I live with my grandma and I have long hair and wear makeup. When it gets hot in the summertime, I have to beg her every year to turn on our central air conditioning because she always gets cold (and it's more expensive to run). It has reached the point again where open windows and fans aren't enough. What should I do?
As I read your question, I see that it is her house. So, you are probably out of luck. No one likes to be cold. There are stand alone room A/Cs and if you pay the difference in the electric bill, that might work. (It is 113 degrees, here, today.)
I'm not that young and I am menopausal so I have hot flashes while I'm the homes of those more aged than me, (I', 60.) and I understand that being so hot is hard. I help aging people by cleaning their homes so I am constantly moving and get very, very warm. My solution is to take a small towel and get it wet with cold water, wring it out and wrap it around my neck. I'm sure there are cool wraps that you can purchase that do the trick better, or ice packs that you can drape around your neck that cool you down without harming your skin. But for a quick immediate solution the towel trick workes well on the spot.
I have so much respect for the aged that they often do offer to turn down the heat for me out of returned respect and I always refuse. I suffer for them and believe they deserve no less than that. And I just keep getting more respect for that, too. It's amazing, but it works. Just get that towel out, get it wet and wrap it around your neck. Your clothes get damp, too, which also cools you off. And those folks love you for it. Nothing beats being loved.
The thermostat wars can be terrible. Sometimes she is too hot when I'm comfortable, so I end up freezing. Or some mornings she turns on the heat when it is already warm. I am firm with her, though, about not having the house too hot. I wouldn't be able to stay if she insisted, because it would make me sick to be hot all the time.
I think I would discuss it with her and see if you can come to a middle ground. First buy digital thermometers for the rooms you go into the most. See if some of the rooms are cooler. Try to arrange it so that most of the AC cool air is reaching you. As someone else said, close the vents to her rooms. AND I would consider a standing portable AC unit. I can be moved from room to room. It has a hose that can be placed in any window. They are affordable too.
During the night, you could use the portable AC. I would get the average for electric bills from the past and agree to pay for any mount that is greater. It shouldn't be that much more.
If you are going to be around for the future to help care for your grandmother, I would think she would want to make the house an enjoyable place for you to be.
Another tip I learned. If you are hot and she won't turn on AC. Place a large tub of ice in front of a fan. Sit in front of it and it creates a nice cool breeze. At least for a little while.
My elderly friend who since died was always cold toward the end due to lack of circulation which was due to lack of exercise. I didn't know how lazy he really was until they put him into a nursing home and took away his power chair and mobility scooter and made him use a walker. We all knew he needed the items but not nearly as bad as he was letting on, he could've gotten by with just a walker much of the time. He always complained of being cold. He kept the AC at a hot setting and having a damaged auto nervous system from childhood, I have an overheating disability where I'm vulnerable to heat illness. Therefore, I just can't be where it's hot so I really didn't have too many options other than to either just leave despite him wanting me there or sneak behind his back and set the thermostat to a slightly cooler setting that was comfortable for us both. After a while he would set it back to the warmer temp, and I had to always have a frozen hot water bottle on me. Of course in a cooler hot area it doesn't stay cold as long as it should. I'm just glad they took away all his control when they put him into a nursing home because the thermostat was controlled by the nursing home where they had central air. That way, when they turn on the AC, you have no control over it and if you're cold, you'll just have to put some layers on or hop on the treadmill and get the blood moving.
A final thought would be there if you can't be in a hot area, just refuse to be there and the elderly person who wants you there bad enough will somehow find clever ways to accommodate you, if not they won't. Just don't put yourself and your health at risk to please someone else if you know for a fact you're negatively affected by the summer heat
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