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Chillblains!

morecowbellmorecowbell Posts: 1,491
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in Advice #1
I'm really suffering this year :cry: My feet are covered in them. I have three on one finger. My toes are "corpse purple". Thankfully they don't itch, but they do hurt.

I pretty much live in sheepskin boots. I have three pairs and swap them around a lot. I just can't seem to warm up my extremities.

As I understand it the Doctors can't really do anything, and any creams or paste don't work either.

Does anyone have any old wives tales on what may help?

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  • AmberPandaAmberPanda Posts: 461
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    #2
    I don't have any old wives tales but I use Balmosa which I find quite good.
  • morecowbellmorecowbell Posts: 1,491
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    #3
    AmberPanda wrote: »
    I don't have any old wives tales but I use Balmosa which I find quite good.

    Balmosa? I've never heard of it. Will do a quick search on that. Thanks muchly!
  • scorpio manscorpio man Posts: 4,960
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    #4
    morecowbell wrote: »
    I'm really suffering this year :cry: My feet are covered in them. I have three on one finger. My toes are "corpse purple". Thankfully they don't itch, but they do hurt.

    I pretty much live in sheepskin boots. I have three pairs and swap them around a lot. I just can't seem to warm up my extremities.

    As I understand it the Doctors can't really do anything, and any creams or paste don't work either.

    Does anyone have any old wives tales on what may help?

    Soak your feet and fingers in fresh warm urine, your own preferably.
    I kid you not.
    I used to soak my feet in it many years ago when I suffered with them and it helped quite a lot.

    Some links about chilblains and urine HERE

    If that suggestion grosses you out (and it shouldn't because it's sterile, yours and it's free).
    try SNOWFIRE ointment.
  • morecowbellmorecowbell Posts: 1,491
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    #5
    scorpio man wrote: »
    Soak your feet and fingers in fresh warm urine, your own preferably.
    I kid you not.
    I used to soak my feet in it many years ago when I suffered with them and it helped quite a lot.

    Some links about chilblains and urine HERE

    If that suggestion grosses you out (and it shouldn't because it's sterile, yours and it's free).
    try SNOWFIRE ointment.

    I have heard of that working! Desperate times may call for desperate measures :D I will look up the snow fire too. And most probably try that first :o
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 13
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    #6
    Urine is an old wives tail - however, if it works for you - great.

    I tried Snowfire years ago. I believe it's basically moisturiser with a mild irritant that brings blood to the surface - it can be mildly soothing (and help keep the skin soft to help prevent the skin breaking) however it doesn't do anything to actually solve the problem.

    Do you smoke? This IMO is the single largest impact on circulation.

    Also - do you exercise? The winters I've avoided chilblains 100% happen to be the winters I've spent a few hours a week in the gym. 20 minutes cardio 3 times a week could make all the difference :)

    The above two points seem to solve (or significantly reduce) the problem for the majority of people.

    After this, you're left with changing lifestyle to avoid the cold (ie, drive to work rather than standing on cold platforms waiting for trains) and clothing.

    Chillblains on feet benefit from regular changing of socks (especially if you spend your day in shoes/boots). It's surprising how damp socks can get after a few hours wear. Also, investigate socks with a high silver content - they help carry heat from the soles of your feet to the toes. I believe silver also has the added side effect or reducing bacteria (useful if you have broken skin).

    Heated gloves, socks etc can also help but may not be practical or affordable (plus keep in mind too much heat is a bad thing too).

    Finally, if not too painful, moisturise and massage. This helps prevent the skin from breaking, encourages circulation in the effected areas and helps remove any fluid that may have built up.

    Sorry if this is teaching you to suck eggs but having suffered from chilblains (originally on feet, now on hands too) I figure any advice is good advice.

    You can also speak to your doctor about drugs to increase circulation but they typically only prescribe them for the elderly plus I believe they have other negative impacts on health. Drugs should be the last option.

    Hope that helps :)

    Edit: I should also add - I find wrapping effected toes in plasters seems to help. I'm unsure if it's the additional insulation or padding (allowing them to heal) but 3 days in plasters and things are usually massively improved.
  • morecowbellmorecowbell Posts: 1,491
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    #7
    thespirit3 wrote: »
    Urine is an old wives tail - however, if it works for you - great.

    I tried Snowfire years ago. I believe it's basically moisturiser with a mild irritant that brings blood to the surface - it can be mildly soothing (and help keep the skin soft to help prevent the skin breaking) however it doesn't do anything to actually solve the problem.

    Do you smoke? This IMO is the single largest impact on circulation.

    Also - do you exercise? The winters I've avoided chilblains 100% happen to be the winters I've spent a few hours a week in the gym. 20 minutes cardio 3 times a week could make all the difference :)

    The above two points seem to solve (or significantly reduce) the problem for the majority of people.

    After this, you're left with changing lifestyle to avoid the cold (ie, drive to work rather than standing on cold platforms waiting for trains) and clothing.

    Chillblains on feet benefit from regular changing of socks (especially if you spend your day in shoes/boots). It's surprising how damp socks can get after a few hours wear. Also, investigate socks with a high silver content - they help carry heat from the soles of your feet to the toes. I believe silver also has the added side effect or reducing bacteria (useful if you have broken skin).

    Heated gloves, socks etc can also help but may not be practical or affordable (plus keep in mind too much heat is a bad thing too).

    Finally, if not too painful, moisturise and massage. This helps prevent the skin from breaking, encourages circulation in the effected areas and helps remove any fluid that may have built up.

    Sorry if this is teaching you to suck eggs but having suffered from chilblains (originally on feet, now on hands too) I figure any advice is good advice.

    You can also speak to your doctor about drugs to increase circulation but they typically only prescribe them for the elderly plus I believe they have other negative impacts on health. Drugs should be the last option.

    Hope that helps :)

    Edit: I should also add - I find wrapping effected toes in plasters seems to help. I'm unsure if it's the additional insulation or padding (allowing them to heal) but 3 days in plasters and things are usually massively improved.

    Wow! Some great advice and ideas here. Many thanks! I don't smoke cigarettes but do smoke an e cig so I figure that's not helping. I regularly change socks and boots and am very active and on my feet a lot. Would really prefer to do this without involving the doctor if I could as I am on a lot of combinational drugs anyway. If I can get through it without popping more pills then all the better.

    Read this thread last night and have spent some time doing some research and have ordered some socks with interlocked silver thread. There were lots of articles online about how they help with chillblains. God knows why I couldn't find that before! They sound ideal and I can't wait to try them out!

    Many thanks for all your ideas/help :)
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