natural ways to beat Oa, stem cell therapy, cartilage rebuil

delicatecloud · 26. Dec 2013, 05:55

Dear all,

I am sorri for not posting for a long time but I felt quite down and did not want to bother anyone with my problems. I have however, been thinking if anyone knows a natural way to keep oa at bay, be it natural remedies, or if anyone hás had success with stem cell treatment, some way to rebuild cartilage etc. I feel quite dismayed doctors keep telling me it is wear and tear. I am only 39 there must be more to it than wearand tear. I don't care what age a person is, you should not be told it is wear and tear. Hás anyone tried to go to a homeopath and had success with oa? I am seeing my rumatologist for the first time on the 26th of January. I have spondylosis, 5th vértebra, L5 but because it is an early stage, they might be able to help me. I would really be interested to hear about people with oa in the spine please. I know my post is very confusing but I really feel confused with it all. My husband thinks I am spending too much time looking for a cure but he can't understand how I feel, only someone with arthritis can understand how it makes you go everywhere for a cure.
I hope everyone is doing well.

Alexandra

hileena111 · 26. Dec 2013, 08:53

Hi Alexandra
Hope you had as good a Christmas as possible {not easy when you are in pain}
If you know a homeopath I would try that.....bear in mind that we aren't medically trained....that's only my opinion.....I have gone to her for other things but haven't got round to going for OA yet because I'm due a hip replacement in a few weeks time.
I have arthritis in my spine and hips {among other places}
I also have kypho scoliosis which is a slight hump at the top of my back and a C shaped curve in my back.
I get Acupuncture on the NHS and find that helps {doesn't take the pain away completely but anything that eases it is a result.
I can only have it now and again because its on the NHS.....I have thought about asking him to refer me to a private one but we'll get this THR over and done with first.
Then there are the usual things, pace yourself. Stop doing something before you get sore.
Heat or cold......It's heat for me......I have a lot of wheat bags that go into the microwave around the house.
Various Gel.......not necessarily with drugs in them.
Lets hope the rheumy has some good advice for you.
It must be hard only being 39........The other thing is use any aids that will help. Stick/crutches/ walker etc. Don't look at it as giving in....look at it as a coping mechanism....letting you do things you couldn't normally do.
Sorry but I don't know how bad you are and what you can and can't do.
I disagree with your husband......if you want to look for ways to help yourself you go ahead. {Not a cure but relief}
As for the stem cell treatment.....sorry I know nothing about that.
On the front page of the web site is the Freephone helpline number..,.,,,,,,ring them ....they are very helpful.
Love
Hileena

Helenbothknees · 27. Dec 2013, 06:30

Over 15 years of having OA in my knees I tried just about everything...

Homeopathy, which I've used very successfully for other things, didn't work at all for my OA, but is definitely worth a try; see a qualified homeopath.

Acupuncture didn't work for me, but according to several physios and acupuncturists I've talked to, it works for some people.

My GP swears by Glucosamine, and it definitely works for some people, but didn't work for me.

There's a book called "Foods That Fight Pain" http://www.amazon.co.uk/Foods-That-Fight-Pain-Revolutionary/dp/0553812378/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1388143655&sr=1-1&keywords=foods+that+fight+pain, which is based on the fact that people can be hypersensitive to some foods; you go on an elimination diet and gradually add things in. It seemed to work a little for me, but it's quite tough to do, and the effect seemed to wear off.

Believe it or not, crystal therapy seemed to work for me for a while, but that wore off too.

McTimoney chiropractic and Bowen Technique did nothing for me, but are said to help some people.

I eventually had to have knee replacements, but I was semi-painfree for about 10 years after diagnosis of OA, which MAY have been due to some of these. Eventually I had no cartilage left, and no complementary therapy will cope with that! But these things are worth a try.

delicatecloud · 10. Jan 2014, 19:01

hello,

Thank you so much for answering my post. I just wanted to talk a little and thank everyone for your words of confort. I don't really know where to start, I am not surre if it is just OA making me feel down or winter itself but I feel so dismayed. I guess I am afraid about going to the rheumatologist. I feel he will only put me on painkillers without any other solution. I guess I should feel lucky for only having a flair up from time to time. I have neproxin and have not touched it since August which I think is great but it only takes me walking for 1 hour or two and I get muscle spasms again. I miss walking so much, I would love to again if only I could stop the muscle spasms after it.
I think I will ruin my marriage because the first thing I think about once I wake up is how to find a way to get a cure for OA which is impossible and is this that is making me feel so sad. I feel powerless to stop something that is progressive. I am not surre if not having too many flair UPS is a sign that inflamation hás stopped or if in later years i will be worse.
I am so sorri for talking like this but I feel so alone with OA. My husband sais I stress too much that it is only mild and I will be okay but he doesn't understand it, only someone with arthritis can do.
I am afraid that spondylosis in l5 will eventually spread to all my spine, I am afraid of being paralized one day. The only time I feel okay is when I sleep, because I forget about it for a few hours.
I hope all you find inner peasse and confort sometimes is not OA that is a problem but the psychological fiar of it and the unknown.

stickywicket · 11. Jan 2014, 04:37

I'm sorry you're feeling so low right now, delicatecloud. It must have got in the way of enjoying Christmas for you.

I think you've really hit the nail on the head with your final sentence. Fear is far more damaging than arthritis and has probably ruined far more lives. Arthritis can take away certain pleasures but fear prevents us from enjoying all the good things we have when we still have them there to enjoy.

If you are waking up wondering how to find a cure for OA you are wasting time and energy that could be spent doing stuff you enjoy. If the docs and researchers haven't come up with a cure I doubt you or I can. Our lives are by no means perfect but I'm sure that you, like I, have much that is good in yours. Yes, we lose the capacity to do certain things we love but then other doors open on things we hadn't thought of doing previously because we were too busy/active etc. Without arthritis I'd never have discovered horse-riding or voluntary work or allowed myself the pure indulgence of sitting watching my beloved cricket for hours. There are compensations

Don't try to second-guess the rheumatologist. Take any questions you have and prepare to listen carefully to the answers. Take someone with you as an extra pair of ears, if possible. No-one will ever force you to take pain relief. That's up to you. What might be appropriate is anti-depressants as you do sound very low indeed. There's no cure for arthritis but depression is another matter. There's plenty of treatment for that. Please let us know how you go on.

dreamdaisy · 11. Jan 2014, 06:25

Arthritis of any kind affects many areas of our life but it's up to us to limit its impact. Unlike Diana I have three forces in my marriage, me, my husband and arthritis but the latter will not be allowed to dominate or spoil what he and I share. My first waking thought is 'What shall I cook tonight?' because that is something I can achieve not 'Where is the cure?' because there isn't one. We live in a time when people expect cures and fixes from doctors but their knowledge only runs so far. Research is ongoing but arthritis has been around for as long as mankind.

I had chronic asthma as a child but no inhalers until I was twelve because they hadn't been invented. I had chronic eczema too but no steroid creams in the early years because they hadn't been invented. I now have two sorts of arthritis but so what? It doesn't define me, it affects me but I am still the same person I used to be. I am fortunate that I live in an age where there are some meds to help me and that there are gadgets and gizmos to help me get around. Of course I wish that things were different but they're not. I have to get on with it, end of, but it takes time to get one's head around that concept. DD

Helenbothknees · 11. Jan 2014, 16:27

I agree with stickywicket that your main problem sounds like depression and/or anxiety. I'm not a doctor and don't know which, but I think you should see one and explain how you feel. Both are treatable. You shouldn't be feeling like this. I wasn't able to even consider a walk of "an hour or two" for many years. I missed it; I was a former long distance walker with a record for "the longest continuous walk by a woman" which I held for quite a while; I still have the Guinness Book of Records certificate to prove it. But, again like stickywicket, I did other things, and thinking about what I couldn't do didn't take over my life.

Anxiety pins itself on the nearest thing in your life which it can find, in your case the arthritis. I'm in no way being unsympathetic, but you really do need to see your GP if you're feeling like this all the time. He/she can help!

delicatecloud · 5. May 2014, 18:59

Dear all,

I hope everyone is well. First of all, I would like to thank you for your kindness in replying to me. Be surre it is much much appreciated. I am feeling much better. My rheumatologist diagnosed lumbar spondylosis and hip OA although mild. I was offered facet injections which I declined because I am trying to conceive. I was offered nothing else, so now I am looking for a private physiotherapist to give me an exercise programe. I have been taking rosehip and that hás done wonders for my pain. May I ask, if there is someone on the fórum with lumbar spondylosis who hás gone through pregnancy, was it easy? Did you give birth naturally? Did pregnancy make your spine OA worse? I would love to hear from someone who hás gone through preghancy please, good or bad. I hope everyone is well.

natural ways to beat Oa, stem cell therapy, cartilage rebuil

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