Circulatory symptoms in cold weather? Suffering from Raynaud’s?
A chance to take a look at your system, and make changes where needed.
Many people experience cold hands and feet during cold weather, as blood vessels narrow in response to exposure to cold, a change in temperature or stress. Extremities are sacrificed to ensure optimal functioning of organs. But why is your system prioritising some parts at the expense of others? It is desirable (and possible) for all our physical processes to function optimally.
It is useful to look at your whole system and identify where support and balance is needed.
If cold and painful hands and feet prevent you from doing all the things you would like to do, including fully experiencing the outdoors and nature at this time of year, perhaps it’s time to do an overhaul?
Homeopathy addresses the underlying causes of symptoms – taken as a whole symptom picture they are useful signs that highlight what is needed.
Here are some key points to consider about all of your current symptoms;
- When did they start, and what do you recall from this period of time, any stressors including physical, mental and emotional? This includes everything from a physical injury to a worry, a change in lifestyle including dietary changes, sleep, exercise, and relationships. Any major events including grief, or issues you have considered minor such as irritation, frustration, resentment, upset? A timeline is very helpful to begin to see interesting patterns. Direct causations are not always apparent but beginning to understand cause and effect is a useful process and keeping a journal can help to identify how lifestyle factors affect you (noting food, drink, emotions, exercise, sleep, energy levels, digestion, physical symptoms, mental clarity and focus).
- What makes symptoms better or worse? Fresh air, temperature, movements, sitting/laying, pressing/rubbing/scratching, start or finish of periods, foods/ drinks, types of weather, sympathy/consolation, company/being alone…. Considering what affects you gives you an insight into your responses and enables a deeper connection with self as you take some time to note your own reactions.
- Do you have any additional symptoms that occur alongside others? For example blue hands with cold sweat; headaches with abdomen pain…
- Where exactly are your symptoms, are particular fingers or toes always affected and others are not? What do symptoms look like including swellings, discolouration, discharges?
- What are the sensations you feel with any pain? Tingling, burning, numbness, sharp, aching, raw, tender etc? Does the pain extend to any other locations?
- Are there general patterns you can identify with your symptoms, for example how do they tend to start; suddenly out of the blue, or gradually over time? Are there similarities in what makes different symptoms better or worse, for example headaches and joint stiffness both better for cold applications. Are you generally a warm person or a cold person, thirsty or thirstless? How is your appetite, sleep and motivation?
- Don’t forget mental and emotional symptoms can be important indicators because they reflect how you react to different triggers and stressors and highlight where and how there may be strain upon your system. It is also interesting to explore these symptoms alongside digestive symptoms with some consideration to the hive of bacteria you host in your ecosystem. If the bacterial balance is out, they can cause many mental and emotional symptoms. Homeopathy has been studying bacterial remedies since the 1920s and can use your symptom profile to match to a remedy to stimulate your body to regain bacterial balance.
- It is also helpful to review your health history and that of your relatives to consider genetic susceptibilities – genes can be triggered, but they can also be switched off so you do not have to carry forward symptoms from previous generations.
It is essential to consider your whole system altogether, so that you do not suppress one aspect while ‘treating’ another in a specific way. When you reflect on all that is happening, you may be able to see characteristic or unusual symptoms or striking patterns which can be great indicators for finding a closely matching remedy. You can also stand back and see what areas need support right now, what is uppermost and what is underlying, how everything is connected and where to start.
Below are some very brief snapshots of a few remedy profiles including some examples of circulatory issues during cold weather. The key is to consider yourself and your symptoms first – what is most striking and calling for attention – and align these key patterns and symptoms to those of a remedy.
Apis
Blue hands during heat or chill of rest of body. Numbness, itching and stinging sensations. Pains better for cold water and worse for touch/pressure and heat. Alternating moods, may feel weepy, may feel angry.
Cuprum
Blue hands during heat, and/or blue hands during winter. Blue or white fingers. Additional symptoms may include cramps, spasms and numbness, stiffness of hands (maybe on waking). Shock and fright can lead to symptoms. May be anxious and/or enjoy making others laugh.
Graphites
Blue hands worse for warmth. Cold hands with anxiety. Tingling and numbness after exercise. May have congestion and skin symptoms with oozing eruptions. Moods may be changeable with anxious foreboding and symptoms from grief and fright.
Phosphorous
Blue hands, can be at night, may be onset during pregnancy. Tingling and numbness which might be there on waking but generally symptoms may be better for laying down. Stiffness in hands from cold. Red and blue toes. Better for company, and don’t want to be alone.
Lachesis
Blue hands, white fingers, tingling and numbness. Stiffness of hands, especially on waking. May be prone to over stimulation and tension with a sensation of constriction. Therefore symptoms are better for release of tension, discharges and talking.