Dr. Iverson suggests building hand strength with grip exercises, such as squeezing a ball—and the ball you choose should match your current abilities. “Depending on how painful and swollen your joints are, you’ll want to have something to hold that has different [degrees of] resistance,” she says. This can range from a couple of ankle socks rolled into a ball for minimal resistance, to something firmer, like a tennis or lacrosse ball. Grip, hold for 10 seconds, relax, then repeat several times. If you have trouble with range of motion, try something larger like a softball, she suggests.