Stiffness :(

skinnylizzie

Hi everyone!

Hope this finds you as well as can be

I just have a question regarding stiffness...it seems to be getting worse and is affecting pretty much everything at the moment, holding a pen, pouring the kettle, even gripping the steering wheel! I wake up like it, really bad, have a hot shower which eases it a bit, but it continues throughout the day in different degrees, mostly fingers and knuckles and toes. Is there anything that anyone can recommend? (apart from heat, cos that's what I'm doing at the moment!) I have heard that Parafin wax can help, has anyone had any experiences with this?

I had an MRI scan of my hands on weds and am awaiting the results :S
I have nodules on my knuckle joints and the middle joint in my index finger on my Right hand is also enlarged and swollen and my joints HURT so much, does this sound like RA?


Thanks!

speedalong

Hi Skinnylizzy keep fidgeting and try not to be still for more than 20 mins at a time.

Dorcas and Marion swear by hot wax and both bought hot wax machines from a well known catalogue company shop. I remember them saying that it is gives great relief, though of course the effects wear off and then the process needs repeating.

Am sure other hand and toe folk will come along.

Speedy

donnas

I"m a hand and toe person but I only get really stiff during a bad flare, when I kind of get locked in one position. Heat is best but if you're really inflamed and red the heat makes the inflammation worse, so you're caught in a loop.

The wax thing is soothing but I haven't needed that for ages. Hope someone comes along to help and that you feel a bit looser soon.

Airwave!

Sounds OA like mine, the stiffness means I just have to move, I end up in all sorts of positions for relief, lying on the floor, you name it I'll do it, just as long as it's different.

The wax is just another way of applying heat, sounds nice.

valval

if swollen use ice as well to take swelling out wash dishes warmth helps move hands but do drop lots of dishes val

tjc123

I am exactly like you,I find I am worse on a morning.My hands are stiff ,sore & very swollen.I find running my hands under a cold tap helps.
As for the stiffness elsewhere that never seems to go away. :???: I have sero negetive RA.

keith1971

Over the last couple of months my right hand seems permanently stiff. I can still bend all my fingers & use it as normal but there's a definite stiffness there. Doesn't ease up really, is always there! Doesn't answer your question but hey, you're not alone.

x

Cez

I was exactly the same before i started treatment, the stiffness in the morning lasted well over an hour and as soon as i stopped or sat down, i'd be back to square one. Antiinflammatories, hot showers, Voltarol Gel and ice packs helped me. Nothing worked 100% but all helped a little.

Good luck x

skinnylizzie

Thanks for the replies!
I guess I will just have to keep doing what I'm doing. :???:
Had unbearable knee pain yesterday and thought at one point I'd have to go to A&E, but I took 3 codeines I know I shouldn't have :roll: and rubbed lots of Voltarol gel on it and had a wheat bag on it and rested up for an hour and it thankfully eased off! Fingers I have just been running under a hot tap and I hope I don't drop any dishes Val-that happened at work last year (when I was well enough to work for a small number of hours per week :x !); had a whole tray of plates and my hand gave way and dropped the lot. D'oh! Had a smashing time though hehe.

Not nice when you feel like a 90 year old in a 26 yr old body LOL!!
Thanks for the support though, it's so reassuring to know that you guys all go through the same and we can help eachother