How to Handle Arthritis
Arthritis can make it difficult to enjoy any real quality of life. This disease can cause debilitating pain that makes it harder to complete daily tasks. However, there are a number of things you can do to reduce arthritis symptoms and improve your life’s quality despite having this chronic condition.
It’s important to stay as positive as possible when you’re dealing with arthritis. The more you focus on your symptoms and on what they stop you from doing, the worse you will feel.
Thinking positive has a number of benefits for people with arthritis. First, if you think about all the things you still can do and all the things there are to be grateful for, it helps your general mood. This will make your life better regardless of whether or not you are struggling with arthritis at the moment.
In addition stress can cause arthritis to flare up. When you’re stressed out, you are more prone to inflammation, which can double your arthritis pain. By thinking positively, you can reduce the stress in your life and thus reduce your symptoms.
Another reason to think positively is because when you focus too much on your symptoms, you tend to isolate and withdraw, thinking you will not be good company because you are “sick.” Lack of social interaction can hurt your quality of life, make you feel more stressed, and make your symptoms worse. Spending time with friends can take your mind off your problems and help reduce your symptoms.
You should also talk to your doctor about your diet if you suffer from arthritis. Certain foods can make arthritis symptoms worse, so you need to know which foods to avoid. In addition, if you’re overweight you need to eat in a manner that supports your health and allows you to lose weight. The more overweight you are, the more likely you are to suffer from arthritis symptoms. Arthritis pain occurs when your joints rub directly against one another. Being overweight puts more pressure on your joints, making it more likely that you will suffer from arthritis pain.
It’s important to exercise to strengthen your body when you have arthritis; however, you need to do it in small spurts. If you overdo any type of physical activity, it can cause arthritis symptoms to worsen. Take breaks every 20 minutes or so to make sure that your body has enough time to heal from an onslaught of physical activity. You should do this when you are doing regular activities such as reaching for things, opening bottles, and so forth as well as when you have been exercising.
Pay attention to what causes your arthritis to flare up and what works best to help you reduce your pain. Arthritis is different for each person, so by keeping track of these two things, you can help yourself to reduce your symptoms and feel better most of the time.
Arthritis can be painful, but it doesn’t have to completely take over your life. If you follow the tips you just read, you can live a high quality life despite your arthritis.
