My right elbow is swelled BIG and it is stuck in the bent position, and you can see the swelling. Yesterday, I was trying to not take a pain pill and to just deal with it because it "was not that bad".
It is like it is not as tensed up and it does not get "stuck". Like my fingers... when they are stiff and swelled, I have a hard time manuvering or trying to use them. Some fingers are less swelled than others, so I still try to use them. But they kinda get like a "click" where they just do not move pass a certain point and then it is just annoying! Not painful, but ANNOYING! It is like you get a false hope that you will be able to do some thing only for the joint to say "Ok... enough... I was just messing with ya." SO, damn annoying!
Hi Joonie,
I think it has helped me deal with my stiffness. Maybe it just takes the edge off so I can move more, thus making my stiffness go away. Last week I had a horrible flare and the pain med took the edge off. I was stiff everyday until about 1 in the afternoon. I was going to work and moving way slow. Thank God my RD called me and told me she wanted to see me and then she added prednisone and mtx to my list after she saw what I was like. The pred really works. Good Luck and I hope you feel better soon. Hiking_gal
joonie, your post reminds me of the debate I always have in my head about whether or not I "can" do something. Like how much pain does an activity have to cause before I consider that I "can't" do it? I'm wondering if the ultracet took away enough of the discomfort and pain to make it feel less stiff, even though you still couldn't bend it. I would say that happens to me sometimes, but not all the time. And girl, take those meds when you feel the pain, don't wait for it to get bad!!
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