Many of us find our general aches and pains so much worse in the winter or during changeable weather. It is unclear sometimes as to why we feel significantly worse during these times, but there are many steps that can be taken to make yourself more comfortable and reduce the risk of suffering with more pain when the winter arrives.
Everyone reacts differently to different temperatures throughout the year and our body does react to fluctuating barometric pressure, but for many people with chronic pain and/or arthritis, they tend to feel more discomfort in the winter. The winter months can also change our mood too and this can also magnify your pain levels if you are feeling sad or depressed with the bad weather changes.
Tips on how to reduce your risk of pain
- Throughout the year, build up muscle and bone strength through an exercise-based physiotherapy programme. This will help reduce pressure on your joints and leave you less prone to injury too.
- Keep yourself at a healthy weight throughout the year, which will naturally take pressure off your joints.
- Using heat pads or a water bottle on your joints will help relax your muscles and using an electric blanket at night will ensure you stay warm throughout the night and not wake up with achy muscles and joints.
- Try walking around the house during the day if you cannot get outside in the bad weather. Sitting for too long will cause you to have stiff joints
- Sleeping well is a key factor to feeling good and keeping a positive mindset
- Dress in layers to stay warm and keeping your joints from getting too cold
- Good nutrition is vital to keeping your body healthy throughout the year
- Exercise. This will improve your circulation and help keep your warmer
Seeing a physiotherapist regularly will benefit you when it comes to those cold wintery days. An individual tailored programme will help build up your muscles and keep your joints active, ready to get back outside in the summer months!
For more information on how we can help you, please call Home Physio Group on 0330 335 1016.