I have
Reynaud's (primary type).
I was diagnosed back in the 80s, before anecdotal evidence was an accepted method of diagnosis. In order to confirm diagnosis by anecdote, I had to have the formal testing. This involves ten tiny finger-sized blood-pressure cuffs and immersion of the hands in a bath of ice and alcohol. It remains the single most unpleasant experience of my life.
I was prescribed
nifedipine (Adalat, Procardia) and was on it for decades. I had to quit caffeine, and had a very hard time quitting nicotine.
Both are vasoconstrictors. I still keep gloves on top of the fridge for when I have to get things out of the freezer.
I know exactly what you mean about the body seeming to react to outdoor conditions even when indoors. Right now it's 15 outside, the thermometer on my desk reads 76, I can touch the radiator (which runs under old-school steam—none of that hot water nonsense) without leaving my chair. And I'm cold while wearing a sweatsuit and two pairs of socks. (Many days I wear less on the bike than I do indoors.)
I don't offer my experience with dressing for cycling in the cold (
above) as universal. But now that you know I also have Reynaud's you'll understand why that five-minute barrier is so hard for me to get past. My hands aren't just cold at that point, but blue and painful.
And yet, by the ten-minute mark, blood is flowing through them again, they've become warm and pink.
I agree that there's no single method that works for everyone. If haven't at least tried the start-cold-and-let-the-exercise-warm-you method because of the fear of cold that Reynaud's induces, see if you can get by it and try anyway. You may be as completely amazed as I was.
The snow stopped overnight although it remains cold. It's supposed to drop to single-digits and below for the weekend. Time now for weekly errands—banking and grocery shopping. By bike.
