Did you know this? The Arthritis Foundation offers a variety of self-help courses. Call the foundation at 1-800-283-7800 or visit www.arthritis.org to get info on courses like "Speaking of Pain," "Walk with Ease," "The Arthritis Self-Help Course," and "People with Arthritis Can Exercise (PACE)." 

Positive thinking is powerful. Studies suggest that if you're confident you can control arthritis, you'll experience less pain and enjoy greater function than you would with a more pessimistic attitude.

Is it working? You can't always use pain as the gauge for how much exercise is helping you. Even if moving your body causes some initial discomfort, making muscles stronger and increasing your range of motion can improve your quality of life—and ultimately cut your pain.

Set realistic goals. Pick goals that are achievable and mean something special to you. Your goal might be to play a game of tennis or dance at your child's wedding. Whatever your goal, visualizing achieving it will help keep you moving ahead.

• Did you know that osteoarthritis is caused by the wearing away of protective cartilage, largely because of wear and tear or abuse, though genetics and inflammation also play roles?

• Did you know that osteoarthritis is increasingly common with age, especially after midlife? By age 70, most people show signs of osteoarthritis, though not everyone develops symptoms.

• Did you know that before age 45, osteoarthritis is more common in men, but after age 45, it's more common in women?

• Did you know that osteoarthritis is by far the most common form of arthritis, affecting about 36 million people?

• Did you know that osteoarthritis doesn't generally afflict ankles? Researchers are looking into the biochemistry of this protection and are hoping it will help them fight osteoarthritis in other joints.

• Did you know that rheumatoid arthritis is caused by inflammation resulting from an attack on joints by the body's own immune system?

• Did you know that three-quarters of all cases of rheumatoid arthritis are in woman?

• Did you know that rheumatoid arthritis affects about 2 million people, making it the second most common type of arthritis? It's 10 times less common than osteoarthritis.
  

With rheumatoid arthritis, don't hold back. Few people want to jump whole-hog into aggressive drug therapies, but studies suggest quickly hitting rheumatoid arthritis hard with medication and gradually backing off works better. This approach is more likely to spare you permanent joint damage than if you start with less powerful drugs and work up to the stronger stuff.

Factor in your total health. Sometimes your arthritis medication can do double duty on other diseases. Example: Taking an NSAID for arthritis can lower the risk of colon cancer or Alzheimer's disease.

Beware of interactions. Taking nonselective NSAIDs with low-dose aspirin prevents aspirin's ability to lower the risk of future heart attack. The COX-2 selective NSAIDs (Celebrex, Vioxx, and Bextra) do not interfere with aspirin's effectiveness.

A shot of relief for the knees. An injection of hyaluronic acid (Hylagen, Synvisc), a natural fluid found in healthy joints, can sometimes help stiff osteoarthritic knees loosen up and feel better after a series of three or five weekly injections. This jelly-like visco supplement may offer six months of pain relief.

Source: Everyday Arthritis Solutions

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