Successfully Managing Arthritis Pain
If you or one of your loved ones have arthritis, you are probably looking for ways to eliminate the pain. While that is a large part of managing arthritis, you should also think about having people to talk to when you are having a particularly hard time. The following article will give you a good idea of how to handle arthritis and stop it from taking over your life.
The first thing you should do if you suspect you have arthritis is go see a doctor. While you may know you have it, there are different types and they are all not treated the same way. Speak to a doctor and determine what your course of treatment should be. For some people it is as simple as taking pain medication, but others may need a combination of medication and physical therapy.
Exercise is a great way to cut down on the symptoms of your arthritis. You may think that it will put more stress on the afflicted joints, but it can actually help things. You want to get some exercise, but you do not want to do anything too strenuous. Instead of doing weight training or something that rigorous, try stretches, crunches and other low-impact activities.
Sometimes it is good to push yourself a little further, but when it comes to arthritis, too much can cause serious damage. If you are doing anything that you feel is making your symptoms much worse than normal, stop and relax. For example, if you are changing a room around, take frequent breaks to avoid overexerting yourself.
There are prescription and non-prescription medications available to treat arthritis. If you have tried a few of the over the counter treatments and you have had no relief, it may be time to research other options. You can do some digging online to uncover some treatments that will show you better relief. Talk things over with your doctor and let him help you decide what to do next.
Keep track of what causes you to have flare-ups. A lot of people have triggers that make things significantly worse for them. It is up to you to figure out what yours are. Each time you experience a flare-up, think about what you were doing at the time and write it down. Do this each time you have one, and you may start to see a pattern. If you do, try to eliminate these factors and see if it improves anything.
Join a support group or online forum where you can get in contact with people who are suffering from arthritis as well. People around you that do not have the condition will not be able to understand everything you are going through. While they may empathize, it would probably be more helpful to speak with a fellow arthritis patient.
With a good plan, you can seriously reduce the symptoms of your arthritis. Use these suggestions in order to make things much easier on you. While there is no magic cure, you should be able to live a life with little or no pain.
