3 Non-medical Ways To Fight JRA Pain

Non medical Ways To Fight JRA Pain

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA), also known as juvenile idiopathic arthritis, is just as painful as it sounds. It mainly affects children as young as three years old. Many of the affected children will suffer from chronic, often excruciating, pain early. Later on, they’ll undergo joint and hip replacement surgeries before they can even drive a car.

But it isn’t all doom and gloom, although the affected children and their concerned parents may feel like it is more often than not. You can manage the medical condition well with a combination of medications (e.g., Celebrex) and alternative therapies like acupuncture, massage, and herbal remedies. In addition, a dedicated pain management team, from the doctors to the parents and siblings, helps a lot!

There are also lifestyle changes that can reduce the intensity, frequency, and duration of the pain flares in children affected by it. Here are three of them that parents can apply to their children to see whether they work or not.

Engage in Mild Exercise

Pool exercises, including swimming in a heated pool, are highly recommended. The heated pool relieves aching joints while the near-weightless feeling takes the joints’ pressure. The exercises also contribute to stronger muscles and legs, a must after a hip replacement surgery.

But being in a pool isn’t the only mild exercise your child can engage in. You can also recommend yoga with its basic poses.

Get as Much Sleep as Possible

Ensure that your child gets at least 8 hours of sleep every night, even with a full academic and social schedule. When a child with JRA is tired, his joints become more sore than usual, so every movement becomes torture. Also, the vicious cycle can affect everybody’s mood too.

Your child will benefit from wearing loose cotton pajamas without snaps, zippers, and buttons that can affect already sore joints. You should also check that his bed has soft linens and pillows in different shapes for his knees, hips, and neck. You may even encourage him to drink warm chamomile tea or valerian root to help him go to sleep faster.

Heat Things Up

Hot compresses can go a long way toward easing the pain in sore joints. In addition, you can buy electric heating pads with Velcro straps that you can place around the legs or waist (i.e., underneath clothes). This way you can enjoy the heating sensations even in school or the mall.

Of course, you need regular doctor consultations because medications and therapies change depending on your child’s progress. However, you may also consider making your child’s life as usual as possible to focus too much on his health issues.