Anyone with Carpal Tunnel or aching joints?

husker dosent it kind of smell real bad ???
Gloria

It does smell but then I wrap a bandage around it and helps control the odor. I'm believing more that my left wrist isn't feeling the 'pins & needles' as before. Also it's cheaper....and it gives my husband a laugh.

The only way I can keep pain at bay, without taking meds, is to use Aspercreme. I have been using it since 1976. I have CMT, a muscular disease that causes bilateral muscular atrophy in the extremities. That boils down to wasting of muscles from the elbows to the fingers and from the knees to the toes. I can get RLS just by trying to walk or stand for 5-10 minutes. Thankfully, so far I don't have Carpal Tunnel, though one of our sons did. And I suspect I also have Fibromyalgia like Nicky. As all of you have said, it's hell getting old, but our gardens keep us going. I have more pain in the winter, because I can't get out and hoe, pull or kill weeds in general and photograph beautiful flowers. So hang in there gardeners, we will survive!

Timescape ~

You Bet'cha HappyJackMom! Thank you for telling me to back up and be truly thankful for the blessings I have. You have gone through pain for over 30 years! I admire you so much for doing the things that are making your life worthwhile and joyful! I don't think I'll fuss anymore. Pain is an aggravation but it doesn't have to destroy the beauty in our life. God has given us that in abundance. Thank you for your story.

Sharon

I agree with Huskers. I think I will cmplain a little less and try to do a little more. Love all my Iris Friends.

They used to make quinine tablets you could buy over the counter and they were the best thing ever for leg cramps. Now they have taken them off the shelves! Never thought of quinine water!!! It is usually located where the mixers are located for "mixed drinks". I now take a 'script for mine because they are so bad...Neurontin. It also takes away muscle pain in my face and spastic colon....from stress.
My wrists are killing me!! I used to have a brace for my right one which is the worst but lost it somewhere and can't find another that is stiff enouogh to hold them.
Potassium...also good for leg cramps. Bananas are a great source. Ask your Dr. before taking tablets though as they do affect your heart or blood pressure or something... i have to take them too.
Deb

I, too, take Neurontin for nerve pain. I have periferal neuropathy in legs, feet, and arms and hands and find neurontin ( gabapenten) to be quite helpful. It is absolutely essential for letting me sleep at night.
I understand the quinine tablets were taken off the market because they could cause heart attacks in some patients. My DH's doctor suggested magnesium for his leg cramps and it worked. You are right about asking your doctor first. DH's doctor vetoed potassium tablets for the leg cramps. He said that as we get older potassium becomes a problem. Not sure exactly how. I don't think he would have objected to the potassium from food.

WARNING!!! I just read the back of the can on WD40. It says that if you get it on your skin, to wash with soap & water. I don't think I'll be using that anymore. Wouldn't you know it!

i am now in physical therapy for my lower back! I could not take the PAIN anymore!
Been going to the doc and trying to figure out where all the PAIN is coming from!
he said-Take it easy-does he realize im a gardener and fall is fast approaching and i have a MILLION things to do before winter? I will rest later!! im taking the meds and going to therapy for now-WOW thats shocking machine is something else! I know i should eat better and i hate MILK! getting old has some down falls!! :( my mind is so far behind my body!!!
I know i need a heating pad!!! wonder if this seed mat would work-FULL body!!! lol

wd40--- thats if you are the TIN man!!! ;) ;)

cellebrex and vicoden is what im on now!
did steroids and another pain med-that didnt work so they took a BUNCH of blood to check for lots of things!!

fingers crossed!!
gardening------im starting to wonder WHY???

Because you love it Martha. That feeling of seeing something grow you planted or a seedling you made a certain cross of that promises to be the most beautiful bloom yet. We are obsessed with it and the doctors and pain managers just need to know how to keep us going or they will have no beautiful bloom to enjoy either.

LOL but i do thingz BIG

only a small part!!

No wonder your back aches! That garden looks like it was produced by a lot of loving work. I ache too from gardening, but my garden is no where near that pretty. But I love it and enjoy slaving over it. For me, it is a lot more fun than mopping!

Fantastic garden--theropy for the mind. I use a wrap around back brace because of arthritis of the spine. It doesn't cure, but it helps.

52 here.
Gosh I see I am not alone here. I suffer from DDD. I have been in pain for many years. Pinched nerves from my neck to my lower back. The doctors don't really help and cant give you any real answer.Some have said I am in real bad shape and then I go to another and he says, oh hec you are ok. I have to beg for muscle relaxers to sleep at night due to the spasms I have. I have found that Momentum that I buy at CVS works great.Just do not like taking them too much.
Pain in the arm to where it hurts to pick up the coffee pot, stir bowls of food, turn radio station in car. Oh it just hurts.

I love to garden and move and shovel dirt. My husband says you are not happy unless you have your hands in the dirt and covered in dirt.
Well he is right there. I would rather be outside any day then in the house cleaning.
Give me a book or a shovel and I am in heaven out side.
But I do find that I need some help doing things now, or I really pay the price.
I agree, old age does stink.

Love your yard photo. The little wagon just makes it feel like such a homey cottage garden. Sweet.

Ahhhhhh NotMartha is better than Martha. That garden area is breathtaking to say the very least. I want to come walk through your garden and sit for awhile and just take everything in. It looks like a painting to me!
Marian

I love your garden "Better than Martha". ;)

You have put the right plants together to make a stunning display. What a talent to have!

Cathy

I'm finally back online, and just popping in here with another great suggestion for aches and pains. my chiropractor - yeah, the more gardening I do the more I need him - turned me on to a product call BioFreeze. it rolls on like a big deodorant, and kills the sting and pain. if only I had known old age hurt so much, maybe I would have been wilder in my youth and not given a hoot about the future......

I think it is the other way around, bonjon. I met a lady about my age who was a professional ballerina and she is really hurting now in her old age from arthritis. I think you were wise if you weren't to wild with your body in your youth. Yes we have aches and pains but nothing like professional athletes when they get old. Most of them really bang their joints up -- except perhaps for golfers.

still reading here, having fun "listening" in after so long away

Hi Nicky! Hi Dee!

Nana you have dmail

Pajar, you are so right about age.

is quinine the same as tonic? it is, right? let's see now. a snort of pickle juice, a slug of apple cider vinegar, a slosh of tonic...well, might as well add two fingers of gin to the tonic, and a slice of lime for scurvy.....

husker - I love that idea of naming irises instead of counting sheep. LOL with my luck, I'd start worrying about where to transplant them to.....did that once, DH woke me up when I started talking in my sleep about needing to buy acreage....

have long known that it takes a measure of "wisdom" to truly appreciate irises. Let's all just say the aches and pains are caused by an excess of wisdom instead of a......

hey pajar, well, was hoping maybe I'd been so wild and had so much fun i didn't make it to the aches and pains stage.... ;o)

but you're right. I was in a bad traffic rear end collision age 21 - my little Toyota's rear took a ride on the front end of a pickup truck driven by a 16 year old. walked away, didn't see a doc. age 56 - now I have arthritis in my neck joints from that untreated whiplash. that was most of the reason my neck messed up so bad and I was wearing that neck collar at nationals.

Yes, quinine is tonic and perhaps two fingers of gin will help the aches and pains!

I, too, have stayed awake at night worrying about where I would plant all my new iris -- not so long ago. So I don't count iris to fall asleep. Counting iris will only work on people who don't have such a huge backlog as I do.

Yep, experiences of the past find homes in our bodies. I have a knee that will never forget a certain polka I did at 19. It was fun until I fell.

oh yummy POLKA!! not to achy for that anyday!

Oh my goodness now we're all going to be trying out for Dancing with the Stars, or dancing with Our Flowers. (grin)

Just a few years ago I took dance lessons and danced 5 or 6 hours EVERY evening with the exception of Sundays. I loved it and boy was I in shape. Last year we went to a dance and I could barely dance 3 or 4 dances. Round is a shape, but it's not one for dancing the night away.LOL I would have to say that it was the best way to keep in shape and have fun at the same time. I could and did dance every dance from the time they opened till they closed. The time just flew by before you knew it. Oh well those were some of the better days gone by.

Maybe we should have a DAVE'S GARDEN DANCE OFF....at a couple of our Roundups. LOL Now wouldn't that be a hoot?

Happy Gardening, Marian

you and me both, Marian.

after my divorce, I'd always wanted to dance more, and discovered my church's singles group would go to line dance lessons at a local nightclub together. it cost around $10 for an annual membership. Early on Sunday evenings it would be $1 door fee. Then the lessons were free. found out they did the same thing with two step lesson on Tuesday nights, so we started going then, too, and that was even more fun. As a single mom and broke, $1 for a lesson, and $1 for a cola plus the cost of a babsitter was about all I could afford for a social life. and there with girl friends to back each other up, so very safe, we never had any problems. after one year, I was proficient, and from a size 16 to a size 7/8 and getting more offers to dance than there were songs to dance to! would dance every dance until the sitter turned into a pumpkin! the Longbranch was a great place! was surprised that it closed two years ago, something about new regulations too costly to meet. that was 1989.

now I'm lucky I don't fall over on a spin! LOL

Yes, good dance venues are hard to come by. Sounds like you stumbled onto a good one, bonjon. Dancing **is** a fabulous exercise, the best except for swimming. I would do it again tomorrow if I could find a good dance class. I would have to leave DH at home, but who says married women can't go dancing if their DH's don't want to ? Not me! I would love to find a good venue.

i have biofreeze! it works for a while but just like icy hot and ben gay it fades in time!!
im just going to have to take it easy---when winter gets here 0:)

Well, I guess I'm going to need to double up on my fresh veggies - Selling irises and daylilies again on eBay and all that entails is bringing back that old familiar feeling...Time to buy some Bengay! ;)

Suffered for 18 years with pain. Diagnosed with degenerative disk disease, had back surgery, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibrymyalgia, blah-blah-blah, just got worse and worse. Will share what has worked for me. Diet of fruits and vegetables only. No dairy. Chronic pain is gone. Each day is wonderful to wake up feeling good. I'm 62 years old and 5 years ago could not walk 15 minutes at a slow pace, was in pain every day. In the fall of 2004, I changed my diet and lifestyle totally following this plan: http://www.drmcdougall.com/ I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. Today, my neighbor constantly says, "I've never seen anyone work like you do." I shovel dirt, load stones in my little wagon to border beds, use weedeater and edger, etc., at least 5 hours every day. I take absolutely zero prescription medications.

For those times when overdoing my gardening activities causes soreness and shoulder pain, etc., I use Egoscue positional stretching routine. Absolutely amazing how it stops the pain. Like giving yourself a chiropractic adjustment. Nothing strenuous. http://www.egoscue.com. I bought the Pain Free book on Amazon pretty cheap.

I am in no way employed or connected to these organizations. Hope this helps someone because I know what it is like to absolutely want to get out of your body that's racked with pain.

DNP

I am willing to try that. I am so tired of being in some sort of pain. I can seem to get the doctors to understand how I feel. I work out side the home and stand on my feet all day. I find myself leaning on the counter to ease the preasure off my back. My right arm has nerve pain runing down to my thumb and have lost some strength and control in it. It is scary when you go to wash your face and you notice that you are using your left arm to operate your right. That was scary when I stood in front of the mirror and suddenly seen what I was doing.
If I could write like this to the doctor maybe he would understand. I cant seem to say it the same way while in the office as I can say it here.
But no cheese or cereal with milk, that would cause a withdraw.
Can I use the lactate milk?

I have pain from arthritis in the spine & ankles. Using a wrap around back brace helps standing. ankles? I have good bone density for my age I think possibly as my morning drink for years has been skim milk instead of coffee, which I don't like. Each body is different & I'm glad that you have found something which works for you.

Dogs_n,
Did you go to one of those clinics for Egoscue? Did you buy the MacDougal cd's? The nearest clinic to me is 334 miles away. It would be hard to go there. The exercises sound like yoga -- is that your experience?

I have cut meat and dairy out of my diet for the most part -- not for arthritis pain, but to lower my cholesterol and my triglycerides. I have discovered that I enjoy a vegan diet.

I will look into all of the above and especially the book Pain Free.

Thanks for the tips.

pajaritomt,
I started with the Pain Free book. Then found out that an Egoscue trainer comes to Irving (Dallas) once a month and I did pay for one session with him, which was helpful but not absolutely necessary. It is rather expensive and Irving is about 90-minute drive in the very worst freeway traffic from where I live, so I only did that once.

I was worried that Egoscue would be like yoga, which I also tried about 2 times in a "beginner" class that was WAY too advanced for the poor physical condition I was in. LOL. I just hated it. But Egoscue e-cises were easier for me to follow and get benefit from. I've had lots of problems for 40 years with sciatic nerve pain down my leg and there is one e-cise that if I follow the instructions carefully, lying still on the floor will cause that nerve to relax and pain goes away. That is absolutely amazing to me. There are different sections in the Pain Free book that apply to different areas of the body, such as shoulders, feet, etc.

Yes, I bought the McDougall DVD's and got lots of motivation from them. Also the books and cookbooks. Great place for recipes is: http://www.fatfreevegan.com/ Hundreds of wonderful recipes. More than I'll ever get around to making, especially since I work out in the yard so much nowdays.

Over 18 years, I saw 14 different doctors, was prescribed NSAIDs of every kind which did no good. Said no to narcotic pain pills because of my fear of becoming addicted. Last orthopedic surgeon I saw chewed me out and said I just needed to accept the fact that I was becoming disabled and should quit my job, that he would supply me with NSAIDs and pain pills to keep me comfortable. I was so tired of chronic pain that at times I seriously considered ending my life.

So changing my diet and gradually increasing exercise was not nearly as radical of a program to me. I went 100% on McDougall eating plan and used Egoscue e-cises as rehab. I am healthier and happier at 62 than I was at 32. I don't do e-cises now except when I overdo it in the yard and then I go back to it for relief. I do faithfully follow the McDougall eating plan.

Peace & Health,
DNP

this is really great information. I'm going to look into all of it.

pajar, I still swim as frequently as I can. my neck arthritis is making it a bit harder to do anything that requires lifting my head up out of the water when I'm belly down in it. but back stroke and modified breast stroke, or using kickboards, help.

give up milk? oh dear. I adore milk. Momma raised us on water, milk and orange juice only. in college (Boston area) I developed a taste for hot tea, then iced tea. don't drink much alcohol, and only coffee when I'm frozen and there's no tea or hot chocolate. but no milk? do you need to take calcium suppliments? my doc says my bones are in great shape for someone post menapause.

I am actually part way there on the diet. I gave up meat and dairy about a year ago and lost about 20 or 25 pounds and improved my blood lipids. Last time anyone checked my bones were fine, but probably should have them run that test again.
I have developed periferal neuropathy and sciatica and have been trying to find a way to alleviate it. Right now, I take neurontin for it -- which is not a narcotic, but I would prefer not to have to take medication to feel good.
I gave up alcohol because that is something that can cause neuropathy but that didn't help. I had my blood tested for diabetes and I don't have it. I am trying to figure out what is causing it because it is genuinely a pain! I am almost 65.
I have been reading quite a bit about diet lately and it is a myth that one must drink milk and eat dairy products to have strong bones. In fact the nations that consume the most meat and dairy products are the ones with the highest osteoporosis rates.
I have done yoga off and on all my life and am taking it now, but only one day a week. I hope to step up my yoga program to at least 2 days a week and was wondering if the egoscue method would be like yoga. Perhaps it is like very basic yoga. Dog_n, I have taken beginning yoga classes that were killer ones as well, and that is no fun and is a mean thing for a yoga teacher to do to a student. They don't have to be the least bit difficult.
I will start with the book pain free and see where that leads. I just hate the idea that I will hurt like this for the rest of my life. Speaking as someone who has given up milk, I can say that I miss it whenever I eat cookies or peanut butter sandwiches, but other than that I don't miss it and apparently, my bones don't either.

pajar! you don't look that old! congrats!

I don't think that old either. I keep wondering, how did I get this old? LOL. But I do have some aches and pains.