05 August,2010 06:07 PM IST | | Agencies
A Brit woman, dubbed the Flamingo Lady, suffers from a rare condition that forces her to stand on one leg.
Joanne Day, 36, a physiotherapist, from Weston-Under-Lizard, Shrops, has dystonia, a disorder with no known cure which causes muscle contractions to strike all over the body.
She has suffered agonising contortions since a roller-skating accident as a teen - with the latest cramping her left leg up to her chest.
"It's incredibly painful and I need morphine," the Mirror quoted her as saying.u00a0
"At first it was really upsetting. People would ask in the street why I was standing on one leg. They thought I was messing about.u00a0
"Being positive, though, is far more rewarding than spending all my time thinking this has ruined my life," she said.
The contortions started when her left shoulder was forced to her chin. They eased and then the flamingo stance set in. She is thought to be Britain's only sufferer.u00a0
She has had 60 operations but rules out more surgery as it could spread the spasms.
