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Making everyday tasks easier when you have arthritis

As the pain from arthritis becomes worse, keeping up with everyday activities may become more difficult.

Making changes around your home will take some stress off your joints, such as your knee or hip, and help relieve some of the pain.

Your health care provider may suggest that you use a cane to make walking easier and less painful. If so, learn how to use the cane the right way.

Make Your Home Easier

Make sure you can reach everything you need without getting on your tiptoes or bending down low.

  • Keep clothes that you wear most often in drawers and on shelves that are between waist and shoulder level.
  • Store food in a cupboard and drawers that are between waist and shoulder level.

Find ways to avoid having to search for important items during the day. You can wear a small waist pack to hold your cell phone, wallet, and keys.

Get automatic light switches installed.

If going up and down stairs is difficult:

  • Make sure everything you need is on the same floor where you spend most of your day.
  • Have a bathroom or a portable commode on the same floor where you spend most of your day.
  • Set up your bed on the main floor of your home.

Other Types of Help

Find someone to help with house cleaning, taking out the garbage, gardening, and other household tasks.

Ask someone to shop for you or have your food delivered.

Check your local pharmacy or medical supply store for different aids that can help you, such as:

  • Raised toilet seat
  • Shower chair
  • Shower sponge with a long handle
  • Shoehorn with a long handle
  • Sock-aid to help you put on your socks
  • Reacher to help you pick up things from the floor

Ask a contractor or handyman about having bars installed on the walls by your toilet, shower or bath, or elsewhere in your home.

References

Arthritis Foundation website. Adapting your house when you have arthritis. www.arthritis.org/health-wellness/healthy-living/daily-living/life-hacks-tips/adapting-your-house. Accessed July 8, 2023.

England BR, Mikuls TR. Clinical features of rheumatoid arthritis. In: Firestein GS, Budd RC, Gabriel SE, Koretzky GA, McInnes IB, O'Dell JR, eds. Firestein & Kelley's Textbook of Rheumatology. 11th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 76.

Nelson AE. Clinical features of osteoarthritis. In: Firestein GS, Budd RC, Gabriel SE, Koretzky GA, McInnes IB, O'Dell JR, eds. Firestein & Kelley's Textbook of Rheumatology. 11th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 105.

  • Arthritis

    Animation

  •  

    Arthritis - Animation

    Arthritis, inflammation of one or more joints, is the most common cause of disability in the United States, limiting the activities of millions of adults. So, what causes arthritis? Cartilage, which is the tough but flexible tissue that covers the ends of your bones, normally protects and cushions a joint, allowing it to move smoothly. When this covering starts to break down, your bones rub together, causing pain, swelling, and stiffness. This is arthritis. Joint inflammation may result from an autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis, which is when your immune system mistakenly attacks health tissue, or a broken bone, or general wear and tear on joints from osteoarthritis, or an infection from bacteria or a virus. If you have arthritis, you'll probably know it before you see your doctor. You may have joint pain, joint swelling, a reduced ability to move your joint, redness of the skin around your joint, and stiffness, especially in the morning. So, what do you do about arthritis? Your doctor will give you a physical exam and ask questions about your symptoms. Your doctor might find that you have fluid around a joint, warm, red, tender joints, and trouble moving your joints. You may have blood tests and x-rays to check for infection or other arthritis causes. Your doctor may take a sample of joint fluid with a needle and send it to a lab for examination. Once your doctor confirms that you have arthritis, your treatment will focus on reducing your pain, improving your mobility, and limiting further joint damage. Lifestyle changes are a big part of the treatment for arthritis. Exercise can help relieve stiffness, reduce pain and fatigue, and improve muscle and bone strength. Your health care team can help you design an exercise program that is best for you. Physical therapy may also be very helpful. You may use treatments like heat or ice, splints or orthotics to support your joints, water therapy, and even massage. You can take other steps to ease your pain. For example, sleeping 8 to 10 hours a night and taking naps during the day can help you recover from a flare-up more quickly, and may even help prevent them. Avoid staying in one position for too long, and avoid positions or movements that place extra stress on your joints. Install grab bars in the shower, tub, and near the toilet, to help you get around easier. Try stress reducing activities, such as meditation, yoga, or tai chi. Get more fruits, vegetables, cold water fish, and nuts into your diet. Weight loss through dieting and exercise can also take pressure off your joints. After lifestyle factors, medicine can help relieve your arthritis pain. If over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen, ibuprofen, or aspirin are not enough, your doctor may prescribe stronger medicines. Most forms of arthritis are long-term, and life-long, conditions. But if you make lifestyle changes, and work with your health care team to manage your pain, you should be able to move more freely and hopefully feel less pain.

  • Arthritis

    Animation

  •  

    Arthritis - Animation

    Arthritis, inflammation of one or more joints, is the most common cause of disability in the United States, limiting the activities of millions of adults. So, what causes arthritis? Cartilage, which is the tough but flexible tissue that covers the ends of your bones, normally protects and cushions a joint, allowing it to move smoothly. When this covering starts to break down, your bones rub together, causing pain, swelling, and stiffness. This is arthritis. Joint inflammation may result from an autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis, which is when your immune system mistakenly attacks health tissue, or a broken bone, or general wear and tear on joints from osteoarthritis, or an infection from bacteria or a virus. If you have arthritis, you'll probably know it before you see your doctor. You may have joint pain, joint swelling, a reduced ability to move your joint, redness of the skin around your joint, and stiffness, especially in the morning. So, what do you do about arthritis? Your doctor will give you a physical exam and ask questions about your symptoms. Your doctor might find that you have fluid around a joint, warm, red, tender joints, and trouble moving your joints. You may have blood tests and x-rays to check for infection or other arthritis causes. Your doctor may take a sample of joint fluid with a needle and send it to a lab for examination. Once your doctor confirms that you have arthritis, your treatment will focus on reducing your pain, improving your mobility, and limiting further joint damage. Lifestyle changes are a big part of the treatment for arthritis. Exercise can help relieve stiffness, reduce pain and fatigue, and improve muscle and bone strength. Your health care team can help you design an exercise program that is best for you. Physical therapy may also be very helpful. You may use treatments like heat or ice, splints or orthotics to support your joints, water therapy, and even massage. You can take other steps to ease your pain. For example, sleeping 8 to 10 hours a night and taking naps during the day can help you recover from a flare-up more quickly, and may even help prevent them. Avoid staying in one position for too long, and avoid positions or movements that place extra stress on your joints. Install grab bars in the shower, tub, and near the toilet, to help you get around easier. Try stress reducing activities, such as meditation, yoga, or tai chi. Get more fruits, vegetables, cold water fish, and nuts into your diet. Weight loss through dieting and exercise can also take pressure off your joints. After lifestyle factors, medicine can help relieve your arthritis pain. If over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen, ibuprofen, or aspirin are not enough, your doctor may prescribe stronger medicines. Most forms of arthritis are long-term, and life-long, conditions. But if you make lifestyle changes, and work with your health care team to manage your pain, you should be able to move more freely and hopefully feel less pain.

Self Care

 
 

Review Date: 7/8/2023

Reviewed By: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

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