If you get chilled, do you lose circulation in your hands and/or feet? The kind of circulation loss that makes your fingers look like white, waxy candles? As they warm, they turn of lovely shade of purple/blue? If so, like me, you have Raynaud's Syndrome. Says the Mayo Clinic's web site:
With Raynaud's, arteries to your fingers and toes go into what's called vasospasm. This constricts the vessels dramatically and temporarily limits blood supply. The result is that affected skin turns a pale color due to the lack of blood flow to the area.
Lovely. :(
As the temperature here in New England begins its skid into the freezing numbers, I think back to the days when my Raynaud's was so severe that it truly impacted the quality of my life. Here's the story of how Raynaud's went from ruling my actions for many months of the year, to a virtual non-issue. My hope is that if you see yourself in this story, even if you're case is not as severe, this "fix" will help you too.
For about seven years, my Raynaud's progressed from bad to worse--first in my hands, then in my feet. I would have 10 attacks a day or more--particularly in my hands. Cold temps, damp temps, or a sudden change in temperature would set it off. Run outside in winter? Fuggedaboudit. I'd bring gloves to the grocery store--in the summer! I tried everything to stay warm--gloves, mittens, over mitts, Gortex, fleece, hand warmers. I wrapped my core in layers of warm clothing. You name it, I did it. It got to the point that the Raynaud's was so severe I developed wounds on my hands and feet called chilblains.
Chilblains are a painful inflammation of small blood vessels in your skin, and they hurt like hell. Pain aside, the chilblains on my feet opened, and the wounds would not heal because of inadequate circulation. I can remember my PC doc yelling, "YOU ARE GOING TO LOSE A DIGIT!!!" I had no choice but to to go on a calcium channel blocker--a cardiac medicine that reputedly helps Raynaud's. While I had no side-effects from taking the med, it did very little to combat my attacks. Yes, I would say it mitigated them, but it never made a major difference. Plus, as an athlete without a heart condition, who wants to take that kind of medicine? But what else to do?
By some karmic intervention, a wonderful, wise chiropractor I was seeing named Tom Michaud noticed my waxy fingers during an appointment. This is what he recommended I try, and it literally changed my life.
Tom advised that I take the amino acid L-Arginine. L-Arginine is not a drug, just an essential amino acid. As he explained in lay terms, L-Arginine is the amino acid in your body that contributes to making nitric oxide. Nitric oxide, in turn, is your body's most powerful vaso-dilater. Dilate your blood vessels, get better circulation. So this is the "fix," the "miracle," the "magic" that has made all the difference:
Take one 500mg capsule of L-Arginine morning, noon and night.
That's it. That's all you do.
The full effect took about two weeks. I take it year round.
How dramatic a result have I had? I now run outside all winter. I have a Raynaud's attack on occasion, rather than a dozen times a day. I have had nothing resembling a chilblain for more than five years. Raynaud's is now a footnote in my life, rather than a major source of stress, frustration, limitation, and fear.
In subsequent years, I have read articles in Time Magazine and The New York Times about the efficacy of L-Arginine in helping circulation in diabetics. I'm sure it's true.
Not everyone has Raynaud's as severely as I did. But even if you have attacks only from time to time, go to the vitamin shop, your local pharmacy, or the health food store and give L-Arginine a try. Give it a few weeks to kick in, and I bet you'll be happy you gave it a go.
Here's to enjoying winter again! Let's go run outside!
