Arthritis help

Good evening, I am new to all of this pain stuff and have been diagnosed with facet joint arthritis. I have had a nerve ablation done to help, since i was having such horrendous pain, I still have a lot of pain and stiffness especially with rainy weather and early morning and late at night. I have done PT and hasnt really helped I try to exercise but some days the pain is just so unbearable. What are the best remedies to help with arthritis. Are there any supplements that have been scientifcally proven to help? I have missed a lot of work due to my pain and i want to try and get a full handle on this the best i can so I can enjoy my life. Any suggestions or input would be appreciated.

Scientifically proven?  Eh.... not exactly.

My rheumatologist recommended glucosamin/chondroitin, but research on it is mixed, as far as I could find.  I started taking it three months ago on her advice, though.  Is it helping?  I don't know.  Maybe some.  I still have a lot of pain.

I've been taking turmeric for quite a while now, probably about a year.  It is supposed to have anti-inflammatory properties.  I do believe it helps.  I had to stop taking it for a couple weeks when I had a breast biopsy and I did notice an increase in pain at that time, which improved when I started taking it again.  It's something you have to take for several weeks before noticing an improvement.  And it's not like it gets rid of all the pain, it just helps some.

A hot bath in the morning is what helps me the most with morning stiffness.

How much tumeric do you take? 

450 mg twice a day.

Some people say the glucosamine and chondroitin work, but it seems to depend a lot on how severe the arthritis is and where it is located.  It didn't do a damn thing for my knees and I have no idea what the scientific literature says about it. 

What kind of medication are you taking for the pain (especially since it is preventing you from working)?  Tramadol is a good option for pain relief without the dose dating effect of opiates.

Before I had my knees replaced, I did find that icing them helped when they were extra painful from the weather.

I was also told to "push through the pain"  and that the exercise would eventually help and I would have less pain.  All it did was actually make my knees worse. My orthopedic surgeon said that pushing through mild pain is one thing but that all I was doing was irritating the joint even further.  So,definitely check with a doctor about what specific exercise you should and should not do.

Lora

Right now they have me on diluadid and cyclobenzaprine. Some days are good and some bad I have in the last year though easily missed almost 12 weeks worth of work due to my back, thank god for FMLA! I just got done with another round of diagnostic injections to see about doing the nerve ablation on the right side as they did the left, but i know that will not completely eliminate the pain. 

I try not to push through the pain because i do not want to hurt it more and i really dont want to get so bad that  I can not work at all. I have a very high tolerance for pain but this has just been excruciating. I have heard good things about tramadol I may bring that up with the spine doctor.

If they have you on Dilaudid, the Tramadol isn't going to be an adequate option. Even at the max dose, it will only be on par with Vicodin.

I am trying to research natural things that can help too, I know diluadid is a pretty strong medication it helps me on my really bad days but it makes me out of it so its not an option to really be able to take at work, I am terrified of eventually losing my job because of time missed from work, but sadly there isnt a lot I can do a lot of days i really just fight through the pain and really try to make it through the day but there are a lot of days i cant even get out of bed to try and go to work because I am in such pain, I just feel like I m in a losing battle. I know there are diets out there too that are suppose to help I am looking at that as well hopefully things will get better and the nerve ablation on the right side will even things out and significantly reduce my pain.

How come I can't even get Tramadol anymore and some people get Dilaudid?

Yeah, I know.  It seems to depend on how strict the state is and how afraid the doctors are of the state and/or DEA.  My PCP is now becoming stricter on the pain meds, too.  I would have had to have had my knees done MUCH sooner without the Tramadol and Vicodin combination!

I'm not sure what I am going to do if the spots in my hip and back get really painful.