I’m always cold: I’ve just been reading... - British Heart Fou...

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I’m always cold

Sewing19 profile image
37 Replies

I’ve just been reading another post about aspirin and blood thinners and it made me realise that the old saying about people who are cold having “thin blood” could be true. Since I’ve been on the usual cocktail of heart meds for a year I’m always cold.

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Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19
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37 Replies
Hanibil profile image
Hanibil

Yep couldn’t agree more I have to rush past the chill counters in supermarkets as it’s so cold, I am on warfarin and aspirin

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to Hanibil

🥶

Heather1957 profile image
Heather1957

A member of my family says the same, I must be lucky as I have been on 2 kinds of blood thinners and can't say I notice any difference.

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to Heather1957

You’re lucky. 🧣🥶😂

Heather1957 profile image
Heather1957 in reply to Sewing19

I know! Even when I should have had the hot flashes they would last for 5 minutes then pass!! 😊

san_ray70 profile image
san_ray70 in reply to Heather1957

I fell very blessed as I never had any symptoms when I had my menopause. People told me it would happen later in life, so far so good I am now 73.

Heather1957 profile image
Heather1957 in reply to san_ray70

64 - so far so good!! LOL!

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19

No I didn’t 🙈🤦‍♀️

Milkfairy profile image
MilkfairyHeart Star

I live with vasospastic angina and the cold is a trigger for my angina.I also have 2 other vasomotion disorders, migraine and Raynauds Phenomenon.

I agree with Heartifact, beta blockers may be the culprit.

Beta blockers are well known to cause secondary Raynauds Phenomenon, an intolerance of cold, cold hands and feet which can be painful.

I have been on clopidogrel for 10 years to help prevent a heart attack or stroke.

They have no effect on my vasospasms.

I got out of hospital in a September month, but I was only allowed to go to a rugby match in that December... Dear god I was cold, but I think after. 2 years I have adapted to it ... I'm on bisporlarl and apixban

Hearty-cuisine profile image
Hearty-cuisine in reply to HumanZoomieMachine

10 years ago I was prescribed warfarin and bisoprolol and I then started feeling the cold. The warfarin was changed to apixaban and I still feel the cold. In the winter I usually have 3 layers of clothes which includes a thermal top in a centrally heated house! So whether it’s the bisoprolol which is a beta blocker or the anticoagulant that causes me to feel the cold I don’t know. All I know is that I never used to be as cold as I am these days so it must be one of those drugs or the combination of them both.

For at least the first year after I came out of hospital I was cold a lot. I kept the heating on in my new flat all during Summer. Now I find the flat too hot most of the time and I have the heating off so it seems I did get used to whatever the cause was

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to

Fingers crossed I get warmer. I’ve just had my 1st anniversary for Bpass 🤞🤞🤞

Becksagogo profile image
Becksagogo

I used to laugh at my poor Mum who would be sitting indoors with the heating on, wearing tartan trousers and an arran jumper whilst the rest of the world was dressed in shorts and t shirts. Fast forward twenty years and here am I with my purple fingers 💜, low blood pressure and always complaining about the cold. I'm not sure whether it's bisoprolol or warfarin or the ghost of my Mum getting her own back.

Hearty-cuisine profile image
Hearty-cuisine in reply to Becksagogo

Certainly understand you feeling the cold. 10 years ago I was prescribed warfarin and bisoprolol and I then started feeling the cold. The warfarin was changed to apixaban and I still feel the cold. In the winter I usually have at least 3 layers of clothes which includes a thermal top in a centrally heated house! So whether it’s the bisoprolol which is a beta blocker or the anticoagulant that causes me to feel the cold I don’t know. All I know is that I never used to be as cold as I am these days so it must be one of those drugs or the combination of them both.

timetabler profile image
timetabler

I think it's probably the bisoprolol. When I said the same to my cardiologist (and also complained about ED) he switched me to Diltiazem and my skin is not cold any more.

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to timetabler

Ok thanks for that. I’ll mention it to cardiology 🥶

gladliz profile image
gladliz

Same here. I'm still wearing long sleeved thermal vests even though it's the end of May. I'm on Warfarin, Bisoprolol, Ramipril and Doxazosin and have been for at least 10years. Could be an ageing thing of course as well as meds. Would be nice if the weather warmed up too then I could just wear short sleeved thermals !😊

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to gladliz

Me too. 3 layers every day. Mind you I do live in Cumbria 🥶

gladliz profile image
gladliz in reply to Sewing19

North Wales for me.

Hearty-cuisine profile image
Hearty-cuisine in reply to gladliz

London for me and it’s warmer than most places in the UK but on bisoprolol and apixaban and I’m still have a thermal top on too. I have gone from the long sleeve thermal to the sleeveless ones! So annoying to always feeling cold!

Jules2021 profile image
Jules2021

Totally! Was on ticagralor and asprin and if i got cold it chilled me to the bone and took quite a long time to warm up again! Having finished the ticagralor after a year i have noticed i'm not just as bad but still cold

I’mMenopausal and constantly hot then I get fire hot flushes on top . I’m on bisoprolol 10mg and my hands /feet are always colder than the rest of me . Last December I had a funny turn , we phoned the doctor and apart from the funny turn 🙄 I ended up with hypothermia as well . I was wearing light leggings and a vest top on December with no heating on! So now I have to be extremely careful of my body temp and dress accordingly. My hands n feet still cold I wear socks in bed until I heat up and sometimes wear thermals if it’s freezing outside and sometimes also in bed

Thumper-Rabbit profile image
Thumper-Rabbit

So true. I had a heart attack just before christmas and now with the cocktail of tablets i really feel the cold. Never used to and didn't really bother with lots of warm clothing even when temperatures around freezing. Different matter now and was so cold in the 1st few months this year was wearing fleece blankets on my legs sat in the chair and jumpers indoors even with heating on at times.

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to Thumper-Rabbit

I had my heart attack and bypass last May. We had really warm weather when I was recovering but I still needed 3 layers most days 🥶

DJK99 profile image
DJK99

Hello Sewing19 - well I am always cold too, in fact very at this very moment(time for another layer!). I have severe Raynauds, Lupus, Sjogrens and recurrent breast cancer. But I also have lifelong aortic regurgitation, had severe AF until ablation 5 or 6yrs ago so it's only for a few secs of that off and on now(hurrah!), anomalous coronary artery, a small hole in my heart (apparently), and ongoing ectopic and supraventricular beats plus bits of tachycardia. I also have autoimmune neutropenia and low complement 4 with fluctuating complement 3.. and am on methotrexate and 20mg of nifedipine (for the raynauds). Oh and have had anaemia for years but only now am on 750mg of iron a day which has helped a lot with energy! I wonder if you have any of that?

I used to be on sotalol pre the ablation, and the usual 75mg of aspirin - but have always been a cold type, since very young... shivering etc on occasion so have to keep heating on even now but it is a particularly cold nearly June I feel! Not been on warfarin.. but my mother was and she was always cold - but then she had all my symptoms, thankfully not the cancer until in her 88th year.

I think the raynauds is a big issue with being cold - the blood doesn't get to extremities well, and for me, even with the nifedipine now, which used to work even on 10mg. I guess it's age too although I'm an extremely young (in mind anyway!) 59yr old who eats a fantastic diet and exercises every day including yoga.

I think this is all we can do to keep our bodies as best they can be. Have you ever had raynauds? Where your fingers go white, then blue then red? It's quite painful too if you have it badly.. bit like a person has been hammering your fingers ;)! If you haven't are you checked for anaemia? Maybe ask for a FBC test? I take it you wear tons of layers? Are you quite slim? I am, although I eat very well ie lots of fruit, veg, fish, wholegrain pasta and rice etc.. just not rubbish food with tons of empty calories.

What do your clinicians think it is?

I hope some of that helps?

All the best to you, D

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to DJK99

My bloods are all fine. Got results last week and I don’t have Raynauds fortunately. Several people on this forum suggest it’s the beta blockers causing the cold. Take care

LaceyLady profile image
LaceyLady

Since I’ve been on anticoagulant I feel the cold and extremities go very cold 😵‍💫

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to LaceyLady

Until I wrote this post I hadn’t realised how many people were affected. 🙀

LaceyLady profile image
LaceyLady in reply to Sewing19

I think it’s normal if you’re in anticoagulants

Cruise1 profile image
Cruise1

I am on Losartan and aspirin and really feel the cold and have developed Reynards in my fingers. I am wearing more layers of clothing but have further problems in that my wife hates being too hot I.e, having central heating on a lot or gas fire on high. She gets hot flushes despite being 75 and often wears a T shirt to my thermals and couple of sweaters. We sleep in separate rooms too as I need warm bedding which she can’t tolerate.

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to Cruise1

There’s always a price to pay but thank goodness we have access to these meds to keep us healthy 👏

Cruise1 profile image
Cruise1

Never had the problem on Perindopril.

MrsSuzuki profile image
MrsSuzuki

I feel the cold more too since my HA in December. I'm on the usual cocktail of drugs, aspirin, clopidogrel, bisoprolol, ramipril atovorstatin and thyroxine.

My shoulder, toes and hands are always cold,and like a few of you, my vest is still on, along with long sleeved t-shirts. I'm back with the hot flushes too, the heat can be blowing out of the top of my head with the flushes but my shoulders are still cold!

🤔.Lily

Hearty-cuisine profile image
Hearty-cuisine

Thank you Sewing19 for raising this. It has made me feel I’m not the only one sitting in thermals with a jumper and cardigan on too in a 23C room and my husband is wearing shorts and tee shirt. I’m on apixaban and bisoprolol for AF post stroke. The GP never seems interested when I say I feel the cold all the time. I suppose compared to some others it’s not that serious. Thanks for sharing this.

Sewing19 profile image
Sewing19 in reply to Hearty-cuisine

It’s good to know that we are not alone with this. I’m going to raise the problem next time I speak to a medic.

My legs feel the cold I think it is because of 80mg of Atorvastatin. Just ok when I am active but resting I need a blanket.

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