Oh Spring! Everyone loves mentioning how spring is the time for birds chirping and flowers blooming, but for me Spring is gout season.
Since the weather has been breaking from lower than 50°F (10°C) to weeks with 60s and 70s F(15-20 C) I've been waking up with stiff joints in my left foot. If not for my allopurinol this spring might be like last year where I had near daily attacks.
I do have last spring's near-disaster to thank for helping me to seek out the proper help to get my gout diagnosed, but I am not looking to relive it. So here's some ways I'm going to try to beat my seasonal gout stiffness:
1. If I feel really stiff I will take a colchicine before bed.
I've done this a couple of times and have avoided what I think were incoming attacks.
2. Increased water consumption.
I usually drink 3 liters of water a day, though recently since I've been waking up with stiffness I've been going closer to 4. It's a lot, but the bathroom trips are increasing and hopefully getting the uric acid out.
3. Scheduling a doctor's visit.
I want to check out the effects of allopurinol on my body and checking to make sure 100mgs is going to continue to do it for me. I also want to be careful not to overdo the allopurinol, but making sure it's not hurting me and is getting the uric acid level to a proper level.
4. Occasional foot soaking.
A salt soak for gout can be helpful for most forms of arthritis and joint pain. I think this is a worth-while attempt that used with the other methods could help.
What are your solutions for seasonal gout? I'm interested in sharing solutions with fellow suffers. Leave me a comment!
Since the weather has been breaking from lower than 50°F (10°C) to weeks with 60s and 70s F(15-20 C) I've been waking up with stiff joints in my left foot. If not for my allopurinol this spring might be like last year where I had near daily attacks.
I do have last spring's near-disaster to thank for helping me to seek out the proper help to get my gout diagnosed, but I am not looking to relive it. So here's some ways I'm going to try to beat my seasonal gout stiffness:
1. If I feel really stiff I will take a colchicine before bed.
I've done this a couple of times and have avoided what I think were incoming attacks.
2. Increased water consumption.
I usually drink 3 liters of water a day, though recently since I've been waking up with stiffness I've been going closer to 4. It's a lot, but the bathroom trips are increasing and hopefully getting the uric acid out.
3. Scheduling a doctor's visit.
I want to check out the effects of allopurinol on my body and checking to make sure 100mgs is going to continue to do it for me. I also want to be careful not to overdo the allopurinol, but making sure it's not hurting me and is getting the uric acid level to a proper level.
4. Occasional foot soaking.
A salt soak for gout can be helpful for most forms of arthritis and joint pain. I think this is a worth-while attempt that used with the other methods could help.
What are your solutions for seasonal gout? I'm interested in sharing solutions with fellow suffers. Leave me a comment!
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