Pain management

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Karond123
Karond123 Member Posts: 8
in Chat to our Helpline Team

Hi I have now been diagnosed with arthritis in both knees as I suspected my question is when is it right to take pain killers as I seem to be in constant pain and can't walk far without sitting down. The doctors say its only mild but yet it doesn't feel like it . I am doing everything I should and even to manage to lose some weight does it get better or am I to live in constant pain.😪

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  • helpline_team
    helpline_team Posts: 3,529
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    Hi@Karond123

    Thank you for your posting on the online community. I am sorry to hear that you have been diagnosed with arthritis in both knees and are in constant pain. You have not said in your post which type of arthritis you have as there are many different types of arthritis. The most common type is osteoarthritis. If this is the condition you have then there are ways to manage this. Osteoarthritis is a fluctuating condition and can be worse on some days than others. You should talk to your GP about when to take your painkillers to make sure you’re taking them safely and as directed by your doctor or the patient information leaflet included with the drug. Make sure whoever is treating you knows all the medications you’re taking.

    If you are finding that your pain relief is not helping the pain then reviewing your pain relief with your GP should help. I have put a link below to our information on painkillers.

    You could also ask your GP to refer you to a physiotherapist to provide specific exercises. Exercise, treatments and keeping to a healthy weight usually improve the symptoms and pain. Other methods of pain relief may help such as creams that can be applied directly to the joint, for example, Capsaicin cream which is a pain-relieving cream made from the pepper plant, available on prescription. Or steroid injections which are injections directly into the knee joint, which can help reduce swelling and pain.

    I have put links below with further information on managing knee pain that I hope is helpful to you.

    Osteoarthritis of the knee

     Knee Pain

     Painkillers and NSAIDS

     

    Best Wishes

    Dawn

    Helpline Advisor

     

     

     

  • Emmasknackeredjoints
    Emmasknackeredjoints Member Posts: 133
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    I have IA in both my knees and life isn’t great. 1 knee is bad enough but both can be very challenging.

    i find a warm bath, volterol gel helps. I’ve also got turmeric oil to try, who knows if it’s nonsense but I’m happy to try anything.

    i take painkillers when I need them, mainly night time.

    like you my scans say mild damage but my level of pain is far from mild

  • helpline_team
    helpline_team Posts: 3,529
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    Hi@Emmasknackeredjoints

    If you have Inflammatory (Auto-immune) arthritis and are concerned about your knee pain there are a few things which might be helpful to explore.

    How does DAS 28 look? (On a technical level how well is your drug treatment controlling the inflammatory process.)

    Another perspective is self-management - keeping moving, and has a physiotherapist advised you on knee strengthening? We've got some great videos on our YouTube channel - with real people keeping moving in practical ways. And it's always recommended to eat a balanced diet to do what you can to keep weight down.

    Versus Arthritis - YouTube

    Another option might be to request a referral to a Pain Clinic.

    Hope that gives some ideas

    all the best

    Guy - Helpline Team

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