--- title: 'Osteoarthritis: Finally pain-free again – Gastein Healing Gallery' url: 'https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/osteoarthritis-finally-pain-free-again/' description: 'Patient reports on osteoarthritis in the knee and how she managed to live pain-free without medication - Gastein Healing Gallery' image: 'https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/e/4/csm_fruehere-medikamente-einer-patientin-fibromyalgie-gasteiner-heilstollen-01_848bb3b406.webp' date: '2025-10-01' modified: '2025-10-01' lastUpdated: '2025-11-21' type: website site: 'Gasteiner Heilstollen' --- # Osteoarthritis: Finally pain-free again – Gastein Healing Gallery Osteoarthritis: PATIENT REPORT – PAIN NO LONGER DOMINATES MY LIFE ================================================================= Finally pain-free again ----------------------- Pain dominated her life for years—until Birgit B. from Saxony found a way to manage her osteoarthritis without medication. In this interview, she explains how a treatment program at the Gastein Healing Gallery has enabled her to walk, sleep, and enjoy life with her granddaughter again. A story full of hope and a new quality of life. Approximately half of all people over the age of 35 already show signs of joint wear and tear, and by the age of 60, osteoarthritis affects almost everyone. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease and belongs to the so-called non-inflammatory rheumatic group. Typically, osteoarthritis is accompanied by pain that is dependent on stress and movement, causing those affected to move very little. However, what brings short-term pain relief leads to a permanent worsening of symptoms. If the affected joint cartilage is not "lubricated" by regular movement, osteoarthritis worsens. Those affected then move even less due to the increased pain. Interview with an osteoarthritis patient ---------------------------------------- Birgit B. (61) from Saxony has been suffering from osteoarthritis in her knees for 10 years. She has managed to break out of the vicious circle of pain, rest, and aggravation—without any medication. In this interview, she talks about her experiences and the role that a course of treatment in the Gastein Healing Gallery played in this. Dear Birgit, you have been suffering from osteoarthritis in your knees for 10 years. How did the disease manifest itself? ![The knee is examined by a patient in the Gastein Healing Gallery.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/3/a/csm_knieuntersuchung-gasteiner-heilstollen_906a46a442.webp) "At first, the pain in my knee was only slight, but it got worse and worse. So bad that I could hardly walk anymore. I then had arthroscopy, a kind of "mini-operation," in which the cartilage in my knee was smoothed. That helped a little for a while. But about two years ago, I could hardly walk anymore. After a 15-minute walk, I couldn't go any further." Didn't the painkillers help? "I need to back up a bit. My husband passed away four years ago. He suffered from ankylosing spondylitis for many years and took a lot of painkillers. I didn't want that at all! So I always tried to take as few painkillers as possible." But how did you manage your everyday life and career despite osteoarthritis? "I have been self-employed for more than 20 years and have been working at the income tax assistance association for 14 years. This has the advantage that I can organize my working hours to some extent. When I was feeling very unwell, I worked less. When I was feeling well, I simply worked more. But I always worked." Today, you are feeling much better and hardly have any osteoarthritis pain. You say it's thanks to the Gastein Healing Gallery. How did you come across this therapy? I knew Gastein and the healing gallery from my husband. Shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, he was allowed to visit the healing gallery several times because of his Bechterew's disease. It did him a lot of good at the time and he was pain-free for a long time afterwards. I accompanied him to Gastein at the time. When he passed away four years ago, I wanted to go back to Gastein to say goodbye, so to speak. That turned into a new beginning. My knee pain was bad, and I thought I'd just try the healing gallery. My orthopedist knew about the healing gallery and encouraged me to give it a try. And? "So two years ago, I went on a three-week health retreat. During the retreat, I didn't feel well at all; everything got a little worse than before. But I was overcome with feelings of happiness because I knew that if I felt worse, it meant my body was responding to the therapy. The doctors had explained this to me beforehand. And the positive effects of the retreat really did kick in. I was pain-free for months! Suddenly, I was able to go for walks of up to two hours without any problems." How has your life changed since then? „Ich habe eine ganz andere Lebensqualität, seit die Schmerzen mein Leben nicht mehr bestimmen. Das sind einmal die Schmerzen selbst, die weg sind. Ich bin zum Beispiel gern mit meiner Enkelin unterwegs, der ich viele Jahre immer wieder sagen musste: ‚Nicht so schnell, Oma kann nicht so schnell.‘ Neulich hätten wir fast einen Zug verpasst und da habe ich ihr gesagt, wir müssen uns aber jetzt beeilen, damit wir den Zug noch bekommen. Da war sie total perplex. Ich kann nicht nur länger, sondern auch schneller laufen, fast unbeschwert. Und dann sind da noch einige andere Nebeneffekte. Früher habe ich kaum eine Nacht durchgeschlafen. Irgendwann wachte ich auf und wusste nicht mehr wie ich meine Knie legen sollte, ohne unerträgliche Schmerzen zu haben. Heute schlafe ich durch. Das bringt unglaublich viel Lebensqualität zurück.“ ![Patients relax on loungers in the radon gallery](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/0/9/csm_patienten-im-gasteiner-heilstollen_6cd99b4127.webp) How long did the treatment last for you? "Almost exactly nine months, until May 2020, when it got worse again. At that time, the healing gallery was still closed because of COVID-19. I hoped and feared that I would still be able to go this year. In the summer, I was able to go on a three-week spa treatment again." How was your treatment in terms of the coronavirus measures? "Sure, it was a little different, but the measures didn't overshadow anything for me; on the whole, it was business as usual. I have no problem following the measures: if masks are mandatory, then I put on a mask and follow the other rules. Especially since everything is very transparent and well explained in the healing gallery. And to be honest, wearing a mask at the entrance wasn't a big deal. For me, as someone who wears glasses, it's much more uncomfortable to wear a mask in the supermarket, for example." With your husband's history, Gastein must be a special place for you. “Absolutely. The memories stay with me during my treatment. I often think about how he was here too. It gives me courage and energy because it helped him back then. Of course, it's different now because I'm here for treatment myself. But it's nice. And I always feel warmly welcomed in the healing gallery. From the reception desk to the doctors to the key counter and at the entrance: everyone smiles, is so friendly and positive, I feel very comfortable. Even in this difficult year, when everyone knows that things are looking bad, there was no bad mood or harsh words. I feel in good hands here. Thank you very much for talking to us, and all the best! --- More posts ---------- [![Patient with Bechterew's disease sits on a locomotive in the Gastein Healing Gallery.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/1/3/csm_patientin-morbus-bechterew-sitzt-auf-lok-heilstollen_a0435c810f.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/125000-patients-with-ankylosing-spondylitis-in-the-healing-gallery/) [125,000 patients with ankylosing spondylitis in the healing gallery](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/125000-patients-with-ankylosing-spondylitis-in-the-healing-gallery/) [![A patient with ankylosing spondylitis gets off the train at the Gastein Healing Gallery.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/2/3/csm_patientin-morbus-bechterew-sitzt-im_Zug-heilstollen-02_7e313a4717.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/rheumatoid-arthritis-living-without-pain-is-possible/) [Rheumatoid arthritis: Living without pain is possible](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/rheumatoid-arthritis-living-without-pain-is-possible/) [![Patientin mit chronischer Polyarthritis sitzt im Gasteiner Heilstollen.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/0/e/csm_kerstin-manke-chronische-polyarthritis-gasteiner-heilstollen_1de8e0d528.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-kerstin-manke-diagnosed-with-chronic-polyarthritis/) [Experience report by Kerstin Manke, diagnosed with chronic polyarthritis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-kerstin-manke-diagnosed-with-chronic-polyarthritis/) [![Portrait of patient Gisela Madlener Chronic polyarthritis in the Gastein Healing Gallery.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/2/9/csm_gisela-madlener-portrait-gasteiner-heilstollen_c1d99eaac7.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-gisela-madlener-diagnosed-with-chronic-polyarthritis/) [Experience report by Gisela Madlener, diagnosed with chronic polyarthritis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-gisela-madlener-diagnosed-with-chronic-polyarthritis/) [![Eva Theile eine Patientin mit Fibromyalgie im Gasteiner Heilstollen. ](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/5/c/csm_patientin-heilstollen-theile-eva-fibromyalgie_8c0dc2cb86.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-eva-theile-diagnosed-with-fibromyalgia-osteoarthritis-and-hashimotos-thyroiditis/) [Experience report by Eva Theile, diagnosed with fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, and Hashimoto's thyroiditis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-eva-theile-diagnosed-with-fibromyalgia-osteoarthritis-and-hashimotos-thyroiditis/) [![Portrait Rosa Biermeier chronische Poyarthritis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/3/1/csm_portrait-rosa-biermeier_b37ead8ded.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-rosa-hermine-biermeier-diagnosed-with-chronic-polyarthritis/) [Experience report by Rosa-Hermine Biermeier, diagnosed with chronic polyarthritis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-rosa-hermine-biermeier-diagnosed-with-chronic-polyarthritis/) [![Portrait of Bechterew's disease patient Harald Bauernfeind Pabst in the healing gallery.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/2/5/csm_bauernfeind-harald-morbus-bechterew-gasteiner-heilstollen_dfbb15e8bf.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-harald-bauernfeind-pabst-diagnosed-with-ankylosing-spondylitis/) [Experience report by Harald Bauernfeind-Pabst, diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-harald-bauernfeind-pabst-diagnosed-with-ankylosing-spondylitis/) [![Portrait of fibromyalgia patient Dieter Breitenstein in the healing gallery.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/d/6/csm_dieter-breitenstein-fibromyalgie-gasteiner-heilstollen_e825c3a92d.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-dieter-breitenstein-diagnosed-with-fibromyalgia/) [Experience report by Dieter Breitenstein, diagnosed with fibromyalgia](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-dieter-breitenstein-diagnosed-with-fibromyalgia/) [![Photo of Bechterew's disease patient Gerhard Lambeck in the healing gallery](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/f/c/csm_gerhard-lambeck-morbus-bechterew-gasteiner-heilstollen-02_b38440b447.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-gerhard-lambeck-diagnosed-with-ankylosing-spondylitis/) [Experience report by Gerhard Lambeck, diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-gerhard-lambeck-diagnosed-with-ankylosing-spondylitis/) [![Portrait Lüsebrink Margitta mit Morbus Bechterew im Heilstollen.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/a/e/csm_portrait-luesebrink-margitta_0bdab89989.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-margitta-luesebrink-diagnosed-with-ankylosing-spondylitis/) [Experience report by Margitta Lüsebrink, diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-margitta-luesebrink-diagnosed-with-ankylosing-spondylitis/) [![Portrait of Bechterew's disease patient Baumgartner Eva Maria in the healing gallery.](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/fileadmin/_processed_/3/1/csm_evamaria-baumgartner-morbus-bechterew-gasteiner-heilstollen_4a6f91d339.webp)](https://www.gasteiner-heilstollen.com/en/magazin/experience-report-by-eva-maria-baumgartner-diagnosed-with-ankylosing-spondylitis/) [Experience report by Eva Maria Baumgartner, diagnosed with ankylosing 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