Newly diagnosed with osteoarthritis in hips

Hello, I have OA in my knees, ankles and hips. My knees started first, with another kind of arthritis, and the joint damage that caused led to the OA in all three areas. When a joint is affected we naturally alter the way we move in order to avoid / minimise pain, thus throwing other joints out of kilter. I began aged 37 and am now 58.

I don't do yoga or pilates or anything that involves standing because I can't (the first of many arthritis-induced things which can't be done anymore). I have done stairs like a toddler for over fifteen years which bothers me not - I still ascend and descend which is the aim of the game. Exercise is good for us overall but non-weight bearing is better for our joints. Swimming is good but, in my experience, not for a long period of time because it's when gravity hits the troubles begin. Cycling is another option but it all depends on what suits you and how you are being affected. Walking can still be done but wear good, supportive footwear and use walking poles to ease some of the strain on the joints. We talk on here of payback and this is what you are experiencing - we go and do something we enjoy but there is a price to be paid.

Around ten million people in the UK are affected by arthritis and the majority have OA. Arthritis is no respecter of age or gender, it cares not what plans we may have regarding our lives and how we are going to live them. It brings us pain and tiredness, it forces us to adapt and change what we do and how we do it so we can keep on doing what we can when we can.

Another phrase we use on here is pain dullers (because that is all they do, they certainly don't kill it). What has your GP prescribed? Has he referred you to an orthopaedic surgeon? DD

Hi Lorraine and welcome from me too.

Arthritis is a pain in every sense of the word :roll: and it can take a long time to adapt to its demands. The knee pain sounds to be what they call 'referred pain' from your hips ie you walk differently to make life easier for the bits that hurt but that makes other bits hurt too. It's certainly true that exercise actually helps arthritis as it keeps our muscles strong. Strong muscles support the joints better and so they hurt less.

However, although swimming is good, the breast stroke leg action is not good for those with arthritis in hips and knees. A crawl leg action is recommended. Have a look here
http://tinyurl.com/kwoz7dd

Another thing that we have to get used to is doing things differently so, with any kind of exercise, little and often is better that one long session. This can be difficult and awkward to fit into our day but you might find you can build up to longer sessions.

With stairs – the way DD suggested is the best and I'd add that going down backwards can help too. (“I never know whether you're coming or going” a good friend once said to me )

You say your doc has prescribed paracetamol, ibuprofen and co-codamol. I do hope he/she pointed out that co-codamol itself contains paracetamol and we should never take more that 8 in 24 hours. (NOT 8 paracetamol and 8 co-codamol but just 8 in any combination). There are other anti-inflammatories besides ibuprofen and stronger pain relief than co-codamol. Like you, I prefer to take as few meds as possible but I recognise that some are necessary. I usually take two co-codamol going to bed and ensuring you have a good bed and pillow helps too.

The bad news is that 'eating rubbish' doesn't help either. I usually have some good leftovers in the freezer from things made on my better days - lasagne, cottage pie, fish pie, stir fry etc.and I find it's as quick to make a salad as it is a sandwich. I always have fresh fruit and veg in the house to nibble on but, as for junk food, if I don't buy it I can't eat it whereas if I do buy it I probably will eat it