To hurt or not to hurt... | Arthritis Information

Shame on you and this forum!

AchingAudrey2008-11-30 21:09:47I can tell you that I used to always have this dull ache in my wrists. Then I started Enbrel and the majority of the time I can't even tell I have RA. Most days I am completely pain free. I think if you have damage, it might be a different story, though. Maybe someone else will reply soon.

Shame on you and this forum!

AchingAudrey2008-11-30 21:10:04Hey Audrey. Welcome to AI. Glad you're here.

I think you can get to where you have less pain than you have now. I've had RA a long time and in that time I've had times where I was doing very well. Yes; you will always have a certain amount of pain you will learn to accept and live with but you don't have to be crippled to have unacceptable amount of pain. The jjoint damage question is a good one I'd bring up with your doctor. Have you had x-rays or an MRI since you started seeing this doctor? It's unlikely that you have any damage bad enough to cause you a lot of pain over all these meds....but you might. It all depends on how aggressive it was before you started your meds.

What else are you taking with Enbrel? Arava? Tha'ts simular to MTX I think so that should be helping also. Maybe you could increase that? I take Humira and MTX and have done amazingly well but recently I've had to decrease my MTX due to liver problems so I can tell that it's not doing nearly as well as it was when I was taking more MTX. Everytime my doctor tells me to decrease it more it gets a little harder for me to bare.

Some people have switched from Enbrel to Humira with good results. Is it the infusions that you don't want to do? If so maybe trying Humira would be an option. Might not hurt to try before moving onto the infusions which some people are afraid of.

Either way; I hope you find some answers soon. Good Luck. Hope to see more of you here.

If someone asks me how are you feeling? I always said good! But there is not a day that goes by that I don't know I have RA. I compare the crippling onset pain and disabilities to what I have now and there's just no comparison so I say good.

Shame on you and this forum!

AchingAudrey2008-11-30 21:10:24I have been taking enbrel once a week 50mg injections for 9 months and I still have aches, stiffness and pains but are nothing like before. I tried humira and it didn't work for me but everyone is different. My aches & pains are usually because of humidity, rain, snow, etc. I took vicoden which helped alot but dr wants me off of it. I saw a new rd today and she did lots of xrays (which old dr never took ANY in 3 years) and gave me darvocet (which I feel nothing but sleepy and my pain tonight is bad but now awful) I am due for my shot tomorrow. My shot tends to wear off by the weekend. My dr informed that I will probably always have pain during bad weather. Thanks Dr. I have much more energy and when I take the shot , a couple days later (if the weather is right) I feel great!!!

Yep, it would be wonderful to have NO pain. I wish you well. Some day (I have high hopes)!

Hi Audrey, Just wanted to welcome youFrom what you describe I'd guess they'd consider your RA pretty bad. The sort of swelling that you've described can certainly be causing some damage. Your doctor would probable tell you though. Maybe ask him when you go back if he noticed joint damage on your xrays. Doctors are so weird about being forth coming with information. I was complaining of coldness in my fingers and toes at one point and my doctor said "Oh that's caused by the Raynards Syndrome." I said "What?!? What are you talking about?" He said, yeah....it's been in your file since your last doctor". In my opinion....that's something they should have mentioned. I think sometimes they don't want to tell you things that will only make you worry more and fret about things you can't do much about. This doctor that I see now always sends me a note after all labs including xrays. He'll note changes on xrays as well as blood work. If it's anything important he or the nurse will call.

The high liver count that you mentioned is what I'm going through now with MTX. I've been on it for 5 years or more now but my liver is just now deciding; Enoughs-Enough! All of these meds we take are very taxing on the liver and kidneys. That's the reason for all the blood work. They say that if caught soon enough the damage can be reversed.