'It feels like my body has been wrapped in barbed wire then dipped in concrete': Woman's joints are so stiff she has to lie in oil for three HOURS before she can move

Nicola Whitehill, 42, from Merseyside, suffers from scleroderma - a condition that results in hard, thickened areas of skin and sometimes problems with internal organs and blood vessels. 


Scleroderma is caused by the immune system attacking the connective tissue under the skin and her body temperature can trigger a Raynaud's attack, which cuts off circulation to the fingers and toes (bottom right). So tight and and constricted is Miss Whitehill's skin, she spends three hours each day soaking herself in oil (top right) and lathering on moisturiser before she is able to move her joints properly.