Many autistic bodies find it harder to regulate temperature. In very hot weather, autistic people can easily become dehydrated or suffer heat stroke. Many autistic people’s autonomic system can also become ‘dysregulated’ meaning that digestion can slow, you don’t sweat enough or sweat too much, you can become fatigued and sleep deprived. This can be dangerous and at the least can be very uncomfortable.
Bear in mind that if you’re also on SSRIs that can increase your risk as well along with anti-depressants, anti-psychotics, lithium, ADHD stimulants and anticholinergic – so if you’re taking any of these be extra careful.
NHS explains how to recognise if you’re getting overheated. If you recognise the symptoms of heat exhaustion you need to take immediate steps to cool down before it becomes an emergency.
Here’s how to cool down and stay cool:
UK housing is a huge problem in the heat. It’s not only that we mostly don’t have aircon, it’s also the way most homes are built. Older homes particularly have single-skin brick walls with no insulation at all. Bricks absorb heat and can radiate it back out at night (like a storage heater in reverse) so that even if the exterior temperature drops, it can still feel broiling inside. Many older homes also have huge windows to let in lots of light in our grey climate. This is also a big problem in a heatwave. Some older properties don’t even have double glazing.
Think about your home, if you have more than one room, which rooms have the sun on them all day and which are mostly in shade? Shaded walls should stay anything up to 3 degrees cooler and in a heatwave every degree counts.
Think about your home:
- Can you move some kind of sleeping mat/mattress/cushions into a cooler room and camp out there?
- Get a cheap room temperature sensor with a readout (you can pick one up on ebay for a few quid)
- Keep an eye on the met office app for your locality so you can plan and manage better. Met Office app: ios / android
- If you have blinds or thick curtains installed, close them tight during the day. Close all the windows and exterior doors during the day – this might seem counter-intuitive but if the air outside is actually hotter than the air inside it makes sense. Exterior air will just feel like a hairdryer
- At night, when the exterior temperature on the met office app is lower than the temperature shown on your room thermometer readout, open the blinds and windows wide, get a cross breeze, clear out the hot air, leave the windows open whilst it’s cool but shut them again before you sleep unless you’re planning to be awake to shut them at dawn.
- If your curtains are flimsy and/or you don’t have double-glazing, bluetac a silver foil emergency blanket over the window panes, it’s really effective at reducing the heat inside the room
- Buy a water cooled portable aircon unit – you can get a basic one on ebay for £60-70. If youcan’t afford one, get a twenty quid electric fan and put a bowl of water with ice in it underneath. It’ll pick up the evaporating cold and distribute it. If you can afford a water cooled portable unit add ice to its tank
- If you’ve a local library or similar public building you can always take a book and bask all day in the aircon
Watch out for dehydration:
Autistic people are prone to ignore or not notice being thirsty. This is never good but in a heatwave it’s dangerous. Here’s the NHS guide to recognising dehydration. Above 30 degrees you need to drink about 3 litres of water a day. Not tea, water! Tea is extra and very comforting but it makes you pee more so only counts as half the amount of water.
- Get an app on your phone that tracks your water intake if you can. I use F-Droid and there’s a selection of free apps that don’t track you there. Otherwise choose one you like/can afford from the app stores. They’ll ping to remind you to drink and you can track that you’re drinking enough
- Get a water bottle (if you can’t afford a steel or glass one use an old plastic one) and keep it beside you to prompt you to drink frequently through the day
- If you’re getting a headache or feel sick drink water because it probably means you’re getting dehydrated. If you can’t get water down, suck ice cubes
- Autistic bodies may have issues with electrolyte balance and this will often lead to cramps and more difficulty sleeping. The extra water you need to drink in the heat can also flush them out of the system. You need to replenish electrolytes through the day, not just once. Go to the pharmacy and get a supply of electrolytes, I get them in pastille form, you drop one in a glass of water and it fizzes but you can get them in sachet form too, they’re usually flavoured and taste pleasant. If you can’t afford electrolytes, this is the Indian hack known as ‘lime soda’:
- Juice of one lemon
- 1 or more tsp sugar syrup to taste
- pinch of salt
- Fill the glass up with water, sparkling or soda water if you have it, stir briskly
- Repeat a couple of hours later
Bear in mind your skin and eyes may dry out:
- Keep some coconut oil handy. Maybe apply some after a shower, it’ll keep the moisture in
- If your eyes get gritty, wipe them with a little saline solution on cotton wool (saline: ½ tsp salt to 250ml water, pop it in the microwave and boil it, let it cool, it’ll last for a few days) then a minimal dab of coconut oil on the lids to keep moisture in
Ways to get your temperature down quickly:
- Find an old atomiser bottle, wash it out. Fill it with cold water – maybe pop it in the freezer for a bit to cool it more. If you start feeling hot and bothered, spritz it around your forehead, the back of your neck, inside your wrists and at the pulse point in your groin. It should make you feel much more human immediately
- Soak a flannel in water and squeeze till damp. Put it in the freezer, wrap it around your neck
- Take a cool shower every 3 hours and don’t dry yourself, let it evaporate
You might lose your appetite:
If you’re fine eating then that’s excellent, go for it but don’t cook anything that’s going to heat the place up. Microwave and air fryer are the best things to use in the heat – they’re fast and don’t heat the place up as much.
- If you’re finding you have no appetite, have fruit and fruit juice around, maybe light rye biscuits and spread – anything very light that you like. Just so your stomach remembers what it’s for
Heat will disrupt your sleep:
Don’t worry about when it’s bedtime, get your head down whenever you think you might sleep. Sometimes the heat makes it easy to sleep, just make sure you’re well hydrated and in a cool environment before you sleep. If you can, take a walk in the cooler parts of the day, either very early morning or late evening.