Aches and Pains

Started with major aches and pains during chemotherapy 6 years ago (aged 48) and although the intensity has reduced the aches and stiffness in the mornings has remained.

I feel like such an old codger when I get up - I stomp around for a bit when on my way to the bathroom as my feet dont seem to bend that well first thing.

Happily though things resolve themselves once I get going and I don't have any much trouble during the day unless I stay in one position for along time.

I leave work feeling fine then drive home only a 20min journey, but when I come to get out of car I seem to have ceased up.

I have had CYSTITIS this week.. woke me in the middle of the night and looked on Google who suggested drinking water with some BAKING SODA in it.. by morn problem had compeletely gone!!

Pain in hands and feet started around fiftyish, diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, joint hypermobility and arthritis......feel like crap i'm about 100 most of the time, but hey they say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger .....who are they ????? wish I felt strong enough to sort em out )

I had a fall 11 years ago on the stairs. Tore 3 ligaments in my right ankle. After 3 months and no sign of healing was diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome/Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy.
It's a condition of the nervous system and affects the muscles, nerves, skin and bone. Basically, it is unrelenting, burning, severe pain and swelling of the affected area, usually a limb. The skin goes shiny. Can feel very hot or freezing cold.
I have it now in my original foot injury plus my other foot, my chest and armpit after mastectomy 2 years ago, my neck and back after 2 whiplash accidents, my left knee after tearing a ligament last summer and now in both arms after knocking my elbow on a door handle in January this year!
Also, it has caused osteoporosis in my right ankle and in my spine. I have other problems with my health but don't want to bore everyone with the details. Raising awareness of this condition is very important.
Anybody wanting to now more about this horrible condition can type CRPS or RSD into any search engine such as google.
It was featured on the TV documentary,The Secret World of Pain a few months ago. I sympathise with anyone in pain. Must keep smiling!

Any tips on arthritis supplements. I take fish oil and ginger root but problem seems to be getting worse!

Soon after my father retired, his hands swelled up - arthriis was diagnosed as the cause. Nothing prescribed seemed to help - he couldn't grip anything and his fingers looked like a bunch of sausages. My mother brought a book by Margaret Hills which said some arthritis is aggrevated by citric acid so she banned everything with it in - and you'd be surprised how many foods contain it! Apple juice instead of orange, jam instead of marmalade etc. Every morning he drank a concotion of cider vinegar, hot water and a spoonful of honey. Within a month his hands were back to normal and he could go back to his hobby which was making tiny model houses and such for his 'N' gauge railway. If, after that, he ate anything with citric acid in, he said he could feel his fingers stiffening up. And rhubarb was another culprit - and he did so like rhubarb crumble! BTW his hands remained flexible for the rest of his life.
I hope this might help someone - I can't bear to think of the pain you're suffering

Thank you nanafrancis, you jolted my memory (that's another story). My dad always drinks apple cider vinegar with hot water and honey every morning. It's revolting but I'm going to give it a go! And I'll watch the citric acid as well.

SoNanny, we all need a memory jolt (or two) these days! . I do hope the info helps - let us know!

also have fibromyalgia - it's a bugger isn't it. I've always been a keen walker and some days can barely get around. My right foot is arthritic too - and buying shoes that are comfortable as well as pretty is a nightmare. As a nurse I did not wear silly shoes in my youth and as I said I'm a walker so wore hiking boots on hikes. According to my GP that having a job of being on my feet all the time, plus the hilking, has given me my troublesome feet. So I might as well worn all the high heels etc on offer when I was young.!!!

SoNanny, I couldn't manage the day without Turmeric Tablets. They are available from all good health food shops (!!!) and are a natural anti inflammatory supplement without any side effects. Apparently people who eat a lot of curry suffer less from arthritis too. I swear by them but they will take a couple of weeks to start working so don't give up

Very interested in the advice about supplements. My daughter has rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia. Coping with her family is very difficult on bad days - especially the lively toddler and the 10month-old baby. She has an appointment very soon with a nutritionist and, although she eats a very healthy diet, is very open to suggestion. Should she be given any helpful advice, I'll pass it on. Meantime I'll tell her about the citric acid, the cider vinegar and the turmeric.

I was born with a lateral curvature of the spine. Have had one hip replaced and the other needs sorting together with the knee. Have always been super-active and have loved challenging walks etc until about six months ago. Now, at nearly 70, my spine really is seizing up and I am stooping... feel as if I'm being pulled over to one side which is tiring. Otherwise, I'm in very good spirits and certainly have much to be thankful for

Since my last posting I have been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. Any other Gransnetters out there who can advise me please?

Hello everybody. I am new here. Just wondering if anyone has any advice for osteoarthritic knees ......I have quite a lot of pain, specially climbing stairs and walking up hills. My orthopaedic dr. says they are not bad enough to do knee replacements yet, and that I am too young (!!!) I am 58.

have you tried a TENS machine on your knees, stellasgranma? Talk to your GP about whether one would help.

I was offered a Tens machine when I had sciatica and it helped enormously...well worth a try.

What is a TENS machine ? Sorry to sound ignorant, I have never heard of one

see
http://www.tensmachines.co.uk/?gclid=CLGVna2HoqkCFQUKfAodtG_qug

Swear by a book called Dr Alis Nutrician Bible. He was on This Morning a few years ago and took a group of people with various problems, put them on one of his diets for a while and they came back feeling loads better. It's really more a case of what foods to avoid, rather than what to eat [as has been said in a lot of the previous posts. Mainly based on Ayurvedic medicine. Turneric is mentioned a lot.When you think that treatment of gout is avoidance of certain foods, it makes a lot of sense. A friend of mine swears by drinking pure Aloe Vera juice, but it is rather expensive [and she does sell it so she's a bit biased!].

I have polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR). Steroids are the usual treatment, but I have other complications so the consultant weaned me off them and the pain and disability returned with a vengeance. I'm hoping that this ailment has almost run its course now as it's now much better than it was, but on my worst days I needed help just to get out of a chair!

GA, I've just been diagnosed with PMR. It started before Easter, but I thought it was a virus and soldiered on until it hit me like a sledge-hammer last week - unable to turn over in bed and when I was foolish enough to think a hot bath would help, it took about 20 minutes to get out again. A visit to the doctor and a blood test gave a rapid diagnosis and I was on the steroids right away. It's true that they do give quick relief, but I am very worried about the probable weight gain which I would do anything to avoid. So far, I've had considerable relief from the pain and no longer take all morning to get going, but am still quite tired.
I've had a hip and half a shoulder replaced as well as surgery on my hand, so am no stranger to osteo-arthritis, but this seems to be the last straw, or at least I hope it is.

Re cystitis and taking bicarbonate of soda do not take this as a cure if you have high blood pressure , it is dangerous

I hope that my Gransnetting friends don't think that I'm a proper whinger. I have so many health problems and choose not to talk to anyone about them - because I'm afraid of being a bore. However, you all seem so considerate and kind and I would welcome any info on how one copes with a prolapsed bowel, please? There, Ive said it!