Interview CP44

Age at interview: 80

Brief Outline: Pain since 1978. Psoriatic Arthritis, Inflammatory Arthritis. Treatments: Epidural steroid injections. Hydrotherapy. Current medication: co-proxamol (Distalgesic), methotrexate, hydroxychloroquine sulphate (Planquenil), dihydrocodeine for flare-up.

Background: Retired lecturer; married; 2 children.

Learnt some exercises from a book and has also been swimming to a special session for people with disabilities.

Well I was very keen to undertake some exercise that would maintain mobility, because I was told that every joint should be put through it's full range once a day and I came across this book by a chap who'd been an Olympic swimmer and as he got older he developed Arthritis and worked out a set of exercises for Arthritic's that was based on Yoga and it was stretching rather than leaping about to music. 

I mean I couldn't do aerobics. Now I started off with one exercise once and built up to about thirty five exercises that I did five times a day. If I tried to double them up to ten repetitions, I should have said five repetitions once a day, I tried to double up to ten repetitions, it was too much. 

But I kept it up for a number of years and, when I couldn't do the standing exercises and I had to do the lying exercises on the bed, I could still do the hand and foot exercises and the physio said 'Well it's nearly nothing, but it's not nothing, so do the hand and foot exercises' and I did and sometimes, if I'm having trouble with my feet, I lie on my back in bed and hold each foot in turn in the air for a minute or two to try and stimulate the circulations but bed-socks do help. 

And the, I mean you get endorphins from exercise, and I have tried to go swimming once or twice. The local swimming pool has a special time on a Sunday evening for disabled and they have a chair hoist that will let you down into the water and lift you up and deposit you on a trolley and someone can wheel you to the showers and they don't just have tiny little cubicles, which I hate because I'm too big and unwieldy, they have big family rooms. So [husband's name] and I can go in together and he can help me.  
 

Occasionally has a drink of alcohol when her medication is not working as well as usual, even though she knows she probably shouldn't.

Now, I just suffered and took, now what did I take in the way of painkillers? 

I think they were giving me Distalgesics already and at some point, about a year or so later, a GP said you know 'How many are you taking at a time' and advised me to take three, he said it's a matter of getting the dosage right. So pretty well, since then, I've been on an almost routine dose of eight a day, which is the maximum. I never, ever take more than that.  

Occasionally, when it's been very bad, I will have a slug of scotch or brandy to potentiate it. Now I know this is evil, but it's better I think, by and large, rather than doubling up the dose yet again. 
 

Occasionally has a drink of alcohol when her medication is not working as well as usual, even though she knows she probably shouldn't.

Now, I just suffered and took, now what did I take in the way of painkillers? 

I think they were giving me Distalgesics already and at some point, about a year or so later, a GP said you know 'How many are you taking at a time' and advised me to take three, he said it's a matter of getting the dosage right. So pretty well, since then, I've been on an almost routine dose of eight a day, which is the maximum. I never, ever take more than that.  

Occasionally, when it's been very bad, I will have a slug of scotch or brandy to potentiate it. Now I know this is evil, but it's better I think, by and large, rather than doubling up the dose yet again.