You are not my doctor (Arthritis filter)

March 22, 2021 5:33 AM

About 20 years ago, I slipped and broke my ankle spectacularly in five places. Lucky for me, I drew a really talented and kind orthopedic surgeon from the ER who patched me up pretty well.

Twenty years later, I am getting what I assume is arthritis in that ankle (I too am not a doctor but it matches the feelings in my other knee, the one that bore extra weight while I was beginning to walk again after 16 weeks non-weight-bearing. The doctor did confirm it was arthritis in the knee).

Also. I just got a job which will require equal amounts standing and walking. It will not start until after my second vaccination in 3 weeks or so. They seemed really glad to have me, not to mention I have not worked since March 2020.

I imagine losing weight would help, but the only thing that has ever worked for me (due to Lithium and thyroid removal) was the MIC (methionine, inositol, choline) shots and they are $500 for six weeks and not covered by insurance. For the moment, let us take weight off the table as I have tried numerous programs and get regular exercise. To be clear, at this point I am not looking for weight loss solutions.

I have heard of glucosamine, chondroitin and I've used tumeric sparingly. Would physical therapy help? I'm looking for anything. Folk medicine...

I do have an interview coming up next week that would be more sedentary, but I don't WANT to be sedentary! And they seemed so glad to have me.

(This is part-time seasonal, so maybe no accomodations? Once in a former life, I asked for accommodations and it got me fired.)

posted by anonymous to Health & Fitness (7 answers total)

I have post-traumatic arthritis in my right foot, and for me, good shoes really help. What counts as "good" is highly individual. I have tried official orthotics that did nothing or actually set me back. What finally helped me was wearing Oofos shoes All. The. Time. I have an inside pair and an outside pair. They help so much that I wear these ugly, ugly shoes, which are like glorified mushy sandals, with socks, even in freezing weather. They take some getting used to, so if you decide to try them, walk around in them for a while before you try working in them.

I did physical therapy years after I broke my foot. It might have helped if it were prescribed soon after my accident, but really didn't help at all at the time I finally got it, despite the fact that I was hopeful and very compliant.

An anti-inflammatory diet and supplements might help. So, to the turmeric I might add ginger, omega-3's from fish or a pill (not from flax or other plant material, importantly), and cut down on the sugar and wheat. Bromelaine, either from pineapple (especially the core) or supplements might help. With any of these, you need to do them consistently for a while to see results.

I haven't kept up on any recent research on glucosamine and chondroitin, but years ago it was looking like they weren't effective at all in reversing anything, and could only maybe mildly help slow down the progress of arthritis. I stopped taking them and stopped giving them to my dog, with neither noticing any effects.

Finally, I have a prescription for medical marijuana for my post-traumatic arthritis. In my state, it is relatively easy to get if you have established chronic pain. If you live in a state where it's legal, you might try that for pain relief. Medical marijuana is very sophisticated these days, and you may be able to treat your pain without having any "high" effects.

Good luck!
posted by Flock of Cynthiabirds at 6:56 AM on March 22, 2021

Oh yeah, and, if you go the turmeric route it is apparently important to take it with black pepper, as it enhances the effects.
posted by Flock of Cynthiabirds at 7:00 AM on March 22, 2021

I have found both CBD and CBD+THC helpful for my arthritis - useful to look at strains specific to pain (and/or sleep depending on what you want to take and when). Magnesium and D3 also help with pain... good luck!
posted by leslies at 9:26 AM on March 22, 2021

From the OP:

Due to a traumatic experience early in life, there is a less than zero percent chance I am going to take medical marijuana or any of its ilk. Thank you for the other answers and please keep them coming.

posted by travelingthyme at 9:56 AM on March 22, 2021

If you have any hardware in there (I have three screws through the ankle end of my right tibia because I split it over the talus bone a third of the way up to my knee during a fall while rock climbing) keep in mind that the hardware can develop a biofilm which can cause arthritis not just in that joint, plus other autoimmune problems.

That can be hard to diagnose and harder to treat, but I’ve found goldenseal root capsules to be very helpful in keeping my symptoms down. Nature's Way caps seem to me to be currently the best, and make sure you get root capsules instead of leaf, which are much weaker. Also avoid taking them continuously because they can be hard on your liver. I do 2 weeks on and 2 weeks off when I’m taking them, and probably don’t take more than a hundred caps a year.
posted by jamjam at 10:03 AM on March 22, 2021

Check out Barking dog shoes - they may have some recommendations for shoes that would help.
posted by mogget at 10:09 AM on March 22, 2021

This may be out of left field but dairy has been known to cause or increase inflammation. You might try an experiment where you quit dairy for a few weeks. I hope you find something that helps!
posted by Glinn at 10:36 AM on March 22, 2021