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Hello Everyone....Hope all is well....I am new to the forum.  I got diagnosed recently with RA after flare ups in my ankles and knees. I have also been told that I am rather young to have RA. I am just 28 years old. However, I now have a couple of questions after researching RA. 1. Does anyone have a lot of pain without the inflammation? My fingers, hands, wrists, and ankles but no inflammation especially as the cooler weather is kicking in. 2. I am going to get my blood work from the lab what do i need to request? I am going to a new doctor until I can see a RA specialist. The waiting list is rather large with RA specialist. My current doctor really doesn't want to give me anything but a few Lortab 5s. I also have went to another doctor who does believe in any medication for pain including tramadol or loratabs. He did give some Celebrex which does help some. I am a large guy so even before the RA has come into my life I had knee pains and back pains. I also was very active with sports and being young and dumb. Therefore, I have had a large amount of injuruies and things. Therefore they really dont help. I get about 15 to 20 and when my pain is bad they are gone. 3. I also have started to become really fatigued and soar more often after some activity that was nothing to me.  Sorry for the long post and thanks in advance for any feedback.

Hello War Eagle
Sorry about your diagnosis. Plenty of people on the board were diagnosed young..some even as children. You are not alone. Also, plenty of us have pain w/o inflammation. Its all party of this frustrating disease. Find yourself a good rheumatologist and insist on good pain management.
Ask as many questions as you need to. Welcome to the board
LeilaThanks Leila....Any recommendations for meds that a doctor without a ra speciality can prescribe until I can get into a RA Specialist?Welcome!  I can't really offer advice on which meds to ask your new doctor about, but you were right to switch to someone who is willing to help you!  There is much your doctor can do while you are waiting to see a RA doc.

Best advice?  Educate yourself by searching here and other Arthritis websites to learn about the disease, the drugs and what you can do to stay active.  It is said that early, aggressive treatment is your best chance for remission.

I wish you all the best and I hope to see you here often!

Waddie Sorry to hear that you have this wonderful disease (NOT)
When I first came down with it and eventually went to the Doctors he put me straight onto  Pred at 75mg a day.
This worked wonders and I thought all my troubles were over, but sadly was not the case.
The Pred was only masking the real problems..

Fatigue and depression go hand in hand with this disease so  be prepared.
I was working in the housing industry up until getting RA.
I've tried a couple of times to return but found it to uncomfortable to continue. ( read pain and fatigue)

All the best to you War Eagle.
Welcome to the board, sorry you have to be here but there is a lot of good advice out there. [QUOTE=WarEagleHey]Hello Everyone....Hope all is well....I am new to the forum.  I got diagnosed recently with RA after flare ups in my ankles and knees. I have also been told that I am rather young to have RA. I am just 28 years old.[/quote]
Hello and welcome to the forum. Autoimmune diseases are no respecters of age. They strike every age group, although many people tend to think that any type of arthritis happens to the aged.

[quote] However, I now have a couple of questions after researching RA. 1. Does anyone have a lot of pain without the inflammation? My fingers, hands, wrists, and ankles but no inflammation especially as the cooler weather is kicking in.[/quote]
That is a commonly asked question and one in which the answer varies from person to person. It is important to remember that with RA inflammation can be, and often is, systemic and although joints may not be swollen and red damage can still be taking place. RA, being a systemic disease, requires, as Waddie stated, early and aggressive and constant treatment and monitoring. Remission is possible, and as both a short-term and long-term goal often requires a team of physicians working together to adequately control inflammation.
[quote] 2. I am going to get my blood work from the lab what do i need to request? I am going to a new doctor until I can see a RA specialist. The waiting list is rather large with RA specialist. My current doctor really doesn't want to give me anything but a few Lortab 5s. [/quote]
Many primary care physicians are reluctant to prescribe medications that might mask the signs and symptoms that are indicative of RA thus making the diagnosis of the disease more difficult from a physical perspective. Medications and ancillary treatment for RA, and other autoimmune dysfunctions, are based on clinical presentation/physical examination and lab values. What therapy/therapies works for one does not necessarily work for another.
[quote] 3. I also have started to become really fatigued and soar more often after some activity that was nothing to me.  [/quote]
I dare say that many, if not most, of the members of this forum can relate to that. As Bodak said, fatigue is an aspect of this disease that seems to hang around like a bad smell--sometimes it seems to have vanished on a freshening breeze, but it seldom retreats far.

Best wishes, Shug
Welcome War Eagle, I am new here too and have found some really good advice.  I hope you get into the real rheumatologist's office ASAP.  When I was diagnosed at age 32, there was a three month wait for my local rheumie.  I called his receptionist and asked to be put on a wait list to be called if he had any cancellations. Welcome War Eagle! Sorry you have to share this forum with us! I'm pretty new to the forum but was diagnosed in June '08. You can get wonderful advice here - as you've already seen! I agree with Tara's "QUACK" comment. I would think your PCP could give you some prednisone and/or some pain meds that would make you more comfortable until you get to see a rheumy. When I first experienced severe pain, a PA gave me a cortisone shot because he thought I might have injured my rotator cuff. The next week my PCP did some blood tests and found high inflammation levels and sent me right off to a RA doc. I was lucky because the RA doc had a cancelation the following day and then was going on vacation. He diagnosed me immediately from clinical presentation plus blood work. Your doc should order the appropriate blood tests - you don't have to figure that out. Best of luck to you and keep posting whenever you have questions or just need support.C'mon in the waters great !!! Welcome !!I was told, about a year ago, that I tested positive for rheumatoid arthritis because of a mildly inflated rheumatoid factor from my primary doctor and was referred to a rheumatologist. To this day he has been reluctant to actually say that I have RA but has diagnosed me with inflammatory arthritis. I continue to see him and he always takes blood for testing, but to this day has not given a definitive diagnosis. I too get pain in joints and muscles but w/o inflammation except for my knees which have each been operated on. I take meloxicam for pain and vitamin D but have not started on DMARDS or prednisone yet. I get fatigued easy but also have sleep apnea and use a cpap machine which has helped. There is no guarantee that you actually have RA until the specialist does a work up and puts his two cents in. Some get diagnosed rather quickly and for others its a long process of blood tests and observations. Good Luck and tune in as you will get a lot of info from this website! 3yrstogo2009-10-02 17:45:32Hi and welcome to the forum.  I really can't add much to what everyone has said but I suggest that you try and get in to see the rheumy as soon as possible.  Read everything you can about the medications and treatment for RA.  Early, aggressive treatment is paramount in living your life to it's fullest and clinical remission.  The more educated you are about the disease the better your communications will be with your doctor.  Don't be afraid to ask questions and expect an answer.  Take care and keep us posted.  Lindy
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