Arthritis is the most common health condition that leads to inflammation, stiffness, and pain in the joints that eventually worsens with age. With the right kind of treatments, medications, dietary lifestyle changes and exercises, one can manage arthritis pain.
Rheumatoid arthritis often starts in the joints of hands and feet and affects the same joints on both sides of the body at the same time. Fatigue, morning stiffness, joint stiffness, limited motion, swelling, pain and numbness are a few of the early signs of rheumatoid arthritis. The very first sign of arthritis is pain called arthralgia. This causes a dull ache or a burning sensation in the joints.
There is no set arthritis treatment for this but conscious efforts and steps are taken that can help in reducing joint pain, regain and maintain good joint function and mobility. One needs to implement and continue practicing certain lifestyle changes that will effectively contribute to the bigger picture in improving overall well-being and combat arthritis.
Here are a few lifestyle changes one can make:
Follow a nutrient-dense diet-
Some foods tend to increase inflammation and hence those should be avoided. A proper consultation from the doctor is advised. Following certain dietary rules and consumption of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole foods helps in boosting the immune system. Red meat, processed foods, added sugar and excess intake of salt shall be avoided as it may aggravate inflammation, a main characteristic of arthritis.
Get up and Get Moving-
It may seem odd to engage in physical activities but low-impact exercises like walking, cycling, swimming, stretching not only help in strengthening your muscles and keeping your joints flexible but also elevate your mood, boost energy levels and increase your motivation!
Practise Hot and Cold Therapy-
Long, hot showers are perfect to release the stiffness in muscles and even ease the discomfort in joints. While cold baths are ideal to relieve joint pain, inflammation, and swelling. Applying an ice pack or a bag of frozen peas/ vegetables provides quick relief.
Massage-
A good massage can ease joint pain and discomfort.
Along with these lifestyle changes, one can practice a few joint-focused yoga exercises as well that help ease arthritis pain. It is ideal to do a quick warm-up before engaging in these exercises via a warm shower/ bath, a quick walk, cycling, etc.
Mountain poses with a twist (Tadasana)-
The gentle twist in this exercise helps in loosening hips, shoulders, knees along with opening up the joints.
Shoulder circles-
This exercise shall contribute to mobilizing your shoulder joints by stretching.
Chair Pose (Utkatasana)-
This pose is great in strengthening the hamstrings, glutes, calves, knee and ankle joints. Balancing against the wall shall help during the heel lifts.
Knee to Chest and Knee Circles (Apanasana)-
Lying on your back with your knees drawn closer to your chest, this pose gently stretches the lower back and provides mobility to the hips.
Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana)-
This exercise stretches the quadriceps by increasing hip and knee mobility and working on the hamstrings and gluteal muscles.
Also, Dharana at Shillim offers a detailed and holistic Panchakarma Treatment; a method of healing that is considered as a pillar on which most of the Ayurvedic healing relies. Ayurveda highly recommends this five-fold therapy as a seasonal treatment that helps in maintaining mental and physical hygiene and balance. Simply put, it’s a purification process that comprises 5 methods of balancing the doshas in your body and rejuvenating them. To know more see our art of detail programme.
Dharana ensures that these methods are highly beneficial and effective to combat arthritis and believes in treating it using Ayurveda. Apart from this, implementing these exercises and lifestyle changes shall also help combat arthritis pain to a greater degree. It won’t all happen in one day hence, it is essential to continue practicing them for improvement and results in the longer run.
