Bitterly cold wind chills are expected tonight and tomorrow…and in some parts of the country it’ll feel like 60 below zero!

How does your body cope?

1. It immediately redirects blood away from your extremities and toward your vital organs.  As soon as the cold air hits you, your blood vessels contract. That’s why your hands and feet tend to feel cold first. It’s your body’s way of keeping your core temperature up.
2. You get goosebumps.  All mammals fluff up their body hair when they’re cold, including us, but since we’ve evolved and don’t have much body hair, you just see the tiny muscles around your follicles contracting.
3. You start to shiver, which actually warms you up a little bit.  It’s like a self-defense mechanism for your body. When your muscles shake, they generate heat to keep your core temperature from falling too fast.
4. You start feeling confused.  It’s a sign of hypothermia and it starts happening when your body temperature gets down to about 95 degrees. You may have trouble focusing and start slurring their words at that point.
5. You’ll eventually stop shivering and that’s when you know you have severe hypothermia.  You may also feel the need to lie down, which is dangerous. Some people also get so confused they feel the urge to take their clothes off, which is not good.
6. Frostbite will start…that’s when your skin and the tissue under it literally starts to freeze. It can happen as quickly as five minutes in sub-zero temperatures and if you’re not wearing a hat, your ears are the first things to be affected.
7. You can also temporarily go blind.  When your body temperature falls far enough, the blood vessels in your eyes start to contract and cause blindness, but usually only temporarily

Bottom line? It’s nothing to joke about…stay indoors (your pets, too), stay warm and if you must go outdoors, bundle everything up!

Get more info at Time, Bustle and AccuWeather.