TIME.CO, Jakarta – Arthritis it affects millions of people around the world. Joint pain experienced by sufferers causes a significant reduction in mobility and flexibility, which also compromises the quality of life.
However, what to do when you are pregnant and suffer from certain types of arthritis? To make life easier and help move easier to improve the health of you and your baby, here’s how to deal with arthritis at this special time in your life.
Arthritis during pregnancy
First, it’s important to remember that while most women experience joint pain during pregnancy, not all of them have arthritis at the same time. Articolar pains It can occur due to weight gain and increased stress on the joints.
When it comes to joint pain, not all women experience the same thing during pregnancy week after week. For example, women who have rheumatoid arthritis, which is one of more than 100 types of arthritis, report that the symptoms and pain they usually experience go away during pregnancy. This means that the immune system is not functioning as actively as it was before pregnancy, thus reducing inflammation and pain.
However, not all women are that lucky. According to WebMD, approximately 40-50% of pregnant women with rheumatoid arthritis need some form of treatment, whether through medication or therapy.
Arthritis Symptoms During Pregnancy
Women with arthritis usually notice how joint pain worsens during pregnancy. It occurs due to body weight and usually affects the knees and hips. Although women experience arthritis signs and symptoms during pregnancy to varying degrees, the following are common symptoms.
– Loose and unstable joints, so much so that when walking tends to be unbalanced even if you don’t get fat.
Knee problems get worse with weight gain and weakening of the muscles along the sides of the knee. This causes knee pain, especially when walking up or down stairs.
-The spine is slightly curved to support the growing uterus which can cause back muscle spasms. In some cases, it can also cause numbness and tingling in the feet.
– Joint stiffness increases due to increased water weight, especially in weight-bearing joints.
– Excessive tiredness
Now that you know the symptoms of arthritis, it’s time to look at ways you can reduce the pain you are experiencing and improve the quality of life and well-being for you and your baby.
Drugs
To relieve joint pain associated with arthritis, doctors usually recommend pain relievers. However, during pregnancy, before you start taking medications, you should consult your doctor and make sure he recommends some that won’t harm the fetus. If you are taking medications for some other condition, you should tell your doctor as some medications can have other effects.
Food habit
Pregnancy involves a healthy diet as the ideal way to provide the fetus with the healthy nutrients it needs to develop properly. Additionally, there are many healthy foods that can relieve joint pain symptoms, such as Omega-3 fatty acids that can prevent inflammation in the body and reduce the symptoms of arthritis. In addition, regular Omega-3 intake is necessary for brain development and the overall health of the fetus. Good sources of Omega 3 are salmon and seafood, but make sure they don’t have high levels of mercury. Also eat broccoli, cauliflower, and other vegetables.
In addition, it protects the joints from inflammation and arthritis by taking vitamin D to reduce the development of arthritis, olive oil to reduce joint pain and stiffness, ginger with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that protect the joints and vitamin C which has a powerful antioxidant.
Sport
Physical activity is important during pregnancy, it improves overall health and prepares the joints for childbirth. There are many gymnastics classes for pregnant women that you can take or you can do some light exercises at home. Just 20 minutes of walking will provide benefits for joint flexibility.
Tips for relieving pain
Experiencing joint pain is never easy, especially when you are pregnant and are already facing various pregnancy symptoms. Below, you can see some helpful tips for immediate relief of joint pain and stiffness:
Place a warm compress on the painful area to relieve stiffness. Then, use an ice pack for pain relief to send. Get plenty of rest, but try not to spend the whole day in bed as prolonged inactivity can make the pain worse. Take a few slow, deep breaths or some other relaxation technique.
Pay attention to your posture as poor posture can increase the stress on the joints and only make the pain worse. Avoid high heels. First, high heels do not support the joints. Secondly, because of swollen feet during pregnancy, wearing high heels isn’t the best idea for improving blood flow.
Get support from those closest to you
Since experiencing joint pain can limit mobility, the best thing you can do is surround yourself with loved ones. When you feel like you can’t do a certain task, go to the store or run errands, you can always reach out to your partner, family and friends.
Ideally, you should feel free to have honest conversations with loved ones, especially your husband. Communication is key and can always help you when you need help.
During pregnancy, joint pain can worsen due to the fact that weight gain places more stress on the inflamed joints. There are many ways to overcome arthritis, one of which is to live a healthy lifestyle. Before starting to take the drug, it is necessary to consult a doctor to make sure that the drug does not harm the fetus.
NABILA RAMADHANTY PUTRI DARMADI | TUNISIESOIR
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