May I ask a few questions? | Arthritis Information

Hello Everyone!

Over the past few days I have been thinking of random questions, you input would be much appreciated!

-Did everyone have a good experience with Prednisone, and how many Mgs did you take before you noticed a "good" difference?

-Did anyone notice just one set of joints being painful and inflammed before the rest of you body felt like it was being stabbed?

-Is your pain bad in the morning and stays the same through out the day? Or are you stiff in the morning and pain gets worse through out the day? Or does it vary ect.?

-Does anyone have a hard time remembering things?

- I know I had more than this... I need to start writing things down. Ha So then I can forget where I put the paper.... ha ha ha

Thank you for your experienced answers, I will share my answers too.

Hi, I am newly diagnosed, but I'll answer what I can

-Did everyone have a good experience with Prednisone, and how many Mgs did you take before you noticed a "good" difference? I have not taken this for RA but when the Dr put me on it for asthma I did not tolerate it well, it made me very sick, not sure I may be allergic to it.

-Is your pain bad in the morning and stays the same through out the day? Or are you stiff in the morning and pain gets worse through out the day? Or does it vary ect.? I am extremely stiff in the mornings for about 6 hours, the stiffness gets better after that but the pain gets worse throughout the day for me.

-Does anyone have a hard time remembering things? All of the time, it is annoying.

Prednisone- took me 40 mgs to get relief but have tapered to 7 and still feel relatively good. On high doses had trouble sleeping and night sweats- also BIG appetite.

I started out hurting all over but then my feet and ankles got bad.

I am slightly stiff just when I get out of bed just like if I sit too long during the day but nothing major. Fell achiest late afternoon-evenings

Definitely forget things very quickly. Went outside one day saw husband's buddy parked behind me, got in car, forgot- backed into his truck.....

Prednisone definitely makes my joints feel better but at high doses it can cause mania... which it did with me. At first it took doses of 40 mg or more to make a dent in this pain, as I tapered the dose down I would start hurting again.

I started off with pain mostly in my hands and wrists, I've never had just one joint hurt at a time.

I'd say the tireder i become the achier I get. I'm an ER nurse, if I am at work we tend to be so busy that I don't have time to pay attention to if I hurt, but after 12 hours sometimes I'm on my way home and have a "sinking" spell. The exaustion will hit me like a ton of bricks and all the pain that goes with having RA.

I have a hard time with my memory at times, especially my short term memory. When the movie "juno" came out on DVD I rented it, brought it home. The boyfriend says why did you rent this? We've seen it. I have NO recollection of seeing the movie. Which is kinda scary.

Hope you feel better soon.

I didn't take prednisone, so can't answer that one. I started with pain in hands/feet mostly - the toe joints and balls of the feet especially. The flare up of hips/shoulders/knees woudl occur periodically. Now after 1 1/2 yrs, it's mostly stayed with hands/feet. Stiffness varies, but usually morning for a short period of time and then at night - I think during the day I'm just busy and don't focus on it, so I tend to notice more morning and night. Trouble remembering things - Yes, Yes, Yes. But, I'm also at that peri-menopause stage, so some forgetfullness may be from that. Keep asking questions, it's interesting to hear about others experiences.

Wendy, don't feel too bad about the movie. I do things like that constantly. But at least the summer re-runs are new to me every time I see them!Niki - I was on 5 months of Predisone starting 06/06, after dx. RF was 150, really not that high as I have learned in here. My wean-off was abrupt, too fast. It was awful coming completely off it in a very short period of time.

I honestly felt it didn't do a thing, but I also fell down the stairs and demolished a toe knuckle, and it didn't hurt at all on Predisone. About 3 months later, now off Predisone, I hit a chair leg and break two more different toes on the same foot. Those two hurt like &*%$ and now I know how powerful of a pain blocker Predisone truly is.

I then finally found my gatekeeper doctor, a wonderful woman Family Practitioner. She immediately did a bone scan, and I am deep into osteoporosis. I am 52.

My ex-rheumatologist said he would prescribe burst packs with a bad flare, but I haven't had any more Predisone in almost 1.5 years. Lots of RAers in here use Predisone, as it works well for them. Good luck.

justsaynoemore2008-06-13 17:47:17Prednisone only helped me for short bursts, like a medrol pack when I'm extra bad would help me for days 2-3, just enough to calm down major swelling.

In the beginning, it was just my hands, but it spread pretty quickly to my feet and so on.

In the beginning, my symptoms were definitely worse in the morning. Then they started lasting longer through the day. Over time, they were getting worse at night too, so the middle of the day was my best time. Now, it kinda varies.

And what was your other question? I forget. jk Yes, my memory and concentration are significantly worse. They got worse when my fibro started (8 yrs ago), even worse when the RA started (2 yrs ago) and even worse than that in the last few months. I asked my RD if it could be the meds, and he told me no, it was the inflammation.

Writing things down is important. If you're afraid of losing the paper, put them in a Word file on your PC and print them out. That way you can always reprint if you lose the paper. Just don't forget the name of the file! Put it on your PC desktop!

And when all else fails, repeat after me...

"I have a perfect memory. I don't remember forgetting anything."Hi, my ra started in hands and feet. I stayed away from pred. I tried it once and didn't like the side effects. I felt like my heart was pounding out of my chest, my eyes felt like they were bulging out of my head and I couldn't sleep. So, I decided no more pred.

I used to have morning stiffness that lasted for hours but the enbrel I take every week knocked it out. I feel so much better. More energy and less pain. I have problems with high humidity and rain or snow but I take a vicodin and it helps. I do have memory problems alot and my kids (15 & 20) notice it all the time. They say I repeat myself all the time. I also forget what movies I have seen too. LOL I will get up to go into a room for something and get there and forget why I was there. I found predinisolone fantastic at a dose of 25mgs but as I have tapered it down the pain started returning and hoping that MTX will start working soon.

My pain initially started moving from one joint to another - probably palindromic RA but now is in most joints and both sides very similar.

I don't get a lot of stiffness however pain is often worst in the morning until I get moving around and by night is often bad again. I take my pred twice a day to try and help this and I think it has made a difference.

As for my memory - before I was diagnosed I was convinced I had Alzheimers at 46!! I think since I have been on meds this isn't quite as bad but maybe it is because I make an extra effort to remember.

Hiya Nikki! I was dx'd with RA 2 months ago and at that stage could not comb my hair, drive my car or get off a toilet. After a couple of days on only 10 mgs Pred I was 95% back to normal. Still am, but recently started the heavier meds to whack this sh*te disease on its arse. It sometimes comes out to taunt me....just little reminders that it thinks ' I am in charge' but thats not gonna continue. I AM IN CONTROL, not some weasel type AI battalion.

No siree. So you get your hard hat on too, and join me and all the rest of us in a concerted knuckle duster. Who doesnt like a fight huh?? lololol

I have no stiffness to speak of, just an occasional twinge in my wrists...I feel damned fine and thats what is hard to accept about the disease sometimes apparently,...you can feel so well!

My memory has been totally shot for years...lolol. So nothing out of the ordinary there. Its after the hedonistic life Ive lead for far too long, but at least I still have a memory of those good times. Sigh......

Wish you all good things and hope to see you about the place here with newbies like me, there are some wonderful people and great advice to be had here.

Lyn

Thank you everyone for you're replies, the information was very helpful and interesting. It seems that everyone has a different story that no two people have been affected the same way.

The reason I asked if one set of joints were effected before the rest of your body, is because mine started in my right hand, wrist and elbow. Tingling, burning, lots of swelling and an enormous amount of pain. The RA I saw say that it could just be an early sign of RA. I was just curious if that had happened to anyone else.

Well Thank you again and I am sure I'll have a lot more questions, that is if you don't mind

p.S.- Found a new RA and have an appointment July 3rd!

oh.. let's see.. I did start with tingling and burning in my hands, feet, legs and arms.. along w/ stabbing pain and burning sensations.. and a deep raw ache that just exhausted me with it's existence...... yep.

I still have some tingling.. but alot has gotten better

My stiffness and achiness is for the better part of two hours after awakening... and that's better than before enbrel and MTX.. when it was twice that.

I too thought I was losing my mind with the memory losses... UGH. that I really hate!