How to Dress for Your Hot Flashes

When a woman begins to go through menopause, significant bodily changes begin to occur. Hormones go wildly out of balance, and moods can change at a moment’s notice. This usually contributes towards a bit of nerves on the part of the woman, which is perfectly understandable and nothing to be ashamed about. This condition is further exacerbated by what are commonly referred to as “hot flashes”. These hot flashes can occur when the body has an imbalance of certain chemicals and hormones. They present in the form of a hot feeling on the skin and the face, and sometimes a feeling of increased heat when the affected area is touched.

These flashes can have several secondary side effects, such as stress and reduced concentration. They have been described by many women as being one of the primary irritants that come to the forefront during menopause. Therefore, it is an excellent idea to know how to deal with them, should these hot flashes ever occur.

Dressing to Avoid Hot Flashes

Different people have found different ways to combat these flashes. Some women find a strict dietary routine, and stick to it for as long as necessary. Some people take cold showers whenever they feel a hot flush coming on. Some others have found a certain exercise routine that they adhere to and that helps the discomfort somewhat. But one of the most effective ways to combat this phenomenon, some people have found, is to dress for hot flashes. Though this may seem a strange thing to say, hear it out. You may learn something to your advantage.

If you’re dressing to avoid feeling the full effects of your hot flashes, then you should steer clear of clothing made only of cotton. Cotton clothes are usually of high quality and usually breathe quite nicely. This is why cotton is so popular. However, cotton clothing does have one feature that is rather detrimental to the comfort of anyone experiencing regular hot flashes: it traps humidity and moisture rather handily. This is a rather inconvenient factor when dressing to minimize the effects of a menopausal hot flash, since these flashes usually cause a certain amount of sweating. This can lead to irritated skin and general itchiness. Therefore, you should probably go for clothing made for athletes and sports types. These clothes allow the moisture produced to dry rapidly while still breathing rather well.

Since one of the most common times to have hot flashes is during the night, you should dress accordingly. No heavy pajamas or night shirts. These will only compound the effects of the hot flash, and leave you wishing that you had worn something less oppressive. Now, these kinds of pajamas are usually worn during winter because of the cold that comes at that time of year. If this is the case, you should still try and minimize the amount and weight of clothing that you take with you to bed. If you need to keep warm, do so with the judicious use of extra blankets. These will keep you warm enough without adhering to your skin in an uncomfortable way. Plus, you can always remove one layer if it proves to be too heavy.

If you want to minimize the damage that hot flashes might do to you during the day, you should consider dressing in layers. This way, if a hot flash occurs while you are at work, all you need do is remove one layer of clothing in order to gain better ventilation. Of course, you can still dress sensibly and well with this strategy. Start with a tank top or t-shirt, and work outwards from there. Also, try to avoid any unnecessarily clunky or large jewelry. This will only add to the nastiness incurred by a hot flash by adding another potential irritant. Therefore, stick to smaller, more subtle pieces of jewelry. Make sure that you look good, but make sure that your dress code is not impractical.

There is no point in dressing in an elaborate necklace or wool sweater if, when you have a hot flash, you must remove it or suffer the dire consequences. There are some times that fashion must inexorably yield to utility. But don’t worry. Dressing to avoid menopausal hot flashes doesn’t mean you have to look bad. It just takes a little more work, sometimes.