anyone here with Rhematoid or oseto arthritis?

singingflutelady wrote: »

Lots of Humira folks! I don't have arthritis but I take it for Crohn's. I find it painful and I also get an injection site reaction so itchy!

Always ask your dr but I was advised to let it sit on the counter for about 15 mins before. And stomach injections hurt way less than thigh. Sounds weird but I promise. And the itchy site reaction does stop. I’m assuming you haven’t been on it long.

singingflutelady wrote: »

Angiefit4life wrote: »

singingflutelady wrote: »

Lots of Humira folks! I don't have arthritis but I take it for Crohn's. I find it painful and I also get an injection site reaction so itchy!

Always ask your dr but I was advised to let it sit on the counter for about 15 mins before. And stomach injections hurt way less than thigh. Sounds weird but I promise. And the itchy site reaction does stop. I’m assuming you haven’t been on it long.

I have been on since nov 2017. I didn't have the itchy reaction until february. Unfortunately atm I am severely underweight and had to stop doing it in my stomach as I don't have enough fat there anymore. Humira is my second biologic. I was on Remicade for 2 years but had to go off because I had surgery and couldn't go back on it because of antibodies.

@singingflutelady I’m sorry. I had a reaction for about 6 months. It’s awful. I’ve been on his since spring 2014.
I hope you are able to return to stomach injections soon. And I hope you’ve have a supportive rheumatologist!

Oh yes, I have RA, fibro, and osteoarthritis. I've had 1 total knee and my other knee is also bone on bone. My spine, neck are severely affected as well. My ankles have completely protonated and my mobility is very limited. My pain level is constant and exercise causes increased pain and swelling. I do what I can on my good days but some days it's difficult to maintain my daily chores. I do avoid sugars, saturated fats, and all the other foods that trigger inflammation but it's hard to say if it helps or not. Being obese is the absolute worst thing I could do. Cold, damp weather makes my stiffness much more prominent. I can't take humira because of my weakened immune system and other health issues. Right now I use pain meds 3 times a day. My best advice is to lose weight and I don't think there is any single thing more important you can do.

Angiefit4life wrote: »

doceo wrote: »

IT is heartwarming to hear all this advice and support.
I was all set to call my pcp yesterday, but by the time the office opened, my hands were almost normal. Last night, I could squeeze my hands tight, type, and I felt "normal."

I woke up this am with tightness and soreness in my right hand, again. Not as bad as it was, but it's definitely still there; I can feel it when I type. I am due for regular blood work at my PCP at end of oct; I'm going to call and ask if they will do it this week instead and add tests for RA and for ET (essential thrombocythemia). My mom passed from ET. My younger sister has RA.


The good news is that I lost some of the pity weight I gained. I had weight and diet trained myself to 150 after I retired. After my disc extruded and I was unable to work out, and I haven't been able to lift or do anything, even yoga, since March. I put on weight because I was pity-bored-unable to work out. I'm now down to 154 with a goal of 140. My trainer told me weighing less than that would not be good on me; I'm 5'10" so that's fine with me.

In the beginning my PCM didn’t do a C- Reactive protein test. I didn’t get one to I actually got into a rheumatologist and my level was 136! Be sure to ask your doctor about this. It was so frustrating I was in so much pain. Good luck!!!!

Another one that isn't commonly done is HLA-B27. Even though ~90% of AS patients have the antigen, I kind of get why they don't often test for it. Less than 2% of people with the antigen have AS or reactive arthritis or undifferentiated spondylitis or other conditions that seem to have a strong correlation. But if other members of your immediate family also have the antigen, your chances jump up to about 20%. If other members of your family have the antigen and one of the conditions your risk is closer to 50%. Yeah, I have it as do my siblings and one parent and there are some related conditions. My older sister has RA, which isn't commonly associated with it and a couple of us have undifferentiated spondylitis, which is pretty much milder AS symptoms without any fusion. My grandfather was crippled by severe AS.

@CarvedTones you’re correct! I’m also positive for the gene.

Angiefit4life wrote: »

singingflutelady wrote: »

Lots of Humira folks! I don't have arthritis but I take it for Crohn's. I find it painful and I also get an injection site reaction so itchy!

Always ask your dr but I was advised to let it sit on the counter for about 15 mins before. And stomach injections hurt way less than thigh. Sounds weird but I promise. And the itchy site reaction does stop. I’m assuming you haven’t been on it long.

I inject Cimzia and Mtx for RA and stomach hurts WAY less than thigh.

doceo wrote: »

Hi all. I finally got the results from the blood work I pushed my pcp to do. Can anyone give me info on these? I see the rheumatolgist Dec 17
My CCP was >250
rheumatoid factor 11
SED rate 17
ANA 1.30
ANA titer was negative

@doceo just go to your post and highlight one of your 5 results line at time and right click and do a Google search to get some answers for starters. That is assuming you use Google. You may read how our results can vary greatly so comparing numbers with another's lab work can be meaningless. Keep in mind healthcare providers do not have ready made solutions as a general rule and often fail to nail our issues with only one name. At the age of 67 I have been told many names for my arthritis so do not concern myself with a name any longer and just focus on the things that I eat and drink and how they make me feel the next day, week, etc.

On a hunch with health failing fast in Oct 2014 I cut out all energy sources containing added sugar and or any form of any grain as a last ditch effort to avoid starting Enbrel injections scheduled to start as of Nov 2014. I got lucky because in 30 days my high levels of pain of the last 30 years had started dropping like a rock and continued to do so over the next year so I have been relative pain free and RX med free for the last three years.

Last month I was told to come back for my annual in 12 months because she saw no pending medical issues based on her physical and my detail lab workup from the week before.

This is just my personal case having lived with arthritis for the past 50 years. For some reason high carb Way Of Eating was causing my inflammation levels to go high but I am OK on my current WOE of keeping my total daily carbs down to about 50 grams.

Again we are all different and have to find over time what may or may not help us diet wise.

Best of success in learning your way forward. You already know you have to push for the info you want. Find your cause for the inflammation in YOUR body and drill down on the details from that point. After I found out I had a form of arthritis I went to college and earned my OD degree from SCO Memphis in 1986. The healthcare professions just do not have fixes for us setting on a shelf. Some that I was given turned out to be worse than the arthritis itself.

Since Oct 2014 my health continues to improve and now wish I had changed my Way Of Eating 40 years ago instead of 4 years ago. My arthritis I think as caused my wife and kids that turn 21 next week more pain than it as me. They are happy to see me regaining my health and not being so dependent on them.

Yes just officially diagnosed at 33, but in pain for years. Used to be a skater and genetics from my dad problaby made it spring up faster than it would have.

MHarper522 wrote: »

Yes just officially diagnosed at 33, but in pain for years. Used to be a skater and genetics from my dad problaby made it spring up faster than it would have.

I'm an ex dancer and my dad has arthritis and AS

I'm 36 now and people still keep telling me I'm too young for it to be that including my physio before he read my file

@GaleHawkins Have you looked at The London AS Diet on KickAS.org? It does seem to have some science behind it. Your cutting out grain tracks with what is suggested there. The science behind it is specific to the HLA B27 blood antigen.

@CarvedTones I have seen the KickAS.org site but I will review it again. Now that I have been reading about AS for years info clicks better now.

@ruqayyahsmum I think the main thing is just start at any point and do more of what works for one and less of what does not work for one.

I woke up one morning back in the fall of 2014 with a clear understanding that if I wanted to avoid starting Enbrel injections in 30 days as per my MD's advice I had to cut out all foods containing sugar and or any form of any grain.. My brain and wife were saying NO.

Since I had already burned through 60 days of the 90 days when I was scheduled to start the injections I knew I had to leave carbs cold turkey. While the first two weeks were hellish for me it worked quickly and four years later is working even better.

While over many years I have come to learn the answers that come overnight for a given crisis can be trusted so I acted.

Worse than my failing health were our then 16 year old twins having to help me get dressed, in and out of cars, etc wondering if this was what their future was going to be like. They are not keto but at least they have watched my health recover and knows how well and simple it is to do. Both have become more mindful eaters however.

lesockie wrote: »

Did any of you experience tendonitis before being diagnosed with RA?

Inflammation in the tendons is common with inflammatory arthritis. My daughter and I have Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and both get tenosynovitis.

Weather is weird in how it affects us differently. Most of my worst flares happened when it was cold and damp, but I have never had one when it is hot and humid. I have had them in dry cold weather and I live in the south so hot dry weather is a myth.

GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »

My flares seem unconnected with the weather and just ... happen.

I have osteo and PsA.

I don't seem to tolerate extremes on either end of the spectrum, temperature-wise.

It's confusing to me and docs. Flares seem consistent with osteo (weather effect and it's rarely the red puffy inflammation) except for being systemic and symmetric, which are signs of something rheumatic. Blood work is inconclusive; spikes within normal range like sed rate going from 8 to 18. But high normal is still normal. I have some full time osteo without the flares but it isn't as bad. The bursitis is bones bumping without much between them which doesn't feel great but usually doesn't get badly inflamed. The herniated discs, DDD and stenosis are painful sometimes but are not debilitating. If I can dodge the flares, everything is stuff I can deal with.