Yes I know it’s winter, but some us of live in a perpetual heat wave! I am really struggling to regulate my temperature these days, which could be a symptom of going through Topical Steroid Withdrawal, as the skin heals, it has to learn again how to sweat and detect the external temperature and it seems to often over heat. It could also be the menopause… more coming on that soon. I’m getting checked out by the doctor shortly to make sure it’s not anything else making me so hot all the time.
Carrying ice packs to help with itching and over heating
So I was really excited to be sent this cool (no pun intended) pouch for storing and carrying my ice packs, which is something I have to take with me a lot these days as my skin seems to struggle to regulate temperature during topical steroid withdrawal, and ice packs also help with intense itch attacks.
I heard about them after pulling my plastic bag with an ice pack wrapped in a tea towel from my bag during a walk on a hot day with my friend. She knew about them due to working with diabetic children who use these cooling wallets to store their insulin., which needs to be kept cool.
She thought it might help and would be nicer than a slimy ripped plastic bag and damp tea towel combo, although that was working quite well for me for anyone who can’t afford one of these cooling wallets.
Once it’s been activated the pouch stays cool for about 48 hours which is pretty impressive!
So for occasions when I’m not near my freezer, I know I can travel in style with my ice pack inside my stylish Frio Cooling Wallet. All you need is access to cold water!
They come in a number of really fun designs; mine is called Tropical and you can choose from plain and lots of other colourful designs and they also come in different sizes.
Seriously how trendy and funky is this little cooling wallet? I’m actually really proud to carry this with me and much less embarrassed to whip it out than I was with the plastic bag option.
How do Frio Cooling Wallets work?
It’s actually really easy to use them, although the first time you do need to concentrate to make sure you do it properly. Basically you soak the inner cloth insert pouch in water for about 10 minutes, or as long as it takes for the gel pockets to fill and swell with water. The little gel pockets then magically feel really cold.
You can oversoak so be careful to set a timer and make sure you remove it from the water at the right time.
You then pat dry it off to remove excess water and insert your medication or in inner wallet which you can then insert into the more sturdy outer wallet. In my case, I insert my ice pack and that’s it!
No condensation and dripping like you get when you carry an ice pack in a plastic bag.
All you do in between using them is allow them to dry flat naturally. Check out this video from Frio explaining how to use them:
Here I am using my Frio Cooling Wallet to keep my Cosi Care cooling star cold. These are brilliant little gizmos that you cool in the fridge of freezer (if freezing be careful of freezer burn and rub on clothing for 30 seconds before applying directly to skin) and then gently apply to the itchy hot skin. It brings instant blissful relief. I have two that I rotate at home. They say cool for approximately 20-30 minutes.
If I need longer cooling protection I take a solid ice pack from the freezer which will stay cold longer.
This is me back last year when I was out on a walk. I also take my Frio cooling wallet and ice pack to restaurants, friend’s houses, pubs, walks with friends. It fits in my bag or rucksack and and is a lifesaver.
I also take to my favourite restaurant. the Three Oaks.
If you’d like to try one of these brilliant cooling wallets, also perfect for story diabetic medication, visit www.friouk.com to find out more.
They also do pouches for storing adrenaline autoinjectors for those with anaphylaxis so when my current bag wears out I’ll be going here to buy my new one.
What do you take with you when you go out? Do you struggle with over heating and getting itchy? How do overcome that when you’re on the go? Let me know!
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