Herbal Remedies for RA

Tetesandra

Does anyone on here have any herbal remedies for RA to help with pain? I don't like taking meds and right now am having major problems with my hands,. The Drs want me to go see a specialist however it is a 3 month waiting period just to get in and they will only force meds on me,

MelaniaTrump

Fish oil? But diet goes a long way. Just google diet to help with RA. I would think stretching type yoga every night would be your best bet.

CipherZero

Fish oil - EPA especially - will help with inflammatory conditions such as RA, Crohn's disease, and others. Although its written for folks with IBS/IBD, check out the book "Eating Right for a Bad Gut". The doctor who wrote it covers dietary changes that can help with inflammation response and a lot will apply.

Tetesandra

Thanks I was told to eliminate all wheat products and that staying away from as much carbs as possible would help too. I am trying the cinnamon ad raw honey as I use it during allergy season for my allergies and works great.

Larissa_NY

Fish oil helps a little, but there are no herbal remedies.

Look, don't screw around with RA. It is a horrible disease and if you don't treat it aggressively at the outset it's likely to cripple you. Your doctors aren't going to "force" meds on you, though they will justly think you're foolish for not wanting to taking them, but the disease absolutely will force things on you that you will find are much worse than any medication used to treat it.

ClubSilencio

Eat more pineapples. They're rich in bromelain. You can also buy this in supplement form and it's inexpensive.

Also, ginger and turmeric.

truelight_photo_craig

Larissa_NY wrote: »

Fish oil helps a little, but there are no herbal remedies.

Look, don't screw around with RA. It is a horrible disease and if you don't treat it aggressively at the outset it's likely to cripple you. Your doctors aren't going to "force" meds on you, though they will justly think you're foolish for not wanting to taking them, but the disease absolutely will force things on you that you will find are much worse than any medication used to treat it.

This is what I would suggest. My ex has RA. Get the proper treatment as quickly as possible. The destruction it can and will cause is worse than taking medication.

anglyn1

I find a low carb diet and avoiding artificial sweeteners help to manage my RA symptoms but I still take medicine. No amount of dieting or supplementing can stop the joint damage from occurring. I don't like to take meds either but I will do what I have to do prevent joint replacements and worse. RA is systemic disease that can attack your whole body....even the lining of your heart so it's not just about achy joints! By all means try diet, ginger, turmeric, fish oil, and the rest to control your pain while waiting but be sure to follow your doctor's advice as well.

singingflutelady

Turmeric

RuNaRoUnDaFiEld

Don't take fish oils without checking with a Dr if you are on any medications, esp blood thinners.

maroonmango211

I am in the same boat, I actually see my specialist for the first time tomorrow (been waiting almost 4 months) but am worried the only suggestion they will have is a boat load of pharmaceuticals that will just mask symptoms and possibly create others.

Personally I find that taking my vit D and fish oils religiously helps the regular morning stiffness and swelling as well as avoiding wheat. I know there isn't much actual evidence of the connection when celiac isn't diagnosed but I had my worst flare up ever last fall when I thought since my gut felt better I could eat it again without problems.... I was so wrong.

In the end though taking preventative medication if your doctor suggests it, may be the best and smartest option. Not only can it help your day to day and/or flare up times now it can make your quality of life in the future much better than it would be if you avoided meds altogether.

JustinAnimal

There's always... uh... herbal remedies. Like remedies that are medicinal and caused by herbs. "Herb"-al remedies.

Eff it. Just smoke some pot.

What's RA?

singingflutelady

Rheumatoid arthritis

mbaker566

ginger and tumeric can assist but if you are at that point, there is nothing wrong with taking medicine. RA is not something you should be messing around with.
yoga can help with mobility issues too.

JustinAnimal

Oh yeah, try the herbal remedies.

singingflutelady

maroonmango211 wrote: »

I am in the same boat, I actually see my specialist for the first time tomorrow (been waiting almost 4 months) but am worried the only suggestion they will have is a boat load of pharmaceuticals that will just mask symptoms and possibly create others.

Personally I find that taking my vit D and fish oils religiously helps the regular morning stiffness and swelling as well as avoiding wheat. I know there isn't much actual evidence of the connection when celiac isn't diagnosed but I had my worst flare up ever last fall when I thought since my gut felt better I could eat it again without problems.... I was so wrong.

In the end though taking preventative medication if your doctor suggests it, may be the best and smartest option. Not only can it help your day to day and/or flare up times now it can make your quality of life in the future much better than it would be if you avoided meds altogether.

Some of the drugs are scary but biologics (ricade, humira, etc) lower your immune system (RA is an autoimmune disease where your immune system attacks your joints so lowering it is a good thing) and I have seen lots of RA suffers benefit greatly (though they have severe forms of RA and it is kinda a list ditch drug). I don't have RA, I have severe Crohn's but they seem to give us the same drugs. I am on Remicade and it has changed my life.

shadowfax_c11

I think the best course is to listen to your DR.

I don'e know about herbal remedies that can help but I do know that avoiding foods in the nightshade family is helpful. Tomatoes, Potatoes and peppers are all in that family and seem to cause flare ups for some people with RA. My mother in law always suffered if she gave in and ate one of those foods.

A hot soak in a tub with epsom salts helps my achy joints quite a bit. Also moving and being active. While it can be uncomfortable it does help to keep the joints from locking up as much.

ayamagali

A coworker of mine swears by kratum (sp?) for pain. It's a powder that she mixes in water.

MelaniaTrump

I googled Kratum. It's used for pain relief. Does nothing to stop the problem. Doping up is not the cure.

CharlieBeansmomTracey

I have RA and I dont use any herbs,what improved my pain and made things better was weight lifting. I dont have to take any meds as of yet,so not sure if this is something you can do or not. hubby couldnt even rub my shoulders back then because of it hurting. now I have little to no pain. all i need is some aleve when I do have pain, and Im good for awhile. also you can look at an anti inflammatory diet, which suggests foods high in lysine and low in arginine. you can pair high lysine foods with low arginine foods. that helps with inflammation, I have epstein barr virus and I had a flare up(never knew i had it).I started eating foods higher in lysine and lower in arginine and it helped tremendously(my liver was enlarged because of it).

I was able to get over the virus a lot sooner(I will always have it though as it stays in your body). during those times i didnt even need any aleve for the days my RA flared up. you can do some research and see if its for you or worthy a try. you dont have to take any herbs or supplements unless you want to.but I did it with food. But see a specialist and if you want to try the diet then go for it. I know it has helped me before.Dr also told me that anyone that has RA has either had EBV or has the antibodies. if your RA has gotten worse,or youre in more pain,tired more often,etc have them check and see if you have the virus.couldnt hurt. they just do a blood test. not saying thats the issue but the 2 usually go hand in hand. good luck

Tetesandra

Thanks everyone for all your advise. I greatly appreciate it. Right now it will take about 3 moths to go see a Doctor which is crazy so just trying to alleviate some of the pain until then. I cut carbs especially wheat out of my diet. Eating much better now, I do take Naproxen because if I don't I cannot even use my hands. I also started raw honey and cinnamon as that works great for colds and my allergies and it says it helps with RA and cholesterol which is borderline high now.