We hear about hot flashes all the time, but not many people talk about the cold flashes that can come with them. One minute you’re peeling off layers, and the next you’re reaching for a blanket. If your body’s temperature has been all over the place lately, you’re not imagining it.

I’ve had nights where I go from feeling too warm straight into chills, and other times it seems to happen out of nowhere. It can feel disorienting at first, especially when it’s not something you were expecting. But it’s actually a fairly common part of the perimenopause transition, and once you understand what’s happening, it starts to make a lot more sense.

What’s Actually Happening?

A lot of this comes back to a small but important part of the brain called the hypothalamus.

It’s kind of like your body has its own thermostat running in the background, keeping your temperature steady. During perimenopause, changes in estrogen can make it a bit more sensitive than before. So instead of adjusting smoothly, your body starts reacting quicker, even to small changes in temperature.

That’s when you might start to noti pattern like this, suddenly feeling really warm, then dropping into chills, or feeling cold out of nowhere. Nothing is wrong with your body. It’s just adjusting in real time, working with a different set of inputs than it used to.

Why the Chills Can Feel So Intense

There’s also a physical side to why the cold can feel more intense. After a hot flash, your skin can be slightly damp. When your body cools down quickly, that moisture can make the cold feel sharper, almost like it hits all at once. If your system is already a bit more sensitive, which is common during this stage, that change can feel even more noticeable.

Simple Ways to Support Your Body Through It

As both a mom and someone working with women in this stage, I see this “thermostat swing” often. The goal is to support your body through the shifts.

• Wear breathable layers: If your skin stays damp after a hot flash the chill can feel much stronger. Natural breathable fabrics make it easier to adjust quickly and comfortably.
• Warm herbal drinks: Something like ginger or goji berry tea can help your body ease back into balance more gently than blasting the heat. It’s a small thing but it genuinely helps.
• Support your nervous system: Your hormones and nervous system are closely connected, so when a chill hits try slowing your breathing down, letting your shoulders drop and giving your body a moment to settle rather than tensing up against it. Simple daily habits like walking, stretching, or building in quiet moments throughout the day can also help reduce how reactive your system feels overall.
• Create a steady sleep rhythm: Going to bed and waking at consistent times, with a cool but not cold room, helps your body find a more stable baseline overnight.
• Notice your triggers: Some women find that certain things tend to bring on more temperature swings. Caffeine, alcohol, spicy foods, and heavy clothing can all be worth paying attention to. You don’t have to eliminate everything, it’s just about getting to know your own patterns a little better for now.

What You Eat Can Make a Difference Too

Food won’t stop the fluctuations entirely, but it can influence how steady and supported your body feels through them.

• Magnesium-Rich Foods: Pumpkin seeds, spinach, and almonds can support nervous system balance and help your body stay more at ease.
• Phytoestrogens: Flaxseeds and non-GMO soy can gently mimic estrogen in the body, which gently interact with estrogen receptors and may help soften fluctuations.
• Healthy Fats: Avocado and walnuts support the production of all hormones, including the ones that tell your brain you’re at a safe temperature.
• Mineral-rich vegetables: Spinach, kale, Swiss chard (rich in magnesium, calcium, and vitamins that support nerves and hormone balance).
• Cruciferous Veggies: Broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts (help the liver process estrogen and support overall hormone balance).

I always say, your body isn’t trying to make things harder, it’s just communicating a bit differently now. Sometimes that looks like slow down. Sometimes it’s rest. And sometimes it’s simply asking you to pay attention.

Simply Salt & Soul

The Salt (The Science): Your hypothalamus, basically your brain’s thermostat, uses estrogen to help keep your temperature steady. During perimenopause, as estrogen starts to shift, that thermostat can become more sensitive, so your body reacts to smaller temperature changes than it used to. That’s why the swings can feel so intense. After a hot flash, your skin is often a bit damp, and as your body cools down, that moisture can make the chills feel even sharper.

Magnesium is another piece that’s worth paying attention to. It helps regulate the nervous system and how your muscles respond, including how your body handles stress and temperature changes. And a lot of women aren’t getting quite enough, even if it’s not obvious.

The Soul (The Wellness): There’s something a bit disorienting about not being able to predict how your body is going to feel from one minute to the next. Hot, then cold, then fine, then not. It can feel like you’ve lost control over something that used to just run in the background. But this is just your body adjusting and transitioning. So when the chill hits, don’t fight it. Grab the blanket, make the warm drink, slow your breathing down. Let your body do what it needs to do. The more you work with it instead of against it, the steadier things start to feel over time.