arthritis pain
 

what do you take for your arthritis pain? I was taking Mobic or Celebrex but found out recently my kidneys are having problems with both. My pain iis ten times worst since I quit taking the medication.

I too took Mobic. Kidney problems now are bad....I have a disease called Minimal Change Disease. Something usually small childred get....They don't know how to treat me. It is an autoimmune disease. Basically my immune system thinks my kidneys are foreign objects and is destroying them. I am and have been on chemo to limit my immune systems ability to work. I tried heavy doses of steriods and they did not work. But you name it for side effects and I had them and then some. Basically could not keep my blood pressure high enough to move around and lost most of my balance and muscle tone. It took a good strong year to come out of the mess the steriods caused. I now have been on chemo for 10 years and am doing good...GFR ranges in mid thirties. I wish you the best of luck. Hope you have a specialist for kidneys helping you. Carol
Forgot to say....Yes I too have terrible pain and am not allowed ANY Nasids. I have learned to live with it. I do use heat or cold what ever feels best. Some days a long soak in the tub helps....I find water therapy helps also. On the bad days I spend alot of time in my chair! If you can get out to be with others that helps also....takes your mind off of yourself and pain.

Wow, I have back pain and they tested me for arthritis ( the test are not back yet) but I am on mobic and cholesterol medicine, Now I am afraid of the kidney problems since both causes kidney problems. I think once the results come back I will have a serious talk with my doc. I also have severe osteoporosis in my hips and lower back. Hope you get to feeling better and that something helps with the pain. I keep thinking I am too young to be in pain for the next 50 years. Yes I plan on living till I am 95. ;-)

I take Tramadol. I was without for a week and couldn't believe how much pain I was in without it.

I feel for you. I have a back disease plus a fatty liver due to fast loss of weight so I try to make sure what I take goes thru the kidney and not the liver. It's worked because my liver count has been great for the past several yrs. I also have epilpsy and that limits what I can take; it can't cause siezures plus it has to play well with my siezure meds. The funny part is one of the few pain meds that plays well, I can't take because it also can cause them. My last siezure was while I was on Ultram, I can't take anything in that family. No matter what meds you take the more water you drink the faster it'll flush what isn't absorbed out of your system.

I try not to use meds if possible. Oregano Oil works great and also Arnica Gel; I actually will use them at the same time and get good results. Both can be found in health food stores. Then Arnica is used by sports doc to help with the pain. It also will speed up the bruising process if you have one. I also like Salonpas (found at most stores). You can get it in a spay or patches and I use Icy Hot in gel or roll on.

Some other things that have helped me;
An arthritis doc checked my Vit D levels because that can cause pain; mine was low and I fight that more than anything trying to get it higher. I'm on prescribed high does of it.
Magnezium and zinc also helps, you can soak your feet in Epson salt 3 times a week and get a good dose because you body obsorbs it.
My specialist said that taking the Krill Oil not only is good for your cholestrol but it is a natural anti-inflammatory. Even though my cholestrol is only 112 I take it for the pain. He also said after checking my feet (surprised me because I'm not diabetic) that when people have low chemical imbalances it can cause problems with thier circulation. You can have your doc check your chemical levels, I get all of the ones above and a few others checked every 6 mos to make sure they are good or if I need to increase my meds.
Dr Oz just had a show this past Friday on natural pain relief that might help out. I know one of them is Robius Tea that you can find in most stores. You might check his web site out because he's done a few on the subject.
Now, the biggest thing you can do is to quit drinking/eating anything with aspartame in it. It might seem strange but I had aspartame poisening so bad that I was constantly being rushed to the hospital and getting shot up with laugnem (not sure of spelling but very strong pain killer). My last bout was in 2008, the following month I heard about this and quit and haven't been rushed to the hospital for this since. I may still have my bouts of pain but I can usually treat it with meds or hot soaks plus I have a heating pad at home and in my car. This stuff is in so many things that you may not know; like alot of fiber meds, Alka Seltzer flavored, even one flavored lip balm had it in it. I read everything now because I don't like getting laid up for weeks after one of these episodes. I hope this helps someone out there.

No matter what, keep drinking lots of water and keep in touch with your doctor and pharmasist to make sure nothing interacts with other things you take.

By the way as for meds, I use to take Mobic if it was in my bones of my back, I take Flexarul if it's muscles and hydrocodone if I'm really in a lot of pain. But, I only take these if none of the other methods work. My 30 day supply of mobic would last me more that 6 mos, the same goes for Flexaurl and Hydorcdone. I will take Aleve if needed, you only have to take it once daily instead of every few hours.Good luck to you all.

I don't take anything anymore. Vioxx worked great but they took it off the market. Celebrex worked somewhat. But with all the commercials telling it like it is-if it doesn't KILL you, it may help you didn' twork for me. i quit!!!
last night my cat was sleeping in my arms and I had my hand flat on her tummy awhile. talk about stiff fingers when she woke up! but i flex the heck out of them and they work fine then. warm water helps a lot so i do that in the mornings. Aspercreme (odor free) is good to use. the rubbing in helps too. good luck.

I had a flair up with an old knee injury and the doctor said it will become arthritic as I age. He recommended several things including walking 15-30 min a day, lose just 10% of body weight, simple stretching of the muscles around the pain and heating pads to keep pain down for now. I got a sample of Biofreeze (at chiropractic booth at health fair) and that really helps. It is also sold online but not sure where the best prices are found. Give your doctor office a call to make sure you can use the creams. If you can, ask them for their recommendation.

I take Hyaluronic acid which is in the vitamin dept. of our local Walmart. It comes in an injectable form for your doctor to inject into joint areas, such as knees, but this other form is a capsule you take orally. I've talked to people who have used both forms, and they told me that the oral capsule works much better. It costs about $9.50 for 60 capsules, and I take 4 a day. It really helps a lot.

I take Tramadol two or three times a day. I was on Mobic for a while until a developed several small clots in my right lung.
Not from the Mobic, but from a long flight.
Mobic messes with Coumadin, the same way Ibuprofen does at thinning the blood too much.

Call around to some of the chiropractics; that is the first place I saw Biofreeze. Walmarts also has a spray made by BioFreeze; not sure the name but it says made by on the front of can.

Tramadol is also in the Ultram family so if you have a sensitivity to siezures stay away from it; it has been known to cause them. I know from first hand experience. I now research all meds given so that I know what it messes with.

I don`t know if I should tell you this, but some time back I sent this board this recipe, there were over a thousand hits on it and I must say 95% were good.
I took it for years, and now only when I have a flare up. You must stick with it for 3 months. BUT it works. Take 1#of WHITE raisins , put them in a quart jar and cover them with gin. Any brand will do. Put a cover on the jar and store in refrigerator. Every night before you retire, take 9 raisins. you may take a little Gin, but I don`t like the taste of it. This is an old Indian remedy and if you stick with it for 3 months your pain will be gone. Then if you want, you can keep taking it. I ran out of raisins and found that I could go a week or so with out it. Now I only start it when the pain comes back. Also if you can find the replies I got the first time I sent this in they are in the Archives of the Quilting Board.

P.S. on the Gin and raisins.....Only you know if you are alergic to this.

I have seen the BioFreeze at my pharmacy.

Hi; I take garlic capsules and turmeric for arthritic pain. You can order it from Purtian.com or get it in Walmart. I take 1 garlic and 1 tumeric twice a day. It helps as long as I continue taking it. There are not side effects.
tomodachi1

Don't buy the generic wannabe BioFreeze, it doesn't work.

Classic stretching works for me and is cheap! not a miracle cure but i found that if I do stretching exercises in the morning the day goes much better. I saw show tv show on PBS and recorded several. The lady was a former ballerina. it really has help with my back.

Does it have to be gin? Not any other liquor? You say this is an old Indian recipe. American Indian? Before Europeans came American Indians used alcohol strickly for ritual uses and nothing in history records their making grain mashes. Gin is a grain mash alcohol flavored with juniper berries. It is a European drink.

My DGM, the quilter, was half Creek Indian and swore by the healing power of raisins-just plain. As a child, I had all sorts of things from scrapes to boils on the knees and elbows. My DGM would stock up on the raisins and miraculously the ailment disappeared. Now my DGF was English and he believed that when you got a cold, you needed a nip or capful in your hot coffee... if you get my drift. My mother was always telling them not to be treating me with those "medicines" as she believed in the training she got as a nurse. I still advise my kids to eat raisins, even though they are adults, when they get sick. It may not help with your arthritis, but it will add fiber into your diet.

I would look at your diet. Try to not eat the nightshade foods(tomatoes, potatoes, red and green peppers, eggplants, tobacco-yes you got to give up chewing that stuff LOL. I used to have arthritis so bad and celebrex was hard on my kidneys. You can try to avoid the food for 2 weeks and see if the pain is getting less and less. There will be some stiffness but better. Google the word nightshades, a lot of studies have been done.

I learned of this here, on The Quilting Board, and have been using it for over a year. Two Old Goats is an all herbal lotion, made in a goats' milk base. It was developed by a fiber artist with arthritis in her hands. It is safe to use when handling fabric or thread because it does not rub off on it. I recommend it to anyone who has a pain problem, and many are really helped by it. You can find it online, there are some local distributors, or you can order it. there is now a distributing company who does not charge shipping. that's a real bargain. Price is reasonable.

I take ibprofein.

Celebrex, massage. I was recently told I have "moderate" arthritis. If this is only moderate and I can't stand for more than 2 minutes, I have to feel really sorry for those who have severe arthritis.

I have had two knee replacements because of arthritis. For a while I took Tramadol, but then suddenly started getting jittery like a caffeine high, so quit that. I just used arthritis strength Tylenol. I can't take anti-inflammatory meds so I was limited. I honestly think it works well. I took it 2-3 times a day. I don't do well with narcotics and four days after my knee replacements I stopped the narcotics and took arthritis strength Tylenol. I was very strict about taking it every 8 hours. I also found alternating heat and ice helped a lot, plus stretching.

I think we have to learn to manage arthritis, not let it manage us. That means being very religious about taking medications, doing exercises...yes, exercise does help arthritis, using ice, heat, massage, and learning what activities aggravate it, then avoid them.

Tramadol, Tramadol, Tramadol......take 1 Gabapentin(2 last dose before bed), 2 tramadol, and 2 tylenol 4 times a day...only thing that keeps me going. Have osteoarthritis, cervical spondylosis, back injury from falling down stairs, fibromyalgia. Rheumatologist prescribed more than ten years ago and have not had to increase the dosage...it doesn't always keep everything at bay but goes a long way. Waiting now for steroid/lidocaine injection in shoulder that will last for 2-4 years. Hope you will try it and it works for you....It's hard to have a life at all when you have to spend all your time making it from minute to minute to survive the pain. Best to you....

You do have to work your way into the higher doses of tramadol...the degree of pain also alters the effects. The pain medication works in accordance with the pain level....any left over does make you sleepy, dizzy etc. My pain level eats it up and there is none left over...tramadol is also non narcotic....the only addicition I have noticed is I'm addicted to no pain.

I recently came across some information on Honey and Cinnamon as homepathic remedy for a lot of things....one of which is arthritis. I've only been using it for a couple days so don't know for sure if it works or not - but here it is:

"ARTHRITIS: Arthritis patients may take daily, morning and night, one cup of hot water with two spoons of honey and one small teaspoon of cinnamon powder. If taken regularly even chronic arthritis can be cured.

In a recent research conducted at the Copenhagen University, it was found that when the doctors treated their patients with a mixture of one tablespoon Honey and half teaspoon Cinnamon powder before breakfast, they found that within a week out of the 200 people so treated practically 73 patients were totally relieved of pain and within a month, mostly all the patients who could not walk or move around because of arthritis started walking without pain."

It goes on to say to use honey that has not been boiled...so wild non-pasturized and caylon cinnamon. Something about the boiling kills the healing properties of the honey. I'm still researching it.

Good luck.

I agree with the poster who wrote to avoid the nightshade vegetables. I have had rheumatoid arthritis for 15 years, fibromyalgia for longer than that and have been on tons of medicines that have caused worse side effects than the RA and fibro themselves. (Methotrexate, Enbrel, Arava.....)

Two years ago I gave up grains and sugar, along with the nightshades veggies. I saw incredible improvement and lost 40 lbs......but was still not 100% healed which was my goal. I added dairy free and that was what helped me over that last hump.

I don't take any meds any more. At all. If I work too hard in the yard I might have to take some naproxen or soak in an epsom salt bath. I supplement with magnesium, vit D, co-Q, zinc and selenium and get lots of sleep. I try to keep my stressors to a minimum.

I don't eat anything processed any more. I don't necessarily eat organic since it is cost prohibitive, but I try to eat my food as close to the way God made it as possible. lol

Some famous ancient person (Aristotle? Socrates?) said that "All disease begins in the gut" and I believe it.

Everyone's body is different and we all have to find what works for us. Good Luck and God Bless you on your healing journey!

Yes keep trying things everyone's body is different. I take Zyflamend PM. It does help me sleep through the night and without ouchies. I have bad reactions to every single medicine I have ever taken. The only thing I am on now is a BP with a diuretic, low dosage. I tried everything else first and waited too long to go on meds and damaged my eye, I think it was so high because I was under a Lot of stress at the time. But its the only thing I take. I have to be dragged kicking and screaming to a doctor . I tend to use them for diagnoses then come home and do research.

Doesn't work for me.

I have used BioFreeze, didn't help that much. I did the raisin/gin thing, the vinegar thing and nothing worked. I now use a product that is called "Two old Goat's". I get it at my local hardware store and it can be purchases on line. I have had a lot of relief from it. I also set in a whirlpool tub of warm water that has also helped. I have found if I keep real warm that also can help sometimes. Two of my friends started using the Two Old Goats lotion and they both thought it help a lot. It's a natural produce made from herbs, etc.

Essential Oils is a Natural Pain management solution for pain from arthritis, back pain, headaches etc. You can use Essentials Oils as often as you need to without any side effects that the medicine can cause.

Recommendations for Rheumatoid Arthritis is as follows:
Singles Essential Oils: Nutmeg, clove, mountain savory, rosemary, melaleuca(M. alternifolia), helichrysum, Idaho balsam fir, pine, eucalypus(E. globulus), copaiba, myrrh, frankincense, wintergreen, palo santo, valerian.

Blended Essential Oils: PanAway, Relieve It, Aroma Siez, Deep Relief Roll-On.

All the above Oils can be found at YoungLiving.com and you can find more information there also.

I personally use the PanAway, Relieve It and Peppermint Oil every day and some days 3 to 6 times per day depending on how much pain I have.

The Oils you get at the Health Food stores are not the same grade of Oils as what Young Living has.

Hope this helps some of you that are in a Lot of pain....just a suggestion is all.

I take mobic every day. If I am having a bad day and have pain I take Tramadol and when that doesn't work I have hydrocodon which I don't take unless nother else releives the pain. I hade the best luck with celebrex but doc took me off that a few years ago.

Diclofen -- a generic of Voltaren. Been on it for over 15 yrs and no problems......DO drink lots of water to flush ANY prescrip out of your system.....thru the kidneys

I take Gabapentin. It is really an Epilepsy Drug, but is prescribed for Pain. It really helps me. I take it hopefully not more than 3 times a day, but the prescription reads so that I can take it 4 times a day on bad days.
I was also taking Tylenol Arthritis, but I had a major switch in my pain for the better, so tried just plain Generic Tylenol Arthritis. The latter helped a lot when I was taking it. Now, I don't need it so just take the Gen.Tylenol Ex-Strength.
I learned from my Primary Care Physician recently that Arthritis moves in our bodies. Mine moved from the rt. side hip, spine and disc area to the left side. It isn't so bad now as I say; Prayers Answered! The Osteo isn't nearly as bad as Rheumatoid, so it is important to know which you have. I have the Oseto; my Mom had Rheumatoid and it is terrible.
Good luck and keep us posted on how you are doing!
Prayers,
Mariah.

I take Tramadol (aka Ultram). It has just become a "restricted substance" in NYS, so now prescriptions have to be paper copies and for no more than 5 months. Someone must have snorted it!!

I can't take nsaids for pain because of severe high blood pressure, but the Tramadol does a pretty good job. I started eating walnuts for Omega 3 and the pain seems better.....not sure if it due to the walnuts or not.

Dropping excess weight helps a lot with arthritis pain.....or not putting it on in the first place.

Have had a kidney removed due to malignant cancer over 5 yrs ago. Needless nto say, caution is the operative word for the remaining kidney. No nsaids, per MD, this includes naproxin, aspirin, aleve, ibuprofins and Doc says no aspirin. Any medicine, prescription or OTC or homoepathic are scrutinized before ingesting. Salt, only in moderation and Epsom salts is contra to my needs. Even the solutions at the pedicure saloon are heavy in salts. So far, my kidney function is good each time I am tested. I have a sister with polycystic disease and she is losing her kidney function necessitating dialysis. The disease is inherited and does not skip a generation. All my siblings have been tested. Em is the only one so far with this. Doctor is very careful when prescribing pain relieving meds and their side effects.
Tylenol is acceptable in the recommended dosages. Arhtritis in lower back and joints is a woeful experience and makes me feel my 78 yrs. Always ask your doctor about your meds and what to expect before taking them

Sorry I personally have nothing but was talking to one of my spinning (on a bike) friends and she told me she buys empty capsules at the drugstore and fills them with turmeric and takes one a day and her arthritus does not flare up.
Hope this will help you To me worthwhile to try out.

Dr. has me on methotrexate 2.5mg and I was on predsinone 5mg a day but I quit taking that now and take 8 methotrexate 1 time a week and shoulders and arms and hands feel fine. Sometimes my neck bothers me and I take a tylonel PM at bedtime and it is better in AM and for a week or two. I think is it sitting in this chair on computer too much sometimes.