joint pain suggestions...severe pain

My joints hurt so bad that it could put me in tears. I sit at work and I am completely miserable because I work in a business office and my hands and wrists have severe pain. I have percocet which does absolutely nothing for me and tylenol doesn't do a thing either. Anyone think of anything else I can try?? I will try ANYTHING. Usually prednisone helps me....but im already on that. I have a note out to my family practice dr but no response yet.

Thanks

 

I also have a lot of problems with my joints. My rheumatologist put me on Imuran and Cymbalta along with a low dose of predisone and it has really worked for me. I tried about everything else and this combo has been a blessing.

I have severe Psoriatic Arthritis. Here are some of the things I've done:

Prednisone Blast--sometimes even more effective than reg. prednisone. It'll give you a high blast of it. Ask your doc about it

Cortisone Shot--If you have one area of particularly bad inflammation, a cortisone shot will relieve the swelling and pain.

Non-pharmaceutical options: epsom salt bath, heating pad and arnica cream. Sometimes reducing dairy and gluten also helps when the pain is bad. Acupuncture also works well, but you usually need to go more than once.

 

I had severe ankle swelling (looked like I had gout), and arthritic pains in both of my knees, both pinkies and my jaw became misaligned and sore about 2 yrs ago. My feet got so bad that I could only wear flip flops and ended up in a brace and on crutches for two weeks. My GI wanted to put me on Imuran or Remicade, but I was leery of both and decided to try acupuncture. Within a couple of sessions, I began to feel better - though I still battled swelling in my ankle. My acu ordered a fecal CDSA test that revealed I was severely deficient in lactobacillus bacteria. She put me on a lactobacillus probiotic and a vegetarian glucosamine. Within two days of taking the vegetarian glucosamine, the pain diminished so greatly that I couldn't believe it. I had been taking a glucosamine-chondroitin that didn't help at all. This vegetarian version was amazing! I believe that the combo of the acupuncture, probiotic, vege glucosamine and lactobacillus got my symptoms under control. It took maybe 3-4 months for my ankles to look completely normal again, but I had pain relief long before that.
I started having an arthritic flare about a month and a half ago. In particular, my knees, ankles and the muscle behind my shin would begin to ache and throb overnight. It typically gets a little better as the day wears on and I get around more. The pain goes away almost immediately (within a day) after acupuncture, and I load up on the glucosamine. The swelling has mostly stayed in check this time. If I'm really achy or in a lot of pain, I take Mobic (meloxicam - a prescribed anti-inflammatory), which really addresses the pain.
Most days I do ok by upping the glucosamine. I also take Isatis Cooling - a Chinese anti-inflammatory herb that my acupuncture recommends. And I take fish oil as a general anti-inflammatory aid.

All of these things took time, but my understanding was that Imuran would take a couple of months to show noticeable effects, too, and I've had no negative side effects from the herbs and acupuncture. I am grateful that Imuran and Remicade and other drugs are there if I need them, but I've been managing pretty well with less invasive Eastern approaches. My acupuncturist is very good and atuned to the interrelated systems of the body and process of inflammation. She was recommended to me by a friend battling MS. My acu has another Crohn's patient who is also deficient in lactobacillus and another patient with UC who is also deficient. Maybe there is a specific link between low lactobacillus and Crohn's? We've all improved on this regimen.

I hope you get some relief soon. I was laid off 2 years ago and often wonder during arthritic flares how I would be able to work a 40-hour week job while in so much pain.