Each year, adult men and women are forced to cope with the often debilitating effects and symptoms of arthritis. In fact, there are more than 100 unique types of arthritis, which makes it very likely that you or someone you know has the disease. These carefully selected tips and tricks offer insight into the nature of arthritis.
Stretch your symptom-free joints every day. A warm shower followed by a gentle stretching routine will cause you to feel looser for the rest of the day. Warm, loose muscles will cause less stress on your joints, which means that you will suffer from fewer flare-ups and less pain throughout your day.
Rearrange the furniture in your home. You want to be able to walk a straight line from one room to another. The fewer turns you have to make, the less stress you will place on your weight-bearing joints, especially your hips. You should enlist the help of a friend to move your furniture, of course.
To use a manual stapler while living with arthritis, press down on the stapler with your forearm. Do this instead of using your wrist. The wrist is one area that can become especially sensitive and painful during an arthritis flare up. Keeping from having to use it during those moments means less pain for you, and the task getting accomplished faster too.
Stay away from heating pads if your arthritis is flaring up. All they are going to do is make your symptoms worse. Instead, apply a cold compress to the area where your arthritis is located. You could even wrap a package of frozen peas or another frozen vegetable in a towel and apply to the area.
Relaxing music can be a great aid when you are trying to deal with arthritis pain. This music works to unwind and relax, soothing your body and alleviating some of the uncomfortable and daunting pains of arthritis. You can use relaxing music to fall asleep easier if your arthritis is preventing this from happening.
Go to occupational therapy. Many arthritis sufferers have problem spots in certain areas of their everyday home lives, but they let these go unchecked for different reasons. Visiting with an occupational therapist will let you address these concerns, and get help with working out proper solutions, rather than just ignoring the problems at hand.
Focus on strength training. People who suffer from arthritis have been shown to increase their flexibility and overall health from performing strength exercises as little as twice a week. Stick with moderate or lighter exercises to get the maximum benefits without causing any undue stress on your joints, which may cause inflammation.
Arthritis and stress flaring up get social. Having arthritis you might be tempted to stay home don’t get out and get social. You will feel more relaxed and calmer when you are interacting with other people, when you are relaxed and calm your stress levels and arthritis will stop flaring.
Eat foods that are rich in vitamin C to promote healthier joints and reduce pain from arthritis. Vitamin C is proven to offer an essential vitamin that promotes joint health and can reduce the effects of arthritis and damage of joints. You can fill your diet with tasty treats like oranges and grapefruit to reduce your pain and joint damage effectively and naturally.
Keep a diary for your sake and review, as well as bringing it to your doctor’s visits. Your doctor will then be able to tell how you are doing without making you think you have to have total recall of all events. The diary also keeps track of different practices you have incorporated and their effects.
Whenever you dwell on something, you just make it worse. It is important in your healing process not to dwell on the bad things but instead dwell on the good things. Remember things that are important to you that you want to focus on, and take your mind off of the pain.
Talk to your doctor about heat or cold treatments. You can use ice packs or soak affected joints in ice water to soothe pain. Alternately, heating pads, warm water soaks, and moist heat packs are quite helpful. Don’t go overboard, but do use these methods, altering which one you use at any given time.
Stop smoking. Smoking not only increase the chances of getting arthritis, it also causes the sufferer to have more painful symptoms and more damage to their joints than those who do not smoke. Of course, there are a variety of other health benefits that are associated with not smoking as well, so it is important to make a change as soon as possible.
Always use proper posture. What you eat and how long you exercise makes a difference, but your posture is what really plays a great deal on reducing your pain from arthritis. Maintain erect posture while sitting, and try to place your feet twelve inches apart while standing. Doing things like this will help your posture be more appropriate, which will decrease joint stress and discomfort.
Know your individual risks for arthritis and prevent damage however you can. If you are at a higher risk of arthritis, you want to take extra care to follow prevention tips and maintain a better fitness level for stronger joints and less risk overall. Even if arthritis runs in your family, there are things you can do to prevent joint damage and pain, and you should be doing these things to lessen your risk.
Stress is closely linked to arthritis. When you are stressed, your pain will be worse, and your condition may progress faster. Find a method for releasing your stress, either by a hobby or relaxation methods, such as meditation or Pilates. Do your best to stay away from stressful situations.
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