I lived in the north for several years. The older I became, the more the cold bothered me. The colder it is, the more difficult it is for me to function. My fingers stop working and my legs become almost logs (weak, stiff and sore). We moved to Georgia and the weather is far kinder to me. If it is cold, however, I am still bothered, but not as much.

My brother also has KD and he moved to the Phoenix area several years ago. He is a positive example of how well the warm, dry weather is to his muscles.

Bruce et all: You can't get farther north than Canada - and I noticed that I, too, am bothered by the weather, be it rain or snow, dry or wet ! As most of us , I complain about the weather, and just soldier-on and figure out ways to get more comfortable. Not all of us are forunate enough to be able to move to Arizona or any place warmer !

If it is below 70 degree's my feet burn and hurt like they are frostbitten and are ice cold. I have to wear UGG Boots to keep them warm. It's a miserable feeling. At night even in summer I have to wear socks to bed and I take my PJ pant legs and tuck them into the socks so no air hits my feet.

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, which wheather experts claim is supposed to have fairly mild temperatures year round.

On most days when these people are wrong, both legs as well as hands have a mind of their own.

I specially have problems with my calves and feet when going to bed. Things get so bad that my lower extremeties will hurt so much that I can't fall asleep. What I have found to help is placing a time controlled heating pad underneath the sheets at the bottom of the bed. After about 5 minutes or so, no matter how cold my legs and feet are, the pad provides enough heat to warm me up and then after about 1 hour, the thing turns itself off.

Would love to hear any other unconventional ways the rest of us keep warm during winters.

Loshimo1, I bought a Sunbeam mattress pad warmer and ever since then My feet are much better when I go to bed. It has a pre-heat function that heats the bed up before you get in. The Matress pad warmer is better tan the electric blanket because the heat rises. I don't know how I ever lived without it. I bought it at Bed Bath & Beyond and I used the 20% off coupon they always mail. For a Cal-King it cost me $119. well worth the money for my feet & legs sake.

That sounds a heck of a lot more reasonable, doesn't it ? I can always find the funds for thst strategy !

The cold petrifies me; severe cramping and not much works. I put an electric blanket under the sheet, and wear mocassins to bed.

I have been wearing socks to bed winter and summer for years. When the temperature goes below 50° my fingers are useless. I cannot turn a key in a lock. Sometimes my hands get cold even in the house. I use silk glove liners.

During this cold winter weather we've been experiencing, I've found that if you use a sock (clean or new) filled with uncooked rice, tied tightly and then placed in the microwave for a few minutes will provide enough gentle heat to help counteract the chilly effects of Mother Nature. This contraption is inexpensive, reusable and can be used on a daily or nightly basis.

The above idea about using uncooked rice as a bed warmer is a great idea. These are the type of simple solutions to daily problems that are wonderful to hear about.

I would encourage everyone to add their thoughts on how to overcome issues related to the symptoms and side-effects of KD. Your idea could be a solution for a problem/issue that someone has and can't quite resolve.

A good idea on providing suggestions to our everyday woes would be for individuals to list some of the problems they're experiencing.

It's a lot easier to make suggestions if we know what we are focusing in. This type of interphase would also increase participation in this community group.

I had similar experiences - but my hands were the worst when the weather turned cool - even here in California. I found running hot water over your hands for about 20secs gives instant relief - enough to get your shirt buttoned. I also found having a small pair of pyliers handy works for buttons, pop tops, etc where you need Terminator type leverage. Keith

Keith, thanks for your thoughts. That is exactly what I was looking for. These two comments might help someone someday.

I also invest in those hand warmer packets that can be found at hunting/sports supply stores. These packs can be crumbled and then they immediately provide heat for the hands for a couple of hours. Since I walk my dog(actually ride a golf cart while my dog walks)several times a day even in the winter, good insulated gloves and boots with these packet I mentioned above allow me to function better.