Best products from r/Thritis

Look at what the person does in their lives, and if you can find a product to make it easier, they'd likely appreciate it.

My knee replacements only made my arthritis worse (we knew that might happen), so my in-laws bought me a gardening chair for my birthday last year which is just awesome. I've done everything from turning earth to planting to harvesting and weeding- I have to leave a little bit of extra space between plants to make sure that my chair fits, but I can actually garden for the first time in a long time. Gardening is stress relief and a real pleasure for me, and being able to do it is fantastic.

If you're not particularly close to the relative, ask relatives who are closer. My hands are not too bad, but I love easy jar/can openers. The chances of me clipping my own toenails are pretty much zero- I love my husband and appreciate his willingness to do it, and I really love pedicure gift certificates. I never have enough hot/cold pads.

But ask someone closer to the person what they may like- some people don't want a reminder of their arthritis- everyone in my circle knows that I have it, so I'm always grateful when they think of something new, but not everyone feels that way. It doesn't really matter who you're buying for- you can never go wrong with a book or food gift certificate.

Can she move at all, or sit with help?

Sauna can be incredibly helpful for arthritis, and, while I can't vouch for them, portable infrared saunas only cost a few hundred dollars.

https://amazon.com/SereneLife-Portable-Infrared-Person-Heating/dp/B07MV4NYDB

Now, while I've never used a device like this myself, I do use extreme heat to treat my autoimmune arthritic disease. Since any heat that can increase you body temperature (ideally above 100) will have an effect - both on the disease and in the form of immediate pain relief - it is likely that a device like this would be useful to your grandmother.

Technically known as induced hyperthermia, this process has been shown to have benefit in pretty much all forms of autoimmune disease, with specific evidence for various forms of arthritis - rheumatoid, osteoarthritis, spondylitis and arthritic psoriasis. Strong, feverish, heat triggers your immune system to dial back using the same process that activates healing and recovery after a feverish illness (heat shock proteins).

> Heat-shock proteins (hsps) are highly conserved and immunogenic, and they are generally perceived to be attractive initiators or targets of a pathogenic immune response and as such have been implicated in the pathogenesis of autoimmune arthritis. However, studies in animal models and arthritis patients have unraveled the disease-regulating attributes of self hsp65. We propose that the self hsp65 induces a protective and beneficial immune response owing to its ubiquitous distribution, stress-inducibility, and participation in tolerogenic processes. In contrast, the foreign hsp65 that does not influence the above processes, and which resides admixed with microbial ligands for innate receptors, generates an inflammatory pathogenic response. The regulatory properties of self hsps need be fully explored and might be utilized for therapeutic purposes.

https://www.google.com/search?q=heat+shock+proteins+arthritis

What's more, sauna provides many of the cardio benefits of exercise, such as IIC being shown to reduce the occurence of heart issues in older people. I assume that this happens because of the increase in heart rate it induces, though I haven't looked into it much. I did notice it having quite a strong effect on myself.

I've talked about this a lot, and submitted a lot of scientific articles on induced hyperthermia. So check my comments and post submissions, and AMA any questions you still have.

good luck

Hi buhnannuh, I'm sorry to hear about your arthritis. That sucks :(

First of all, as others have said, we're here for you as you get used to living with the arthritis. The good news is that you will probably find that you learn to adapt around having the condition. So if you find actions difficult now because of it, you'll find that there are other ways to do things so that they're less hassle for you; examples that come to mind are that if you have trouble reaching the floor to pick small items up, you might find you can balance them on your feet and 'levitate' them to a higher place to more easily retrieve them, or develop a knack for 'kicking' them up to higher ground (this is how I 'pick up' socks, for example).

Also, there are lots of aids out there to help with everyday tasks... I couldn't live without my sock-putting-on-aid, for example (that link is just to show what I'm talking about, there are lots of varieties out there, and watch out that one's from the .co.uk site).

You mentioned being able to play with your daughter. I don't have children, but I can imagine the arthritis might make it harder. I'd suggest trying out playing with her on the ground and if it doesn't work out, maybe see if you can put her on the sofa and play together, or maybe try out new activities which are more friendly to her being on a level with you, like maybe reading together more often, or something.

The not so good news is that you might well experience an emotional roller coaster due to this news, or already be going through it. You might be angry, you might be sad. As Xyrd said, you might well grieve. If you do experience these things in relation to the arthritis, it's normal and okay - don't beat yourself up about the emotions or the arthritis they relate to, if you can help it :) It's not your fault you've got this illness. Be gentle with yourself, rest when you need to, and let yourself explore your new emotional reactions and physical boundaries. Remember - they don't have to be limitations, you can almost always adapt tasks to suit yourself.

Lastly (sorry if I've rambled) in my experience arthritis can be different day-to-day. Things you find hard today might be easier tomorrow, or visa versa, so give yourself time to get used to that and adapting to being much more physically changeable.

I hope you get all the help and support you're looking for, and things get easier for you soon :)

Edit: fix link

Buy the hip kit from amazon (it has a grabber, sock putter onner, and other things to help dress and undress).

If you don’t have a comfort height toilet, or if he’s super tall, you’ll want to think about a raised toilet seat. (I personally didn’t need one, but I’m also 5’6”.)

You’ll also want to get a seat for the shower, I recommend the kind with no raised handles or anything, like this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AEGCUI?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share - this is the one that the hospital had and I loved it.
You also might want to have a stool softener on hand, they’ll provide you with one but I had to add my own into the mix just for the first couple of days.

He’ll also need a sturdy chair (like a dining room chair) to sit in that doesn’t have wheels. It helps to have a cushion here (I just used a pillow 🤷🏻‍♀️).

He’ll need some comfy sweat pants to wear. Your legs can swell quite a bit after surgery so nothing tight fitting.

Also I was super hungry after surgery (like after the first few days passed) so have lots of snack options.

The hospital will send you home with a walker/crutches (whatever they decide) and then most people transition to a cane. I got my cane for $20 on Amazon. The crutches my insurance covered.

Let me know if you have any other questions! I just had my hip done last September. :)

I'm a little late to this party, but I have a couple of yeti tumblers that work great for me when my hands are a mess.


A non screwing rubber gasket holds the top on, and the part that switches open/closed is magnetic and super easy to operate. There is a tab that I can press against the edge of the counter to open the top on days where I can't grasp it. whole thing is very easy to clean, too. Absolutely worth the price.


This is the one.

Yes, exactly this, but for a shorter time. I traveled from UK to Thailand last year with 2 Enbrel pens.

I got myself a small cool bag http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00C9VA8QE

I used 2 of the normal size cool packs
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000OW4CSU

I also used one of the big ice packs the come with my enbrel for delivery. When I get a delivery I put one or two back in the freezer, just in case. They last 24hrs, but I could only fit 1 into my small hand cool bag, but it lasted more than the flight from UK to Phuket, including transfer at Bangkok.

In terms of the flight, I needed a letter from the pharmacy that issues the pens and that was all that was required. Although I allowed an extra hour to get through security with them, I went through normally without much of a problem, an extra 2min check of the letter and verify what it was after x-ray.

In fact while transferring in Bangkok it went through the scanner and there was some commotion, so I started unpacking it to explain, but they were more worried about my bottle of water!

In terms of storage, I used the mini bar in my hotel room. But make sure you have something available. Be careful though, as I've heard of hotels putting medication in the freezer, so if you are using their fridge, ask to put it in yourself to be sure!

If things do go badly, you can keep enbrel at room temperature for up to 14 days, just don't put it back in the fridge.
https://www.enbrel.com/support/storage-and-travel/

Thailand is very modern in Bangkok, so I'm sure you could probably get Enbrel there, but it is very expensive to buy (I've seen the UK costs!), so I would look at taking it with you.

If it's your first time doing any longish travel and you have health concerns, 3 months is probably enough for an initial trip anyway, so you could come back from Asia, head home for a few weeks/month and then hit South America, Europe or go elsewhere...

Traveling is hard work, so make sure you take enough rest in between too! Seriously, it can be tough, lugging your bag about, checking in, flights/bus rides, all the activities, you can get travel burn out, trust me!

Look at ankle-high moccasins. They come usually fur lined so they are super warm and cozy and completely washable on the inside :) Moccasins are also made for wear and tear. You can get ones with good treads on the bottom. I have blue moccasins (yes they even come in pink) and they have lasted me for 3 years so far. The ones I have are slip-in also which is great and I wear them outside if it's cool out, like during fall time, to get the mail or run to the store or go to lectures. Here are some options:


Link1
Link 2

I’ve had RA for more than 25 years (basically my whole life), and coincidentally began playing piano the same year my symptoms appeared. I became a string player about 6 years later. I have recently quit teaching music in public schools. I’m a string player and no matter how independent my kids were I’d always end up tuning a few instruments every day, many of which were crummy “violin shaped objects” that were extremely difficult to tune. I had hand surgery last year and had to learn to do it differently, and it sucked. I adapted in lots of ways, and my singing got a lot more accurate pitch-wise because I would often sing instead of play in class. Between that and having kids demonstrate things when they were doing really well I managed to avoid a lot of playing.

I still gig and teach privately, but I don’t play on days I really hurt. Sometimes there isn’t any amount of technique modification or perfection that can help. Also, if my fingers are swollen enough I find it difficult to play in tune and accurately, not to mention the pain.I’ve read all of the recommended books for avoiding performance injuries in musicians (Janet Horvath and Nancy Taylor are authors you should check out if you haven’t already), and I’ve spent a lot of time working the tension out of my playing. I had a bunch of little nodules pop up on my fingers in the last year and quite frankly they scared the bejeezus out of me. My rheumatologist suggested that one of them might be due to the way I was holding my baton but due to elbow pain I spent a lot of time teaching my kids to play like chamber musicians and I didn’t wave the stick if I didn’t have to. I think it’s more likely from my bow hold, which I spent years working on and is otherwise comfortable at this point so it’s not going to change. My mom’s hands were in terrible shape the last 15 years of her life, and I’d like to preserve the use of mine for as long as I can. I spent a lot of time in therapy for my left hand post-surgery last year, too.

Leaving public schools has helped with the fatigue aspect of the RA, tremendously. It’s important to remember that autoimmune arthritis isn’t solely a disease of the joints. Fatigue, brain fog, etc are all common symptoms that can be difficult to manage. Unfortunately it wasn’t uncommon for me to pull 12-14 hour days multiple days in a row, and sometimes work 6 or 7 days a week. It was exhausting. Teaching is exhausting, period, but being a music teacher is extra exhausting. I’m planning to go back to school in January for something else because I don’t see myself returning to the classroom.

Anyway I’m glad you found so many ways to adapt and continue to pursue your passion. Good luck to you, and check out those authors if you haven’t already. Nancy Taylor is an incredible musician and also a licensed occupational therapist, so she knows what she’s talking about! Janet Horvath’s book is excellent as well.

Nancy Taylor

Janet Horvath

I got my mom one of these doodads and it works great. It's been about 10 years and it's still going strong. I want one for me (no arthritis in my hands, it's just hard to open jars sometimes, lol). https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GEVLJPI/ref=asc_df_B01GEVLJPI5488645/

She has one of these, too, to help carry groceries and swears by it. Hers has a padded handle, but otherwise is similar. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/POP-Trip-Grips-Shopping-Grocery-Bag-Holders-Handle-Carrier-Lock-Labor-Save-Tool/32589510144.html

I know they make attachments for oven/stove dials that can be used to make the dials easier to grip.

ETA: Oh, and for standing, I don't have shoe recommendations, but I know that some restaurants will get thick padded mats for employees who have foot issues, to make standing at a station for a long period easier. Maybe get a couple for in front of the stove/sink/her preferred work area?

I saw my massage therapist yesterday (who specializes in sports medicine) and he used a gel on my joints that felt great! So today I went a bought some. Biofreeze. I got a roll-on so it doesn't have to be massaged in. Used it on elbows and wrists today!

I've been wanting a paraffin wax bath for a while now and was thinking I could get the wax all the way up my wrists. A great way to keep some heat on the joints! I've heard from others that they love paraffin for their hands.

I loved the ergonomic wave design of the K350. When I needed to replace my last one I opted to go with a gaming keyboard, the Razer Deathstalker (not allowed mechanical keyboards where I'm currently living).

https://www.amazon.com/Razer-DeathStalker-Expert-Ergonomic-Programmable/dp/B009SJR28W

It doesn't have the wave design but the non mechanical, chiclet style keys are much nicer on the fingers. My fingers move across the keyboard more easily too. Privy and the quality of Razer can be up for debate but I got mine refurbished through their website 3 1/2 years ago and it's still going strong. And I probably jinxed myself.

I highly recommend a good turmeric circumin supplement, I take two in the morning and one at night and have found it highly beneficial. Here's what I use, it's got the best concentration to price ratio I've seen on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VSVKJ8I?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Oooh I'd totally give you the boot lol!
One thing he mentioned that I totally forgot about are these :

Tuli's Heavy Duty Heel Cups (2-Pairs), Green - Pro Heel Cup Shock Absorption and Cushion Inserts for Plantar Fasciitis, Sever's Disease and Heel Pain Relief https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y19V14X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_GSwDDbBXAW0C7.

The doctor recommended them, and the relief was right up there with my boot! Seriously feels amazing, especially after walking around like this. You do need to wear shoes with them, or maybe socks will work.

Compression socks have helped my tendon,and if your feet are swelling they will help that too.

I used ice before my boot, just really do it for 20 minutes though, it can damage it if it's on longer.

Don't be afraid to tell the Rheumatologist if the plaquenil is not helping. I was afraid to go on an injection and it went so easy ❤

I bought these and they're a big help. The copper ribbing did come off fairly quickly but the compression goes a long way.

Best of luck to you, my friend.

Edit: I do also sometimes use medical tape on the joints closest to my nails, if they're hurting.

I’m really late to the game with this post, but I have this water bottle with a carabiner hooked to the loop. It’s easier for me to pull on the carabiner to loosen the top than to twist the lid off. Button is easy to release the spout, but i don’t recommend locking it because i can never get it undone.

Contigo water bottle

A nice heating pad is a great idea though! I have this one and I love it!