Just wondering if anyone else with RA has a history like my own of always fighting germs. I have used antibacterial soap, I spray my phone with a natural germ-a clenz, my key board, office at work. I have spent 25 years building up my immune system and keeping as free of germs as possible. So my question is, could I have caused my immune system to loose it's purpose or direction and it decided to go to work anyway and "kill stuff". My friends at work call me "monk" like the TV show...but I'm not that bad. any thoughts?
Not me....even now on Humira and MTX I don't overly concern myself with it. I've got too may stresses in my life as it is to worry about things I can't control.
I'm sure you didn't cause your RA, so stop beating yourself up! If it were that simple, RA would be much easier to prevent or cure. I am a genealogist, pouring over death records from 150 years ago, and RA existed then, and was listed as the cause of death. In fact, it was first diagnosed by the early Greek and Roman physicians.
Okay, here is what I do to control germs. I wash my hands before I eat, I avoid touching my face (esp eyes, nose, mouth) unless my hands have just been washed, and I use antibacterial gel on my hands when I get in the car after doing alot of shopping or touching things in a public place. Other than that, I dont do anything exceptional....Oh yeah, at home our toothbrushed are stored seperatly and I discourage drinking after one another. Mainly because I have one kid that has viral triggered asthma and it is just by force of habit.
Those are things that anyone can do to prevent the spread of bacteria and viruses. You dont have to go overboard, some exposure is actually a good thing...but dont go licking any shopping buggy handles or escalator handles either...yuk! I hate elevator buttons too...LOL.
You would think that working in the ER that I would be sick all of the time, but the opposite is true, in the past I have had very few of the 'bugs' that seem to go around.
I have to agree with Crunchy. I rarely get all the colds that are going around. My last boyfriend was very impressed with this fact.
Here's what I think is happening and it is simply conjecture. RA is making our immune systems overactive. The medicines are trying to suppress that. Since most of us are never completely under control, I think we are actually fighting off more germs. Plus, if you add that most of us become cautious about exposures, are out in fewer crowds, etc --this all helps. Where you have to worry is that the medicines do suppress your reactions to an infection. So, if you might have the slightest idea that you have something going on, you need to get it checked out.
For instance, I was having just a slight amount of breathing problems. I have a history of bronchitis and asthma. My symptoms were very mild. But I did have bronchitis and got started on the antibiotics right away. Even so, it took a couple of months to get everything settled down again.
The important thing is to know your own body and ITS reactions. If you think you are getting sick, find out right away. It may make you feel overreactive. But I would rather feel overreactive than be actually stupid.
My example is an extreme case because I have a long history of lung and heart problems.
But I think you should be ahead of the ball instead of behind the ball on investigating problems when you have an autoimmune disease.
So if we get sick, and are put on antibiotics, does our RA get worse because the antibiotics "help" our immune systems? I'm confusesd.No, because antibiotics dont work on the immune system. They actually kill the bacteria that are in you body. Other wise antibiotics would kill viruses and any other ailments that came along. It would be nice if they were a catch-all for disease, but they are not.