Tips for arthritic repair people
 

I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to set of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have to
do when using the electric drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex rings on
RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is shaped like a
2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function diameter of
the hex nut substantially

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On Thu, 06 Mar 2014 08:15:46 -0700, Robert Green
wrote:

I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to
set of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have
to
do when using the electric drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex
rings on
RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is shaped
like a
2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function diameter of
the hex nut substantially




I use the Rockwell 3Rill and like the light weight, smallness of the unit
combined with lifetime battery.


Not a doctor, but from experience with arthritis hitting my family, avoid
ALL allergic responses to ANYTHING. The smallest thing, avoid it. Doing
so, you may find that your arthritic symptoms deminish.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

Robert Green wrote:
I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to set of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have to
do when using the electric drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex rings on
RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is shaped like a
2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function diameter of
the hex nut substantially


Hi,
What is causing the symptom? If cause is known there is many helps to
relieve the suffering. Osteoarthritis? Rheumatoid? Uric acid problem?

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On 3/6/2014 10:15 AM, Robert Green wrote:
I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to set of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have to
do when using the electric drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex rings on
RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is shaped like a
2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function diameter of
the hex nut substantially


First, I regret to hear. That's sad when you have
the wisdom, the skill, and the aches and pains
are holding you back. I've not yet had arthritis,
but have had pinched nerve, and some other grief.

I find myself taking frequent breaks at the computer
key board, just let my arms lay in my lap for a few
seconds.

--
..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

"RobertMacy" wrote in message
news:op.xca6hoze2cx0wh@ajm...
On Thu, 06 Mar 2014 08:15:46 -0700, Robert Green
wrote:

I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I
find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to
set of 1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck
twisting I have
to do when using the electric drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex
rings on RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is
shaped
like a 2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function
diameter of
the hex nut substantially

I am not sure how this escaped my Drafts file unfinished but it did!

I use the Rockwell 3Rill and like the light weight, smallness of the unit
combined with lifetime battery.

I need a lighter drill. I am using DeWalts with 12VDC gel cells (that cost
$10 each compared to the $40 DeWalt wanted for a crappy NiCad pack whose
center cells always fail prematurely from overheating as they are surrounded
by other NiCad cells). Getting too heavy to maneuver easily. Lithium
batteries are a god-send for weight reduction.

Not a doctor, but from experience with arthritis hitting my family, avoid
ALL allergic responses to ANYTHING. The smallest thing, avoid it. Doing
so, you may find that your arthritic symptoms deminish.

Tell me about it. The MD's put me on Glucotrol because my BG levels have
been creeping up and my arthritis went absolutely nuts over it. Gotta
switch to something else.

--
Bobby G.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

"Tony Hwang" wrote in message
...
Robert Green wrote:
I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I
find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to
set of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have
to
do when using the electric drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex
rings on
RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is shaped
like a
2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function diameter
of
the hex nut substantially


Hi,
What is causing the symptom? If cause is known there is many helps to
relieve the suffering. Osteoarthritis? Rheumatoid? Uric acid problem?

Osteo - bone on bone contact - I've seen the Xrays. )-:

--
Bobby G.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

wrote in message
...

stuff snipped

I have both kinds of arthritis in multiple joints.

Ouch - that's a double whammy.

I found that mild exercise seems to mitigate it but repetitive tasks or
forceful jamming
of a joint (big drill grabbing the work) really kills me.

Yeah, been there, done that, screamed like a banshee.

You just have to be careful.

Even so, there's always a new "gotcha." I made myself scream just pushing
in a seat belt lock button. Exactly the wrong force applied to the thumb
joint. )-:

Some days I still have them lock
up so bad I can't hold my beer bottle.
Thank god for mugs with handles ;-).

Yeah, I just started having lockups in my fingers and it's the weirdest (and
most unpleasant) sensation. You have to pry the locked finger loose with
your other fingers.

I got a neat little plastic strap wrench from Harbor Fright that's perfect
for opening wide-mouthed jars, something I just can't do anymore with just
my bare hands. I knew getting old was going to be bad - I just didn't think
it would be THIS bad.

--
Bobby G.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

"Tony Hwang" wrote in message
...

stuff snipped

Diet is big part of living with pain. Worst case, you can try Cortison
shots where it hurts real bad. Wear and tear of joints are big problem
getting older. I am 75 now and fortunately no pains yet.

I've got bad genes. It makes me laugh when I see late night ads touting
Christie Brinkley and Cindy Crawford's youthful looks. While the ads say
it's this or that miracle cream the secret is getting born with the right
genes.

I can run with my dog, do all house chores/maintenance, gardening, etc. I
can climb my
antenna tower yet, LOL! When I am on the tower, all my tools are on a
string tied to my tool belt. When I drop it I just haul it back up like
fish. Better ease off on beer which can cause lots of uric acid
increasing pain level.

I had a friend like you. One day while climbing a ladder his legs gave way
and after hanging on with his hands as long as he could, he slid down a few
feet and then fell the rest of the way. The problem with severe arthritis
is that you can't really depend on your extremities the way you used to.

--
Bobby G.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

wrote in message
...

stuff snipped

My uric acid and RA numbers are good. I have osteoarthritis in my toes
and fingers and something they can't really identify in my knees and
wrists but they call it arthritis.

I went through a year of hell while they tried to figure it out and in
the end a trip to the physical therapist got me going again.
I should have just started there first.

My wife gets pretty good results with PT for her bad hip but I don't. The
wrists are the worst. The problem comes and goes, which is why I go for
days without being able to type replies here. I've been typing so much
2nite I am going to have to stop and do something that doesn't involve
hands. I hate it. )-:

--
Bobby G.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On 3/6/2014 5:16 PM, wrote:
My uric acid and RA numbers are good. I have osteoarthritis in my toes
and fingers and something they can't really identify in my knees and
wrists but they call it arthritis.

I went through a year of hell while they tried to figure it out and in
the end a trip to the physical therapist got me going again.
I should have just started there first.

I've found that sometimes the doctors are
looking for the complicated, where the
phys ther are more interested in find what
works.

--
..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On Thu, 06 Mar 2014 17:40:34 -0700, Robert Green
wrote:

"RobertMacy" wrote in message
news:op.xca6hoze2cx0wh@ajm...
...snip....
Not a doctor, but from experience with arthritis hitting my family,
avoid
ALL allergic responses to ANYTHING. The smallest thing, avoid it. Doing
so, you may find that your arthritic symptoms deminish.

Tell me about it. The MD's put me on Glucotrol because my BG levels have
been creeping up and my arthritis went absolutely nuts over it. Gotta
switch to something else.

--
Bobby G.

Allergic response, may have a high threshold, but once achieved, requires
a much lower level of exposure for the allergic response to go away.
Sometimes it is possible to lower the threshold to the point the 'high'
initial threshold moves so far up, you are never bothered again. Check
into anecdotal information regarding extreme hay fever victims, who during
WWII were stationed on boats in the Pacific far away from the allergens.
They missed 'one' season of hay fever and often were cured. After
returning to hay fever country never had the symptoms again, plus general
health was improved. Again, following my personal premise that "since the
body is a system, doing something to one area often affects another."
That's why aspirin, acetominophen(sp?) etc all reduce pain. It is my
contention [and personal opinion, that arthritis starts, and is
exacerbated by, a response to allergies, starts out as your body trying to
tell you in a 'sideways' manner to quit inundating it with ?? whatever is
causing the allergy. Your body is a system, perturbing here, causes
response over there, type thing.

Now back to allergic and arthritis. Jason Robards [the actor] had
debilitating arthritis and became wheelchair bound, until he correlated
his arthritic inflammation to his allergy of red meat, which he craved. He
removed meat completely from his diet, and he was out of his wheelchair
and back to working in film industry. Most of the people I met always had
both arthritis and what seemed like even mild allergies. The pain of
arthritis always outweighed their complaints about the slight allergies
they were constantly suffering. One person at the age of 26 was
practically bedridden from the pains of arthritis, would lie soaking in a
hot tub every day to get over pains. Had the usual slight sniffle nose
allergies but didn't think too much about it, until he realized, hey wait
allergic = arthritis, arthritis = allergy, so he purged his home of EVERY
allergen he could find. He removed anything and everything that was a
known allergen. and anything that made hime think/feel 'sniffly'. Put in
electronic air cleaners. We're talking almost divorce here, the home was
austere beyond belief. During this purge, he said any visitor into his
realm had like a 'dust' cloud around them. Made his eyes intantly start
watering, etc.Couldn't stand to have them there. But after 18 months, he
no longer suffered from arthritis, nor allergies to those myriad of home
products. Now at 70 years of age, he still has little to no arthritic
symptoms, still playing tennis and often riding bicycle a daunting 15 to
20 miles a day. Home has all the 'normal' ecoutrements of a home and he's
still married. His family history has a history of 'adult onset' diabetes,
too. Don't know if that relates or not.

Note: he also noticed that after exercise, acidic levels in the blood
raised due to that exercise and similarly acidic levels in the blood
raised while taking aspirin in arthritic sufferers. He wanted to pursue
the concept that exercise and aspirin had same effects on the body as good
old exercise, but medical community would not allow 'condoned' research
into that area. As in, "yeah you can do the research, but we won't pay
attention to it."

Just curious, I've heard the Japanese have done some wonderous therapy
into arthritic sufferers by treating them with, shudder, ICE! As in, pack
the knee joint with ice, exercise beyond belief, and when all warms up,
person went from immobile to mobile. Real miracle. Remembering back to my
neighbor who had those classic 'claw' hands and how she complained about
the cold weather, always made me wonder.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On 3/7/2014 12:26 PM, wrote:

That was my experience too. I went through a year of warnings about
what I couldn't do, wrist braces and drugs that made blood shoot out
my ass. The first thing the PT person did was take off my braces and
tell me to do things that hurt like hell.
Long story short. 3 weeks later I was OK, no braces, no drugs.

Success, for sure. Glad something works.

--
..
Christopher A. Young
Learn about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

I don't think that there is a medicine in common use today that doesn't have some bad side effects. Scary thing on virtually all medical TV commercials is the disclaimer at the end. The possible side effects are worse than whatever it is they are trying to cure.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On 3/7/2014 9:19 AM, RobertMacy wrote:
Now back to allergic and arthritis. Jason Robards [the actor] had debilitating arthritis and became wheelchair bound, until he correlated his
arthritic inflammation to his allergy of red meat, which he craved. He removed meat completely from his diet, and he was out of his wheelchair
and back to working in film industry.

People now have a choice.
They can pay hundreds of dollars a month to the pharmacy or they can eat some organic vegetables.

http://www.drfuhrman.com/disease/arthritis.aspx

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On Thu, 6 Mar 2014 10:15:46 -0500, "Robert Green"
wrote:

I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to set of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have to
do when using the electric drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex rings on
RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is shaped like a
2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function diameter of
the hex nut substantially

An anti inflamatory diet is a big help for a lot of rumatoid
conditions. Lots of onions and tomatos. I haven't had to take my
humira for going on 4 months since I started cooking onions and
tomatoes and adding all sorts of vegies along with Janes crazy salt
and somtimes a bit of cayenne pepper sauce.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On Thursday, March 6, 2014 12:09:18 PM UTC-5, Tony Hwang wrote:
Robert Green wrote:

I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find

twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to set of

1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have to

do when using the electric drill.



Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex rings on

RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is shaped like a

2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function diameter of

the hex nut substantially





Hi,

What is causing the symptom? If cause is known there is many helps to

relieve the suffering. Osteoarthritis? Rheumatoid? Uric acid problem?

Capitalism

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On Thursday, March 6, 2014 7:40:34 PM UTC-5, Robert Green wrote:
"RobertMacy" wrote in message

news:op.xca6hoze2cx0wh@ajm...

On Thu, 06 Mar 2014 08:15:46 -0700, Robert Green

wrote:



I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I

find

twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to

set of 1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck

twisting I have

to do when using the electric drill.



Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the hex

rings on RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful one is

shaped

like a 2" funnel with a slit in the side. It increases the function

diameter of

the hex nut substantially



I am not sure how this escaped my Drafts file unfinished but it did!



I use the Rockwell 3Rill and like the light weight, smallness of the unit

combined with lifetime battery.



I need a lighter drill. I am using DeWalts with 12VDC gel cells (that cost

$10 each compared to the $40 DeWalt wanted for a crappy NiCad pack whose

center cells always fail prematurely from overheating as they are surrounded

by other NiCad cells). Getting too heavy to maneuver easily. Lithium

batteries are a god-send for weight reduction.



Not a doctor, but from experience with arthritis hitting my family, avoid

ALL allergic responses to ANYTHING. The smallest thing, avoid it. Doing

so, you may find that your arthritic symptoms deminish.



Tell me about it. The MD's put me on Glucotrol because my BG levels have

been creeping up and my arthritis went absolutely nuts over it. Gotta

switch to something else.



--

Bobby G.

Bush caused it. Violently overthrow the uS government

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On 3/8/2014 9:07 PM, joevan wrote:
On Thu, 6 Mar 2014 10:15:46 -0500, "Robert Green"
wrote:

I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I
find twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that
switching to set of 1/4" shank drills has really reduced the
amount of chuck twisting I have to do when using the electric
drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the
hex rings on RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful
one is shaped like a 2" funnel with a slit in the side. It
increases the function diameter of the hex nut substantially

An anti inflamatory diet is a big help for a lot of rumatoid
conditions. Lots of onions and tomatos. I haven't had to take my
humira for going on 4 months since I started cooking onions and
tomatoes and adding all sorts of vegies along with Janes crazy salt
and somtimes a bit of cayenne pepper sauce.

What about lots of garlic and extra virgin olive oil? I use enough
garlic when cooking to run off all the roaches in the house and the
olive oil is one of the "good" oils you can consume. When I have olive
oil, I use it instead of margarine on pasta to keep it from sticking
together and cook with olive oil whenever I can substitute it in a
recipe that calls for butter or margarine. I like garlic bread and
usually spread butter/margarine on the bread the sprinkle garlic powder
on it so I've got to figure out a way to do it with olive oil. I wonder
if there is an olive oil spread produced by anyone? ^_^

TDD

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On Sun, 09 Mar 2014 09:25:51 -0500, The Daring Dufas
wrote:

On 3/8/2014 9:07 PM, joevan wrote:
On Thu, 6 Mar 2014 10:15:46 -0500, "Robert Green"
wrote:

I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I
find twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that
switching to set of 1/4" shank drills has really reduced the
amount of chuck twisting I have to do when using the electric
drill.

Two very helpful tools for CATV work have been wrenches for the
hex rings on RG6 cable. One is on a long stalk but the more useful
one is shaped like a 2" funnel with a slit in the side. It
increases the function diameter of the hex nut substantially

An anti inflamatory diet is a big help for a lot of rumatoid
conditions. Lots of onions and tomatos. I haven't had to take my
humira for going on 4 months since I started cooking onions and
tomatoes and adding all sorts of vegies along with Janes crazy salt
and somtimes a bit of cayenne pepper sauce.

What about lots of garlic and extra virgin olive oil? I use enough
garlic when cooking to run off all the roaches in the house and the
olive oil is one of the "good" oils you can consume. When I have olive
oil, I use it instead of margarine on pasta to keep it from sticking
together and cook with olive oil whenever I can substitute it in a
recipe that calls for butter or margarine. I like garlic bread and
usually spread butter/margarine on the bread the sprinkle garlic powder
on it so I've got to figure out a way to do it with olive oil. I wonder
if there is an olive oil spread produced by anyone? ^_^

TDD
I use evoo on a lot of things. I also use garlic and janes garlic salt
sometimes. I won't use margarine for anything but use butter on bread
and in foods that I cook. If I use bread it is usually gluten free
from whole foods or I make cornbread.

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

On Thursday, 6 March 2014 10:15:46 UTC-5, Robert Green wrote:
I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to set of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have to
do when using the electric drill.

Get a pair of high-grip gloves, the ones with the rubberized palms, and wear 'em. Greatly reduces the muscle force you need to exert to grasp things. Less force on the joints and less fatigue. You'll notice the difference at the end of the day.

Use a cordless driver instead of a hand screwdriver for any job that requires more than half a turn. Or find bit holder with a t-handle or ratchet handle that you can operate with motions other than twisting your wrist.

Avoid lazy-man loads of multiple tools and parts crammed in one hand while you use the other one to open doors or climb a ladder. Use a tool apron that keeps both hands free, or a tool tray that you can carry comfortably and put down easily.

Minimize exposure to vibration from reciprocating tools, or shock forces from hammering. If you can't avoid forces, try the gel-padded shock-absorbing gloves.

Re-think tasks that require sustained static force from the affected joints.. Use clamps, locking pliers, straps, bungees, cable ties, blocks and shims -- whatever -- for those loads, and save your hands for the skills that need them. Engineer each job so that you can let go and give your hands a rest at any point; don't try to hold something in a difficult position with one hand while you put the bolts on it with the other. Even if you expect the weight to be manageable, if the job takes longer than you expected you could be stuck in a spot that gets less and less comfortable, and if that heavy thing starts to slip, it can take your hand or wrist into an angle you really don't want it to go.

Chip C
Toronto

Tips for arthritic repair people
 

"Chip C" wrote in message
...
On Thursday, 6 March 2014 10:15:46 UTC-5, Robert Green wrote:
I'm looking for any tips on how to cope with advancing arthritis. I find
twisting motions to be very difficult at times, and that switching to set
of
1/4" shank drills has really reduced the amount of chuck twisting I have
to
do when using the electric drill.

Chip, these are precisely the sorts of suggestions I was looking for.
THANKS!

Get a pair of high-grip gloves, the ones with the rubberized palms, and
wear 'em. Greatly reduces the muscle force you need to exert to grasp
things. Less force on the joints and less fatigue. You'll notice the
difference at the end of the day.

I have a 6" round textured rubber mat I got from a local plumber that helps
in all sorts of jar opening and similar situations. FWIW, it was from "Joe
the Plumber" - just not the famous one.

Use a cordless driver instead of a hand screwdriver for any job that
requires more than half a turn. Or find bit holder with a t-handle or
ratchet handle that you can operate with motions other than twisting your
wrist.

Gave up manual screwdrives a long time ago. Wrist twisting has turned into
agony at times. Got an assortment of electric screwdrivers, from
pistol-gripped to tubular to a tiny one that takes jeweler's screwdriver
tips.

Avoid lazy-man loads of multiple tools and parts crammed in one hand while
you use the other one to open doors or climb a ladder. Use a tool apron that
keeps both hands free, or a tool tray that you can carry comfortably and put
down easily.

I have regrettably found that with arthritis, the old ways of being able to
hold things like screws in my hand while I operate a tool are over. It's
sort of like drinking water after your mouth is numbed with Novocaine. (-:

Minimize exposure to vibration from reciprocating tools, or shock forces
from hammering. If you can't avoid forces, try the gel-padded
shock-absorbing gloves.

Never heard of those but I think I will search Google for them. Thanks!

Re-think tasks that require sustained static force from the affected
joints. Use clamps, locking pliers, straps, bungees, cable ties, blocks and
shims -- whatever -- for those loads, and save your hands for the skills
that need them. Engineer each job so that you can let go and give your hands
a rest at any point; don't try to hold something in a difficult position
with one hand while you put the bolts on it with the other. Even if you
expect the weight to be manageable, if the job takes longer than you
expected you could be stuck in a spot that gets less and less comfortable,
and if that heavy thing starts to slip, it can take your hand or wrist into
an angle you really don't want it to go.

Yeah, sadly I know all about pushing limits with bad results. I pushed too
hard when cooking and a skillet filled with hot oil just fell out of my
hand - fortunately no serious consequences but a reminder that a joint
failure or a spasm can occur at the worst of times. I try to lay out all
the tools I think I will need and then work out the job in my head to see if
there are going to be any rough spots.

Thanks again for your input, Chip. It has been most helpful!

--
Bobby G.

Tips for arthritic repair people