Having Trouble Adjusting to Canadian Weather

[Annaliseee002]

Hi all! I moved to Canada from Puerto Rico with my parents earlier last year. While almost everything about Canada has been great, one thing that hasn't been is the cold weather. Going from a tropical climate to an Arctic one has been hard for us. Being that my parents are extremely overprotective of me, they have spent thousands of dollars on winter clothing for me. They are very worried that the cold weather will get me sick so I always have to wear lots of heavy and bulky layers. On my legs I have to wear leggings that are lined with fleece underneath jeans with thick snow pants on top. On my feet I wear layers of wool socks and giant mukluk boots. On my hands I wear leather gloves underneath thicker waterproof gloves and mittens. Over my regular clothes I wear a fleece jacket, a thigh length puffer coat, a long puffer coat, and a down lined heavy parka. On my head I wear a balaclava with a toque over it and a muffler wrapped around it. Then I wear all three hoods up with another longer muffler wrapped around the outside of the hoods. This is how I wrap up whenever I go to school or if I'm going to be outside for longer than a few minutes. I really don't like wearing so many layers, and I notice that most other Canadians are dressed much lighter than me. By the time I get to school and undress I'm always sweaty and it's rather embarrassing. What are your tips for dealing with Canadian winters?

 

[scylla]

You do have to dress for the weather - but it sounds like you're layering far too much. If you have a good winter coat, you shouldn't need that many layers underneath. If you're sweaty by the time you arrive at school, you're wearing too many layers. One hat should be enough and one pair of gloves.

I'll be honest - it sounds like your issue is more with your parents than the weather. Perhaps you can have a discussion with them and tell them you don't need to wear so many articles of clothing to keep warm.

 

[Leon]

Agree, if you are sweating, then you are dressed too warm. Cut down on some of the layers and see how it goes. Tell your parents that dressing so warm that you are sweating when it's cold is also dangerous to your health.

 

[foodie69]

 

[Bs65]

General advice is to keep the vunerable extremities protected such as head/ears/hands/feet and go easy on the layers in between.

 

[xpressentry]

Wear layers but take them off as you feel warmer. You are wearing too many layers. Sweating is a cause of the too many layers making you feel hot. The sweat will make you ill.

 

[NetMecca]

See if you can buy clothes that are temperature rated. Some of the coats have temperature ratings. Buy one that has the rating for your location. Means you only need one coat. Thinker gloves, thicker clothing items so you can get away with wearing less items.

Also when dressing start with by assessing whether you are still cold. If you are add until you are not. You will likely find that you can get a way with a lot less than you think.

I agree that you should protect extremities. Also dress in accordance with the temperature and the amount of time you plan to spend outside. AS you know everything is heated, so you only really need to dress very warm if you plan to spend extended periods of time outside. If not, just enough so you can get between heated locations.

Don't worry, you will get used to the cold, takes about 2-3 winters to start acclimatising.

Good Luck

 

[APPNOV2014NY]

Sweating while in multiple layers of clothes is not good. You might end up getting cold or fever. Please ensure that your Winter clothes are "breathable" and "moisture wicking".

 

[foodie69]

How old are you? You may want to start making your own decisions..

 

[aashay12]

why would anyone move from Puerto Rico, then why not the mainland US or Florida.

 

[xpressentry]

why would anyone move from Puerto Rico, then why not the mainland US or Florida.

Probably to escape Trump

 

[pie_vancouver]

Over my regular clothes I wear a fleece jacket, a thigh length puffer coat, a long puffer coat, and a down lined heavy parka.

Where are you?

 

[Annaliseee002]

You do have to dress for the weather - but it sounds like you're layering far too much. If you have a good winter coat, you shouldn't need that many layers underneath. If you're sweaty by the time you arrive at school, you're wearing too many layers. One hat should be enough and one pair of gloves.

I'll be honest - it sounds like your issue is more with your parents than the weather. Perhaps you can have a discussion with them and tell them you don't need to wear so many articles of clothing to keep warm.

I think my parents might be the problem, they keep insisting I wear all these layers when I go outside. I'm all for dressing warm but I think this is too much.

 

[Annaliseee002]

Agree, if you are sweating, then you are dressed too warm. Cut down on some of the layers and see how it goes. Tell your parents that dressing so warm that you are sweating when it's cold is also dangerous to your health.

Exactly I always end up sweating when I'm wearing my winter clothes. But my parents make me wear all these layers because they think I'll get sick otherwise.

 

[Annaliseee002]

General advice is to keep the vunerable extremities protected such as head/ears/hands/feet and go easy on the layers in between.

I'm literally covered up from head to toe so my extremities are definitely safe lol.