-One medication that has been used for pain and swelling is your basic Motrin. I have taken Motrin for many things throughout my life from aches, and pains, to my severe headaches and now for my slight arthritis pain. Instead of taking chondroitin, I have always taken Motrin for my pain. The only thing is that the side effects of Motrin are stomach pains especially if you do not take it with food. One time I was taking Motrin for my stiff joints and I took 4 pills to take the edge off. While swallowing the pills, one of them got stuck in my throat and it was hard to get down. After that happened a while back, I have had this occur more than once. It is crazy because the doctor has told me that it can form a hole in your esophagus and make it very painful anytime you swallow things. I would be careful when taking Motrin and make sure you are taking it with food and not an empty stomach. I guess the most important part is being able to fix the pain of arthritis and if it is not taking chondroitin, I would recommend taking Motrin due to the efficiency of the med.