Joint pain remedies?

[fitinferno]

Well...I'm sitting here...up late at 2:47 in the morning with not-so-nice pain in my knee! Very unfortunate...but it has inspired this post out of me.

I used to do gymnastics when I was younger and I think that has contributed a bit to this knee pain I get sometimes (I'm only 19 right now...so I'm a bit concerned about the future and how much arthritis I'll have...lol). But I'm not a fan of taking ibuprofen or something such as that everytime I have a few aches and pains. I don't want to become tolerant to it...lol...cuz then when I really need it, I'm afraid it won't work. Odd, yes, but ah well.

So, do any of you have some remedies for joint pain? Any herbs, special massage technique, etc.? I tried putting a heat pack on my knee and it didn't work so well.

[rockthecasbah]

Originally Posted by fitinferno

Well...I'm sitting here...up late at 2:47 in the morning with not-so-nice pain in my knee! Very unfortunate...but it has inspired this post out of me.

I used to do gymnastics when I was younger and I think that has contributed a bit to this knee pain I get sometimes (I'm only 19 right now...so I'm a bit concerned about the future and how much arthritis I'll have...lol). But I'm not a fan of taking ibuprofen or something such as that everytime I have a few aches and pains. I don't want to become tolerant to it...lol...cuz then when I really need it, I'm afraid it won't work. Odd, yes, but ah well.

So, do any of you have some remedies for joint pain? Any herbs, special massage technique, etc.? I tried putting a heat pack on my knee and it didn't work so well.

My mom has severe osteoarthritis in her neck, she is constantly wearing this heat pack thing you microwave, she says that really helps. It may not be something you want to hear right now, but if the pain continues and or worsens, you may need to give up the gymnastics, or at least consult a physician. It may seem kind of extreme, but you are taking big risks continuing if you are this young, knees are pretty important

[fitinferno]

Originally Posted by rockthecasbah

My mom has severe osteoarthritis in her neck, she is constantly wearing this heat pack thing you microwave, she says that really helps. It may not be something you want to hear right now, but if the pain continues and or worsens, you may need to give up the gymnastics, or at least consult a physician. It may seem kind of extreme, but you are taking big risks continuing if you are this young, knees are pretty important

Hehe, I already gave up the gymnastics. It was just not worth it. So many not great things happened during it. There's always some kind of injury you wind up with. I even broke my toe once and didn't realise it and was too stubborn to tell my mum what happened and now it's all messed up! Ah to be young and feel invincible...

There's definitely safer sports out there that are just as satisfying (if not more)

Thanks for the advice...I guess maybe I should keep trying with the heat pack idea...maybe I didn't have it on long enough.

[rainman::|:|]

obviously, a joint. you did ask about herbals, and the stuff will cut through the pain of even fibromyalgia. i find it works wonders on my chronic back pain, but it's not for everyone. So moving on, a shot of cortisone directly into the joint will ease pain, but it'll eventually eat into the tissue even more. Icy hot and other topicals may help, more likely they just distract you with tingling and leave you smelling like mint. Some people find that how they sleep affects joint comfort-- if you sleep with them straight, try bent; or vice-versa. I know at least one person who has had great results with acupuncture. But at 19, your joint pain is abnormal and you should see a doctor-- They can give you exercises specific to your ailment, and can advise if further treatment (or surgery down the line) is needed.

bottom line: be nice to your knees, because fake ones suck.

[wdlove]

My wife uses Tylenol Arthritis formula for the joint pain that she has. With medications the most important thing is that you follow the directions on the label. Ibuprofen is know for causing intentional problems. Since you are only 19 and starting to have joint pain, which is quite young. It might be a good idea to have a physical checkup with your physician. Always smart to rule out any more serious problems.

[fitinferno]

Originally Posted by wdlove

My wife uses Tylenol Arthritis formula for the joint pain that she has. With medications the most important thing is that you follow the directions on the label. Ibuprofen is know for causing intentional problems. Since you are only 19 and starting to have joint pain, which is quite young. It might be a good idea to have a physical checkup with your physician. Always smart to rule out any more serious problems.

Thank you for the advice. I did not know that ibuprofen can cause unwanted problems. I've always taken ibuprofen ever since I was tiny because the GP recommended it and my mum was concerned about the danger of aspirin in people under the age of 16.

Maybe next time I visit my GP I'll ask about it, though I'm pretty sure it's just previous things that have happened that are causing it (In addition to the gymnastics, I fell off my bike and slid across the pavement on a street on my knee when I was younger...there's a lovely big scar from it--again, something that may not have helped now...lol).

I just try not to take advantage of the NHS unless it's something urgent, tho. My way of helping to keep those wait times down...hehe.

[katie ta achoo]

I have bad, bad, horrible tendonitis, and some pretty hardcore tennis elbow. (allllll joint related, won't let me play viola anymore!! )
Just lay off the joints for a while, if you can. I got braces for my two wrists and elbow and it helped to keep them immobilized.

I also take 3 baby aspirin when I need it. at 81mg*3, that's less than one adult dose.
For my joint pain, I've taken Bextra (removed from market by FDA.. I still have 7 left, and I'm hoarding them like there's no tomorrow), Mobic (really screwed me up mentally), at least 200 total ibuprofen. Ibuprofen does nothing for me anymore. Like, at ALL!

just remember RICE: rest, ice compression, elevation. OK, you may not need the elevation, because RICE is for cuts, just use RIC.
If you heat up, and ice, heat, ice, heat, ice yada yada yada, that'll get the blood flowing and may help a little.

I hope you get better!!!

[Guitarius]

My grandma used to soak her elbows and knees in oatmeal. I dunno if it ever worked, but hey, what can it hurt?

[CanadaRAM]

Originally Posted by Guitarius

My grandma used to soak her elbows and knees in oatmeal. I dunno if it ever worked, but hey, what can it hurt?

I dunno -- what did Granny serve for breakfast the next morning??

[fitinferno]

Originally Posted by katie ta achoo

I have bad, bad, horrible tendonitis, and some pretty hardcore tennis elbow. (allllll joint related, won't let me play viola anymore!! )
Just lay off the joints for a while, if you can. I got braces for my two wrists and elbow and it helped to keep them immobilized.

I also take 3 baby aspirin when I need it. at 81mg*3, that's less than one adult dose.
For my joint pain, I've taken Bextra (removed from market by FDA.. I still have 7 left, and I'm hoarding them like there's no tomorrow), Mobic (really screwed me up mentally), at least 200 total ibuprofen. Ibuprofen does nothing for me anymore. Like, at ALL!

just remember RICE: rest, ice compression, elevation. OK, you may not need the elevation, because RICE is for cuts, just use RIC.
If you heat up, and ice, heat, ice, heat, ice yada yada yada, that'll get the blood flowing and may help a little.

I hope you get better!!!

Ohh, sorry to hear that you can't play viola anymore That really sucks. Have you picked up a diff instrument at all?

That's exactly what I'm afraid of w/the Ibuprofen...which is why I try to take it as lttl as possible.

But thanks much for the advice, I have been working out a bit more than normal so that might have caused this all to flare up. I'll try out the RIC and hopefully that'll help a bit

Originally Posted by Guitarius

My grandma used to soak her elbows and knees in oatmeal. I dunno if it ever worked, but hey, what can it hurt?

Hehe, I might as well try out the soaking as well...that could help...like a nice hot bath or something....maybe not oatmeal tho :P

Thanks again, tho! I appreciate all the advice everyone's given Makes me realise even more why I love the MacRumours community so much

[katie ta achoo]

Originally Posted by fitinferno

Ohh, sorry to hear that you can't play viola anymore That really sucks. Have you picked up a diff instrument at all?

Viola IS my different instrument!
Well, not really. I played violin for 9 years before learning viola, 2-ish years ago.
I can't play either right now!
I can't even do piano!

...AND I JUST GOT SOME REALLY GOOD SHEET MUSIC FOR MY SENIOR RECITAL!!
It's like having a PowerMac G5 dual 2.7, with 8 gigs of ram, totally tricked out... but you forgot to order a monitor.
It's sitting there... you WANT to use it.. but you CAN'T! Aahhh!

[fitinferno]

Originally Posted by katie ta achoo

Viola IS my different instrument!
Well, not really. I played violin for 9 years before learning viola, 2-ish years ago.
I can't play either right now!
I can't even do piano!

...AND I JUST GOT SOME REALLY GOOD SHEET MUSIC FOR MY SENIOR RECITAL!!
It's like having a PowerMac G5 dual 2.7, with 8 gigs of ram, totally tricked out... but you forgot to order a monitor.
It's sitting there... you WANT to use it.. but you CAN'T! Aahhh!

Oh man that's a bummer Maybe you could do some teaching where you wouldn't have to really play, but would get some satisfaction helping others to? Kinda like a bit of compromise