subject: Dealing With Arthritis Pain [print this page] There are over 100 different types of arthritis that we know of at the moment. Each has its own symptoms, causes and methods of treatments. Although each type of arthritis is different, there is one symptom that is present in all types of arthritis: pain. This is why learning the best ways to deal with the pain is a must read for any arthritis sufferer.
As soon as you are diagnosed with arthritis, it is important that you, as a patient, are well informed of all your treatment method options. This is because each treatment for arthritis pain is different for each type. It is advisable for the patient to start with mild pain treatments first before increasing the dosage.
The mild pain treatment and medications are the over the counter medicines like Tylenol and Aspirin, used by many individuals on a regular basis. Taking these types of medications usually is enough to treat the symptoms of some patients, but since most people use these medicines in a regular basis these are not enough to treat the symptoms exhibited by their arthritis.
More than 40 million Americans alone suffer from the pain of various types of arthritis, and not all of them are older adults. Children and teenagers are also afflicted with arthritis pain, and it hits both genders equally. Pain can be mild, or throbbing in its intensity.
The sensation of pain may be felt differently from the fingers than it is felt in the knee, or another place in your body where body tissues connect to provide movable parts. Some people suffer from arthritis pain in the extremities, though many others also suffer arthritic pain in the spine as well as the hips.
Another form is gouty arthritis which is brought about by the depositions of uric acid crystals in the joint resulting further to inflammation. Pseudogout is a very rare type of gout which is brought about by the formation of rhomboid crystals of calcium pyrophosphate.
All forms of arthritis are accompanied by pain. Pain occurring in the joints is called arthralagia.
Arthritis pain patterns may vary depending on what type of arthritis is present and the location in the body where the illness is being experienced. For instance, arthritis pain brought about by rheumatoid arthritis is generally worse during the mornings and most frequently accompanied with stiffness.
During its early stages, the patients affected by the ailment will often show no symptoms after a morning shower. Both in children and in aged patients, arthritis pain may not be the presenting feature. For the aged patients, they only tend to move less, while infant patients refuse to use the affected limbs.
Pain is the most basic symptom associated with arthritis. Apply warm compress to the area of pain with the use of a heating pad, warm bath water or hot towel. Ice compress is also effective for swollen and inflamed joints.
You can also alternately switch warm and cold compress to minimize pain and reduce inflammation. Massage greatly reduces pain as it relieves nerve endings and tensed surrounding muscle tissues. St. John's Wort oil or eucalyptus oil are effective in reducing inflammation so use this as necessary for added comfort.
Arthritis can be handled in this same way. The better you get at ignoring the pain, the happier your life will be.
Another way to handle arthritis is by heating the joints that are hurting. Warmth can be very soothing. If this is combined with aromatherapy, then the soothing power can increase. Now, don't get too addicted to this combination. You could spend your whole day soothing pain this way.
