TRADITIONAL medicine has failed Joanne Green who suffers from Raynaud's Disease, a condition where her hands get so cold she has to wear gloves even in summer.

Joanne 28, of Brackenbury Road, Preston, discovered she had this rare circulatory problem 10 years ago. When she first went to her doctor, he told her there was nothing wrong. He said she couldn't possibly have Raynaud's as she was too young.

However, her symptoms persisted and Joanne's hands and nose got colder and colder, often turning blue.

"It comes on with the weather," she explained: "But it isn't as you'd expect, it's not only in winter.

"It starts with a change in temperature. I have even had an attack when I was on holiday abroad. But it can happen simply when I go from sun to shade."

The symptoms of Raynaud's are caused by an intermittent lack of blood in the extremities, when the arteries normally supplying them spasmodically contract.

An attack will be triggered by touching cold objects or exposure to cold of any kind, although emotions can also play a part. It can range in severity from minor discomfort to the onset of ulcers or even gangrene.

Joanne said: "Everyone has their own experiences of it. Some people get it so badly, they have to have parts amputated."

In severe cases, people with Raynaud's are prescribed drugs which cause blood vessels to dilate, thereby improving circulation.

But for Joanne, traditional medicine offered no relief and she turned to complementary medicine for treatment.

"I sorted it out myself. I have done it the alternative way and it has worked for me." Joanne has been seeing a holistic therapist for nearly a year now and she has finally got it under control. Besides taking herbal remedies and acupuncture, she has changed her lifestyle, improving her diet and taking more exercise.

She added: "I would recommend this regime to anyone. It is expensive but worth it."

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