Severe pain

Carina
Carina Member Posts: 2
in Living with arthritis

I have arthritis and pain in lots of places. Today my right index finger is agonising. Painful to move and swollen. I'm unsure of what to do to help . I've taken cocodamol but that isn't helping. Please can someone advise. I haven't doneanything to cause it. Many thanks.

Comments

  • jeddison1985
    jeddison1985 Member Posts: 211

    Hi @Carina firstly let me welcome you to the forum I hope you find the information and support you are after from our wonderful community.

    I can see from your post that you have arthritis and are currently in a lot of pain particularly in your fingers. I am assuming from the description it is Osteoarthritis but please correct me if that is wrong.

    The site is full of information and I wanted to signpost you to some information that could help, linked to as a starter general information on managing pain in your fingers and Osteoarthritis in hands.

    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/hand-and-wrist-pain/
    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/osteoarthritis-of-the-hand-and-wrist/

    Please feel free to search the forum for others with similar experiences and I am sure that some of our community will be able to help offer some useful suggestions.

    Take care and I hope you get some relief and answers soon.

    Thanks

    Joe

  • frogmorton
    frogmorton Member Posts: 30,026

    I hope your fingers is way better today@Carina

    You don't say which kind of arthritis you have so it's difficult to completely advise. I would try heat - a warm wheatbag and maybe cold ice wrapped in a teatowel? Have you got an anti-inflammatory prescribed you can try?

    Not much help I know.

  • Hairobsessed123
    Hairobsessed123 Member Posts: 165

    I would take naproxen that’s what the rhumatology nurse tells me take pain killers straight away cus it works best this way instead of leaving it ! I had a sore finger so took naproxen it was so painful I thought it would be bent in the morning when I woke up but it was ok pain has gone xx

  • Cazbaz
    Cazbaz Member Posts: 71

    @Hairobsessed123 I’m sorry to hear you are in so much pain, before I had my THR earlier this year I was in severe pain, not able to sleep etc. and to be honest Naproxen was the only thing that helped a little, hope the pain gets a little better for you soon

  • Cazbaz
    Cazbaz Member Posts: 71

    Sorry the above should be @catrina , blame it on my age

  • Hairobsessed123
    Hairobsessed123 Member Posts: 165

    @Cazbaz i did think that !!

    it’s been a warm muggy day xx

  • Lilymary
    Lilymary Member Posts: 1,750

    Hi @Carina , I hope your pain has settled down by now. Naproxen is a prescription only anti-inflammatory, and like the others, I was prescribed this together with cocodamol for my OA. I would avoid resorting to over the counter anti-inflammatories without speaking to your doctor first - there may be very valid reasons why these haven’t been prescribed for you.

    My grandmother had terrible RA on her hands (and elsewhere) and found heat helpful for relieving this. In those days it included dipping her hands in a large pot of melted medical grade wax (don’t try this at home with a DIY version - I cannot emphasise this enough, the wax we used melted at relatively low temperatures and stayed liquid for a long time) and then peeling it off again when it hardened. I used to do it with her when I was a nipper, and it was a lovely gentle deep heat treatment, but I doubt they still offer this now. Maybe try a bowl of warm water? Or heat pads, as others have suggested.

  • crinkly
    crinkly Member Posts: 158

    Treatment with a wax bath is still advocated and the 'bath' and wax are available online as well as being used by some physiotherapy clinics.

    From early in my journey with OA I used this therapy, purchased my own wax bath and still find it soothing, especially after a busy day.

    If you find soaking in warm water is helpful and get a chance to try wax before buying do give it a go. It could be something that eases your discomfort.

  • Lilymary
    Lilymary Member Posts: 1,750

    @crinkly Interesting to know it’s still in use about 50 years on.

  • Mike1
    Mike1 Member Posts: 1,992

    I would love a bath! The Council put in a wet room when I could not manage having a bath on my own and took the bath out, had I known how I would miss a bath I would have preferred them to put in a hoist or similar. I have even thought of booking into a hotel for a night so I could have a bath but I would have to hire a helper to get me in and out!!

  • Lilymary
    Lilymary Member Posts: 1,750

    @Mike1 , you may find a bath full of hot wax is a bit niche! 😅

  • DaveVW
    DaveVW Member Posts: 15

    It's worth noting that while Naproxen is a prescription medication in the UK, in the US you can buy it over the counter just as you would Aspirin. Different countries have different rules, and since it's not an addicting medication, I guess they view it differently.

    For me it's a combination of two Zapain's (total of 60mg Codeine Phosphate and 1000mg Paracetamol) and one 500mg pill of Naproxen, taken twice a day. That's what I'm trying now. Fingers crossed.

    One thing - I am on several other medications for other things, and taking them at the right time is essential due to side effects if you miss a dose. But when it came to my pills for pain, I haven't been a religious about taking them. This is especially true they're working, because you don't feel as much pain, so why take pain pills? I know now this is a big mistake. I advise doing as the Doctor suggests.

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