How can you explain what a hot flash or night sweat feels like to someone who has never experienced one? How can you describe that hot, then freezing cold sensation that wakes you from sleep? How can you explain the feeling that precedes your forehead sweating and the need to take off some clothes immediately?
Anyone who has exercised in cold weather and then stopped knows how you can get cold quickly. That damp feeling that makes you even colder, especially if you are not wearing any wicking clothing is very uncomfortable. Now think about those sensations 5-10-20 times a day and at night even while you sleep (or try to).
If you ever came inside from the cold to a very warm room and felt hot and almost faint, that is similar to the feeling on a hot flash onset. What if you are working and you cannot step back out-side or take off your jacket or sweater, but must suffer the heat? That is the sensation of a hot flash that can happen 10-25 times a day
Have you ever experienced a hot summer day when the air conditioning is not adequate, or when shade cannot be found and you end up feeling like you are melting? Welcome to the world of personal summers. Welcome to the sisterhood of sweat.