I Made One Big Change

Trying something different for your arthritis can change your life. Here's what worked for four people.

- Timothy Gower

When you were diagnosed with arthritis, your first question was probably, “What can I do for it?” Although your doctor couldn’t offer a cure, he undoubtedly talked about several different therapies and lifestyle measures that can help manage arthritis symptoms. Yet, for some people, controlling arthritis can come down to taking one big step that makes all the difference. Here are the stories of four people with arthritis who struggled with their symptoms until each took a step that proved life-changing.

I Finally Had Surgery

DOUG STELLHORN had high hopes in 2011, when he changed careers from building houses to working as a millwright at a busy steel manufacturing plant, where he maintains machinery. But about six months after the Jerseyville, Illinois, resident started the new job, he began getting a cramp-like pain in his hips. It usually faded quickly, but soon the cramping became persistent. His hips throbbed with every step, and sitting brought little relief.

Stellhorn, a married father of five, took over-the-counter pain relievers, but they didn’t help much. He gradually abandoned favorite hobbies, like working on cars and duck hunting. “I would go to work and come home. There wasn’t much else I could do,” says Stellhorn, 48. “Everything I did involved pain.” He lived with the constant discomfort until 2015, when Stellhorn finally brought it up with his family doctor, who ordered X-rays.

Jerseyville is the kind of place where every body knows one another, and Stellhorn’s physician also happens to be a duck-hunting buddy. “I don’t know how you’re walking,” his doctor pal said as he studied the X-rays. The images revealed that the protective cartilage on Stellhorn’s hip bones was gone, and that he had severe osteoarthritis (OA).