New to arthritis

BerkshireBen

Hello to everyone! I'm new to the forum and also new to arthritis.

I was a self-employed builder and retired three years ago when I was 70. Up until that time I had had no problems with my knees, or any other joints. At seventy I was still climbing ladders and walking on roofs.

A couple of years ago I started getting pains in my knees, but thought it was lack of exercise. It has now got to the stage where it is painful to walk more than 20 or 30 yards. My GP has diagnosed arthritis and prescribed, naproxen.

Reading about arthritis has made me feel very anxious about my future. I feel I'm gradually losing my mobility and the thought of having a knee replacement frightens me even more.

I did not realize that arthritis can happen so quickly.

[Deleted User]

Hello BerkshireBen

Welcome to the forum from the moderation team. I am very sorry to hear that your GP has diagnosed you with arthritis, (presumably Osteoarthritis), in your knees and are struggling to walk very far without pain. Given that you were working in a physically demanding job so recently I can quite understand your feelings of anxiety.

I am attaching some links for you to read which I hope will allay some of your worries. This first one is by Arthritis Research UK and if you read through it you will see there are lots of treatments and self-help measures you can try between naproxen and surgery:

https://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/conditions/osteoarthritis-of-the-knee.aspx

This link is an Arthritis care one and is about living with Arthritis lots of good ideas to help us live with the condition including exercise:

https://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/living-with-arthritis

Joining this forum is one of the best things you could have done. Talking to others in similar situations is so helpful and the community here is very experienced and supportive. Please do join in wherever you like you will be warmly welcomed.

I look forward to seeing you posting.

Best wishes

Ellen

dreamdaisy

Hello, it's lovely to meet you but I am sorry you have had to find us. I am one of the lucky winners of the arthritis jackpot in that I have both an auto-immune kind and osteo, I began aged 37 and am now nearly 59 - I've earned my arthritis stripes. Around ten million people in the UK are affected by arthritis and the majority have OA so it's not an exclusive club that you have joined.

When troubles begin in a joint we naturally (and unconsciously) alter the way we move to reduce discomfort and thus throw other joints out of kilter. For me having arthritis is just more of the same but it must be a great shock for you and one I honestly cannot comprehend. You say that your GP has prescribed naproxen, this is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) and should help reduce any inflammation and thus, in theory, reduce pain. Has he also prescribed a stomach protector such as omeprazole? If you are going to be on this for a while then he should.

Arthritis does affect our lives, and the lives of those around us. Of my two I prefer the OA because it is more honest in how it presents: when it's a cold, damp day I know things are going to be rough and can tailor my activities accordingly. I know if I treat myself to a pickled onion or two I am going to feel it in my bones, the same with tomatoes and oranges. My OA doesn't flare, my pain levels increase in protest when I overdo things so I have learned to stop when I think I can do more. I have made many changes to how I do things to help me cope better, needs must. I keep my pain relief to a steady intake of the minumum dose of what my GP prescribes, I regard my pain dullers as an essential weapon in my arsenal: so many seem to regard taking them as a sign of weakness, I hold the opposite view.

I hope you find the forum to be of interest, we all get it because we've all got it. DD

GillyJay

BerkshireBen wrote:

Hello to everyone! I'm new to the forum and also new to arthritis.

I was a self-employed builder and retired three years ago when I was 70. Up until that time I had had no problems with my knees, or any other joints. At seventy I was still climbing ladders and walking on roofs.

A couple of years ago I started getting pains in my knees, but thought it was lack of exercise. It has now got to the stage where it is painful to walk more than 20 or 30 yards. My GP has diagnosed arthritis and prescribed, naproxen.

Reading about arthritis has made me feel very anxious about my future. I feel I'm gradually losing my mobility and the thought of having a knee replacement frightens me even more.

I did not realize that arthritis can happen so quickly.

BerkshireBen

moderator wrote:

Hello BerkshireBen

Welcome to the forum from the moderation team. I am very sorry to hear that your GP has diagnosed you with arthritis, (presumably Osteoarthritis), in your knees and are struggling to walk very far without pain. Given that you were working in a physically demanding job so recently I can quite understand your feelings of anxiety.

I am attaching some links for you to read which I hope will allay some of your worries. This first one is by Arthritis Research UK and if you read through it you will see there are lots of treatments and self-help measures you can try between naproxen and surgery:

https://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/conditions/osteoarthritis-of-the-knee.aspx

This link is an Arthritis care one and is about living with Arthritis lots of good ideas to help us live with the condition including exercise:

https://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/living-with-arthritis

Joining this forum is one of the best things you could have done. Talking to others in similar situations is so helpful and the community here is very experienced and supportive. Please do join in wherever you like you will be warmly welcomed.

I look forward to seeing you posting.

Best wishes

Ellen

[Deleted User]

Hi BerkshireBen,
I can see that having a little bit of difficulty in replying to posts and that you are using the reply with quote button. The best way to apply is to use the reply to post button which is on the left-hand side in red below the reply box. This way we will be able to see what you're trying to say. Lovely to have you here and I I am sure you will continue to get lots of support
Best Wishes
Sharon

dreamdaisy

Hello, how are things going? I hope all is as well as it can be. DD

daffy2

I can see that having a little bit of difficulty in replying to posts and that you are using the reply with quote button.

Mods, as this seems to be a common difficulty for newbies, may I suggest that your techie folks look at having the 2 reply options in one place(as happens on another forum I belong to), ideally side by side where the current 'reply with quote' is. Not only is the ordinary 'reply' button on the other side it's outside the box as well(so to speak!)

stickywicket

I see where you're coming from, daffy, and share your concerns but is this the solution? I've just gone through the motions of a 'reply with quote' and wouldn't personally have a problem. I wonder if newbies need reminding that they still have to click below the quote before typing. A bit of a puzzle.

daffy2

When I first started using a forum(not this one) some 5 or 6 years ago I assumed that my initial difficulties were the result of not being into social media and such like things.However since then I've realised, partly from using other forums, and also talking to people like my son, who are in the computer world, that not all of them are as intuitive as they might be, and also that a good few folk don't seem to find it as easy as I had assumed they would in today's permanently connected virtual world. I just think it's easier if the options for a particular action are together, to reduce the chance of missing something.
I find the AC forum excellent, but this is one aspect that is different from others I have used, and by the same token there does seem to be a higher incidence of possibly unintentional 'reply with quote posts' than on those others.
Anyway, just a thought. It's a very public way to make mistakes!