@poppy67 That seems to be a common response from our doctors when they have a CKD patient. Have you been referred to a nephrologist, yet? If not, I would certainly push for that, plus a consultation with a renal dietician, Diet can play the biggest part in controlling our disease progression.

While many of us live with additional health concerns plus the CKD, watching our intakes of potassium, sodium, sugars, phosphorus, calcium, and protein in particular is important. Yes to avoiding anything but Tylenol, even topical creams containing aspirin [although I do take an 81mg aspirin each morning for blood clots prevention] Clear carbonated drinks like Sprite of 7up are okay, To address your arthritis pain, some people have used CBD creams or gummies, but be careful of overdoing that so it doesn't interact with your current medications.

Getting to the root cause of your kidney disease and addressing that will also help you not progress. Does any of this sound right for you?
Ginger

Hi Poppy67 , I'm Johnmacc. Do you know your egfr # and your creatinine #? That would better inform your stage 3 ckd. Reduced protein, depending on how much protein you currently eat, would lighten the work on your kidneys. Low sodium and a few other things might help stabilize you. May I ask your age?