects on the ground.
If you do get
scratched, wash the area right away, apply an antibacterial cream or
zinc.
For any puncture wounds, make sure your tetnus shot is up to date,
wash thoroughly, depending
on how deep they are, clean/bandage, or go to the
emergency room.
Make sure you put tools away when finished to avoid
later injuries.
Some good warm ups: From Tina, who
gardens.
Use hands to squeeze stress balls or balls with seed like
materials in them. Do 10 each hand.
Stretch your hands straight out,
link your fingers and pull lightly to feel a stretch in hands,
elbows and
arms. Do 10 times.
Stretch your hands above your head, again link your
fingers and stretch. Do 10 times.
Bend at the waist downward letting
your arms dangle in a relaxed position, this stretches the
upper
back.
Put your right hand on your left shoulder, turn your body slightly
to the left until you feel a stretch.
Reverse to left hand on right
shoulder, turning right. Switch back and forth, 10 times, so it
will be 5
stretches to each side.
Put your hands on your hips and lean backward,
arch your back, this stretches the ribs. Do 5.
To stretch your low back,
lay down, bend your legs. Put your right foot up to left knee, take a
hold
of your knee and lightly pull to feel a slight stretch. Do the other
side. Do each side 5 times
for Lymphers by Tina
Most of us have seen the preventative tips and
heard what we should and should not do regarding our limbs
and
swollen areas. We all must be careful in the summertime about overheating,
sunburn, and warmth along
with humidity. But what about
winter?
Winter is an equally important season in which we must be
careful. After trial and error I have come up with
a list of things
I’d like to share:
1. Be very careful of ice. Remember you can’t always see ice, it can be what they call black ice, a very fine
coat. Walk
on surfaces very carefully. You don’t want to fall.
2. Dress
appropriately. Keep your limbs comfortably warm but not too warm or too tight.
Remember that
you can swell in wintertime as well. Think of the hot
malls when out shopping and dress appropriately.
3. Always wear
appropriate footware. Make sure you have worn and broken in your boots,
sneakers or
your winterwear before you tread out. Awkward foot gear
can cause falls, and again on ice it’s dangerous.
4. Moisturize!
Remember in wintertime skin can be extremely dry with the furnace air
blowing.
5. Make sure if you happen to get your garments or socks wet,
change them as soon as possible.
Remember we lower lymphers are
prone to fungal infections as well as skin irritations from wet materials.
Waterproofed and insulated boots keep the feet drier than plain rubber
ones.
6. Remember the sensible tips for avoiding illnesss, if you can
get inoculated for flu/pneumonia. Wash your
hands after touching
things someone sick has touched. Try not to have sick people breathe in your
face.
Wearing a scarf helps warm the air for those of us who have
breathing problems as well as keep out germs.
7. Eat a healthy well
balanced diet as usual.
8. Remember that hypothermia and frostbite are
dangerous. Note that wind speeds can make for
dangerously cold
conditions even if the temperature is not below freezing.
9. If you can
wear mittens, they provide more warmth than gloves. Gloves can also become
tight on the
fingers if you swell.
10. Get lots of rest,
drink plenty of fluids, and if you think you are or someone else is
experiencing
hypothermia, avoid caffeine. Warm up slowly with a
blanket and by drinking fluids slowly.
11. Keep a lymphedema and winter
survival kit in your car. Try to carry extra medications, bandages, extra
blanket, batteries, flashlights, etc with you in case you are stranded
somewhere.
12. Keep a list on you in a wallet or purse of emergency
contacts, medications you are on and your doctors
name and
number.
Lymphedema Gardening Tips
Wear gloves that actually
fit, make sure they are not too loose or too tight.
Leather gloves with
a cloth back are a good general purpose glove.
If you plan to work in
wet soil, select rubber gloves with cotton lining
Wear Neoprene gloves
to use when spraying or working with pesticides.
If you are pruning or
trimming shrubbery, wear gloves that have long wrist protectors.
If your
gloves get muddy you can washing the gloves while on your hands!
If you
wear your compression garments under the gloves, make sure you don't
get
them wet, if wet, change immediately.
Avoid direct sunlight, even Spring
sunshine can cause sunburns.
Always wear sunscreen.
Wear
comfortable clothing.
If you get overheated, take a shower in cool
water, not cold, you don't want to cool off too fast.
Make sure you
don't get dehydrated! Drink lots of water and/or gatorade.
Work at a
steady pace with frequent breaks, switch gardening chores often to avoid
repetitive injuries.
Warm up before you garden.
Use as many
ergonomic tools as possible.
Wear shoes that will protect you from
hazards such as nails, sharp objects on the ground.
If you do get
scratched, wash the area right away, apply an antibacterial cream or
zinc.
For any puncture wounds, make sure your tetnus shot is up to date,
wash thoroughly, depending
on how deep they are, clean/bandage, or go to the
emergency room.
Make sure you put tools away when finished to avoid
later injuries.
Some good warm ups: From Tina, who
gardens.
Use hands to squeeze stress balls or balls with seed like
materials in them. Do 10 each hand.
Stretch your hands straight out,
link your fingers and pull lightly to feel a stretch in hands,
elbows and
arms. Do 10 times.
Stretch your hands above your head, again link your
fingers and stretch. Do 10 times.
Bend at the waist downward letting
your arms dangle in a relaxed position, this stretches the
upper
back.
Put your right hand on your left shoulder, turn your body slightly
to the left until you feel a stretch.
Reverse to left hand on right
shoulder, turning right. Switch back and forth, 10 times, so it
will be 5
stretches to each side.
Put your hands on your hips and lean backward,
arch your back, this stretches the ribs. Do 5.
To stretch your low back,
lay down, bend your legs. Put your right foot up to left knee, take a
hold
of your knee and lightly pull to feel a slight stretch. Do the other
side. Do each side 5 times