PAIN RELIEF

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vondel
vondel Member Posts: 4
edited 26. Mar 2012, 10:13 in Chat to our Helpline Team archive
I have been given Arthrotec75 by a doctor (not my own) he was standing in when my doctor was away. I have arthritis on the top of my feet just in front of the ankle, in my back, hands at base of thumbs, and right knee, I have recently started having a few problems with the back of my neck and my right jaw. I went to him almost in tears as I am so restricted I could not even get around the supermarket to complete my shopping and hubby would have to take me back to the car. I have had 2 weeks of these tablets one in the morning and one in the evening as instructed. The pain isn't gone and I still have quite restless nights, I also cannot stand in the same place for more than a few minutes as my thighs go either dead or shooting pains in them, but what a difference I feel like me again, I even walk the dog, do a little pottering around in the garden, life is good again. :D I went back to the doctors as instructed when they ran out and it was my own doctor that I saw and he will not let me take them as he says they are bad for my high blood pressure, he says at the most I can take one now and again, I am dreading going back to how I was do you know is there anything I can take or request to make me feel so good again

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  • stickywicket
    stickywicket Member Posts: 27,713
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hello vondel and welcome to the forum though I'm sorry you had to find us. I'm not a member of the Helpline team, just an ordinary forum member, but I thought I should explain that the Helplines don't operate over the weekend so you'll have a couple of days to wait for your answer.

    It must have been lovely to get some relief and quite devastating to learn you can't keep taking those tablets. I'm afraid this does happen with different meds to many of us on here.

    You don't say what type of arthritis you have and I believe arthrotec can help both osteo and the auto- immune types. Did your GP not offer anything else? Maybe you could go back and ask - or see a different doc but be sure to explain your BP problems. They don't always check your notes and can't be expected to remember. I hope you can find something that helps.
    If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you.
    Steven Wright
  • vondel
    vondel Member Posts: 4
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi, and thank you for letting me know about the weekend. The type of arthritis that I have I am unsure of as the doctors at the hospital say that I have osteoarthritis in my knee but when they operated on the top of my foot they just said it was arthritis and to go and see my doctor because they think I might have an inflammatory arthritis because of my jaw and for my doctor to send me to a specialist to check me, the doctor looked at me and because I can open and close my mouth and eat he said it'll probably be okay and that was it! My little old Staffie will not be too pleased he was enjoying the walks I was managing but never mind. I was just trying to find out what other people did for the pain, which I am quite used to as have had back problems for many years but didn't expect to end up with permanent pain every day and in so many places. I'm moaning a lot I know but my hobbies were gardening, long all day walks and DIY so I have a lot of adjusting to do, again thanks for your reply
  • helpline_team
    helpline_team Posts: 3,494
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    vondel wrote:
    Hi, and thank you for letting me know about the weekend. The type of arthritis that I have I am unsure of as the doctors at the hospital say that I have osteoarthritis in my knee but when they operated on the top of my foot they just said it was arthritis and to go and see my doctor because they think I might have an inflammatory arthritis because of my jaw and for my doctor to send me to a specialist to check me, the doctor looked at me and because I can open and close my mouth and eat he said it'll probably be okay and that was it! My little old Staffie will not be too pleased he was enjoying the walks I was managing but never mind. I was just trying to find out what other people did for the pain, which I am quite used to as have had back problems for many years but didn't expect to end up with permanent pain every day and in so many places. I'm moaning a lot I know but my hobbies were gardening, long all day walks and DIY so I have a lot of adjusting to do, again thanks for your reply

    Dear Vondel

    Thank you for your postings and a warm welcome to the forum. I am glad that you have found us. It sounds as if you have had a difficult time of things and having arthritis can often mean adjusting what you do and how you do it but it is important that you continue to do things that you enjoy. It is also important that you know what type of arthritis you have so that you receive the correct treatment and you could talk to your doctor to clarify this. We are not medically trained so could not recommend alternative medication and again would say to speak to your doctor for a review of your medication.
    We have lots of information about arthritis and managing the condition. Our publications can be downloaded on the link http://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/PublicationsandResources in particular the booklets ‘Understanding arthritis’ that looks at the different types of the condition and the booklet ‘Coping with pain’. This looks at pain management and pain control methods and I hope that this is helpful to you. You can always call us here on the freephone helpline on 0808 800 4050 to talk things through with one of our team.

    Best Wishes
    Dawn
  • stickywicket
    stickywicket Member Posts: 27,713
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    You're not 'moaning', vondel. You're just saying how it is. I think you may be right about the having to adjust, especially where long walks are concerned. I guess you might be able to break them up into two shorter walks, split by a pub lunch but 'little and often' is a fairly useful maxim with arthritis.

    I'm sure you'll find your way round things. The 'Simple Ides....' thread, near the top of the Living With Arthritis forum, gives lots of ways round doing stuff and we have a popular 'Gardening' thread on Chit Chat.

    I would urge your GP to sort out what type of arthritis you have, though as there are more meds about for the inflammatory types and they help to prevent further damage.
    If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you.
    Steven Wright
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