arthritis relief

[helenlee]

Anyone care to share what they use to relieve their arthritis?
I'm back on the glucosamine & also organic apple cider vinegar after my hands recently became much more painful. I don't know if it was the cold weather or if it was the workout I gave the chocolate recently. I strongly suspect sugar overload makes mine worse, but haven't yet been motivated to eliminate it ... I have a very sweet tooth & am a very good cook ... sigh.

[permup]

My mother-in-law swears by penny wort. She has it growing in tubs outside her unit. I think she eats 2-3 leaves a day. You look too young to be suffering from arthritis... are you sure it's not something else? Some sort of carpel tunnel maybe? Hmm.

[eco4560]

If I remember smacking the joint with stinging nettles was something that was recommended by Isabell Shippard. You might find something here - http://www.herbsarespecial.com.au/

Did it get better when you had your nettle run in?

[ecodharmamark]

G'day Helen (welcome back)

Some believe that Rosehip (Rosa sp.) is the 'cure'. My dear old mum swears by it, but I have no hard evidence to support its effectiveness. Having said that, anecdotally it seems to do the trick in a number of cases that I am aware of. Could be worth a try?

A reasonably well referenced article appears here:

The Wild Rose is Hip for Osteoarthritis

Cheerio, Markos.

[helenlee]

You look too young to be suffering from arthritis... are you sure it's not something else?

I'll be 47 very soon. People get it by this age don't they?
My Mum/Sister/Grandmother all have it in their hands ... I think it runs in the family. So far it's mainly the middle joints in all my fingers ... they've been swollen up for years ... & now I have it in my right hand at the site of a break that happened 5 years ago. Having said that - I've never been to a doctor about it ... I'm allergic to doctors. I think just general wear & tear has contributed a fair bit ... none of the women in our family have been "kept"

Did it get better when you had your nettle run in?

I get stung almost every day ... just some days are worse than others. I've been hoping arthritis relief would be a serendipitous benefit ... but so far no joy, just pain.

I've never tried PennyWort ... I wish I'd read that yesterday ... I was at a nursery that sold it.

Hi Markos. Thank you for the welcome I'll try Rosehip ... I use to be wild about Rosella Rosehip Syrup when I was a baby apparently .... use to drink it from a baby bottle - no wonder I have such a sweet tooth now if they started me on it when I was tiny!

I'm sure the vinegar does work ... I'm just sooky about taking it. It's awful!

[Michaelangelica]

Anyone care to share what they use to relieve their arthritis?
I'm back on the glucosamine & also organic apple cider vinegar after my hands recently became much more painful. I don't know if it was the cold weather or if it was the workout I gave the chocolate recently. I strongly suspect sugar overload makes mine worse, but haven't yet been motivated to eliminate it ... I have a very sweet tooth & am a very good cook ... sigh.

Glad to see you back Helen
There are any number of herbal remedies for arthritis, the ones mentioned are all good.
One problem is the word 'arthritis" which is a bit like saying you have a 'cold," the word covers a multitude of ills.
Have you had a proper diagnosis?

Herbs used either singularly or preferably in combination (where there is some research to support their use) include:-
Devils Claw
Evening primrose seed/oil
Celery seed
Feverfew
Goldenrod
Glucosamine
Stinging nettle
Tumeric
Vitamin E
Withania
Rosemary EO
Juniper (Gin!)
Myrrh
Vit B3, E
Shark cartilage
chrondroitin
creatine
S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAMe)
Ginger
Willow bark (very differnt to asprin)
Meadowsweet
Most take about 8-12 weeks to kick in
Watch solanacae plant family; they can cause arthritis in sensitive people or were they become too large a part of the diet.
Avoid heavy does of corticosteroids they will break your bones, with about 12 months use.
I will post more later on this a bit busy now

[helenlee]

Have you had a proper diagnosis?

See above ^ ... I'm allergic to doctors However I'm starting to realize that this is potentially serious, especially if I'm going to keep living on my own, so I think maybe I need to work up the courage to see a quack.

[Burra Maluca]

My other half's athritis, which can get crippling if not attended to, has been completely sorted out by glucosamine and he's been pain free for nearly fifteen years now. But he has to keep the glucosamine up. If he stops taking it, after three months the pain starts to creep back, then when he starts taking it again it takes weeks for the glucosamine to build up enough in his joints again before the pain goes away. So if the glucosamine helps you, you need to keep taking it. The 'maintenance' dose seems to be a lot less than the 'make the pain stop' dose though.

When I was struck with arthritis a few years ago, it turned out to be (yet another) hormone related problem and was the trigger for me to start experimenting with natural progesterone cream, which took all the athritis away instantly, never to return, and did a lot to lessen the endometriosis pain too. So, er, strugging to put this tactfully, it might be your age, hormones, pre-menopause, that kind of thing.

Somewhere I have a book called Arthritis Be Gone which had loads of suggestions for how to figure out what was triggering your arthitis. It was really good, but I only ever tested the hormone suggestion so I don't know how good the rest of the ideas were.

[helenlee]

So, er, strugging to put this tactfully, it might be your age, hormones, pre-menopause, that kind of thing.

Hi Burra Maluca ... You don't have to put it tactfully ... there's nothing to be tactful about. As far as I know there's nothing embarrassing about being 46 And as my Mother says "it's better than the alternative." Quite.
What sort of progesterone cream do you use? I tried it a few years ago, but wasn't convinced it made enough difference to justify the price ... but I've become a lot more worn out since then so it might be worth another shot I was using a "Neways" product ... I think it was made from yam?
I use glucosamine & it works well. I stopped a while ago when I was broke but have made it a priority again & am feeling the benefits.

[helenlee]

Hi Michaelangelica ... Thank you for the kind words - it's good to be back!
Thanks for the list ... there are a few things on it I take & I'm willing to try a few more. I don't take corticosteroids.