Rheumatoid arthritis can have a considerable impact on daily life. Depending on your symptoms and their severity, you may need long-term treatment to reduce joint damage. We have located the best apps to help individuals with rheumatoid arthritis to navigate through day-to-day challenges.
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that affects around 1.3 million adults in the United States.
In the condition, the immune system mistakenly attacks the joints, which causes inflammation and swelling. Eventually, irreversible joint deformity may occur.
Women tend to be two to three times as likely as men to be affected by rheumatoid arthritis, and 20–70 percent of those working at onset may be disabled between 7 and 10 years later.
Although there is no cure for rheumatoid arthritis, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs can help with remission of symptoms in some people. Other medications, therapies including physical and occupational therapy, and surgery may also minimize joint damage.
Smartphone apps can also help you to implement lifestyle changes and self-care measures to manage your signs and symptoms.
Medical News Today have collated the top 10 apps to support people with rheumatoid arthritis.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
MyRA is an app developed for people living with rheumatoid arthritis. With MyRA, you can track your condition, create snapshots of your data, and communicate about your rheumatoid arthritis.
Generate a complete picture of your rheumatoid arthritis activity each day by recording how you’re feeling. Add custom notes, voice memos, and photos, and get a visual overview of how your disease state alters over time.
The app produces a summary report to jog your memory when you visit your physician. With this report, you can give an accurate account of how things have stayed the same or changed since your last doctor’s appointment.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
PainScale is a pain diary and coach that can help you to manage your chronic pain through condition tracking, education, information from top medical sources, and personalized reports.
The app’s communities share insights of their treatment so that you can discover potential options that might work for you. A searchable library of information, articles, and videos may help you find a form of pain relief that you’ve not yet tried.
Track pain triggers and intensity, symptoms, medications, mood, activity, and sleep, and receive a summarized report to improve communication with your doctor.
Android: $4.99
iPhone: $4.99
Join more than 80,000 individuals who have chosen to manage their chronic pain and symptoms with My Pain Diary. The app was first developed by a chronic pain patient to track, report, and better manage pain.
Track unlimited symptoms and triggers at multiple times per day. Your entries can be edited at any time and past entries can also be added. Document inflammation, swelling, and visible changes to joints with photos.
My Pain Diary’s color-coded calendar and interactive graphs make it simpler to get an outline of your pain progress. Detailed reports can be generated for you to email or print and discuss with your doctor.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
Pain Relief Hypnosis offers a program that helps you learn how to relax and reduce pain in just 1 to 3 weeks by listening to its 30-minute audio once per day. The app relieves pain by retraining your body to enable comfort through subconscious thoughts.
The app’s developers say that it’s normal for the body to use pain to signal when something is out of kilter. However, if the pain lasts too long — as with the chronic pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis — the body keeps sounding the internal pain alarm. Hypnosis aims to reset this behavior to train your body into having a relaxed response to chronic pain.
A certified hypnotherapist provides the hypnosis audio, and the track features nature sounds and peaceful music to enhance relaxation.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
CareZone is an app that makes it easier for you and your family to keep tabs on your medication. Managing multiple medications, dosages, and when to take them can be a hassle, but CareZone simplifies medication management.
Quickly create a list of medications by photographing prescriptions, supplements, or drug containers. The app will automatically add the names, dosages, and other information without you having to type each one into the database.
Receive reminders to take your medicine and record when the dose has been taken. Reminders to refill a prescription can also be set. CareZone can keep you organized with a journal to track your symptoms, a calendar to schedule appointments, and a to-do list to complete tasks or perhaps assign them to others.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
Reachout is a support network for people dealing with chronic pain and their caregivers. Gain self-confidence, receive support, build coping skills, and reduce loneliness.
Build up your profile, read other people’s stories, make friends, and gain lasting connections with people who know what you are going through.
Reachout is a safe, compassionate place to express yourself without the fear of being judged or social stigma. Find support for your pain in the chronic pain support groups and exchange details on tried and tested therapies and coping strategies.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
Physical activity helps to alleviate symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and improves day-to-day function, and yet research tells us that
When you have chronic pain and feel fatigued, the last thing you’ll want is to do a workout. However, getting moving may reduce your pain and improve your flexibility. Maintaining a healthy weight with exercise and a healthful diet also
Start exercising with Sworkit, the workout program for everyone regardless of your age, condition, or injuries. Choose an exercise plan and filter by difficulty, category, stance, and impact level.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
Research has demonstrated that yoga is a safe and effective activity for individuals with rheumatoid arthritis. It improves physical function, pain, energy levels, and mood by up to
Daily Yoga has more than 200 yoga, meditation, and Pilates classes, 500 asanas, and 50 workout plans, all available from beginner to advanced.
Step-by-step instructions guide you through the practices, and calories and workout time can be tracked. The Daily Yoga community helps you to stay motivated with weekly activities, ideas, and inspiration.
iPhone: Free
Mindfulness helps with depression and anxiety and improves the pain and stiffness associated with rheumatoid arthritis.
With 3 Minute Mindfulness, you can reduce stress, relax, and feel more at peace in just a few minutes — perfect if you only have a short amount of time to yourself.
Quick meditations and breathing exercises help you to keep stress and anxiety at bay and can even promote improved sleep. A 7-day course is available that provides seven short mindfulness lessons over the course of a week.
Android: Free
iPhone: Free
Poor sleep quality is
Sleep Better is a sleep tracker focused on helping you to improve your sleep habits to wake up feeling refreshed. Its Smart Alarm can wake you up within a personalized wake-up window.
Track your sleep efficiency, cycles, and duration as well as your daily habits, including stress levels, exercise, caffeine consumption, and alcohol intake, to see if any of these variables affect your sleep.