From the article: How to Sleep Better With Osteoarthritis
About 25% of adults with arthritis have trouble with sleep -- either getting to sleep or staying asleep. If you're one of them, it's probably safe to assume that on some level, your problem is related to pain control. It could also have to do with worry or depression -- too much on your mind.
There has been much written about this problem -- offerings of tips to help you get to sleep. The tips range from not drinking caffeine to being sure you clear your mind to stacking the bed with extra pillows.
Are you among the arthritis patients who have problems when trying to get to sleep? What ultimately helps you get to sleep?
Relaxation technique
- Sometimes I have to use some medication (a muscle relaxer) my doc prescribed, but I usually try a trick I was taught back in high school. You lay flat on your back and close your eyes. You then start with your feet and think just about them. Think about relaxing just them. Do this for about one minute. Then move up to your shins. Then thighs and upward from there reaching to the tips of your finger to your scalp. It helps focus my mind on something other than the pain or on medical bills, or work or anything else and I never usually make it all the way to the top of my head, as long as I focus.
- —Guest Toni Wohlgemuth
