An aching body is one thing that could actually ruin one’s day. When you want to do your everyday routine, sudden pain in your back, shoulder or arms will limit your activities. In some cases, joint pain could also join in, and that makes the day even worse, right? Even if only your big toe is throbbing with pain, it seems like your entire body is affected by it.
But, why do you experience aching body and joint pain?
The reasons why parts of the body ache and joints swell and feel painful are many. It could include stress, pressure and muscle tension. For example, in case of overload, lifting too heavy objects or otherwise, muscles, tendons or ligaments can be damaged. The body could react to it, and that’s when you perceive pain. When this happens, your muscles will tend to contract, and they feel tight. At times, you may feel it as a painful cramp. The joints could get inflamed and become painful too.
The common areas in the body that could hurt are the back, knees, ankles, elbows, and the digits or toes and fingers. However, some individuals experience pain in their neck, hips, shoulder and even jaw.
The body experiences muscle and joint pain now and then. You may have felt your muscles cramp or your joints crack and burning with pain even in the earlier years. But these were caused by strenuous activities or possible injuries. When you reach menopause age, the reason for these body pains would be quite different.
What Causes These Problems in Menopause?
During menopause, your hormone levels go through drastic changes. Estrogen plunges and when this happens, your hypothalamus thinks your body is overheating. Amid the confusion, your body will try to cool off and that’s how you experience a hot flash.
A deeper explanation could root in the natural processes of being a woman. When females reach the menopausal stage, the body experiences a lot of changes, especially in the hormonal aspect.
Estrogen and progesterone levels decrease during menopause and these have effects on a woman’s sensitivity when it comes to pain. Estrogen actually helps keep cortisol at normal levels, but with decreased estrogen, cortisol can increase in amount. Progesterone, on the other hand, is responsible for keeping the body relaxed and feel calm.
However, when its level drops as a woman reaches the age of menopause, its calming effect will no longer be experienced.
Will I Be able to Prevent Joint Pain and Aching Body?
When you were younger, you tend not to mind the pain you have felt. However, as you age, the simplest signs could tell you something else. It is important to feel how your body works because the symptoms could be present due to underlying causes. Also, early detection of a possible problem will give you better chances of curing it or, much better, preventing the problem from happening. So what can you do to avoid such body aches and joint pains associated with menopause?
- Watch your diet – always consider eating healthy kinds of food. The joints are lubricated by good body fat or oils to make sure they don’t rub together nad cause inflammation. Some foods may also help with reducing pain and inflammation. This includes Ginger, Cherry, Blackberry, and Turmeric. You can eat Herring fish and Salmon too because they are rich in essential oils.
- You would want to avoid some food items too. Potatoes, beans, eggplant, and tomatoes could cause joint pains to some individuals. Some other food items containing gluten and dairy products could bring the same effect as well.
- Supplement as needed – make sure that you have the right vitamins and minerals that your body needs. If you think that your nutrition is not enough, proper supplementation may be necessary. Calcium and Magnesium are two of the important minerals you can take for this condition. Some good quality fish oil that contain omega 3 and omega 6 essential fatty acids can help you as well.
- Keep caffeine consumption to a minimum. Caffeine may contribute to inflammation and cause pain.
- Observe proper hydration – experts recommend drinking at least 8 glasses of water daily. This helps with proper lubrication of the joints.
- Exercise is key – simple stretching and hiking regimen can help you get fit. More exercise techniques from this website could also help! But, you would want a mild form of exercise because strenuous activities could cause pain most of the time.
- Get enough rest and sleep – you need to relax and avoid stress because it could cause muscle tension and body pains. Learn how to improve your sleep patterns today.
- Keep a good posture – A good posture will put just the right pressure on your feet, legs and hips. This further reduces joint pain and body aches.
- Maintaining a good weight is also important. Your weight puts pressure on your joints, especially on the legs and hips. You can check if your weight is ideal through BMI or Body Mass Index. You can use a free BMI calculator by the Mayo Clinic.
Experts suggest keeping a “Pain Diary”. You can input all the kinds of food you’ve eaten, the beverages you took, and the activities you’ve done in a day. Through this, it will be easier for you to monitor and pinpoint which things could have caused you to have an aching body. A pain diary will help you prevent and treat aching body and joint pain.
If you look at it, you have to keep a healthy lifestyle. This does not only help you avoid having an aching body and joint pain. keeping a healthy lifestyle will help our body recover from stress and maintain its normal function in general.
How Can I Treat an Aching Body and Painful Joint?
There are times when you can’t prevent having an aching body and joint pain, no matter how careful you were with your diet and activities. If this happens, you don’t have to worry too much because it will only worsen the problem. You can try some organic treatment options and gentle activities to make sure that you get relief from your body aches.
Use Topical Capsaicin Pain Relief
Capsaicin is the substance that brings the spice to chilis! But, they are good anti-inflammatory agents too. This substance is often found in Cayenne peppers. Manufacturers of pain relief creams and gels use Cayenne to provide relief from capsaicin. A good product like Badger Muscle Rub contains capsaicin and has positive reviews from its users.
Use Herbal Treatments
Another technique is to use herbs that can help you relieve body pains. One herb that is known to be a good pain reliever and an anti-inflammatory agent is Arnica. Its flower is used as a medication for pain relief. It can even be used to manage bruises, strains and sprains. Typically it is prepared as oil for home remedies. 1 part of dried Arnica flower is mixed with 5 parts Arnica oil for this preparation. The oil produced from this mixture could be applied to the affected area.
You can also get Arnica as prepared oil, cream, tincture, or gel in the market. A.Vogel’s Atrogel is a useful Arnica gel for joint paint.
Other herbs that can also be great for pain relief are Ginseng, Black Cohosh, and Sarsaparilla. What’s great with these herbs is that they can also be good treatments for other menopausal symptoms! Isn’t that good news?
Get more Flexible with Foam Rollers
Getting flexible as you get older and exercising with a foam roller doesn’t take a lot of time. It does take a little discipline. Consistency is your best friend. The benefits are less tension, more comfort in movement and enhanced performance. You’ll feel like doing more and being more active. You may just prevent injury from happening and enhance recovery if you have one.
Debra Atkinson shows you how to use the foam roller below. (3.17 minutes)
Relieve with Massage
Massage improves the blood flow to different parts of the body. Many experts believe that a healing touch through massage is a good way to relieve pain. A study on pain has found out that individuals, who had a massage session for pain relief, recovered better and took fewer pain medications. In fact, the study showed that the effect of massage lasted for six (6) months.
Alternative Pain Relief
Did you know that Acupuncture could also help fight off stress, body aches and joint pain? Check out how acupuncture can lift off that excess baggage of pain from your body today! Try to relax with Aromatherapy and Qigong as well!
Of course, when you think that your condition is too severe and needs immediate medical attention, this is the time that you will need to have it checked by a medical professional. The doctor may prescribe you the appropriate medications to address the aching body and joint pain.
How well do you manage your aching body and joint pain? Share with us some tips!
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Gita is the founder of My Menopause Journey. Since 2014, she has been supporting midlife women by sharing hard-earned learnings from her own experience. To advance her knowledge, Gita puts a lot of her time and effort into understanding the broad spectrum of women’s health. She immerses in extensive research about the physical, mental and emotional aspects of menopause. Gita believes in the life-changing power of healthy, holistic living — this is where she anchors her message to all women. Learn more about her marvelous mission in About us - My Menopause Journey.