Do any of you suffer from Arthritis,
I have it in my right hip,also need a new left knee,Am falling to bits !!!
During the day have no problem with either but lately have woken up with pain in my hip.
So no good taking pain killers at night,
Do any  of you have the same problem?
The thing is I sleep on that hip,so think that may be the problem ,I have tried different ways of going to sleep,but always end up on that hip when asleep.
I sleep ok most of the night.
Just seem to end up in pain on waking.
wondering if I get cold as OH goes to work early & he is my hot water bottle !!! .Would a change of temp do it ,
Also if I sleep on my front I tend to sleep on my arms & they then get numb.Then have 10 mins of pins & needles on waking.
Thinking of just sleeping in armchair ,I dont think !!

I was first diagnosed age 20 with Arthritis in my left knee, I am 56 now and both knees,hips,spine,shoulders and elbows affected, in 2006 was told I would be in a wheelchair in 2yrs, till last year I was still working 30hrs per week on an acute medical ward before being forced into early retirement.

My hips only bother me at night and only started when I lost alot of weight, I have been on heavy duty meds for about 8 yrs now,morphine strength patch,NSAID,amitryptylline for nerve pain and paracetamol/codeine for break through pain I can't cope with, I thought about getting a memory foam mattress but they are so expensive and some reports I have read say they don't work.

The other week I was cutting a new piece of Vetbed off the roll and wondered if it would work the same as the old fashioned sheepskins we nursed patients on years ago and decided to give it a try, I cut a piece 3ft wide the width of the roll and judged where I needed to place it and using nappy pins anchored it to the edge of the mattress and replaced the bottom sheet, it has helped, I don't change position in my sleep[I filmed myself one night to prove it], I wake up and then move but some mornings I am in the same position I fell asleep in and it is extremely painful to move then.

The dogs give me a reason to get up in the morning and keep going and cheer me up when I am having a bad day.

I would have a word with your GP,it is harder to cope during the day if you are not getting a good nights sleep, try sleeping with a pillow between your knees,it keeps your hips aligned and sometimes helps

> try sleeping with a pillow between your knees,it keeps your hips aligned and sometimes helps

That's a good tip. I've done this when I've had Sciatica and it did work for me.

I'll be interested to see if anyone recommends memory foam as I've been thinking about it, but am a bit put off by the price. I've got a pillow made from it and it is useful and I don't wake up with a stiff neck anymore.

This getting on a bit business can be a bit of a trial at times! Mind you, the alternative's worse ;-)

Thanks for reply Rhodach, No I very rarely have any pain in the day,only if I have overdone it (dog walking).It just seems to be on waking.Thankfully I very rarely need meds .Funny that you mention lost weight,I have lost 8 stone due to a Gastric Bypass,
So the weight is a problem when you are overweight & a problem when you lose it as well !!
Will check with doctor on next check up Just feel that I take a lot of meds for bloodpressure,vitamins Iron etc due to Bypass ,could do without extra's If I can do without.I have had arthritis in my hip for nearly 30 years,only use pain killers now & then ,but taking them before I go to bed will not help in the morning, I think that they would have worn of by then ,

My NSAID is only taken once per day and lasts 24hrs,I take it and my bedtime meds together. Your GP should be able to suggest what will work with the meds you are already on and your bypass.

>The dogs give me a reason to get up in the morning and keep going and cheer me up when I am having a bad day.

With you 150% on that statement!  :-)

God how I hate getting to be an old bugger!  I am so used to very strong painkillers, it worries me that, if I had an accident, morphine wouldn't touch me.

However, memory foam is (in my opinion) overrated and expensive.  I agree that something between the knees certainly helps the old hip.

I have had neck problems for donkeys years, and have now spent almost a year with huge improvements.  I went into the Dreams bed place and asked about supportive pillows.  I had tried the neck rolls type, and many others that did nothing for me over the years.  The customer service was excellent.  I just laid down on a bed in my normal sleep position, while a guy brought me pillow after pillow to try.  Both memory foam pillows were rejected.  My favourite was a dreams own make pillow, very, very firm indeed.  It is the most supportive pillow I have ever used, and neck pain is almost a thing of the past.  However - it did cost over £80. 

i was sent to a physio by my doc as the pain in my hip can be unberable at times, and if i get into a certain postion at night for example onto my stomach and sleep, in the morning i have to think one two and then just push hard and get through the pain  and through the pain barrier which has made me cry at times and then hobble about a bit pain killers etc and it become bareable for the day, we got a memory foam mattress sometimes i am ok on it sometimes it is no good at all for me, with the physio he told me that i had muscle damage and ligament damage in my buttock and that was is giving me the pain in my hip i have to place a hotwater bottle on my hip twice a day, and also on a deep heat gel rubbed into the area, and i have certain stretching hip exercises to do upto three times a day and i have started to see a slight improvement in the way i am walking the physio also noticed that i was favouring one leg over the other and that one leg has slightly shrunk , it is going to be a long slow process but i will keep going but some days i wish i could leave my hip and leg in the cupboard for the day so the pain would go away .

I suffer from osteoarthritis which affects my knees, back and hands, my right hand is swollen on a couple of joints and my middle finger is a funny shape, I have a memory foam mattress and i dont rate it at all, I find it uncomfortable and I get very hot with it, some nights I go into the spare room just to get into a cold bed. My knees really hurt if I have had a busy day.

I have arthritis in my knees, ankles and hands/wrists, a variety of back problems including a tendency to a prolapsed disc, a newish shoulder problem which causes considerable hand pain in the night.  It is impossible for me to pick 1 position which will ease all the pains.  Before the shoulder/hand problem which is most intense in bed I could take turns to alleviate the pains by changing position during the  night - a quick fix for the back used to be a night on the floor but that is out of the question now due to arthritis.  I tried a memory foam mattress and hatted how it felt and the heat.  However I got a firm mattress and then a very soft mattress topper - tried duck down first but it was not comfy so went for an artificial fill, still don't get a good nights sleep but much better than it was.

Sleeping on your tummy isn't really very good for your back, best really is on your side with a pillow between your legs.
Is the pain in the hip or the groin or both?
I too find myself on my front and sometimes agree I have pins and needles at first......and can hardly move them
One of my uncles said when you hit 50 the aches and pains just seem to come rolling in relentlessly.

Karen

I have a lot of the same problems as others, worse in winter and if I do too much or have been on my feet all day my hip joint and back cause great pain.
My GP prescribed Etodolac 600mg tablets, I also take a Omeprazole 20mg tablet about half an hour before, to protect my stomach. I don't take them everyday, as I don't like to take tablets all the time, but just take them when I need to, but they are very good and I am pain free when I take them.
I have told others about them and when they have got their GP to prescribe them they also said they have given good pain relief.

Keeping yourself warm is definitely a good idea if you have arthritis.
You could try a full body pillow - like the one in Argos - could be good for you. Put one end between your knees and cuddle the other end to help support your top shoulder. I currently sleep with a normal pillow like that but I think I might treat myself to one of these !

I do sympathise as I am suffering with plantar fascists in both feet, pain killers don't touch it so I hobble around and there is no end in sight. The consultant said it will burn itself out in time but I have been suffering 2 years now and it's just getting worse.