Life of arthritis patient is never easy if he or she does not take care about the precautions which he or she has to take. There are certain things which a arthritis patient has to avoid and which he or she has to opt. if you are a arthritis patient then you have to be known about the things and activities that are helpful for you and which are cautious for you. For the relief of arthritis pain you should add some activities and must avoid some activities in your life as follows:
Do’s and don’ts for exercise:
- Do:
You should opt for the right kinds of activities which include those activities that build the muscles around joints and do not damage the joints themselves. You can take the assistance of a physical or occupational therapist to develop an exercise program which is right for you. Focus should be on stretching, gradual progressive strength training and range-of-motion exercises. It may include low-impact aerobic exercises as walking; water exercise and cycling that will improve your mood and will also assist you to control your weight.
- Avoid:
You should avoid activities which involve repetitive and high impact motion as:
- Running
- High-impact aerobics
- Jumping
- Tennis
- Repeating the same movement
Do’s and don’ts for medicines:
Many medicines are available for relieving the arthritis pain. Some medicines are relatively safe; however no medicine is completely free of adverse effects. You must talk with your doctor to prepare the medication plan for your pain symptoms.
- Do:
- Over-the-counter pain medicines as acetaminophen, ibuprofen or naproxen sodium can help you to relieve occasional pain caused by activity of your joints and muscles that are not used to.
- Creams containing capsaicin can be applied over a painful joint to get relief from pain.
- Talk to your doctor in case over-the-counter medicines do not relieve your pain.
- Avoid:
- Overtreatment: Avoid the use of over-the-counter pain relievers regularly.
- Under treatment: Never ignore severe and prolonged pain of arthritis. You may have joint damage or inflammation that needs daily medication.
- Focusing on pain only: Depression occurs commonly in arthritis patients. Taking antidepressants and other treatments for depression will not only help depression but also arthritis pain.
Do’s and don’ts for lifestyle:
It is normal that an arthritis patient has a negative effect on mood due to pain. In case daily activities hurt you and you feel discouraged then they may escalate to produce fearful, hopeless thoughts. In such case:
- Do:
Do therapies that inhibit the negative effects on mind as:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy: Combination of behavior modification and talk therapy helps you to identify and break cycles of self-defeating actions and thoughts.
- Relaxation therapy: Relaxation activities as meditating, deep breathing, doing yoga, listening to music, writing in journal, being in nature, or doing whatever helps you to relax can improve your mood.
- Acupuncture: Acupuncture is found to be helpful in some patients. However it may take many weeks to see the sign of improvement.
- Heat and cold: Applying heating pads on the aching joints, taking hot showers or baths or dipping painful joints in warm paraffin wax may help to relieve pain temporarily. But be careful not to burn your skin. You should not use heating pads for more than 20 minutes at a time. Applying ice packs on the affected areas can relieve inflammation and pain.
- Massage: Massage can relieve stiffness and pain temporarily.
- Avoid:
- Smoking: More joint problems can be caused due to the toxins in smoke because they cause stress on connective tissue.
- Negative attitude: The escalation of negative thoughts can increase your pain and chances of disability. Therefore distract yourself with other activities that you enjoy like spending time with people who support you.
By following the above mentioned tips you will be able to live a relieved life devoid of much physical and mental stress. These tips will help you to choose suitable conditions for life.
