9 interesting and helpful strategies to deal with arthritis hand pain

Only the arthritis patient knows how difficult it is to do the daily activities, like doing make-up, cooking food, and much more. The condition can affect your ability to take care and others around you. If you are dealing with this condition or know someone, then this blog will prove fruitful to you & them.

Here we have mentioned some of the tried-and-tested life hacks which will help to reduce the dress on the thumbs, wrists, and fingers. Opting for these strategies can help you to carry out the daily activities with ease, prevent joint issues (which might trigger in the future), and reduce the risk of hand pain.

Strategies to reduce the Arthritis Hand Pain

Strategy 1: Turn the prescription medication caps upside down

To remove the child-proof cap from the medicine bottle needs to be pushed down & twisted. To do it correctly, you need strength, which is not possible when the joints are swollen and painful. Here’s is the trick which you can use:

Remove the cap and flip it over. The flip side is designed to work a twist-off cap that does not need much force.
Another option is to place the palm on one head over the cap and twist to open it. It will work better as compared to gripping & twisting when you use the thumb & fingers.

Strategy 2: Change the way you hold the children

Patients with arthritis and pain will have trouble holding their child and they worry that it would increase the pain. To lessen the pain and strain, make sure to keep the holding technique that does not put weight on the joints.

It is better that you hold them in front of you and do not put the entire weight on one arm. This way excess weight is not put on the hands and your shoulders & arm will get the same load.

Strategy 3: Use a different approach to hold the pen

Be it pen, pencil, or anything, it can be difficult to hold it when the joints are swollen and stiff. Arthritis patients should hold the pen in between the middle finger and pointer, instead of using the pointer finger and thumb. Make sure that you purchase the pen which has a wider grip and prefers the narrow ones.

Strategy 4: Buy the knives which have oversized handles and alternative designs
Sometimes, the grip is not strong enough to cut and chop food with a regular knife. Although, there are different knives available which you can buy that are specially designed for arthritis patients. Some of them come with extra-wide handles and they will be easier to get gripped. Some knives come with a rocking motion.

If possible, you can keep the knife at a 90-degree angle and this allows you to use a fisted grasp which will reduce the stress on the thumb joint.

Strategy 5: Wear loose and comfortable clothes

You should prefer to wear those clothes which are easy to take off and wear. Due to arthritis, the finger’s movement gets affected and it can be a challenge to wear the clothes with ease. You should wear clothes which are not buddy-hugging so that you can wear them easily. You can even try out the magnetic button clothes which will make everything better for you.

Strategy 6: Prefer the pump containers instead of squeeze bottles

The squeeze bottle or tube will put excess stress on the hand joints, especially the thumb will be in the most pain due to this problem. In such a case, it is better that you buy the pump container as it can be pressed with the palm and it will not put stress on the hands or thumb. Be it a container, soap, or any of the products you should use the bottles with a pump.

Strategy 7: Use the palm when taking an injection

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis and autoimmune arthritis need to self-inject themselves. We all know injecting the medication will require strain and pressure on the thumbs. It can be painful and lead to swelling.

In such a case, it is better that you use the palm to gently press it under the desired area. It is better that you take help from the medical expert and they can train you better to do it with perfection.

Strategy 8: Take benefit of talk-to-text

Why not make the most of the technology? Typing can be difficult with Arthritis hand pain. So, make sure that you use the voice-recording feature present on your device. This way you can directly send a message to someone without the need of typing it again and again.

Strategy 9: Select the right kind of mug

Make sure that you select the right kind of mug which does not lead to increased pain levels. Do not buy the heavy one and it should be comfortable to hold.

Wrap up!

Just make sure that you do and opt for those things which are important for you and it should not increase the pain. If your problem is getting worse or nothing is helping you then get in touch with our ortho doctor without any delay.