Dealing With Arthritis

RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post by grammar (177) | (06/02/2006) Contact Hello Elizabeth, my hubby has arthritis in his back and he was using the heating pad with the warmth. But he spoke with his doctor and they told him no heat to use cold instead and when he switched he felt so much better quicker. Even if you switch back and forth maybe this would help....hope you feel better.......take care, Ruth RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post by Crunchy Mama (16) | (05/31/2006) Profile | Contact I have some kind of something going on and I often have very stiff, sore joints, worse in the morning and sometimes extreme joint pain. My doc has yet to be able to figure it out, but some things that have helped me get on with my day... before going to bed at night, I heat up my rice bag (with lavender & chamomile to encourage sleep) and go to sleep with it on my neck or hands or elbow...whatever is hurting. Sometimes I have two or three going...this often helps my morning pain. Also, try not to get chilled overnight...I always feel much worse when I am cold. First thing in the morning, I put the teapot on to boil water and start a cup of hot tea with raw honey and then throw the same heating pads in the microwave. Then I take a hot shower...just a quick one. Then the heating packs and hot tea are usually enough to take the edge off of the pain so that I can move around and the stiffening gets better the more I move around. I also take an Essential Fatty Acid supplement and am sure to get natural forms of EFAs as well (raw nuts, salmon, flax seeds) in my diet. The heat does wonders for relaxing my muscles and joints and long term, with the EFA supplementation, I've definitely noticed a difference! RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post By jody greco (Guest Post) (05/29/2006) go to a good rheumatologist...try Enbrel..i am not sure of the spelling..it is a miracle drug..it is an injection 2 times a week...you do not have to live with pain! RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post By sandy (Guest Post) (05/25/2006) well it is now getting warm but i use a heated mattress pad. what a wonderful difference that has made. i feel much better in the morning. i also use lidoderm patches. it is like novacain in a patch and i put it on the most painful spot. i also take vinegar tablets a few times per day. i find vinegar is like a cure all for me. i started taking ginger again today. i hadnt had any but ginger is a antiinflammitory. hot showers. i also took a class at the ymca in the swimming pool. because of work i cant take it right now but want to get there again. sandysheep1 @ yahoo . com no spaces. RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post By Carol in PA (Guest Post) (05/25/2006) I started taking glucosamine/chondroitin tablets about 4 months ago. I noticed a significant difference in my morning stiffness. I can get up and walk now.. smiles. RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post by Great Granny Vi (206) | (05/25/2006) Profile | Contact Old pioneer remedy...1 teaspoon honey,1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar mixed with a glass of warm water morning and evening. My mother also added 8 raw almonds a day too. She never had arthritis. GG Vi RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post By JODI (Guest Post) (05/24/2006) I was under doctors care (therapy) for some time and the one thing they did for me (I had neck /shoulder problems) was to wrap warm towels around my neck for 15 minutes while laying down and relaxing. Sit up straight in chair, look to the right side and count to 5, look to the left and count to 5. Then look straight down (keeping the shoulders straight back and still sitting straight up) count to 5 and then look straight up counting to 5. Now lay your head down as far as you can on your right shoulder and count to 5, and, last, do the same thing only this time on the left shoulder. While doing all these take deep breaths. Repeat all these several times. I have found that when starting to get headaches, I do these and sometimes this will get over the headache without taking anything. When I have waited too long and end up with a headache I have found taking 1 Midol will get rid of it in about 15 minutes. Also, when getting leg cramps, I also take Midol and this helps a lot. This may not help everyone but hope it does help RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post by hwalz (2) | (05/24/2006) Contact You might try 8 oz of grape juice mixed with 1Tbsp of Certo daily for a month. RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post by tedsmom (221) | (05/24/2006) Contact Take the combination of Glucosamine, Chondroitin and MSM in a daily pill or liquid. I've been taking it for several years now and no longer have arthritis symptoms in my hands and knees. BTW - I'm 67 years old. RE: Dealing With Arthritis Post By jean (Guest Post) (05/24/2006) Several suggestions, depending on which joints are affected. Before going to bed, take a pain reliever. I use Aleve. 1. Before you get out of bed, extend legs, point and flex feet and rotate ankles in both directions. Do 10 times. Then bend kneees as close to chest as your body allows, then extend legs out straight. This helps knees/ankles. Do 10 times. 2. Sit on edge of bed,extend arms, and rotate shoulders 10 times in each direction. 3. Squeeze hands into tight fists, then spread open 10 times. 4. Take a hot shower. These things help my shoulders, hands, knees, and ankles, the parts of my body that are stiff with osteoarthritis. There does not seem to be a way to avoid A.M. stiffness, but this routine lessens it, and helps me to move better. I hope this will be helpful to you.