By Cynthia Grau/WJEZ News

With the temperatures steady in the negative numbers for the past few days with forecasts of negative to single digits in the coming days, saving yourself from frostbite becomes important when staying indoors isn’t an option.

Dr. Patrick Dowling, attending emergency physician at OSF Saint James – John W. Albrecht Medical Center, said the thing people need to remember is to dress in layers for the cold, and that there are things you can do if you feel you’ve been overexposed to the frigid temperatures.

“If you’re out in the cold and you’re worried that you’re getting overexposed, the most important thing is getting in out of the cold then remove all your wet clothing and dry yourself off. Wrap up in dry warm clothes, blankets and get near a heat source. If you feel like your hands or feet have been overexposed, submerge them in lukewarm water. You don’t want to use hot water and you don’t want to wet your hands if you’re going to get cold again. You don’t want to warm your hands up and get cold again because you can do a lot of damage from refreezing if you’re starting to get frostbite. One of the more concerning symptoms that can indicate that mild hypothermia is becoming more significant is when we stop shivering, because that’s our body’s normal response when we lose heat is to quiver our muscles to generate heat. When that stops, your body temperature can drop fairly dramatically. Then it follows with confusion and whatnot, and those are signs that you don’t need to be managing this at home. You should come to the emergency department immediately for evaluation,” Dowling said.