Hi there!
Well, without knowing the relevant clinical details or a detailed clinical evaluation it would be difficult to comment specifically on the situation. I understand that she has been diagnosed with arthritis (?joint ?grade/ severity), fibromyalgia, some heart condition (? diagnosis), varicose veins and suffers from back/ knee/ shoulder/ elbow pain. None of the conditions described except the possible heart condition could be life threatening. There could be a few other cause of the symptoms described such as postural issues, neuro-muscular causes such as muscle sprain, nerve impingement, injuries to muscles/ ligaments etc., inflammations, degeneration, fractures/ dislocations, bone bruise, micronutrient deficiencies, referred pain from other regions etc. I would suggest getting this evaluated by an internist initially and depending on the cause diagnosed/ suspected, it can be managed accordingly or specialist care may be sought. Meanwhile she could try taking tylenol/ OTC NSAIDS and see if these seem to help.
Hope this is helpful.
Take care!
I agree with all that S.Kaul, MD says.
Do not blame yourself for your mother's ill health.
Yes, she may have had a hard life and life is hard for many people, not only from ill health, but being unemployed, having lost a loved one, being a prisoner of war, becoming orphaned at an early age, and a host of other issues. My father was orphaned at the age of 9 and became a prisoner of war and taken away from his own country as a child, but life goes on; he is 84 now and has had a heart attack, a stroke and has Altzheimers. We all age and we all have problems.
Whatever life throws at us, we all have to do the best we can.
The medical profession does not have all the answers or the technology or know how with regard to treating and curing a lot of illnesses.
I have been unemployed for 20 years due to ill health. And every year my health is getting worse due to arthritic conditions. I do what I can and make the most of it.
Like Kaul MD says, all the physical problems are not life threatening, but they are very debilitating. Some joints can be replaced, other joints can't.
As we age, it is common to get all sorts of ailments, some curable, others not.
What you can do for your mother is to make her feel loved and appreciated for all she has done for you. You can help by making things easier for her at home, like installing hand rails to help her get in and out of the bath, and going up and down stairs, or installing a stair lift, a bath seat, a stool to get in and ouf of the bath, highering her sofa or armchair so that it is easier for her to get up. Getting her a smaller kettle, for example or an electric can opener.
The swelling of her feet is likely to be related to her heart condition. The doctor may prescribe a duiretic designed specifically for people with heart related oedema (swelling). She needs to elevate her legs higher to help the swelling go down.
She can still live a very long time despite her physical problems. But you can make it easier for her by making simple modifications in her home.
I am not able to take Ibuprofen for my inflammation and knee, hip, back, neck problems, because it gave me a different pain in my legs and made them swell up and go very red. But there are lots of painkillers and anti-inflammatory medications as well as herbal anti-inflammtories like cherry capsules, rosehip capsules (Litozin); Celadrin, Celaritis; cod liver oil with the different Omegas in them (3 and 6) and others. What suits is a question of trial and error.