Arthritis... any tips?

Firstly, let me say I did a search, but the newest post it gave me was started over a year ago, so I hope it's ok to start a new one.


Well, it turns out I got arthritis. So far only in the fingers, and currently as I type I got three "nice" swollen sausage fingers that won't bend much. Ack.

My doc has given me a cream (well, it's a gel) for it, which helps for the pain a little bit. Other then that I'm not on any behind the counter drugs, as I got both codine and naproxen already if need be.

It's not too bad, apart from the swelling, pain and loss of flexibility at the moment... but that's at the moment. I fear what it will be like in 5, or 10 years time.

So... what can I do without drugging myself on drugs that will harm my immune system?

I've read to cut out sugar (oh goodbye sweet chocolate!!! *weeps*), is supposed to be benificial... but with caffeine I've seen some mixed reviews. I don't actually drink coffee (I cannot stand hot drinks), but I go though a heck of a lot of pepsi max!

Some say green tea help (*shudders* The thought of hot drinks is fairly disgusting to me), others say that cherry juice or pills helps. So many different things people say is good, whereas others claim it doesn't do anything... so far I've seen that Glucosamine sulfate and SAMe might be of help, but all the other's I've not seen any "proof"...


So... I'm interested to hear if any of your guys have any hints or tips that's of help? I guess my goal is to keep it in check as much as possible. I know there will be good days and bad days, but I'd certainly perfer most of them good!

I'd be willing to change my diet, in the hope it will slow things down, give me less pain or more movement. I would prefer not to take any supplement tablets (unless someone comes here and says they did wonders for them!)... and I would dread to give up my carbonated diet drink! But I would.

I make things by hand, and at the moment I can still do that. I need to do that. I simply couldn't go back to working in a call centre or something like that again... So it's really important to me, not just physically to not be in much pain, but even more so to me mentally, to be able to have use of my fingers.

I do a bit of powerlifting and take glucosamine, one a day as well as red krill oil to prevent joint pain and injury. It's supposed to also help with arthritis symptoms. It definitely fixed up my knee after I hurt it. An inflammatory like that nurofen zavance or whatever supposedly helps with that kind of pain. I don't know if this will help, like i said I don't have arthritis but it may help!

reply to post by aspiechick


As the above poster said, glucosamine.

I used to be extremely X-sports involved ( though they just called it insanity when I was doing it ) and now have a shoulder, a knee, and both hands that ache. Glucosamine and aspirin help more than anything that the doctor wanted me to try. Not to mention that the medications the doc kept trying to give me all carried unfathomably nightmarish potential side effects - including death.

Hi I have a few suggestions.My knees, one ankle and one thumb are pretty jacked up and I've fractured two vertebrae in my back years ago.I spent many years in pain and a narcotic and muscle relaxant fog what really turned thing around for me was giving up the soda because its full of chemicals that cause inflammation and muscle tension and also depletes calcium in the bones, you mention pepsi max; if that contains artificial sweeteners that is a whole other mess of toxins for your body to fight off.I would urge you to google the harmful effects of soda and diet soda.I still drink a couple if I go out to a restaurant on occasion but that is only maybe twice a month and it has made a very noticeable difference.
I quit smoking about a year after giving up the soda and that has make a huge difference as well.
I know your not too interested in supplements but I have one that I must tell you about it is called Turmeric Curcumin Gold and it is made by Nutrigold. This stuff is an anti-inflammitory and antioxidant and it is a miracle supplement in my opinion, after a few weeks of this I was able to stop taking a potentially dangerous med called Mobic. On occasion when I'm really hurting a good bath in Epsom salt really helps and instead of the opiate pain meds I take kratom as a natural alternative because the effect is similar and I have found no serious side effects personally or researching it online however it can be addictive so it should only be used occasionally.
Last thing is to move make,sure you move and get plenty of exercise. These things have made a great improvement in my life and I hope some of them might help you.
Take Care

reply to post by aspiechick


A daily combination of vitamin B1,fish oil. And glucosamine will be very help full for you it is for me . I have
Osteo arthritis in around 30 to 40% of my body and this combo helps me greatly!

Best of luck!

Eat lots of fish. Fish oil is good for the joints. Soaks in dead sea salts help relieve pain but I've also noted that so do baking soda soaks (I don't drink it though--pass, too yuck). If your fingers are swelling and getting stuck, try resting them for a day after taking your anti-inflammatory of choice (ibuprofen, naproxene or whatever) by splinting. I get trigger finger a lot and used to get the injections. Now I just splint the offending finger, pop some advil, rest it a day and it's usually good again in a few days.

Hope one or all of these helps. I've had arthritis since I was a kid and these are the tricks I've learned.

Originally posted by Zehll
I do a bit of powerlifting and take glucosamine, one a day as well as red krill oil to prevent joint pain and injury.

I think I'll skip the powerlifting. But I'll def get some glucosamine (although I think I'll wait with the "yummy" red kirll for now... I googled it, and it was as fear red krill. Hahahaha!). Thank you for your reply, and glad to hear your knee is better!

Originally posted by Hefficide
Glucosamine and aspirin help more than anything that the doctor wanted me to try. Not to mention that the medications the doc kept trying to give me all carried unfathomably nightmarish potential side effects - including death.

Ouch - sorry to hear of all your pains! And thank you for the tip - 2 people advising it in a short period of time! This must be some good stuff (I don't normally take any supplements at all, so have no clue about any of them)

Yup, not too tempting to take tables that say sideeffect as "death". Hahahaha! The ones they'll happily give for arthrities here weakens your immune system dramatically... so I got plans on staying well away from those (for as long as possible anyway).

Originally posted by a762guy
what really turned thing around for me was giving up the soda because its full of chemicals that cause inflammation and muscle tension and also depletes calcium in the bones
I know your not too interested in supplements but I have one that I must tell you about it is called Turmeric Curcumin Gold and it is made by Nutrigold.
Last thing is to move make,sure you move and get plenty of exercise.

So sorry to hear of all your problems!

Yes, I know the pepsi max is full of rubbish... I even called up Pepsi when living in the US wandering why they didn't have a cancer warning on the bottles due to the phenylalanine. Hahahahaha! They claimed due to the amounts their poor labrats were given before developing cancer from it, a human would have to cosume some ridiculously large amount of pepsi max a day to get cancer from it.

Now I don't know if my consumption of it has had any effect, but I'm sure 4 liters of it a day for over a decade hasn't done me any good!!! I've been reading up on making ice tea from green tea... At the moment it's not a good time for me to quite the pepsi (soory - I know it's too much info!!!), "that" time of the month around the corner, and I basically turn "The Hills Have Eyes" crazy already then, so best wait a few weeks. Hahahaha!

Going off the soda is gonna be worse than going off the booze. Ack.

Yes, I've read about the Curcumin - if I can find it in the local stores, I'll get some, otherwise I'll have to do an online shopping spree after another ebay weekened.

I got two Jack Russells - I get plenty of exercise... whether I want to or not. Hahahaha!

Originally posted by maxrockerfella
A daily combination of vitamin B1,fish oil. And glucosamine will be very help full for you it is for me . I have
Osteo arthritis in around 30 to 40% of my body and this combo helps me greatly!

And here I am complaning about a few swollen fingers! Ack! So sorry to hear of your troubles, I'm so glad you've found something that helps!

Vitamin B1, that's a new one for me, haven't seen anything about that. I might just add it to my list, sounds like something even the local pharmacist will have. Have had a little read about the fish oils, and there seem to be quite a few that support it... and I'm actually pretty certain there's some in some capsules in a kitchen cupboard, will raid it later and see if they're still there (and fit for consumption!).

Originally posted by WhiteAlice
Eat lots of fish. Fish oil is good for the joints. Soaks in dead sea salts help relieve pain but I've also noted that so do baking soda soaks (I don't drink it though--pass, too yuck). If your fingers are swelling and getting stuck, try resting them for a day after taking your anti-inflammatory of choice

I cannot even imagine how it would be like to have arthrisis since a kid - I really feel for you. And thank you for sharing your tips!

Is fish oil capsules as good as fish? I actually love fish, I just cannot stand eating it in the fear of finding a bone *shudders* I will eat it (rarely, about once a month), and sit and pick though it with my fingers until I'm 100% certain it's got no bones. But I looooove fish... macerel and salmon being the faves.

Ooooo - baking soda soaks, now that sounds like something that could be easily done at the workshop if I'm having a bad time.

Yes, when my first finger started getting bad, I just assumed I'd knocked it, without realising, so I taped it up to the adjoining finger, and it wasn't used for a day, and it felt fine again the next day (until that evening. Ack). Today I'm staining heaps of planks of wood by hand, so it might have to be done with "pokey-fingers". Hahahaha.

Have you given any thought to food intolerances?

The specific carbohydrate diet is a good place to start because it cuts out many common allergens that can cause inflammation.

There's a South African/Namibian plant called Devil's Claw that is legendary for soothing arthritis.

Some swear by the plant, while others give it up as ineffective.
It has a vile, bitter taste.

For arthritis the plant should be ingested at regular doses throughout the day for a while to see effects (I'd say 2-3 weeks).
As a tea it is said to be more effective if allowed to seep in cooler water over a day, rather than a decoction.
Apparently standardized dosage tablets are also available these days.

en.wikipedia.org...

aspiechick
The onley thing ive found the really helps with the pain is a my hot tub 10 to 15 mins seems to help alot but i also take vicoden if the pain gets unbearable..peace,sugarcookie1

reply to post by aspiechick


The capsules should be close enough to eating fish as they are giving you the same thing. I just hate taking pills or anything pill like due to being on such lovelies in the past like prednisone, plaquenil and methotrexate. I've been off meds completely for over a decade now. Moderating my behavior and my diet is a lot better than taking a med that will eventually kill you. At least, that's how I see it, lol. Having it as a kid sucked in a lot of ways but I got over it pretty rapidly because I, at least, knew what was coming and valued what I had at the present. Was a rare opportunity to actually be grateful for what you've got so not such a bad thing really.

I do agree with the diet aspect. It's not as bad or as hard as it seems, depending on what kicks you off. I avoid heavily processed food like the plague and don't buy anything that has high fructose corn syrup in it. I don't know if it's the life modifying plus the diet but I can honestly say that my arthritis, though still in existence, is far better now than it was 10-15 or even 20 years ago. Completely contrary to my prognosis. I was supposed to be in a wheelchair in 10 years according to my doctor's prognosis. I climbed a butte on that 10 year anniversary. Felt like such a rebel that day. Still going strong and it's been 9 years since I climbed the butte. It's all about moderation. Find your limits, know them, and skirt them gently. Watch what you eat but don't let what you eat become everything in your life. Extreme anything is bad. You're an aspie like me and I'm guessing you probably internalize a lot of things. Avoid that like the plague, too. Be content and measure your stresses. If it's something that you can't do anything about, let it go. If something you can, do it.

As far as food goes...since you are a pepsi junky also like me, I have two words for you--Throwback Pepsi. upload.wikimedia.org...
That's what I drink. It's the old recipe of pepsi before they made pepsi something worthy of cleaning a car engine. I can get away with drinking 2-3 cans a day (bad, I know) and it doesn't kick anything off. We have a simple rule about foods in my house--ingredients list should be short and sweet and, above all, the majority should be readily identifiable as actual food. I don't feel crimped at all by it. It's always really surprising to see that some companies actually do sell what is recognizable as food still as per the ingredients list--even snacks, lol.

Hang in there.

Aside from cutting sugar out of my diet, I also got rid of the wheat gluten after reading over and over that it contributes to inflammation (just like you'd already heard about sugar). My arthritis began about four months ago, complete with the typical burning sensation two finger joints - that'll wake a person from a coma! Any time wheat manages to slide its way onto my plate (typically in a food I'd never identify as "risky") I can feel it within two hours, even in small amounts. It seems to exploit every little injury I've ever sustained, too.

I noticed when cutting wheat/sugar out of my diet due to arthritis, that suddenly, all of my little aches and pains from basically doing idiotic things well into my adulthood vanished. Thankfully, my idiotic memories are intact and all footage has been confiscated by the Woman in Black. You all saw nothing.

-Stay away from refined sugar and flour products
-Eat whole grains instead of processed grain
-Stay away from fried foods (trans fat)
-Eliminate caffeine
-Only consume fresh fruits and vegetables (a combination of cooked and raw - they have different benefits)
-Swap the red meat and pork for chicken and fish


Basically, processed foods cause inflammation, so eat only what you could find in the wild!

reply to post by aspiechick


Arthritis is a genetic autoimmune disorder which results in inflammation of the joints, it is literally your own body's immune system attacking your own joints.

Only thing you can do is take Anti-inflammatory substances, natural ones are:

Turmeric
Apple polyphenols
Rosehip

I have suffered from arthritis since puberty (pushing 50 now). The AMA MD's will want to give you a lot of steroids, which never worked right for me. Mine seems to be less about auto-immune or joint-fluid.

Here are some of my strategies.

1. To keep the fingers limber and to keep burrs from forming in the knuckles, I played guitar. Later, when I lost that skill, I got my fingers back by using something the chinese call "Bao-Ding Balls." They are brass orbs, like a jingle bell, and you kind of rolls them under your knuckles. They say that its the vibrations of the metal inside the sphere, and not the sound, that heals you. I do in fact get ease from hand pain. I have a traditional set at home (one is dragon, the other a phoenix). I also have a couple of tractor ball-bearings I use at work. They don't have the interior moving metal components, but the excercise still helps.

2. Moist heat. A "corn bag" heated in the microwave, then placed on shoulders, knees or hips for relief. The corn gives off moisture as it cools, and is good for ALL body pain, not only arthritis.

3. Whiskey. Yeah, I know. But it works. No one will ever believe you, except an arthritis specialist. I only do it during snowstorms, when it hurts so bad I can't sleep anyway. Some arthritics will tell you that sugar helps, so they drink brandy or schnapps. Sugar makes it work less, IMO.

Apple cider vinegar and honey mixed with hot water is helpful. Glucosomine is good, takes a while to kick in take it for at least a month or two. I don't know if a tens machine could be rigged up to the fingers? But they're good for pain relief - and drug free!

Green Vibrance works wonders, I swear by the stuff.

reply to post by aspiechick


See a doctor? They can PROBABLY help, you know.

Vit D 10 000 iu's, and magnesium powder form, so it acts fast. Also, fatty soluable vits, like A, B's and E's. Cod liver oil. Good oils like coconut and olive. Organic butter if possible.

Also, I use 100% organic sugar cane or coconut sugar, fair trade.

Now some arthritis comes from liver (which I list many possible things for in my case, ranging from no thyroid/chronic fatigue. If your thyroid is out, then adrenals and liver will be affected to. It affects everything. Also Fukushima, toxins, and especially GMO.)

But this causes Gout. So I have 2 types of arthritis, ie. ostereo and gout, and then fibromalgia. In my case, though the cortison shots helped enormously and caused me to move easily last summer to fall, he refused to give some in my knees, said I was in very bad shape, and nothing they could do. But we're waiting for an MRI, this winter. Despite working, he refused to give them. Left me unable to accomplish much during day, in other words, this specialist has incapacitated me, though something helped in the past. I am LIVID and ready to sue.

Not really believing any of that crapola. Everyone else seems to have things to do about it, and so, will be back in his face, or in my regular doctors face, with a long list of printouts and info others have given me. One woman with the same diagnosis as me, has a kinesiologist, and occupational therapist and medication.

Now I'd rather do it natural but want the shots they're like lubrication which is missing with the arthritis. And you have to push, be the squeaky wheel in some cases.

If the liver is involved, aside from Milk Thistle, Grapefruits, are wonderful, they change an enyzme in the liver and help metabolize food.