Hands For Living: Arthritis Pain Relief

NEWSLETTER

You don’t have to suffer with DAILY ARTHRITIS PAIN

There are over 100 different forms of arthritis, and most are a result of trauma to the joint, infection of the joint, genetic abnormality or age. Do you have pain, which limits your function, especially in your hands? Do you have constant daily pain in your hands? This arthritis pain might be caused by inflammation that occurs around the joints, damage to the joints from disease, daily wear and tear of joints, muscle strains caused by forceful movements against stiff, painful joints and fatigue. The finger, hand and wrist joints become stiffer limiting motion. In addition, the muscles of the hand and forearm become weaker taking away much needed support to the joints.

Did you know? If you have had a significant injury to your finger or hands you do have an increased risk of future arthritis. It is important to work with your hand therapist at Hands For Living to prevent future injuries and maintain the best joint health possible. Helping Hands If you have arthritis, your therapist at Hands For Living is an integral part of helping you to improve your mobility, strength, and coordination in your hands. This in turn, helps you to function better, move your hands with less pain and be more active. Whether the arthritis in your hands is minor or major, we can help in the management of your arthritis and be there for you with continued care throughout the years to help maintain general joint health. It is important to com in for a regular check up. The hand therapy specialists at Hands For Living are experts in treating arthritis in the hands. By helping to move your muscles and joints through a range of motions, such as flexing and extending, we help to maintain more normal flexibility and prevent shortening of the muscles. Contact us today to get back to living pain free.

www.handsforliving.com

NEWSLETTER

Hello to all of you! Thank you so much to all of our patients who have come back in to see us in the past couple of months. We are so happy to be able to help you get back to living. At Hands for Living summer time is about living life free from pain.

INSIDE: • PATIENT SPOTLIGHTS • SUDOKU

Photo By: Amy Enderle

We have a great newsletter about beating arthritis pain and also recovering from pain after hand surgery. Check out our superb patient spotlights. We have a delicious recipe that can help to reduce arthritis inflamation, for you chocolate lovers out there. We want to thank you for making Hands for Living a home for recovery and meeting and surpassing health goals for all of our patients! JoAnn Keller, OTD, OTR/L, CHT

• YOU DON’T HAVE TO SUFFER WITH DAILY ARTHRITIS PAIN • EXERCISE FOR YOUR ARMS • GETTING YOU BACK ON TRACK AFTER SURGERY? Are you in Pain? Call Today And Start Feeling Better Fast! 425-368-7943

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Patient Spotlight “Thank you from the bottom of my heart!” “Laurie, I really didn’t get to properly say thank you for all you did while I was in your care. I really do appreciate it. I am extremely excited to get back to my pre-operative life. Thank you from the bottom of my heart - I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend you to anyone who needed hand therapy.” - Kim Wahl

Print sudoku http://1sudoku.com

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5 1 9 This Month’s Sudoku! EXPERT LEVEL The goal of Sudoku is to fill in a 9×9 grid with digits so that each column, row, and 3×3 section contain the numbers between 1 to 9. At the beginning of the game, the 9×9 grid will have some of the squares filled in. Your job is to use logic to fill in the missing digits and complete the grid. 4 5 3 9 5 4 9 7 6 6 9 2 3 8 6 4 7 7 1 3

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www.handsforliving.com

http://1sudoku.com

n° 417872 - Level Expert

http://1sudoku.com

n° 429083 - Level Expert

Getting Back on Track After your hand injury or surgery

The Key to Recovery How well you recover after any injury or surgery of the hand, wrist or arm is dependent on occupational therapy, especially hand therapy with a certified hand therapist. With years of extensive training in the upper extremity and hands, a hand therapist is a true specialist in this area. That makes all the difference in the speed and completeness ofyour recovery. Depending on your body and the severity of the injury or surgery, the length of time to recover can vary. Typically soft tissue injuries take six weeks or more to heal and bone injuries take eight weeks or longer. Your doctor and therapist work together to make sure you are progressing at the needed pace to allow your body to heal at its best ability. Know that no matter what you have been through, the expert hand and occupational therapists at Hands For Living are here to work with you and your doctor to achieve the best outcomes. In no time, you will be well on your way to a speedy recovery and

Having a hand, wrist or arm injurycan really setyou back and not just in the short term. Everyday, you use your hands and arms to do thousands of tasks that we often take for granted. From brushing your teeth to cutting upyour food,your hands and arms do a lot of work.That is why, when an injury occursorafteraneededsurgicalprocedure, hand therapy is vital to get your joints and muscles moving properly again. After an injury or surgery, right away muscles begin to waste, joints become stiff and swelling happens. The hands are a very difficult place for swelling to leave from and it typicallytakes quite some time for it to resolve. Depending on the type of injury or surgery, putting the arm or wrist in a cast or brace may be required. This helps the tendons, ligaments or bones affected, to heal in a natural position. The downside is that you don’t do all those normal movements you need to be doing each day. Everything becomes stiff and weak. However, the right therapy can increaseyour movement and strength back to normal.

back to your normal daily activities. Call us today to find out how we can help you.

THUMB IP EXTENSION STRETCH

Try this movement for arthritis.

Helps Flexibility

www.simpleset.net

Grasp the affected thumb below the last knuckle and gently stretch it into a more straightened position.

Why Choose Hands For Living?

• Expert, caring, and cost-effective evaluation of your injury or concern. • Information about what has happened and what can be done to help. • Specialized exercises and instructions to complete between sessions. • Comfortable and precise customorthoses (splints), if needed, to protect your elbow, wrist, or hand or improve motion. • Care of wounds, scars, swelling, and injuries to tendon, nerve, bone, muscle or soft tissue. • Practical ergonomic instructions to prevent injuries.

Always consultyour therapistorphysicianbefore startingexercisesyouareunsureofdoing.

www.handsforliving.com

Patient Spotlights

Health Tip

Study after study reinforces the delicious idea that eating chocolate, especially dark chocolate, is good for you (in moderation, of course). One reason is that cocoa, the main ingredient in chocolate, is packed with antioxidants called polyphenols. The higher the percentage of cocoa in a bar, the higher the concentration of polyphenols. Polyphenols will help fight inflamation in the body, in turn, helping relieve arthritis pain. This recipe, made with cocoa powder, will let you reap the health benefits of dark chocolate without its bitter taste or extra fat or sugar. You can reduce Inflammation by eating healthy!

“Caring, attentive and creative!” “My therapist was able to help me meet my goals by making therapy fun with toys and putty and coming up with new and creative ways to challenge me. I would describe my therapist as caring, attentive and creative. I will recommend her to anyone needing to see a hand therapist.” Mikayla B. “Incredibly helpful!” “My therapist was able to help me work to my goals by providing me with tips and exercises to help me reach them. For example, she helped me learn how to change my workstation to improve my posture, which was incredibly helpful. My therapist is kind, knowledgeable, understanding and truly invested in improving my life through therapy.” Kayla I. “Amazing!!” “I would describe my therapist as AMAZING!! The whole staff is incredible. Such helpful therapists. The therapist really listen to all of your concerns and address them accordingly, totally customizing your recovery. Before surgery, I was totally depressed. Now I have my life back. I can do things at home and have a much better outlook on life.” - Patrick B.

Cocoa Banana Walnut Bread

1/2 cup brown sugar

1. cupwhole-wheat pastryflour

3/4 cup plain, low-fat yogurt

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/3 cup canola or grapeseed oil

1 tsp. cinnamon

2 Tbs. molasses

1/2 tsp. salt

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 tsp. allspice

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and allspice. In a separate bowl, lightly beat eggs, then stir in sugar, yogurt, oil, molasses, bananas and vanilla. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix gently. Fold in walnuts and pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let cool several minutes before unmolding.