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Hi all,I have a few questions.Do any of you have some stiffness  and swelling all day everyday ? and is it in multiple joints? my RD wants to put me on aravra or embrel he says I not doing so good but he only has me taking 4 MTX a week and half of a 5mg.presdisone a day /2  500mg.sulfasalzine a day/2mg  folic acid.I thought you slowly add more mtx over time .Also I thought I was doing pretty good, so can you all tell me how we're supposed to know  if our meds are working for us ,are we to have only a little stiffness in the morning which goes away within an hour  and only problems in 1 or 2 joints as my doctor says.         & nbsp;         & nbsp;         & nbsp; thanks

Hi jj,

I'll be back to post more when I'm feeling better but didn't want to leave you hanging.  Unfortunately, everyone with RA is different.  If you're not doing well, it might be a good idea to try the Enbrel or Arava.  You could also discuss with your RD possibly upping the prednisone and the MTX if you don't have nasty side effects.  My RA affects several of my joints and always has.  When I was first diagnosed I didn't experience any morning stiffness at all but now over time...I do on a daily basis.  Sometimes it goes away, sometimes it doesn't .  You are the true judge of how you are doing on your medications.  If you don't feel well or are experiencing a lot of pain and swelling then your RA is not in control and you and your RD need to make some adjustments.  If your medications are working...you will certainly be able to tell a difference.  Keep in mind my post is coming from RA that is not and has not been controlled....still working towards that goal.  There are a lot of wonderful people here, I'm sure you will find the help and support you need.  Keep us posted & good luck to you.

Peace & Love...Neasy

Neasy39254.7403935185Stiffness is more of an issue than pain is for me. It was my first symptom
and continues to be a daily, hourly problem for me. I don't have it long after
I get up in the morning but it reoccurs all day long everytime I sit down for
any length of time. I have to stand up and I cannot walk until I have
stretched out otherwise it is so painful to walk. I hate it. I find myself on my
feet all day at work so I don't have to deal with it so much but then I feel that
I'm ruining my feet by being on them so long. The other times it is an issue
is if I have cleaned house, gardened, or anything that requires even the
slightest bit of exertion, I can hardly move by that evening and the next
morning is absolute hell. I continue to move though as I feel that keeping
active is key in not becoming disabled. I've been on 4 mtx for awhile and my doctor just increased my mtx to 6 per week. My RA told me that 4 is a pretty low dose, so he wanted to put me on a more standard dose before we can decide it's not working. I am not anxious to keep adding meds, so I was happy with his recommendation. I have stiffness and pain in my hands all day. I hope you feel better soon. Love and hugs, J

Hi JJ, Welcome to the board if I have not already said so. This is a great place to get answers to your questions, gain support, vent, connect at all times of the day or night, 24/7, people are always checking in .....

I'm having an unusual 'flare' right now, but when I was being treated for 'normal' RA, I took 4 methos a week for maintenance, and 7 or so during flares. I didn't take any other drugs, but I found all the extra pain meds did not help me. I needed 'the real' RA medications. I had a choice of Remicade, Enbrel or Humira, and my doc chose Remicade. I'm not sure why.

It sounds like your doc is right you need arava or enbrel, he or she will continue the mtx and while you are waiting for it all to help you, you will continue with the prednisone. As you can see below I am getting off of the pred I've been on for months, Hurrah!!, but I am taking a lot of Remicade (by infusion every month) and a lot of mtx 20mgs a week.

Like I said this is unusual for me and so I'm hoping to get all of this reduced, the Remicade spaced out like several months between infusions (they put it into my vein), and back down to 4 (10mgs) of mtx. I want off of the prednisone as the side effects are terrible.

If you want lots of info on the drugs you can ask wikipedia, it is scary to read, but we have to take what we have to take, good luck sorting all of this out, Lynda

 

you guys are great ,thanks for all the info.
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