Well, this seems to be the never ending flare. I thought it might be calming down a bit and backed down the prednisone a bit to 17.5 but NOPE, my hands are awful today. The swelling is right back to where it was a couple of weeks ago and now my pinky on my right hand is numb yet it feels like its on fire at the same time????? The burning pain goes all the way up towards my shoulder. This is a completely new pain.
I've also developed some really hard, very painful nodules on three fingers. I have an appt next week Tuesday with the rheumy, I know it won't do any good to call them before than, they are always so busy and since I'm serum negative, they don't consider me a high priority!
I can't take any of the nsaid drugs because of gastritis and stomach upset. I guess I should increase my steroid dose again??? They are so evil though and I so desperately want off the steroids but I just can't live like this!! I plugged in my hot wax bath this morning and will dipped my hands when I get home, any other advice? Anyone know the numb, burning pain I'm talking about?
Michele,
I think that you should go ahead and up the prednisone to get you through to your appointment.
Second, I think you should print our everything you can find on serum negative RA and take it with you to your appointment and don't settle for that excuse any more. Be very clear on that, you are not going to be patronized and you are going to be treated.
Third, your symptoms sound like nerve problems are developing and you should ask to see a neurologist.
After this visit, if you still do not get a satisfactory answer or make some progress, then you are going to have to fight for another doctor.
Lots of people are serum negative and still have serious RA. My last blood work showed normal. I definitely have serious RA.
I am serum negative also and have a serious case of RA. Advocate for yourself. Call the doc office anyways. Maybe if you bother them enough they will get you in earlier. I agree with Deanna. If you don't get a satisfactory answer or make progress you should fight for another doc. NO ONE should be low priority in any doc office. If they treatt you like that, I would complain. Your health and feeling good is not a low priority.That is such bull!If it were the Dr or their wife......it would be different! Don't let them put you off ! No one should suffer like that! Good luck!Thanks girls. This is my second rheumy. The first wouldn't do much of anything other than placquenil and just kept telling me I was depressed!
I seem to have better luck with woman docs so I switched to this rheumy last summer. She is treating me aggressively with weekly humira and the steroids. I know my only other option is mtx at the moment and I'm just not sure I want to go there.
I didn't realize that RA could cause neurological problems. I assumed the numbness and burning was from the massive amounts of swelling. I actually went home and had my hubby stick a safety pin in my finger and I felt nothing!! That just isn't right! Its not as burning today and I have it wrapped up good. I took 20mg of prednisone and a couple of vicodin's to help me get through my day at work.
This is similar to carpal tunnel which affects predominately the middle three fingers.
I have had surgery in both wrists and elbows to deal with symptoms like these.
Hey...I get all of that. O.o never thought about it being my elbow. Thanks! LoL I have carpal tunnel in my left wrist, and tendinitis in my thumb, and I'm always getting numb/tingly/ice cold fingers. Including the whole left side of my hand. :/If it is the little finger and ring and half of the palm, it sure sounds like ulnar nerve entrapment. This usually happens in the elbow. See bullwinkle above.
Boy it really hurts...
Yup. It's always done that though. Even when I was a kid, they never said anything about it. The rest of my fingers do something similar, but that's related to the tendinitis in my thumb, I'm sure. I remember when we found that out, my hand just locked up and I ended up going to the ER cause I thought something was really wrong. As we speak I'm wearing the brace for it. It's some relief, but it still hurts like a b****. :( Hard to type in it too, but I'm at work, I HAVE to type. meh.http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/fact/thr_report.cfm?Thread_ID=143& amp;topcategory=Ar
OMG!! Figure 4! I sleep *just* like that. LoL!
OMG!! Figure 4! I sleep *just* like that. LoL!
Me too, me too. I have been trying to break the habit of 'tucking in my wings' when I sleep. I have been just successful enough to know that 'wing tucking' is bad.
I hate braces, wraps and casts so I guess I'm not trying hard enough. I also have contractures of both elbow so trying to sleep with 'straight arm' hurts too.
Sometimes if it weren't for bad luck,we wouldn't have any luck at all
I'm not sure I can wrap my arm up that way by myself.
I know I can do both arms (how, I don't know). Then, put the wrist braces on, the knee braces, attach my CPAP machine. I'll look like Frankenstein (on steriods, of course). Might scare the kiddies, though.
And you wonder why I don't have a romantic life? Now you know why I haven't joined in the nudist colony. That's too much visuals even for me.
That was good link on the subject though. I think it might be part of my problem.
So sort of on the topic...anyone ever just woken up with sudden extreme limits in their movement(wrist, hand, etc) with *no* pain? All of a sudden, in the past week, I have about half the range of motion in my wrists that I've been used to. But it doesn't hurt to try to bend them. I don't get it. But that nerve thing we've been talking about has been a lot more dominate as well. I can't even sit on the couch with my elbows bent w/o it happening. It used to be just in my sleep. I dunno. One thing after another. I have woken up like that. But I don't move a lot in my sleep. I have the numbness and tingling thing in my hands. I think mine is from years of computer work and crocheting. I'm trying to get a baby blanket done before Christmas for my niece (she is due in Jan.) but with the arthritis and this tingling stuff it's slow going.This is all very interesting!! Actually though, my elbows are my best joints! They pop a bit but don't ever really hurt, maybe mild achy feeling but never really HURT like everything else. I bet my ulnar nerve is compressed or pinched in my wrist. My wrists are SCREAMING painful. I have been wrapping my right wrist all the time and I use the lidoderm patches under the wrap.
I'm actually just leaving to go to the chiropractor to be sure nothing is pinched in my back and he often "cracks" my ankles or I'll ask him to look at my wrist as well!
My hubby was mortified when I asked him to stick me with a needle the other night and I couldn't feel a thing! My pinkie looks crooked as well so I'm sure something funky is going on.
I see the rheumy next Tuesday. I'm really hoping she doesn't make me increase my steroids. I'm down from 30 to 16 and just starting to feel a bit more human, although a fatter human!
I found this article online from the Arthritis Foundation newsletter I get in my email. Hope this helps!
Q. I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis about a year ago. We got it early, but now I have been diagnosed with bicep tendonitis. Is there any relation to the arthritis and tendonitis? I also am developing calcium deposits in my shoulder, which need to be shaved. Is that also related?
A. It is good to hear that your rheumatoid arthritis was recognized and treated early. This is a very much the goal for all patients, which should pay dividends in the future by reducing both the risk and severity of disability. Certainly inflammation of tendons (tendonitis) can occur in rheumatoid arthritis so it wouldn't be all that unusual for you to develop bicipital tendinitis. However, calcium deposits in the shoulder – particularly requiring surgery for removal – would be distinctly uncommon in RA. Crystal deposits in joints is actually a hallmark of another form of arthritis – so-called CPPD arthropathy – and I am curious if this might be responsible for your shoulder disease.
[QUOTE=arriscolwell]http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/fact/thr_report.cfm?Thread_ID=143& amp; amp;topcategory=Ar
OMG!! Figure 4! I sleep *just* like that. LoL!
[/QUOTE]
So do I! It's something I'm sure I started doing as a way of protecting my wrists...I tuck them up in my neck so that I don't bend them or hubby doesn't roll over them at night.
I saw my chiropractor and got adjusted but my neck and back wasn't too out of wack. He did pop my wrist and pinkie and was amazed at the swelling I have. He re-wrapped my hand and wrist for me as well. This is a relatively new thing for me, I mean my wrists and fingers have always hurt but not this kind of numb, burning thing. I'll be sure to ask the rheumy about it Tuesday. I hope she blocked off a lot of time for my appt because I have a notebook of questions for her!