Dealing with rheumatoid arthritis pain can be the hardest part of living with a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis. While the medications you are giving by your doctor help, they do not completely relieve the pain symptoms you experience. It has an effect on your whole life, so being able to deal with RA pain is an important part of the treatment regimen.
The first step in dealing with RA pain is understanding the sources of your pain. There are, typically, three different types of pain that go along with chronic RA. The first of these types of pain is often called “flair up pain.” It is caused by the inflammation of the joints that goes along with times when your RA is flaring and active.
The second type of rheumatoid pain is often just called joint pain. It is caused by damage to the joints, which is a result of the inflammation. This is the day to day pain that is present, even when your RA is not active.
Finally, the last rheumatoid aspect of the pain equation might be called “emotional pain.” It involves the emotions, your psychological well being, and your stress level. The tiredness that you will feel plays a factor also. This aspect of RA just makes “everything hurt worse.”
Dealing with the rheumatoid arthritis pain requires that you have a strategy for addressing all three types of Rheumatoid pain. You will want to educate yourself on three types of pain, so you can have a pain management strategy that can help you deal with all types of rheumatoid arthritis pain.
One of the best resources available is a book by Hillary Tolmen who now lives pain free after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis just a few years ago. To learn how Hillary achieved this, you can click on this link: Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain Free
The first part of your plan might include therapy for mind and soul. You might consider learning cognitive behavioral therapy and relaxation techniques. As you will learn, focusing on pain will make it worse. In addition, just “giving in” and constantly laying down will not help the pain either. Your doctor will tell you physical therapy is one of the best treatments for RA pain, but all that physical therapy is, in truth, is a systematic way to get activity in your life, to help you maintain joint movement and range of motion. Much of the time, just making the decision to get active in times of pain will decrease the pain level. If nothing else, it will help you feel as though you have some control over your life.
Medication will be part of the treatment plan. The best thing to do is make sure you stay on schedule with your medication. You can’t just “make up” a dose. Stay educated about the medications you are given, and ask questions of your doctor as to why you are taking them (Hillary does covers a lot of this ground at Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain Free). Many of the drugs used to treat RA, like NSAID’s, can have lots of side effects. You need to make good decisions for yourself on the risks you will take. If you do decide to use medications, then you will need to listen to the advice of your doctor.
One of the best overall methods for dealing with the rheumatoid factor for pain is through three simple ideas: heat, cold, and massage. Alternating applications of heat and cold will make your joints feel better. In addition, message therapy can be a life saver. It will really help you deal with pain, while also improving your state of mind. It is also helpful with range of motion for joints. In a similar note, saunas and hot tubs should become part of your treatment plan also.
Finally, you will want to develop a healthy diet, to help your overall body health. As your body fights with RA, it will need all the vitamins and nutrients that come with a balanced diet (this was an important part of Hillary’s success in how she became Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain Free). The best RA diets are centered on basic good nutrition. You will also want to educate yourself on taking vitamins and minerals. You may also want to consider adding fish oil to your diet. The fish oil has been known to help with overall pain and joint movement, as well as being good for helping to fight cholesterol and heart trouble.
Dealing with rheumatoid arthritis pain will require you to develop a treatment plan for the body, mind, and soul. It should be based on common sense strategies for pain relief, diet, and exercise. It should also have a mental and emotional component that helps you to cope with the pain, as gives you a way to still feel in charge of your life.