In the last couple years I have started to have pain in several of my joints leaving me
stressed and depressed. Having pain every day has really taken the fun out of
everything.
If any of you are dealing with this sort of thing I would be interested to know how you
deal with it. Also, if you have had joint replacement surgery I would like to hear your
stories.
Thanks for any advice you can give me.
This recent thread isn’t exactly about what you’re asking, but several people there made comments about how they handle chronic joint pain. You might pick up a tidbit or two.
I’m 60 and everything started hurting about a year ago. X-rays show my knee cartilage has shrunk significantly, but it’s still too early for replacement. Since then, I have bought Incrediwear knee sleeves for any vigorous leg activity like pickleball or hiking. I make a smoothie everyday for lunch that includes frozen berries, greens, and collagen. After exercise I get in the pool and move everything gauging my mobility in near zero gravity and then swim laps for 30 minutes. Mostly, I try to avoid sitting for more than an hour. Driving long distances necessitates several stops to get out and move. And, I take Aleve when all else fails.
I’ve taken meloxicam (generic Mobic) for something like 20 years, under my doctor’s care and monitoring. He preferred a controlled approach to the “my knee is really bad today, I should take some ibuprofen” for a few reasons, including the fact that he was providing a framework for consistent dosage.
Back then my chief complaints were knee and shoulder pain, from my volleyball and running days. Since then I’ve picked up back and elbow problems.
Every now and then, I’ll take a week or two off, just to see if the pains come back. They always have so far.
For my neck arthritis, the main thing that works is lying flat in bed (I bought a pair of glasses that let you see what’s in front of you even when lying down,) and using hot compresses.
I’m presently on schedule for a knee replacement in a couple of months. This has been building up for several years, starting with occasional pings from my knee. I could still do most activities like walking, etc., although stairs were starting to become problematic. After we moved to MSP, things got rapidly worse. At this point (on a good day) I can make it around a city block, but that’s about it.
There are all manner of things one can do, from aspirin to ace bandages to leg braces and steroid injections, etc. Exercise is the best thing. The muscles supporting the joints start degrading from disuse, which means the pain just gets worse. I had the injections in both knees. It provided excellent relief to the least painful knee and minor relief to the other one.
In the course of searching for relief I came across turmeric capsules as a natural option. Now, I don’t take vitamins, and I consider most of that stuff to be woo foisted on the unsuspecting public. But there is a body of evidence that turmeric may actually provide some relief to painful joints. The upside to it is that it can’t hurt you, regardless of how much you take (I’m taking 3000 mg/day). The downside is that it isn’t readily absorbed by the body. The capsules I take, which are highly rated, include natural ingredients that assist absorption. I think they have helped, for whatever that may mean. But I also try to do mild exercise three times a week. Good luck.
My husband’s has started adding turmeric to his diet. For instance, he makes turmeric milk at bedtime, where he used to drink cocoa. I wonder if that’s why.
My wife’s niece has had ankle surgery and has had some serious pain in her foot since then. She’s an ER nurse, and I expected her to pooh-pooh the turmeric idea, but instead she decided to give it a try. She has had a huge reduction in her foot pain. Now, who knows if that’s just bias confirmation, but whatever works and doesn’t do harm, right?
I’d love to know how much turmeric she used for such a good result
My right hip started hurting about 3 years ago. The onset was fast. Seemed odd, thought I had slept on it weird. I waited a couple of weeks and then went to see the pros. And we literally have pro’s where I live in the mountains for orthopedics because of all the skiing injuries. Top notch.
So… Shit, needed a hip replacement. Was crazy because it was out patient. Ok… Wife was there to take me home. Middle of a freaking snowstorm.
We are lucky as we have a situation that I could set up a bed in a room near a bathroom. Only two stairs to deal with. Slept in there for three weeks. And yes, the hip was painful.
I actually took a shower 2 days after the surgery. But when we remodeled, we set it up with all the ADA handicap rails, just in case (not getting any younger).
I was getting around pretty good in a week.
BUT I’ve a good friend that has had both of hers replaced, and she was going up and down stairs in a few days. 
Now, I’m right as rain. No pain, just regular life. Airport security doesn’t give a flip, and anyway, it’s Titanium so wouldn’t show up.
The suggested dosage on what I take is 4500 mg/day. But like most things, different people get differing results.
I have pain in both shoulders, both knees, my left hip and right ankle. I take a Kirkland joint health supplement every day, it seems to help with my knees and ankle. I have had cortisone shots in both shoulders, my right shoulder is due for another. I’m planning on rotator cuff surgery on my left shoulder this fall. Besides the joint supplement, I take whatever pain med is available if the pain goes beyond aggravating. I soon will be filling the hot tub for the summer, 30 minutes a day makes things feel good for most of the day.
It’s become complicated for me. Every joint in my body is arthritic but that’s not as bad the secondary problem of nerve inflammation. What has helped me greatly is pregabalin, aka Lyrica. Marketed for diabetics nerve pain it’s turning out to be effective for all sorts of nerve pain and other conditions like IBS. I have to avoid overuse of my joints that will lead to pain. Unfortunately it is usually pain that let’s me know I’ve overdone it. Much of the problem stems from a stenosis that can be alleviated with surgery but I’m in no hurry for an operation.
Have you tried something along the lines of Icy Hot (or your drugstore chain’s equivalent - e.g. CVS’s “Cold & Hot”)? That’s the one thing that has seemed to work for my lower back whenever I pop something (usually after having to reach for something near the ground) - Advil, Tylenol, Aleve didn’t work nearly as well.
Picked up the habit from my grandparents years ago, they used Bigeloil, a horse linament that you can find at most feed stores. Works well for me, but you’ll only forget to wash your hands avter applying it once - there are places that stuff is not meant to be applied!
I got experienced knowledge from here.
I had hip replacements R and L at age 50 and 52. Get good imaging. X rays not enough. MRI was better. When cartilage wears out, actual bone loss in joints occurs. And bone spurs. And muscle atrophy. After imaging, figure out if replacements are worth it. For me, no question.
I have seen a couple older women who did not replace timely, and they became overweight, had a lot of bone spurs, later spinal stenosis, and that in turn led to other types of deterioration. Can’t operate on someone who’s too heavy. But they can’t exercise so can’t lose weight. Pain led to painkillers like Tramadol. That in turn led to lethargy, indifference, more medication.
I’m 61 and I restarted doing water aerobics about 3 months ago after not seriously exercising for 3 years due to Covid. Its remarkable how much movement and flexibility I was able to regain. That and my blood sugar has significantly improved and my mood has improved. Still, it takes some effort to get up and go do it, but like I told my doctor. Its voluntary physical therapy before I have an incident and need real physical therapy (or just give up).
Anyway, I find that water workouts are easier on the joints than just about anything and do work if you keep moving the whole time you are in the water.
I have polymyalgia rheumatica, which causes severe pain in the hips, knees, and shoulders. I’ve been in remission for the past year or so.
For my every day aches and pains, I’ve found that pretreating with ibuprofen helps. If I’m going to be doing things that will leave me in pain (running the chainsaw all day, for example) I take ibuprofen before starting.
Good point.
My dermatologist has a very thorough approach to patient instructions for the various procedures he does, most of which involve cutting and sewing your (my actually) sorry hide.
All of his canned printed handouts include the warning “It is better / easier to prevent pain than it is to stop pain. Take the meds before you start to hurt, not after.”