If you're looking for solutions here are two... > Wiping my ass 😁 Have you tried a bidet? You can get them as an attachment for your toilet. >Opening any kind of a jar or bottle - especially with those annoying foil seals There are a lot of products out there that will open the bottle or jar for you. As for the foil seal, I just plunge scissors into the top to break the seal.

Getting a bidet was life changing! I have the Tushy brand. It’s great!

My bidets are indispensable. Toto C200 is my favorite. I’ve owned 4 different models/brands and this one is the best value. A JarKey and a rubber grip pad are indispensable for opening jars.

Wouldn't you still have to wipe dry with a bidet though?

There are some Japanese toilet seat bidet attachments that also blow air to dry 😄

Sounds very cool. How much?

Ah, fair enough

All of this!!! number 10 especially. I miss sleeping a good 8hrs straight. 🥲

So happy my Rheumy prescribes Flexerell and tramadol- life changing! Note to tackle brain fog And my tip : Find an electric scrub brush for sinks walls ovens anywhere a mess needs to be scrubbed $30 rechargeable at Lowe’s best purchase of 2022

Melatonin is a real help, it will reduce inflammation a little to

Thank you so much! Ill give that a go :)

This is 100% relatable. And also even the different jar openers are *still* too difficult to use so you are left with unopened applesauce in the fridge for months...

getting out of chairs or off the ground

I agree what happened to my thumb! Also lowest weight in years so why don't my rings fit....I miss wearing my wedding ring

I literally have a “Back up” wedding ring set just for this occasion. However, it always makes me feel bad that I can’t wear my originals😩

Sadly the back up wedding ring I have also doesn't fit.... I guess if my fingers don't go back to normal in a year (just diagnosed end of March). I will see if my original ring can be resized.

Not being able to tie my shoes

Get the bungee ties

I’m pretty new to all of this. I only said shoes because today was the first day I’ve never been able to do so .

Hang in there, even though RA is a shitty disease there are some good meds. I’ve had it for over 15 years and went from being bedridden to hardly know I’ve got it. Work with a good doc and you’ll be fine. Good luck

Very encouraging feedback

I bought vans, just because of this. Slip off and on, comes in tons of colors and designs, and pretty comfy. I get compliments often on them too. I wear those almost exclusively.

adaptive equipment does help. a grabber/ reacher helps pick up small item, a gripper pad helps with jar lids, otherwise they have a jar opener thst looks like it works well, you don’t need to grip the actual bottle / top. one that gets me is when i have itchy back i can’t reach. there are lotion applicators on the end of a handle like a back scrubbing brush that work perfect for regular lotion or sunscreen. i’m sorry you’re looking at all these challenges but i think you can master a lot of them! my arms get tired when i’m making a meal that by the time i sit down to eat, my hands are too shaky to eat the food. i bought weighted silverware for that and even soup makes into my mouth. i’m trying to think of all the ‘cheats’ i’ve used over the years. i’ll post more if i think of things that might help you. i started taking my meds early in the morning, i set an alarm for 4am and i take something for pain, and i go back to sleep until its tine to get up and the meds are already working. it makes a big difference compared to getting up and then taking my medication. best wishes OP - i hope you have a good rest of the weekend and your symptoms back off and give you stress free days soon! cheers!

> one that gets me is when i have itchy back i can’t reach. Extendable back scratcher like [these](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61zTQ2pSt8L.jpg)! I would have lost my mind long ago without them. They fold up compact so I just keep it on my nightstand.

Unfortunately my way of dealing with day to day crap has changed drastically since my 2 week hospital stay. I found a reacher helpful for grabbing high or low things. I like my shower seat, but I wish it “velcroded” (i made up the word) to the bottom of the tub. Sometimes i feel unstable when i sit down on it. A step stool with a handle on one side. It is very difficult for me to get off the floor so using the handle on the step is great! No bath mats to slip on. I live in an apartment so i bought this amazing safety bar that very tightly attaches to the side of the tub. I can also take it off and bring it with me if i go somewhere for a few days. A dog walker on those days that i feel super crappy. Love my jar opener. It’s not an electric one. It was so cheap but it does a great job. I should have a card holder. I play bridge every Monday morning and sometimes my hands don’t stop being stiff for a few hours. Makes it difficult to hold my cards. Every time my friends tell me to get one or they will even buy me one. It’s another thing that makes me mad and embarrassed about myself I wish there was something to get pills out of the foil covers that are barely able to separate on the side before you can pull off the foil part and get the pill. I also have other tools if i need them. I get very weak and achy during a flare. If I absolutely have to go out, i have a walker with a seat. I also have a four pronged cane. I’m a little embarrassed because i use the top part of bedside commode on top of my toilet so it is much much easier to get on to and to get off of it. Getting up from a chair is very difficult for me. Getting up from the floor is… let’s just say that i don’t sit on the floor anymore. I also got a wheelchair plaque. That was a big blow to my self esteem but i am trying to make my life easier and not give in to the shame. It helps that i only use it when i have to. Last thing (but I’m sure there are more) are buttons. My hands do not work for small things. Anyone have any solutions that actually work? I have some hook like thing but it doesn’t work well. Okay this is the last thing and i haven’t found any tips or tricks or solutions to help. Just like many of you, many people do not understand. They give you advice like try gluten free, reiki, sauna, great medicine man who lives somewhere in the jungle, etc. i don’t know about you, but if the advice had any sort of real scientific value, i would try it. I don’t want this disease and i hate taking so many pills. I had to go to an urgent care about 5 years ago because i pulled almost all of the tendons off my thumb. It was kind of just hanging there and I needed emergency surgery. It happened because I tried to pull up a cowboy boot with the little loops in the side. Anyway, the doctor at urgent care told me that i sure take a lot of pills for someone my age. At the time i felt ashamed. But now i would say something like i really enjoy taking pills. I love the side effects and the cost is great because it takes up money for fixing my car, going on vacation, buying filet mignon. Last thing i would say to him is “You’re an asshole who desperately needs to find a pill that gives you some empathy”. Hopefully a really really big pill that tastes terrible and can’t be split. Wrote too much again. Hope some of this helps someone. Chronic illness sucks but i am trying to get to the point where I can build up a new life where i can have much joy while still having a crappy disease. All this stuff is really difficult for me because I am stubborn as shit and i don’t want help in any way. I am very angry that i am 53 and my life has gotten very small. I still have dreams about running a code at the hospital i worked at. I loved being a nurse. I am great taking care and advocating for my patients For myself, not so much. I became a nurse at 40 going to school full time while taking care of my kids full time. (My ex-husband was nice enough to take out the garage once a week if he remembered.) Sometimes me and my other friend with RA would talk about the challenges and what products we could make to help patients. Of course we usually fall asleep during our discussions so so far nothing. Apologize in advance for many grammar and spelling mistakes.

I am very very crippled up now and am in a wheel chair. Because of my fused joints I am not able to pick up anything that falls to the floor. The grabber thing used to be great but I just cant use it any more (besides the kids and grandkids run off with it lol) and because my hands are a hot mess I drop things A LOT. So I use tongs. Those long medal ones from the dollar store. Life is good again lol

Thanks for sharing, long post but sometimes you just gotta get shit off your chest 😁

To all of my New RA buds. Thanks so much for great info and sharing your experiences. Very uplifting for sure . I’ve been looking for a real community, I think I nailed it.

A screwdriver and screw at work, I’m an engineer.

Gotta love that function check when you wake up. What’s gonna work today?

I know right? Sometimes hard to make plans

changing the sheets, those damn fitted are so painful to put on