I just got back from my rd and cried all the way home. He had the films at his office and went over them with me. He agreed and disagreed with the radiologist report, he said he could see the degenerative changes from the oa but that in c3-c4 and c4 c5 there are bony erosions and inflammatory changes which are ra distinctions. So in other words my rd says the problem in my neck is mostly caused by ra, and not oa as the radiologist reports. He showed me what he called lips that kind of hung over the vertabrea and said " thats rheumatoid arthritis". So now Im a wreck, my mother went into a chair at 52 and stayed in it until she passed at 56, Im so afraid to go down that same road, I have so much anxiety about this mornings visit along with depression. This disease is so damn unfair!!!!!I hate it I hate what its doing to me and having no controlUSmmom, I don't know what medicines you are on, but things really are better for us now. If you take your meds & work with your doctor, & get the right mix so that you really are doing better, you don't have to end up in a wheelchair. At least, not for a long, long time. Really. I don't think we ever feel normal again. Normal has a new meaning. But it doesn't have to mean totally helpless. Not only that, but there are a HUGE number of Boomers, and that gives the pharmaceutical companies a lot of incentive to come up with new (expensive) medicines to treat us. There's a lot in the pipeline. It won't all work, but some of it will. With research, there's a chance of a cure down the road. It's not a hopeless situation by any means!!
Fiona is so right girlfriend; our future looks much brighter than that of our relatives years ago. Early treatment prolongs our mobility and our life tremedously.
I too have RA in my back and proper treatment helps a great deal. Granted it would be better if I didn't have it....at times it's pure hell...but this is the hand I've been delt and it's the one I'lll play.
Chin up sister; all is not lost. Don't give up now....you've got far too much life ahead of you!!
Don't believe that you have no control. You really do. It seems unfair, but we just have to struggle on to find the right doctor, the right treatment, the right diet . . . But ultimately we are in control. There may be roadblocks and setbacks that cause us frustration and fear, but we can face them all. Just don't try to face them all at once. Deal with them as they come. Don't look at that wheelchair as an eventual fate, look at it as motivation to keep going and not give up. We will be okay. We will.usmmom, the girls on this board no what they are talking about. You read & listen to what they say. They won't ill advise you. They have helped me understand this disease and why I feel like I do at times. You take care.
Trisha
I know what you are going through. My aunt was diagnosed with RA when she was 40, and one day, went to bed and stayed there until she passed away at 75. I saw her become so frail and stiff and full of pain that it still worries me if I think of it.
I hope that kind of thing doesn't happen to me. RA affects different people in different ways. You have to remember that now a days, the medications are so much better and people don't have to suffer like that anymore. There are joint replacements to keep you moving and functioning. My aunt had two hips replaced and a knee, but still stayed in bed. (at first, when she got the replacements I thought it was kind of a waste to go through it because she didn't bother to take advantage of her new joints and become functional again, but now, I think it must have been a huge blessing for her to help with the pain she was in.)Of course she hurt when she tired to move, her muscles were really in bad shape from years of not doing anything. Looking back, I feel so bad I didn't do more for her or go visit more. I am positive she was in a depression. I keep thinking maybe I could have helped her in some way, but then again, I was young when she passed away. I was only 16. Too young, to realize what she was going through.
I share you fear of what the future will bring. But, we have to take one day at a time and make sure we take care of ourselves so that that things like what happened to my aunt, won't happen to us. Knowledge is the key. The more you move, the better it will be. Or so I have read....
usmom, I worry like you are and I am constantly reminded - worry does nothing to improve the situation. We have to work on living one day at a time. It is hard I KNOW but we have to convince ourselves we are going to get better. I think your mind has a lot of power. I am so sorry about your mom. I think it is worse for those that have relatives that had severe ra. It is true though - already the number of people on disability is lowering because of the better meds. Think positive. I am telling myself this at the same time.
But I was wondering, what did the doctor say he was going to do at this point to help your neck and make sure it doesn't get any worse. Does he have a plan of action or did he just deliver the bad news and keep everything the same?
Thank you all for the encouraging words I appreciate all of you taking your time to send out your encouragement. My dr said he wants to try me on some sort of iv treatment, I cant remember what it was called as I was in a blur when he was showing me the xrays but he wants to start me next week and I know that its time consuming, he also uped my mtx to 7 pills a week versus 6. Im sorry for freaking out so bad but Id be lying if I said that this stuff doesnt scare me, but your all right in saying that they have come a long way with the meds since my mom was treated and I have to realize that and get my mindset into focus in the right direction.Its kinda weird the other day I felt really weepy and depressed and today I feel kind of angry with the Im not going to let this get to me type of feeling, Ill just be glad when I balance out emotionaly and physicaly. But again thanks to all of you who listen and offer a helping hand to us that fall every now and then.