Please give suggestions to help solve waking up from cold

I feel your pain. No matter the conditions, I always wake up with a severe chill. I don't know how to explain it, but I can feel the cold deep within my core. Lol. I have a wicked fast metabolism and my resting heart rate and blood pressure drop ridiculously low while I sleep. Add in almost zero body fat and you have a recipe for being cold. Every morning, even at home.
My solution for in the morning is As soon as I wake up, I make a cup of coffee. In between sips I keep the mug between my thighs on my femoral arteries. Then I eat something. I can literally feel my core warming up. It's amazing.
I could never solve keeping the chill off in the wee hours of the morning while still sleeping, so I've trained myself to just sleep through it. No matter how cold I feel, I know I won't shiver to death, so I just go back to sleep. Even with a sleep system that would be good to 5 degrees for most people, I feel the chill at 20 degrees. But I've trained myself to endure the cold, so I can sleep just fine at 5 degrees with it.
Hopefully you can solve the problem. I saw backcountry.com has some ExPed DownMat UL 7s on sale for like half price. They had the XS and S sizes. Those may help you out.

Sorry my post doesn't really help. Just sharing for the hell of it.

A good shot or two of Jack Daniels or Jim Beam before crawling out of yer bag/quilt will get yer heart started and tide ya over 'til the coffee is ready.

* Alcohol dilates yer blood vessels and caffeine constricts them, making the two together a "balancing act". Heh,heh

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**** P.S. Upon re-reading my flip comment I realize I need to be serious about the OP's problem.
WHICH I believe is, as other posters have mentioned, 3 possibilities (given that your bag is adequate):

1. Eat enough before bedtime to fuel your body all night.

2. Put a closed cell (CC) pad on top of your other mattress. I prefer a Ridgerest, aluminized side up.

3. Be SURE your head is covered with something like a Peruvian knit or fleece hat that covers your ears. (Head and neck blood vessels do not automatically constrict in the cold like those in the rest of your body. This is B/C that area gets priority for blood to keep the brain going.)

OTHER WINTER SLEEP HELPS:

>Wear "polar" weight long johns.
>Wear thick socks or booties
>Wear a cold weather mask to warm incoming air. (Psolar is one brand)
>Pee when the urge wakes you. A full bladder is a heat sink.

1."A cheap test to determine if it is the pad is to add a CC foam pad to the TOP of the pad you are using. I found that made a huge difference. I just used one of the blue CC foam pads in a short torso length."

I did this but had a torso length CC pad UNDER the full length neoair. Okay, will test it on top next.

2."I don't know how to explain it, but I can feel the cold deep within my core"

YES EXACTLY!!

3."I have a wicked fast metabolism"

Yep same here

Just wondering if those emergency blanket type of materials (reflective stuff) on top of the pad would work also?

I've had the exact same issue as the op. I am not a very sweaty person at all so I never suspected that I was getting damp at night, but that's what the problem was. I was sleeping in the winter in a -40 bag with R10 under me and I would get cold in 4 hours, no matter what temperature it was outside. I had been using polypropylene long underwear and switched to a wool top and that helped a lot. I also leave my bag unzipped for the first half of the night, even if it's super cold. I was very surprised because I never "felt damp."

I had another thought too. It was explained to me once that the body uses radiant heat to expel excess heat in the same way that sweat does. When one gets cold, the body begins to conserve heat by releasing less radiant heat. Therefore, although a radiant barrier might keep you warm if you are toasty, once your body begins to cool down, the radiant barrier becomes less effective.

"Just wondering if those emergency blanket type of materials (reflective stuff) on top of the pad would"

Not whatsoever.

The only way those blankets might help is if there is a slight air gap between your skin and it. While a reflective blanket over top of your skin might help "a little", a blanket underneath you wont have the essential separation to allow for radiant reflection to occur.

In general, those blankets haven't been proven to do very much when it comes to "retaining" heat.

Hi Sam

> No matter the conditions, I always wake up with a severe chill.
I am rather curious about this. Do you feel the same sort of cold when you wake up at home in your bed?

Cheers

Your body produces 100 watts of heat (or whatever – it varies). You need enough insulation to keep your skin at 92 F (or whatever).

You can have equal insulation over your entire body.

Or you can have more one place, and less another.

Or you can increase the amount of heat produced by eating more or moving around (shivering works)

Or you can move to more sheltered location like in a fully enclosed tent in some trees at a lower leevation.

Or any combination – many different possible solutions, you just have to try different ones.

If you have a lot of insulation but none on your head, it will lose a lot of heat even though it's a small percent of total skin are – sometimes adding insulation on your head is especially effective.

Probably a warmer sleeping bag is best because it covers almost all your skin area.

"I did this but had a torso length CC pad UNDER the full length neoair. Okay, will test it on top next."

BTW, I tested both ways. First I put it under me and after an hour or so I could feel the cold through the pad. I switched it to the top and it was much warmer.

I'd bet that putting the pad on the top AND eating more before going to bed will make a big difference.

Was when you wake up cold in the night, to eat some chocolate. I've been going to sleep with 100g blocks of dark chocolate next to me, sometimes I'll finish the most if it by morning.

Not sure how much of it is a psychological effect, but for me it makes cold nights much easier to get through.

(Edit: I'd follow everyone else's advice and get a warmer pad. I use an xtherm for most things, or an xtherm (bottom) + zlite (top) if it's much below freezing and I want to be extra comfortable. Not winning any ultralight medals, but I've had some good sleeps :)

"Hi Sam

> No matter the conditions, I always wake up with a severe chill.
I am rather curious about this. Do you feel the same sort of cold when you wake up at home in your bed?

Cheers"

Yes sir I do. When I wake up in the morning, my bed room temperature is usually around 70f. It almost feels like my blood is that temperature. Obviously if it's hot enough to wake up sweating I don't have the chill, but if the AC is running, I always have it.

I think it's a combination of factors. My metabolism is so extremely fast that I deplete my calorie stores before I wake up. Ive eaten north of 3500 calories a day at home for the past month and haven't gained a pound. My
BMI is unhealthily low. I also wake up dehydrated every morning, no matter how much water I have before bed. (And with a bladder that's about to burst)

Sometimes I set alarms to wake me up throughout the night so I can eat and drink something to help "stoke the fire". This helps most times.

(Sorry for the drift. Just answering Mr. Caffin. :))

maybe make your bedroom colder

I would check with a doctor. It sounds like early diabetes…

Hi Sam

I agree with James. Definitely go see a doctor AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

You are obviously running extremely low on blood sugar by the middle of the night, every night. That is not normal, and not good.

Cheers

Welp, sounds like I should get that check up I've been putting off. Come to think of it, I do get a little woozy If I don't eat regularly. Awe crap.

Thanks gents.

it's treatable, the diet is healthier, may be blessing in disguise

for your inputs!!

The temperature around here has risen sharply so I can't effectively test the ideas given but will be trying them out next available opportunity!

Thank you once again :-)