I might have arthritis in my knees

[Droopy]

I'm going to the doctor next week to find out. I started working out 2.5 weeks ago. I would lift weights and walk/run 1 mile one day and the next day I would do a 2 mile walk/run. What I mean by walk/run is that a would walk a few laps and then I would run a few. I did that because I am too out of shape to run more than 3 laps without puking.

Around day 11 my legs started to hurt just below the knee cap. At first I ignored the pain as it wasn't too bad and I kept on running for a few more days. Then after day 13 when I got out of bed in the morning I couldn't walk without limping the pain was so bad. I'm a trucker and it was a real challenge for me to climb up in the truck at work. I stopped running after that and now my legs are getting better, but they still ache somewhat.

At first I thought I had shin splints. That's what a guy who runs a lot told me. But I got on the web and did a little research and the pain that I'm experiencing resembles the pain associated with osteoarthritis or knee arthritis rather than shin splints. I will see what the doctor has to say. The stuff that I was looking at on the web said that knee arthritis is most common in people over 50. I'm 32. But I have been overweight all of my life and I'm afraid that it is starting to haunt me.

[graywarrior]

1. Same exact thing happened to me.

Used to run 3-5 miles a day, then had a car accident and injured both knees 3 years ago. Started running again and developed severe pain in my knees where I couldn't even get out of bed in the morning.

Now I do yoga 3 times a week and take an herbal remedy that has an anti-inflammatory in it which helps. I take it whenver my knee pain acts up and within minute the pain goes away for hours.

Damn that getting old shit.

[Droopy]

3. Did you lose some cartilage in your knees when they were injured?

[graywarrior]

13. Yes.

[Uben]

2. Hey

There are worse things! I am fifty, and recovering from a tibial plateau fracture (A break at the very top of the tibia, at the knee)
on May 29th.

I had severe damage to the soft tissue in the joint, and had bone grafts to alleviate what might turn into arthritis in the void that was left. You may very well have osteoarthritis, but it is more likely you just have a torn meniscus. I hope it is that simple and you recover completely. Knee problems suck, and you are much too young to have to be suffering from this affliction. Good luck!

[Droopy]

4. I'm sorry you are having trouble

Yeah, I guess there are worse things that could have happened to me. Despite being overweight (and I'm 100 pounds over weight now) I haven't developed any of the problems that people have associated with being overweight. I haven't developed diabetes. My blood pressure is normal. Mt cholesterol is a little high, but not enough to warrant medication.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

5. You're 100 lbs overweight?

And you started that regimen the way you described?

And now you're wondering why your knees hurt?

Hey, man, you're putting too much on those poor knees. That's why they're hurting. Forget playing doctor and doing your own research on the Web - you just need to ease up with the exercise for a while, start losing weight, and start that exercise program again REAAAAAAAAAL slow. Like going for a walk of half-a-mile every day for a week or so, and seeing how your poor old knees react. Make sure you're wearing very good shoes or sneakers, too. Lots of padding.

My guess is that you're fine and just need to cut that weight down.

[Droopy]

7. I think I'm going to let the doctor decide

if there's anything wrong with me or not.

My walk/run is not very strenuous. It is actually harder to lift weights than it is to run/walk a mile and I haven't had any trouble with the rest of my body.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

14. 100 pounds overweight?

Guess what your doctor is going to tell you to do first?

Hint: it's not going to be "lift weights" or "go running."

You probably could have saved yourself all this pain and discomfort and trip to the doctor if you'd just lost the 100 pounds - that's hugely overweight for anyone, unless you're seven feet tall and big-boned - before jumping into such a strenuous exercise routine.

[Droopy]

17. You don't lose 100 pounds by sitting in front of the tv

No matter what you eat. You have to move. My doctor has told me that I need to lose weight. You're not a doctor and even if you were you can't examine me over the internet.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

22. True

And you don't lose it sitting at a keyboard, either.

I'm not a doctor, but I play one on .......... oh, wait. That's a commerical.

Lots of luck with shedding all that fat. You'll feel so much better, I'm sure.

[Droopy]

24. 2 mile walk today.

[Name removed]

26. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Droopy]

28. I guess you missed the part

where I said my legs were feeling better since I stopped running. My legs do not hurt more after I walk. Only when I run. It has something to do with high impact exercise.

Why do you find it necessary to flame me on this thread? It was an innocuous thread about health matters before you showed up.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

12. My good God! Look who came by... I am so glad....

It is a real present for me to be seeing you, my dear OLL!

Full of piss and vinegar as usual, I see! I'm kidding...your advice is right on..as always...

Hope this post means we'll be seeing more of you, my dear...

I have MISSED you, a lot!



:yourock: :hug:

[OldLeftieLawyer]

15. Hi, Sweetiepie

Yeah, just cruising the old neighborhood, looking to see if anything's goin' on. Seems kind of quiet here, not too complicated.

Hey, you're the medical professional, and you think that common sense advice - lose the weight first - is good? All my years as a malpractice attorney weren't wasted, huh?

You always know where to find me, Sweet Peggy - don't you?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

16. You better believe I know where to find you!

This is too good! How sweet to talk to you...

Yes, it's quiet today in the Lounge...but it isn't always, trust me on that...

Your common sense advice is right on...he does need to lose the weight...however, I understand why he wants to exercise...it's easier to lose weight that way, and it also produces endorphins that help him feel better..

After all, Droopy has given up ALL his bad habits...and he needs some endorphins to help counteract those being gone...

Just my two cents on it...FWIW



:loveya:

[OldLeftieLawyer]

25. The Lounge

It really does seem like the most interesting place on DU. Good place to drop into, especially if you're around ....... :)

It's sad when someone healthy gains an enormous amount of weight, because it's so dangerous and so hard to take off. In our culture, it's easy to sit and chomp and next thing you know, I guess, you're the size of your old apartment.

Ain't America great? And to think people are starving in other places? As Sam Kinison said about the Ethiopian famine, "Why don't they just go where the food is?'

Poor Sam. Poor hungry people. Poor fat people.

Complicated world, Pretty Peggy, ain't it?

And now, we're going out dancing, so kick your heels up for us, SweetiePie, and I'll see you around ........... <smoooch>

[abbeyco]

6. Find a good orthopedic doctor

I played soccer for 10+ yrs as a youngster, have had 5-6 surgeries on my right knee and it's basically worthless now. I do have osteoarthritis and am 42.

Currently, I take glucosamine/chondroitin daily and that really seems to help. Also my orthopedic guy gives me shots of joint fluid - once a week for 5 or six weeks, but it's been well over a year since I've had the shots - that's how well the glucosamine is working for me.

I do very low impact workouts - NO running at all, but lots of walking, water aerobics, yoga and pilates. Any work you can do on a balance ball should help, too.

It's not great if you have it, but there are certainly things you can do to ease the discomfort and be or get physically healthy, too.

Best of luck!

[Mabus]

8. Getting old is a bitch

I've got arthritis in my spine. I first noticed the symptoms about eighteen months ago and ignored it figuring it was related to my heel spur(s). I started experiencing discomfort in my right leg when I walked too much. It was annoying but I continued to ignore it. One morning I woke up and couldn't move. For some odd reason I had rolled on my stomach during the night and apparently stayed that way. It was so painful I yelled for my husband to help me get out of bed. Both my legs were numb. We went to the doctor asap. I try to stay off medications, don't like them.

I do stretches, take warm baths with essential oils and my husband helps massage some oils into my back in the morning and it has helped a lot (plus they smell better than Ben Gay). Check with your doctor about treatments. Mine is aware of my use of essential oils and herbs. I've given him copies of materials and keep him updated. He's actually more than a little intrigued by the oils and herbs that I use and is open to alternative treatments.

FWIW, my mom also had arthritis, as did her mom. For me, arthritis is hereditary.

Good luck and hang in there.

[pitohui]

9. yeah could be

osteo-arthritis affects everyone after a certain age but unlucky young people get it too

my friend is severely underweight yet first developed chronic pain from osteo-arthritis in his hip in his teens

losing weight can help but guarantees nothing

god is heck of an artist but a piss poor engineer

see a doctor

bextra can help you avoid narcotic painkillers and lead a normal life painfree if yr doctor will buck the hysteria and prescribe it, celebra or vioxx can work too

[skygazer]

10. Might be tendonitis

I have arthritis in my lower back and when my right knee started hurting, I thought I probably had some there as well. However, when I went to my doctor about it, she diagnosed a good case of tendonitis. I'd begun a regimen of walking every day - about a four mile brisk walk through the woods - and it was about 3 weeks or a month into that when the pain started.

Tendonitis in the knee is apparently fairly common especially at the beginning of a new exercise routine. Often times, your quadriceps gain strength faster than your glutes and inner thigh muscles and those strong quads actually pull on your kneecap which causes pain. That strains the tendons which get inflamed and sore.

My doctor sent me to physical therapy where I did exercises to balance the strength in those muscles. I also ice my knee every evening. There's been a big improvement.

Bottom line though is to see your doctor and have it evaluated. Ask about physical therapy no matter what is causing it - those people do a good job of helping you use your body correctly and strengthen the areas you need to in order to ease pain. Good luck! :hi:

[Droopy]

11. Thanks for the information

I will know for sure next week.

[knowbody0]

19. good luck Droopy

i ripped my maniskus (that's how you say it, i do not know how to spell it) surgery was a breeze, i was back up in no time, but i always knew my knees were weak. im betting the gym you go to can recommend some support for your knees to use while you work out. i use mine for long walks, but really built up the muscles around my knees riding my bike. take good care of them Droopy! you have a lot of miles ahead of you.
peace and love

[SOteric]

18. I recently found I've got some problems with my knees,

and even though I'm no where near 50 and have never been overweight, there are a host of reasons that the cartilige in a persons knees can degenerate.

The good news is that even though it's blasted uncomfortable, there are a good many things that one can do to help deal with the discomfort and limited mobility.

Physical therapy can help determine if your shoes,gate and/or stride are contributing to the soreness and can develop the muscles around your joints and redirect the way you stand, sit, distribute your weight.

Your doctor can also advise you as to whether injections of corticosterioids are a possibility.

And pain relievers are getting better than ever at dealing with the longterm treatment of joint pain.

[CountAllVotes]

20. I have severe osteoarthritis in both knees

and I am not 50 years old yet. It started when I was 35 and it is a real mess now.

Symptoms: Lots of cracking and crunching (that's the cartilage). Both kneecaps are now severely displaced in fact. And as for pain ugh ugh ugh. I was advised to walk on flat surfaces only for exercise as this is a severe problem. I hope your problem is not this bad.

Re: Weight. I need to lose a few pounds (maybe about 25). I consulted with 2 orthopedic doctors about this problem and they told me that an extra 25 lbs. or so was not the problem or affecting it either. However, 100 lbs. of extra weight is very very bad if you have knee problems.

Do you notice and cracking or crunching sounds when you flex your knees?

I'd suggest you have inflamed the tissues in your knees and legs and you need to stop with all of this exercise and take it very slow until the pain stops. Try some anti-inflammatory over the counter drugs like aspirin or ibuprofen (tylenol is not an anti-inflammatory). Try again with the exercise, but again, take it very slow and try some plain walking or even get a treadmill with handrails that goes slow with a breaker on it in case you trip.

Good luck!

[Droopy]

21. No cracking or crunching sounds

The pain is constant now and has been for the last 4 days or so, but it is slowly subsiding. It hurts very much to kneel with my knee on the ground. The pressure directly on the knee is what hurts. If I push on my knee it hurts. It also hurts more to climb a ladder or stairs.

[CountAllVotes]

27. sounds like you have in part what I have

the patella is displaced. I cannot kneel either and I never could kneel without pain. As for ladders, NO. As for stairs - difficult and painful at best.

I found out that it is very likely I was born with the kneecaps displaced. The x-rays are frightening.

As I said before, rest those legs and knees - keep legs/knees elevated. Try applying ice packs also to get that inflammation down.

No cracking/crunching is a good sign however. It means you probably don't have the amount of damage I do. You really don't want to go the knee replacement route.

As for the weight: I used to be much heavier than I am now (about 60 lbs. more than now). I got some excellent advice from a macrobiotic counselor. The advice was so incredibly simple. It was, DON'T EAT AS MUCH! Guess what? That does work but it does take time (about 1 year was my own case). :D

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

23. Aint life a bitch?

I've got a bad hip. I second the recommendation of taking glucosamine/chondroitin. It's the only natural drug that's been shown to help. It doesn't help everyone. It worked for me & my mom, but not a girlfriend. Still, it's worth a shot.

Two drawbacks: First if you're allergic to shellfish you can't take the chondroitin. And you really need to take them together for maximum benefit. Second, it can take months before it kicks in.

I'm sure your doc will give you good advice.

Hope you feel better.

best

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

29. I had my first knee replacement at 42 because of arthritis

It was replaced eight years after the initial diagnosis. It was replaced a second time five years later when the first one loosened.

I was a landscaper when the first symptom showed up-- I was riding as a passenger in a work truck, when the driver hit a pothole. Suddenly I had an agonizing pain in my left knee, which ached horribly the rest of the day. (This after years of professional grass cutting-- on my feet for twelve hours a day, pushing mowers and weedeating. I was very athletic at the time.) The pain went away, but kept coming back more and more often. Eight years later my leg from the knee down had twisted outward by 90 degrees, and I had the feet of a ninety year old. The only way I could use a clutch was to push it with the heel of my foot, not the ball. I stayed on my feet daily even after my first operation, not willing to sit and fade away.

Now at fifty, my other knee and both ankles are acting up, along with my hips, elbows, and neck.

If you are indeed diagnosed with arthritis, there are good drugs now that were not available to me. You should be able to control it much better than my doctors were able to.

Good luck.

[Droopy]

30. Thank you, PNS

I'm hoping that it's just tendonitus as a poster above suggested. But I'm not going to fool around with it. I'm seeing the doctor next week.