Arthritis

[Sha]

Autoimmunity~Nah, one pill...once a week sounds ok! Did they make ya sick or have any side effects at this dose? What is the benefit of them? Thank You!!

Sooki~I hope he calls soon! How long did it take to get all your labs back and get to talk to him again and not the nurse?  I like the fact that he has her call right away as he gets the pieces to the puzzle! The experience with him and hiis staff has been great! Thanks so much for always answering my questions! How I ended up being lucky enough to find someone like you who has my rheumy also....I will never know, but THANKS!

Sha......I guess I didn't know how much I hate waiting!!

[harrigan]

I have RA, diagnosed last year.  It has not been controlled by methotrexate of leflunomide so I will be starting weekly anti-TNF injections in the next few weeks.  Make sure you get a good selection of pain relief to cover all the levels of  pain.  I have a range of 5 drugs and by staying on top of the pain regularly, I rarely need the knock-out stuff!

Good luck with you results Sha - I agree, the waiting is awful!  I was told I was eligible for anti-TNF 4 weeks ago, but the rheummy only signed it yesterday to send it off!  GRRR  XX Ailsa

[Sha]

Ailsa~ Good luck with your treatment!!  I am the worst at waiting for results!! I have no idea what a bone island is or spurring:(

You are right about keeping on top of the pain....I do all day long so I can be active with the kids i work with! Tickle Monster can't run  very well on recess if I'm in a lot of pain....and don't think the tiickle monster gets and slack....nope she goes down the slides, across the briidges and down the poles on recess to get the pixies and trolls trying to get away!lol That's how I roll....and the kids wouldn't have it any other way, so my bones had better hold out!

Sha

[Carolina]

Dear Sha and all:

Arthritis is the most common disease (condition?) in the world, I've heard.

http://www.symptomfind.com/diseases-conditions/arthritis/

There are more than one hundred types of arthritis, making arthritis one of the most common chronic conditions in the world. Arthritis can occur for a variety of reasons that include autoimmune diseases, viruses, bacterial infections, old age, and injury. The most common types of arthritis include osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and juvenile arthritis.

Some forms of arthritis occur naturally as a result of age because of wear and tear on the bones, while other forms of arthritis occur because of an underlying condition that is a virus, bacterial infection, or inheritable disease.

Arthritis types run in the family, so there is a likelihood that you will develop the types of arthritis that your parents or immediate family members experienced.

Some autoimmune conditions can cause arthritis in addition to a low-grade fever.

I've had osteo arthritis for over 20 years.   Neck (severe), hands (severe, crooked fingers, surgery on thumb), feet (severe), shoulder (surgery), knees (mild), hips (mild), back (lumbar region, severe).

It is the source of most of my pain, always exacerbated by any other condition or illness which causes inflammation.

There isn't any treatment at all for OA to cure or slow it down.  Glucosamine/Chondroitin has never been established to be of any help.

Pain relief, exercise to strengthen the surrounding muscle system, and surgery when necessary are the only options.   Also weight loss will help, as even arthritis in non weight bearing joints seems exacerbated by excess weight.

I am sero negative for any other form of arthritis, or any AI condition.   So I can't offer any advice or experience.

With OA I know that staying on top of the pain is crucial.   I take Aleve twice a day, Cymbalta, and Trileptal, all of which help with the pain.   Occasionally I take Tylenol, too.

OA flares when some part of my body develops more nodules, these days this is happening in my hands.   The pain where the nodule is forming is very severe and throbbing.   All of the rest of my body reacts to that intense inflammation and I am very miserable for a week or more.  Once the new nodules stop growing, my body calms down.

I am anemic (which seems par for the course with arthritis and also with AI conditions) and take Iron.

I took vitamin D for many years, but now I'm stopping to see if my blood levels fall.

I take a multi vitamin and alpha lipoic acid and L Carnetine, as well.

It sounds like many of you have more complex and scary types of arthritis.   I learn so much here.

Elaine

[Autoimmunity]

Autoimmunity~Nah, one pill...once a week sounds ok! Did they make ya sick or have any side effects at this dose? What is the benefit of them? Thank You!!

Sooki~I hope he calls soon! How long did it take to get all your labs back and get to talk to him again and not the nurse?  I like the fact that he has her call right away as he gets the pieces to the puzzle! The experience with him and hiis staff has been great! Thanks so much for always answering my questions! How I ended up being lucky enough to find someone like you who has my rheumy also....I will never know, but THANKS!

Sha......I guess I didn't know how much I hate waiting!!

I am very sensitive to medications and don't do well a lot of times, but I did not have any side effects from the vit d.  My endocrinologist put me on them maybe 2 years ago because my levels were low and I was having severe pain in my hips.  It's not working for my pain now as it has greatly progressed, but for the longest time the vit. d actually stopped the pain  and swelling and I was able to function normally.  Better than any pain pill for a while there!  If you do a search you will find tons of articles about it helping with joint pain or stopping progression of arthritis (hmm, not sure about that one).  I do think it is very beneficial.
p.s. - jealous you have a rheumy buddy  

[Sooki]

Sha:  I'm so sorry - I just found this tonight!  (ironic, huh)  Still trying to figure out how to navigate here.  He or his assistant called me whenever a positive result came in.  But he didn't give me an overall assessment until the next appointment.  I didn't get the printed lab results until then either.  Since you're far away, you should call the office and ask whether you need an appointment or whether you can set up a phone appointment or what, and schedule something.  Ask for copies of all the results; VM has a policy of getting you all the results within 2 weeks of them being done.  Maybe it's time to shake the tree a little?  Patience is often overvalued.  I hope you get some answers soon.

[Sha]

Arthritis types run in the family, so there is a likelihood that you will develop the types of arthritis that your parents or immediate family members experienced.

Some autoimmune conditions can cause arthritis in addition to a low-grade fever.

It is the source of most of my pain, always exacerbated by any other condition or illness which causes inflammation.

Pain relief, exercise to strengthen the surrounding muscle system, and surgery when necessary are the only options.   Also weight loss will help, as even arthritis in non weight bearing joints seems exacerbated by excess weight.

I am anemic (which seems par for the course with arthritis and also with AI conditions) and take Iron.

I took vitamin D for many years, but now I'm stopping to see if my blood levels fall.

I am going to PT to try to keep flexible and stop some of the pain from tightening and getting stiff. I am going to be taking 50,000 units of vit D a week for 12 weeks and then 1000 from there. I will be taking 325 mg of iron a day cuz I am anemic. Those are the only labs that I have heard back on. I was found to have mild inflammation consistent with sjogrens on lip biopsy and bone spurring and bone island found on xray. Thanks for your feedback!

autoimmunity~ Thanks!!I clarified it with her and am going to be taking the above amount. Hope I have no side effects too...vitamins make me queasy

Sooki~Good idea on the asking for copies! I am going to call on wednesday if they don't call by then cuz the pain is gettting worse and I want to make an appointment with my GP to discuss different pain management or at least an increase. I don't wantto make an appointment with my GP until I have all the info so she can treat the pain appropriately! My back hurts sooooo much and I know I am its worst enemy;)

Thanks again everyone!!

Sha

[Joe S.]

Sha, I think that D3 would be better for you than D. If you have a costco membership, Pick up a bag of dried cherries and take a small handful with each meal. Tai Chi can provide the range of motion you need when you can no longer get therapy.

[Carolina]

Great suggestions, as always, Joe S.

Kisses

Elaine

[CAT1962]

...I'm 35 and feel like I'm 80 too, but have to ACT like I'm 20 cuz of the room I work in...VERY ACTIVE CLASS  to say the least!!

Cat1962....ya feel me on this one...eh??

Sha

Absolutely! The days of getting down on the floor are CAPITAL O- OVER! 

[Sha]

Joe~they called in the prescription of Vit D; I will have to check and see what he prescribed.

Cat~I still have to sit on the floor half of the day and go from sitting...to standing...to sprinting after a kid in 0 seconds flat!! Tis a true statement! I have the kid I used to have as a 1-on-1 last year coming over tomorrow and I have the flu....started this morning with a sore throat and now it is in my lungs and I'm running a slight fever with a tight cough....Uhhhhgggg! Told his mom and she said he wouldn't think about not coming and since he has been on an antibiotic for same thing...he's a coming anyway! I can never say no!lol I miss him though....at least he wasn't a runner!

Sha