What happens if you just ignore arthritis ?

[Greedybilly]

I saw my mum at the weekend- really alarmed at how poor her mobility is.(haven't seen her for a few weeks). Shuffling/limping in pain (hips and knees). Told her it's arthritis and she needs meds/steroids/knee replacement in future?? She wont go to the gp though just puts it down to being old and thinks its 'normal '. Takes endless painkillers but will not go to go. Please help!!?? Thanks

Anyone?

How old is she and does she have any other medical conditions?

I can understand her ignoring it and telling herself it's normal wear and tear of ageing and I have friends like that. I've just been diagnosed with mild / early osteoarthritis which I hate but I was referred to the physiotherapist and already am walking better for longer after a few days of exercises and warm treatments. I was told that if Id just ignored it, it would get worse. There's an excellent thread here on osteoarthritis and exercise.

Your mum doesn't need to just accept it but I understand how frustrating this is for you

Sorry the thread is on osteoporosis but lots of good general advice. Obviously you don't know exactly what it is your mum is suffering from and won't until she sees a GP

@Abracadabra12345 thanks I'll have a look. I hope you continue to improve.

There is no help though is there? I asked GP about it but was told there is nothing that can be done and just to take paracetamol every day even though painkillers do not work for pain😬

I am riddled with arthritis

@NotSuchASmugMarried.hi - late 70's.no other meds.

@StanleyGoodspeed hmm that doesn't sound right. Painkillers etc? Some gp's are clueless .

@Abracadabra12345 glad to hear you've been offered physio. I was diagnosed a couple of years ago amd not offered any physio, gp jist told me to stop running and watchy weight! Maybe it's a postcode thing? I'm in the sputh East.

Going to the GP will get her started on the process to have a replacement if that’s what she wants. Replacements are great ops, really relieving the pain but they are big ops and take some recovery, my top tip is always to do the post op exercises religiously, it makes such a difference to outcomes.
Ultimately it just gets more painful and disabling if nothing is done.
Exercise does help retain some strength in the joints and helps recovery from ops. I only really exercise in water, on land hurts too much.
Sometimes painkillers help me a bit but don’t take the pain away. I switch between anti flammatories and paracetamol when I am having a break from anti inflammatory meds.

A lot depends on whether it is osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis (or both).
Who told her it's arthritis? You or a doctor? Does she have a diagnosis? How old is she?
I have both.
Osteo is the less serious but also has no treatment other than joint replacement and pain relief.
Rheumatoid is more serious but there are treatments that can make a massive difference. It's also more than joint pain, other symptoms include fatigue.

Whichever kind it is there will be things that make it better or worse. It's vital to keep moving, even if it hurts. The less you move the more the joints cease up.

Steroids would seldom be the first treatment because, while they help a lot, they have all kinds of side effects and are very difficult to stop.

I have very bad arthritis. So I think I am qualifed to say that in some ways I can see her point of view because there is often little that can be done, and I don't take the medications I should do because of the impacts of them. That said there is stuff that might help, and there are also joint replacements (my new hips are great, shame they can't replace my spine). But she is being foolish if she won't even try to help herself and get back some quality of life. If there were any treatements left for me I would take them - but right now my only option is highly addictive drugs, and I have never seen the point of solving one problem (pain) by developing another one (addiction). So I think here's a balance to be made, and judgement calls - but she can't achieve any of that if she won't even try!

That's kind of disturbing. Treatments, physio etc may or may not help - but there is stuff that can be done. It doesn't work for everyone or every condition, but the GP is talking rubbish.

@StanleyGoodspeed yes, for osteoarthritis the GP said exactly the same to me. I also have inflammatory arthritis and on meds for that, but it’s sticking plaster really.

Good days and bad days, it causes low mood and makes you feel like curling in a ball some days.

If it's osteoarthritis then there is a limited amount that can be done. The mainstay of treatment is painkillers. Physio can help a bit sometimes, although seldom seems to make any major or lasting difference. Steroid joint injections can sometimes give temporary relief, although there are only so many times you can have those. The natural course of osteoarthritis is typically to gradually get worse until joint replacement is required (if the patient is a candidate for surgery - otherwise just pain management.
So it's unlikely her GP will be able to offer her any treatment that will alter the course of the condition, but they could offer her symptom management. Whether she currently wants that is up to her.

I agree with pbdr. GP insisted relative and I (both very active) go through physio before they would even X-ray us. We both required immediate joint replacement when the X-rays were done and physio was worse than useless.

My very elderly mum doesn’t want an operation and nothing else is on offer.

Have a look at PRP and hyaluronic injections. You can't get them on the NHS at the moment, you'd need to go private.

https://versusarthritis.org/

https://versusarthritis.org/

Apologies for the double post!

but please do check out Versus Arthritis.

Thanks all I I massively appreciate your responses. I know I can't force her to do anything but I can gently encourage her to look at options. Thanks.x

I have tricompartmental osteoarthritis in both knees op and I'm only 54. Ortho surgeon said I have the knees of a 75 y/o and also said jury's out on hyaluronic injections and steroid injections only give temp relief and are less and less effective each time. I'm on crutches/sticks 70% of the time and in pain all day every day

If I ignore it, eventually I'll be in a mobility scooter.

He's been holding me off of a knee replacement for 5 years and they're deteriorating rapidly now so I'm pushing for a replacement as my quality of life (not to mention my ability to do my job) is severely impaired. Once it gets to that stage I think replacement is the only option

I've had a steroid injection which was actually fabulous. But only lasted 6 weeks 😭

Depends if she has got arthritis and if so, what type.

I can tell you now, if it's Rheumatoid and it gets out of control, she won't be able to ignore it. The pain is off the charts.

I have a relatives with arthritis who also do nothing but take pain tablets. They don't try to exercise or anything either. Losing weight, if one is several stones overweight, would help some.