Anxiety and RA | Arthritis Information

I had my visit to the RD today and he was quite pleased and he stated that
no need to come back for six months.

This is the bit that I'm not to sure about. As far as pains and the like,
I have been very good over the past 5 weeks and told him so.

I stated that I still am suffering from fatigue, anxiety, and depression
with some constant stiffness in my neck that is only a recent development.

His reply was that I need to go see the local GP as it is his opinion that
he does not think that the RA (because it does not seem active) or the drugs
would be causing this. The stiffness in the neck was never mentioned again.

He reckons that the depression is sucking my energy levels to such an extent
that it is also causing the fatigue and anxiety.

One thing I do know without question is, I did not have these problems before
the onset of RA twelve months ago. No matter how good I feel, the feeling is always
constant that the RA is just below the surface just waiting for me to over do things.

It is my belief that although one might be suffering no symptoms the RA is still in the system
and may be causing other problems, ect. the nervous system. That and the drugs
could be combining in such a way as to affect certain individuals in the manner that I feel.

I have a short attention span around a lot of noise (crowds and every one yabbering),
I just feel the pressure build up in my neck and head and have to find some quite for
half an hour to settle back down.

Cooking dinner is the same, it is like I cannot handle three pots on the stove at once.
I seem to become confused and head for the fridge when I should in the pantry and when I
get to the right place I have forgotten what it was that I was after.

I feel tired (fatigued) after walking the dog, just about anything I do physically
becomes fatiguing after a max of about two hours a day.

12 hours after reporting that I have been feeling good for the past 5 weeks I now
am feeling things in my L/ankle, R/hip, and both wrists, the wrists being the worst.
Things seem to develop so far without going into full flare, so I guess the drugs
are holding.

Could the RA and drugs be causing my problems or as I am starting to think, it's all Psychosomatic.

Drugs on : MTX 20 mg predisone 2.5mg day Plaquenil 400mc a day It's weird what Dr.s will define as having RA "under control". My RD told me mine is currently inactive but I still have symptoms. I'm planning on "raising the bar" for the criteria of having my "RA under control".

It sounds to me like the RA is still doing it's thing. Moderate exercise (swimming is great) could help with the depression and fatigue, if you aren't doing some already.

I know I've said this a bunch of times but AP has worked very well on my depression and fatigue. They were the first things to go on this therapy, evaporating about the 2nd month in.

As for the brain fog it sounds like ADHD, but it's probably just brain fog from RA. Since I have ADHD it's hard for me to separate the two and I can't tell what helps RA brain fog. Maybe someone else will know.

Good luck with getting that under control. Fatigue and depression can really detract from the quality of your life.
I have some nasty anxiety, despite my RA. Being in an active flare does NOT help, that's for sure. I'm lucky that my RD is willing to treat me for the anxiety, as well as my PCP. Hopefully your PCP will do the same. I think you'd see a big difference in your concentration, fatigue, etc. I know I do! Oh, and with the neck stiffness. I harbor most of my stress in my neck. When it gets really bad, I take a muscle relaxer. Usually, it'll get worse when I forget to take my anxiety meds. oops! Bodak, I have brainfog myself and how you described going to the fridge instead of the pantry or vice versa happens to me on a daily basis! I'm pretty sure it has to do something with the RA and the meds because I wasn't this bad before. I hope you get to feeling better soon. It's really easy to get down when you're in pain. Don't let the depression take what you love - keep taking pictures!! [QUOTE=MrsAlexander] I hope you get to feeling better soon. It's really easy to get down when you're in pain. Don't let the depression take what you love - keep taking pictures!!

Sorry to hear you're not feeling well.

I can definitely relate to the "fog." I started feeling that way shortly before the onset of joint pain, and even though medication has helped, some days I'm still not up to par. It does seem to be directly connected with fatigue.

As for anxiety and depression, I don't think anything can get you there faster than not feeling well. Remaining positive and upbeat when you feel bad is much easier said than done! So I don't think what you're experiencing is at all "psychosomatic"... just a very normal part of dealing with a chronic and unpredictable illness.

Hang in there.

GingerR

I love it, Stephen!! You are really good at what you do.

I used to take 1500 mg of naproxen daily. Never realized what a fog I was living in until I went off of it....two weeks later...it's like I was more alert than I'd been in YEARS!

As for the fatigue...it's a real thing. Go get checked out for vitamin D deficiency. This is directly linked to autoimmune diseases like RA. Even if you take a daily multivitamin it probably isn't enough to keep your level up where it should be.

I am taking a vitamin D supplement, and have started on Lexapro for this very same thing. The anxiety seems to have dissipated, and I feel much more normal and capable of handling the stress and excitement that comes with the holiday season.

Good luck to you....just remember that whatever you are feeling is 'real'...and take care of yourself!

Bodak, what you describe is absolutely RA related, sounds like your RD is trying to pass the buck. I experience everything you have described and without doubt depression and anxiety are a symptom of this disease. My GP does deal with that side of my RA rather than my RD but still my RD very much acknowledges that those symptoms, which are sometimes the worst of all to deal with, is part of the disease.

My old GP's take on the depression component was that the extra inflammation in my body from the RA mucked up my brain chemicals which cause depression. This makes sense when I can see clearly that it has mucked up my speech, caused night blindness and effects my motor skills.

Many of us have had to use an anti depressant to control our anxiety and depression symptoms. Do not be afraid to do so. It definitely helps. Take this to your GP.

As for the fatigue that is part of RA too and probably the worse symptom that many of us face. I have noticed that when meds work, the pain eases first but the fatigue can still hang in there. So are your meds really controlling your disease properly?

Hope this helps. I would talk to your GP and also mention to them what you felt about the RD visit.
[QUOTE=micheleb]I think some of your problems are both the ra and depression. Have you ever considered trying an antidepressant for a while to see if that helps with the neck pain and the energy levels? It sounds like you are fairly active despite having ra, which is a great thing. I also get that stupid feeling when trying to multi task and loud nosies, forget it, very stressful to me. [/QUOTE]
I forgot to mention that I am also on 35mg of Dothep . RD did say I need to try different medication.
[QUOTE=Claire]As for the fatigue...it's a real thing. Go get checked out for vitamin D deficiency. This is directly linked to autoimmune diseases like RA. Even if you take a daily multivitamin it probably isn't enough to keep your level up where it should be.
I am taking a vitamin D supplement, and have started on Lexapro for this very same thing.[/QUOTE] I'll get some D supplements today and give it a try. Nothing to loose.

[QUOTE=Cordelia]My old GP's take on the depression component was that the extra inflammation in my body from the RA mucked up my brain chemicals which cause depression. This makes sense when I can see clearly that it has mucked up my speech, caused night blindness and effects my motor skills.
Hope this helps. I would talk to your GP and also mention to them what you felt about the RD visit.
[/QUOTE] Tis good to see you mention Motor skills as that is another thing that I have found
although that has slowly improved over the past twelve months.
Anything that has required fine hand eye coordination and I was getting the shakes. Just could not complete the task.
This coming from an ex carpenter that was used to dealing with fine detail.
It has been a bit of a shock to the system in more ways than one.

I have been so used to being multi skilled in just about anything (master of none), that I sometimes feel very inadequate.
I'll be honest and say, this has dented my pride (self respect).

Thanks for all the input.

And then goes the other gift of RA...after the physical symptoms, the depression and anxiety...then we have the grief process. The loss of having a life changing and sometimes life shattering disease the changes everything for ever. Thing we were competent in we can no longer do, who we were seems to disappear and is replaced by someone we didn't choose and don't know...a shell of who we once were.

Expect to feel angry, sad and upset...it will happen.

In my opinion, it takes 3 - 5 years to really learn to manage RA and all that it can mean. For the doctors to get the medications right, for the depression and anxiety to be managed for the patient to go through the grief process involved here.

I love to talk to people who have had this thing a long time because they are through that first five year period and have some real clarity often on how to manage when it's impossible to manage.

Cordelia, you seem to have a very sensible attitude about RA. I've had it for just over 10 years now, and can tell you that the first few years I spent pretty much in shock and pretty much assumed life as I knew it was over. Over time, I have developed my own little ways of making life easier, and through the trial and error of all the available meds, have found enbrel, which has been very effective for me for nearly two years now. Each of us must find our own ways to simplify and enhance our lives, in spite of the disease. Mostly, I choose to deny RA the right to dictate my life for me.. Some days I do better than others, and I've worked hard to educate people around me so that they know not to "help" me to death, unless I request it (which I rarely do).

I look at RA as a trial...of my patience, endurance, faith, and determination...and I'm not going to let it get the best of me!

Bo~Have you had your B-12 level checked?

That neck thing is totally RA related and I can't believe your RD didn't pay more attention to it.

Hang in there. Don't let his attitude add to your depression. Things will look up soon; Don't forget that.

Well, I try Claire, to have a sensible attitude. I fail sometimes. Just from my observations it seems those first five years post dx are the tough ones where you need to sort everything out, meds, depression, anxiety, symptoms, grief, life adjustments.

I think you have to have a balanced attitude...you have to not let the disease dictate your life but at the same time you need to 'accept' that it is part of your life whether you like it or not...otherwise you are constantly resisting it and fighting it which will only make things worse. [QUOTE=Claire]

I look at RA as a trial...of my patience, endurance, faith, and determination...and I'm not going to let it get the best of me!

[/QUOTE]

Absolutely! I wish someone who'd been through it all was around when I was first diagnosed....it sure would have helped to know my world hadn't come to an end. I was getting plenty of sympathy, and pity, which actually angered me, despite the best intentions. I finally found the right rheumy, the right medications for me, and then set all my loved ones straight, and now my life is back on track...altered though it may be! Hang in there...you're going to do just fine.

Thanks, Claire and so is Bodak. You are only a year into the process, Stephen, lot's of huge changes happen in the first years like we have talked about. It's not easy, in any way but talking about it does help. Talking about it does help and to find others that have been thru the process longer than I have, is a big comforter.
I get a sense that people here understand, where as people I personally know, don't, wont, or just simply have no capacity to understand.

That leads to feelings of being isolated from the real world, isolation feeds the depression which feeds the anxiety.
I just have to break the circle, I actually feel better around new people rather than life friends... Not all of them, but most.

I have a strong erg to move into a quieter area with new stimulus around me, maybe that is just an age thingy, am 56 now.

Stephen,

The first 2 or 3 years were the worst for me - this was just over 26 yrs ago and I had no computer then, and anyway sites like this were not around. But when I did find this (original) site, in the middle of one desperate night, it was so wonderful to come across a group of people who felt the same, had similar problems, and best of all could laugh and joke most of the time about it. I discovered more about the medications and their side effects than the docs ever bothered to tell me. Was on 1000mg of Naprosyn to start with, and for several years, and wondered why my brain felt as if it were stuffed with cotton wool. Not good when working in a basically 1-person office handling heaps of calls. When I eventually asked about it, the rheumy agreed, that yes, the meds were the problem. The disease itself sure doesn't help either, and prob. anti-depressants would have been a great help in those early days.

Fatigue? Yeah, unfortunately it comes with the disease. And we get stressed about the whole thing. I just had to learn to work around it, be more laid back about not accomplishing as much, as fast. Am lucky in a way I was dx'd just after marriage, so hub had not become accustomed to a super-wife. There have been some sad stories of wives and husbands who developed the disease after being married for quite a few years - and then their spouse did not react well to having a partner who could not manage household chores/work/handyman jobs same as before.

Don't be too proud to go to your GP and explain the problems you are having coping, and get some anti-depressants even if just to tide you over for a short time. Multi-vitamins good - rheumy told me to take a good Vit. B one - I've added Calcium+D for my bones. Hang in there! Realise that "Arthur" can attack any joint, any day; be prepared for the unexpected. And understand that "normals" just don't 'get it' - which is why we come to sites like this one for some understanding and help.

Lorraine (P.S. - Love the Teddy Bears pic :) )

And about confusion - I have edited this twice in quick successon to correct mistakes and prob. still mised some

I think it is RA related. I would also suggest checking your thyroid. It is very common for those with an AI disease to have more than one. After getting the RA dx, and being put on Pred for several months, I also found out I had hypothyroidism. It seems like a never ending battle. You have a great attitude and we are all here to help!

Phats

Are you having a better day today? I really hope so!!

Hope you're having a superfantastic and extra comfortable evening!

MrsAlexander39422.7300578704Why Mrs A, We are going to have to stop meeting like this else the gossip columns will be full. I would find another rheumy and get a second opinion.

Oh, no. Do you think they know? We've been so discreet... Nah, they don't know.

YAY! I'm so happy to hear you're doing better! Sounds like you dodged the flare bullet. That tuck and roll move is really good for something afterall.

Sunshine and smiling faces will always make you feel better. Plus, you never know when a photo opportunity might present itself while you're out and about.

I hope you have an enjoyable shopping experience and find everything you're looking for easily and at rock-bottom prices!

(And if we don't hear from you in a day or so, I'm sending out a search party!
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