A SOUTH Lakeland mother who has battled against chronic pain and fatigue said a natural fruit extract enabled her to climb mountains again.

Forty-one-year-old Tori Sandilands, of Staveley, was struck down by a severe neurological condition in her early 20s which left her barely able to walk around the block.

Prior to this she had been a keen cyclist, runner and horse rider.

With doctors unable to identify a cure for her condition, Ms Sandilands began taking CurraNZ, a supplement made of blackcurrants from New Zealand, in 2015 after it was recommended to her by a friend. She said it quickly had an effect, taking the edge off her fatigue and muscle spasms.

“I’m really quite active at the moment. It’s quite a difference from where I’ve come from, and just to be able to do all this stuff makes me feel a bit more ‘me’ again,” she said.

“The pain can tend to take your personality away from you if you can’t do the things you love and enjoy.

“I haven’t returned to road cycling but I’ve bought a stand-up bike instead because the position suits me more.

“Although round here in the Lake District it is super hilly so it is really intense to use.”

Ms Sandilands is now able to enjoy an active, outdoors lifestyle again (when the country is not on lockdown) and enjoys spending time with her friends and one-year-old daughter Ophelia in her stunning South Lakeland surroundings.

“In the dark days of pain it was so hard to see past that but now I’m genuinely excited for my future – it feels vibrant and bold,” she said.

Nicki Bundock, director of the UK arm of CurraNZ, said it was ‘inspiring’ to see how far Ms Sandilands had come with the help of the supplement, and explained how the product helped pain.

She said the anthocyanins (a type of pigment) found in blackcurrants could "enhance immune responses" and had “natural anti-inflammatory properties”.

These properties, she added, helped the body "control inflammation in the right way, at the right time" to allow it "to repair and recover."