Impact of arthritis pain on everyday lives

A new survey of people with arthritis has revealed that many are in so much pain that they are prevented from doing daily tasks such as making a cup of tea or going to the shops.

Arthritis Care questioned over 2,000 people with arthritis in order to determine the impact of joint conditions on people's everyday lives.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they had difficulty making a cup of tea on bad days, while 64 per cent were unable to do housework.

Seventy-seven per cent revealed that pain prevents them from sleeping through the night and 50 per cent were not able to work.

The survey, which was published to coincide with Arthritis Care Week (May 24th to 30th), also highlighted the impact of arthritis on people's relationships.

Nearly two-thirds (63 per cent) of respondents said they are sometimes in too much pain to have sex and 65 per cent revealed that even hugging a loved one can be difficult.

Yet 94 per cent of people with arthritis admitted that they hide their pain from their friends and family members, and 57 per cent said they would only seek medical help if the pain became unbearable.

Neil Betteridge, chief executive of Arthritis Care, said that arthritis can have a "shocking" impact on activities that most people take for granted.

One big thing, is the pain makes me much more grumpy!!!

ok let me add this, wtf.. people don't go to drs.. thats plain stupidity.. and i think if they even knew about RA.. and most people don't..!.. they would run, take the RA test and find out, if they had this.

Why not tell people?? they can't help or understand you.. if you don't share.

Like I said, i'm much more grouchy, on bad days/ flares.. like today.. and when my helper comes over, i let her know.. so she can be aware of the kind of day, i'm having.

Whispered2010-06-01 20:47:43Who are the two percent that can do housework but had difficulty making tea?Of course we hide our pain. Who wants to hear about it all the time? Even my wonderful, understanding husband might get tired of listening if I mentioned it every time I hurt, and I don't want to find out if that happens. He's my confidant and I don't want to wear him out.

I suspect what people mean by "unbearable" is when it interferes too much with life for their personal situation. Everyone can stand differing amounts of pain, and the longer I put off using the hard-core narcotics, the better I like it.

[QUOTE=Bluehour]Of course we hide our pain. Who wants to hear about it all the time? Even my wonderful, understanding husband might get tired of listening if I mentioned it every time I hurt, and I don't want to find out if that happens. He's my confidant and I don't want to wear him out.

[/QUOTE]

In my opinion, there is a big difference between acknowledging your pain and talking about it all the time.

For a very long while, I refused to admit that pain was causing me to limit the things I enjoyed. Once I was able to come to terms with and deal with my chronic pain, my life became much better.

I don't believe in suffering for sufferings sake. I use pain meds and they do affect the quality of my life, they make it better Yeah, Lynn, me too. Didn't mean to imply I don't take meds. I take the mildest one possible and I'm on half the permissable dosage. My life too has improved immensely, mainly because now I can sleep. The difference between acknowledging my pain and talking about it all the time is far from clear to me. Every time I bring it up I feel like I'm whining. No one but my husband realizes the scope, unless it's by accident. Recently my mother accused me of being rude by grabbing the arm rest of the car when she goes round a corner. I explained it had nothing to do with her driving ability, but was my attempt to keep from moving around in the seat which hurts my hip. She was shocked to realize that I have pain in such an every day situation, and I think 99% of non-RA people haven't got a clue how much it hurts to even hold the strap of a light-weight purse or carry a coffee cup. Not to mention how wearing it is to have five thousand small jolts every day of your life.

I see I'm going on and on. That's why I like this board, because I can say things like this and know the people who read it will understand. It helps me keep my mouth shut about my trials and tribulations with everyone else.

[QUOTE=Bluehour] That's why I like this board, because I can say things like this and know the people who read it will understand. It helps me keep my mouth shut about my trials and tribulations with everyone else.[/QUOTE]

Support and venting... that's what makes this place so good..

Having someone just understand what you mean.... goes a long long way.

I remember those days. Even holding on to things, Gosh the broken glasses, the pans and plates that I dropped that I thought I had such a good hold on. I learned to always hold on with both hannds. Using my kness and channel locks to open bottles and etcs. And Blue, so true. When I first had all my pain, I kind of chased off all my friends with my doom and gloom pain stories. I learned that lesson also. Friends are sympathetic but they only have so much sympathy to spare. My downer disposition would bring them down and so they quit calling. Fortunately some good friends set me straight. Instead of all my conversations being about me and my disease and woes, I would give a short update and move on. Works much better.

LEV

I have a small pillow that I use to sleep and I use it where ever I need to. Under my knees, under my arm, etc. I would never go to bed without it now.
Going to the bathroom and trying to wipe was impossible with bad shoulders. Another person on another site suggested putting a face cloth on the door handle and backing into it with a little wiggle. Of course he was joking.

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