Arthritis, etc.
- Thread starter Shanazel
- Start date
janaki
New member
Anyone dancing with arthritis or similar challenges besides me? I'd be interested in hearing how others deal with it emotionally and physically just so I don't feel like the only bellydancer who should take the assaya off my head in order to use it to walk.
LOL Shanazel!! you crack me up. Love the smilie!
I have osteo arthritis. Actually I feel better when I dance. I find it some moves are harder than others on my body. I try and not to push those moves too much on my body. I try and stretch regulary no matter what. I have regualr massages. My helper(domestic helper) is soo good with her massage. It really helps me a lot. Chinese people say some foods aggravate arthritis. I am carefull with what I eat. I have also noticed, if I gain weight it becomes worse. So I watch my weight, although I could loose 10 pounds lol. Other than this I don't do much!!!
adiemus
New member
Hi Shanazel and Janaki
I think if you're dancing despite pain you're doing the best thing you can do for your health!
Chronic pain is my specialty, so I hope I can help.
For OA and RA in conventional medicine first of all good pain relief and anti-inflammatories prescribed by your specialist are the first step. Then it's about omega 3 (fish oils), and glucosamine with chondroitin, and some people say that green-lipped mussels are good too. Apart from that, regular exercise (well, if dancing ain't exercise, what is?!!), and using massage, heat, and relaxation are the best during flare-ups. Not much evidence to support other things like acupuncture for chronic pains, but it can be useful for a flare-up at times. Gaining weight is not good for your pain, but IMHO it's more painful emotionally to try and lose it!!
You do feel better AFTER exercise, so make it easy to do it - anything that can get in the way will get in the way!
If the worst comes to the worst, I guess there is something to be said for doing a cane dance huh?!!
I think if you're dancing despite pain you're doing the best thing you can do for your health!
Chronic pain is my specialty, so I hope I can help.
For OA and RA in conventional medicine first of all good pain relief and anti-inflammatories prescribed by your specialist are the first step. Then it's about omega 3 (fish oils), and glucosamine with chondroitin, and some people say that green-lipped mussels are good too. Apart from that, regular exercise (well, if dancing ain't exercise, what is?!!), and using massage, heat, and relaxation are the best during flare-ups. Not much evidence to support other things like acupuncture for chronic pains, but it can be useful for a flare-up at times. Gaining weight is not good for your pain, but IMHO it's more painful emotionally to try and lose it!!
You do feel better AFTER exercise, so make it easy to do it - anything that can get in the way will get in the way!
If the worst comes to the worst, I guess there is something to be said for doing a cane dance huh?!!
Amulya
Moderator
I have a similar thing (joint pains and muscle pains), it doesn't always effect me, when it's summer I have no pains, but during winter it can be nasty. Or when it's cold and rainy. I just bought a herbal remedy and it works. The brand is Zen and the tincture is for arthritis, muscle pains, joint pains etc.
I find that I have to keep moving in order not to get stiff and it also helps me with the pain. Hot showers/baths help too.
I find that I have to keep moving in order not to get stiff and it also helps me with the pain. Hot showers/baths help too.
Awww...Everyone above is right. Keep working it...It is about the only thing that helps so those joints do not stiffen up. One more thing to add: try not sitting for extended periods...Get up and move around..That helps. I can tell I am starting to get joint pain. I actually take ibuprofen before I go to my dance class and that helps with my lower back. Good luck to you..This cool weather doesn't help things.
Gia al Qamar
New member
For OA and RA in conventional medicine first of all good pain relief and anti-inflammatories prescribed by your specialist are the first step. Then it's about omega 3 (fish oils), and glucosamine with chondroitin
I just wanted to add my experience...I've got arthritis running in my family's dna...I've had it in my lower back for decades...started to affect my ankles badly a few yrs ago...I began taking the omega 3, glucosamine & chondroitin and anti-inflamoatories OTC when needed...and I was delighted by the results...my joints are now FAR more mobile, I have less pain upon waking...my floorwork still includes full multiple backbends!!!
I recommend this regimine!
Gia
Kharmine
New member
I don't have arthritis myself, but have had to do some research since my husband found out that he was sensitive to wheat gluten and discovered that is also a cause of arthritis!
I find that rather weird, but it appears to be well documented. You can only know this for sure if you 1) get a blood test for it, 2) try getting off gluten (wheat, rye, barley, oats) for at least a week to see how you react.
And, yes, fish oils are among those supplements that are greatly recommended -- I notice that when I fail to take 'em I'm stiffer, even without arthritis.
I find that rather weird, but it appears to be well documented. You can only know this for sure if you 1) get a blood test for it, 2) try getting off gluten (wheat, rye, barley, oats) for at least a week to see how you react.
And, yes, fish oils are among those supplements that are greatly recommended -- I notice that when I fail to take 'em I'm stiffer, even without arthritis.
Shanazel
Moderator
Ah. I'm not the only slightly gimpy dancer out there then. There is comfort in company.
Thanks to all of you for chiming in here. Thanks, Bronnie, for offering your professional opinion as well. Mussels have lips? I had no idea. Since mid-August I have been taking glucosamine & chondroitin and I have noticed a definite improvement in my hips and some improvement in my knees; guess my yellow lab and I will corner the glucosamine market between the two of us!
In the spring and last winter, I'd be fine during the three hours I taught classes. Then I'd get in my car, drive home, and nearly fall on my face as I tried to pry myself out of the driver's seat and steer my way up the front steps. The stiffness following class has not been so acute this fall, maybe due to a combination of glucosamine, better weather, and taking it easier this fall as I continue to recover from my bout with hepatitis earlier in the year.
I know the best thing for me to do at this point is lose some of the weight I'm hauling around on my poor little knees and feet. Some of the pressure I have been under for months has eased off a bit, and I don't eat nearly as much when the hounds of hell are not nipping at my heels, so here's hoping I lighten up (literally and figuratively).
Thanks to all of you for chiming in here. Thanks, Bronnie, for offering your professional opinion as well. Mussels have lips? I had no idea. Since mid-August I have been taking glucosamine & chondroitin and I have noticed a definite improvement in my hips and some improvement in my knees; guess my yellow lab and I will corner the glucosamine market between the two of us!
In the spring and last winter, I'd be fine during the three hours I taught classes. Then I'd get in my car, drive home, and nearly fall on my face as I tried to pry myself out of the driver's seat and steer my way up the front steps. The stiffness following class has not been so acute this fall, maybe due to a combination of glucosamine, better weather, and taking it easier this fall as I continue to recover from my bout with hepatitis earlier in the year.
I know the best thing for me to do at this point is lose some of the weight I'm hauling around on my poor little knees and feet. Some of the pressure I have been under for months has eased off a bit, and I don't eat nearly as much when the hounds of hell are not nipping at my heels, so here's hoping I lighten up (literally and figuratively).
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Amulya
Moderator
I didn't know that. I am allergic to gluten, but a gluten free diet didn't change my joint pains (it did change my IBS). However 1.5 years ago I stopped eating milk products and that had a major effect: much less joint pains! I've heard similar stories from friends.
adiemus
New member
Yes, Shanazel, Mussels do have lips - but only in NZ! This is a common type of mussel found around parts of NZ, and they have a very high level of Omega3, but also some other things in their flesh that are good for both arthritis and cancer. I think you can get capsules made of them, otherwise I know that there people who export them around the world. Best way to eat 'em is steamed with white wine and chopped coriander! Yum! best health food ever (apart from red wine!).
I have fibromyalgia mainly in lower back and neck, and I found dancing the best way ever to help reduce the aches and pains - but you do have to warm up and cool down, I think the cool down part is especially important.
Oh, and stop smoking if you still smoke. There is good evidence that tobacco use (nicotine and some of the other nasties) influence blood flow in any bruised areas, and it does both slow healing and reduce the O2 being sent around the blood stream.
Basically arthritis is inherited, so if you have the genetic predisposition to it (either RA or OA) you will develop it under the right circumstances, which includes poor health, overweight, inadequate exercise, and dietary factors, although these aren't so strong. Actually the main predictor for people having trouble with their pain is psychosocial - mainly high levels of stress, anxiety, depression and limited social support.
The very best thing to do for pain - be happy (dancing is good!) and remember this (my mantra)
Do not let what you cannot do get in the way of what you can
oh, and the other one -
Do no more on a good day than a bad, and no less on a bad day than a good (now that is hard...)
I have fibromyalgia mainly in lower back and neck, and I found dancing the best way ever to help reduce the aches and pains - but you do have to warm up and cool down, I think the cool down part is especially important.
Oh, and stop smoking if you still smoke. There is good evidence that tobacco use (nicotine and some of the other nasties) influence blood flow in any bruised areas, and it does both slow healing and reduce the O2 being sent around the blood stream.
Basically arthritis is inherited, so if you have the genetic predisposition to it (either RA or OA) you will develop it under the right circumstances, which includes poor health, overweight, inadequate exercise, and dietary factors, although these aren't so strong. Actually the main predictor for people having trouble with their pain is psychosocial - mainly high levels of stress, anxiety, depression and limited social support.
The very best thing to do for pain - be happy (dancing is good!) and remember this (my mantra)
Do not let what you cannot do get in the way of what you can
oh, and the other one -
Do no more on a good day than a bad, and no less on a bad day than a good (now that is hard...)
Shanazel
Moderator
Here we have Mussel Shoals (in Alabama) and Muscle Beach (which is different) but no mussel lips. Cool. I'll see if I can find some green lips in my search for Omega3.
I inherited my OA from my mom and my grandfather, so was not surprised, though I had hoped to avoid it, despite having mild symptoms since my twenties. I have never smoked (well, not tobacco, anyway- I did go to college in California in the seventies, you know) but the weight- yes, the weight is a problem, but I am working on it.
Re: tobacco smoking. I do a lot of litigation work that involves spinal injuries, and so have read a lot of literature re: the problems smokers have with failed fusions following surgery. Many people have this problem yet cannot quit smoking. I sympathize with them because even knowing my knees would be better off without the extra weight I carry, it is so hard to give up comfort eating! Strange how the thing that carries you through so much stress is the thing that simultaneously does you so much damage.
I inherited my OA from my mom and my grandfather, so was not surprised, though I had hoped to avoid it, despite having mild symptoms since my twenties. I have never smoked (well, not tobacco, anyway- I did go to college in California in the seventies, you know
) but the weight- yes, the weight is a problem, but I am working on it.Re: tobacco smoking. I do a lot of litigation work that involves spinal injuries, and so have read a lot of literature re: the problems smokers have with failed fusions following surgery. Many people have this problem yet cannot quit smoking. I sympathize with them because even knowing my knees would be better off without the extra weight I carry, it is so hard to give up comfort eating! Strange how the thing that carries you through so much stress is the thing that simultaneously does you so much damage.
adiemus
New member
Oh yes, it's true that most of us 'know' that our habits are not good for us, but are ambivalent about giving them up - it's something to do with both the original reason we started coping with stress that way, and the things that maintain us doing them!
I meant to add that the last thing anyone needs is someone to tell them what to do!! I think we know what to do, but are just ambivalent about it, or find it hard to do without the good things that are part of their appeal!!!
My mother swears cutting back on red meat makes the difference -I haven't noticed it. I had JRA and then for a few years it went away. Then it gradually has returned and spread so most days are a bit painfull. BDance however helps hugely - it makes the difference between using painkillers every day or not. My pain threshold also has increased - this year a couple of broken ribs and a fractured ankle were a breeze compared to RA in my hands. I hate the fact that I am losing fluidity - lovely smooth hand movements are now out. That and not being able to close screw top lids -it means it is all too easy to keep on nibbling!
It is surprising though how many people here are doing all they can to keep dancing - You all are very inspiring!!!
Is the fish oil safe to take if you are alergic to shelfish?
I hate the fact that I am losing fluidity - lovely smooth hand movements are now out. That and not being able to close screw top lids -it means it is all too easy to keep on nibbling! It is surprising though how many people here are doing all they can to keep dancing - You all are very inspiring!!!
Is the fish oil safe to take if you are alergic to shelfish?
adiemus
New member
I just assessed a woman today who said that she knows that when the temperature goes between 17 and 20 degrees, when we have a nor'west wind (hot and dry very strong wind) and the barometer is dropping, she's going to have a bad day. Mind you I have a bad day on that sort of day too - I hate the wind!! Most of my patients don't like cold weather and find warmer weather much easier to cope with, also use heat packs and electric blankets to keep warm and stop the aching...
nigma
New member
yep another arthitis sufferer here. I have advanced osteoarthritis on my ankle and can recommend glucosimine and warm weather. the old saying, use it or loose does apply to arthritics. I also sometimes rub a liniment on it called zheng gu shui, bought from my local asian store, it relieves pain very quickly. even the instructions say an old proverb suggests exercise is good keeps one supple. because my right leg takes most of the weight I now have a much larger calf muscle on the right leg.
Lydia
New member
Hi there Shazy...come to Dubai!! sunshine nice beach lazy around ...dance with me and all will be fixed!!!
oliveoil a thea spoon a day raw not coocked!
have that like in salad ? or in a cheese dish if you cant eat it just like that its also good to massage the effected area with olive oil...
and yes like Kute nurse said move dont stay long in the same position
Then there is a new anti inflammetory what is kind on the stumach,called ,,Tylenol artheritis,, its cheap not expensive like other antyinflametory,s and kind on your tummy,many other give tummyupsets....
and this is realy a good medication and you can take it for longer periods of time and has no side effects....then also you can get a infrared lamp that is very soothing and it takes the pain away improves the bloodcirculation and that is good for the inflamation of the tissue,.....Beside that this lamp is handy to have in the home for many other things like having a cold enz. you can get the from the farmacy,get one with a timer ,because you will fall a sleep in front of it ,its very relaxing,the timer will make it switch of alone......
happy hipdropday!! Lydia
oliveoil a thea spoon a day raw not coocked!
have that like in salad ? or in a cheese dish if you cant eat it just like that its also good to massage the effected area with olive oil...
and yes like Kute nurse said move dont stay long in the same position
Then there is a new anti inflammetory what is kind on the stumach,called ,,Tylenol artheritis,, its cheap not expensive like other antyinflametory,s and kind on your tummy,many other give tummyupsets....
and this is realy a good medication and you can take it for longer periods of time and has no side effects....then also you can get a infrared lamp that is very soothing and it takes the pain away improves the bloodcirculation and that is good for the inflamation of the tissue,.....Beside that this lamp is handy to have in the home for many other things like having a cold enz. you can get the from the farmacy,get one with a timer ,because you will fall a sleep in front of it ,its very relaxing,the timer will make it switch of alone......
happy hipdropday!! Lydia
Hi,
I also have pain in my upper back and in my knees. I find that I cannot do moves like before, but other than that I still love dancing! I would love to go to Dubai and dance with Lydia as well! Someone also told me recently that as dancers we have pretty much made the choice to be in pain; I was told ballerinas are always hurting. Physical fitness can be as taxing as it is good for you, apparently.
-Brea Morgiane
I also have pain in my upper back and in my knees. I find that I cannot do moves like before, but other than that I still love dancing! I would love to go to Dubai and dance with Lydia as well!
Someone also told me recently that as dancers we have pretty much made the choice to be in pain; I was told ballerinas are always hurting. Physical fitness can be as taxing as it is good for you, apparently. -Brea Morgiane
LeylaLanty
New member
Yup, count me as another gimpy cane dancer! I've got, as my doc says, a "touch of arthritis" in my hips and I get sciatica sometimes. Sounds, from what others are saying here, like I need to get back to the glucosamine. I take the omega3 for my heart, didn't know it was good for joints too. hmmmm... maybe I've been benefiting from that and things could be worse? I'm sure it would be a LOT worse if I didn't dance and keep on walking and moving.
I'm sure it would be a LOT worse if I didn't dance and keep on walking and moving.