Is it a flare?
Posted , 5 users are following.
It's been a long time since I had a flare. I've had problems and had to get off zeljanz for awhile. Yesterday my right hand felt like it was sprained. I noticed pain in the left hand but it was not bad. Tonight I am up at 4 with my right had hurting so bad it feels like it has a serious sprain and I can barely use it. It is not swollen. In past times both my hands would swell up like crazy. I put ice on it and it seems a tiny bit better but I know that is temporary. Do yall think I'm having a flare?
0 likes, 9 replies
anthony1801 Guest
Posted
Hi river22,
I guess it could well be...... Flare ups and how they appear varies from person to person. I have just been advised I'm in flare up having suffered nearly 4 weeks of back and hip pain and generally feeling unwell. I've had no joint swelling (beyond my usually swollen fingers) so didn't even begin to think I'm in flare up....... Some may say it was obvious, but I'm a novice patient 😂🤣
If I were you, I'd contact your Rheumy team and see what they advise...... wish I'd done the same 3 weeks ago🤔
I hope you're feeling better soon.
Take care,
Anthony
diane77471 Guest
Posted
Absolutely. One night my ankle flared and I just lay there moaning for 4 hrs and then it disappeared and went somewhere else. I never had swelling or red in that ankle. Crazy. Good luck. Pray you can get on another med soon or at least prednisone to slow the flare.
Guest
Posted
Thanks guys. It's morning now and I still can't use it very much. I have an ice pack on it. I can tell it's not as bad. At least it doesn't hurt like heck just holding it still. I am having to use the mouse with my left hand. I hear that's good for the brain. I need all the help I can get..
alice20946 Guest
Posted
wow i'm so confused with all this. i've been having strange pains that start like a muscle sprain just like you describe, and it will be very light but by the time the day is through i can barely move my hand. i can't clench or open it and walk around holding it to my stomach. i can barely drive myself home from work. then it will ease and almost seems to move up my arm into my elbow and i just recovered from something moving like that into my shoulder which almost felt like my tendon was torn. this is crazy. then it started in my middle finger and my whole knuckle swelled up and ached. so now my middle finger has eased but it seems to have moved into my pointer finger. am i losing it or is this normal. i don't even know how to explain this to the dr. also a few days ago i had uncontrollable itching. is this a symptom? my palms and even the bottoms of my feet itched terribly. it has calmed down some. i am still waiting for my app. which is in jan. what should i expect as far as being checked to see if i have it for sure. something sure is wrong. my blood work showed high indications for it. then i also have the dry mouth thing which is miserable.
Guest alice20946
Posted
oh Alice you described it perfectly! I have the same kind of pains. I've had RA for over 4 yrs now. The pain moves around just like you said. As far as the itching, are you taking meds? check them out for side effects. I was on plaqineil and had to get off of it because of the itching.
Guest
Posted
also, dry mouth, get some biotene mouth wash or mouth freshner. They also make lozenges for dry mouth. I have it really bad and it will rot your teeth out if you don't do something about it
alice20946 Guest
Posted
my teeth are shot. that's what started this was with my mouth. my lip kept getting a tingle in it, and every time i went to my dentist i would have at least 2 cavities. then one time a cap just fell out and i had to have my first tooth pulled. it broke my heart. then another, and now i have to go to a surgeon to get a wisdom tooth cut out that never came through because it is sideways and going bad. then one day my mouth got so dry i had trouble swallowing and it was all down hill from there. it's really hard for me to keep my spirits up when every day there's something new to deal with. i'm not trying to bring everyone down but you all understand, and i haven't even been officially diagnosed yet. i am really getting scared. thanks for your reply.
alice20946
Posted
one more question. has anyone else felt they had to almost diagnose themselves? i went to my dentist, my pc doc and then back to pc doc after i did some research and she finally said well i'll have to do bloodwork and then charged me and my ins. a very hefty office call. this seems to happen more and more and then they tell you to stay off the internet. if i hadn't found out about this myself, i would still be running around like a chicken seeing dr. after dr.
blair97497 alice20946
Posted
Hi Alice
I don't know about the random pain/swelling thing, when I am bad I get the pain, but never show much swelling. Things just start to feel clunky, or rather when they clunk, there is also pain that I notice.
I had terrible itching while I was taking codeine. It is so uncomfortable for me I won't use it again.
For my first 6-8 months from initial onset of RA, before diagnosis and then until DMARDs started working, I would get a terribly dry mouth and eyes as well. I still have to use eye drops a few times most days. The mouth has gone back to normal. As a protection for my teeth, without sufficient saliva to protect them from sugars and acids, I was advised to use a high fluoride toothpaste and even some treatment called tooth mousse. I didn't persist with the latter very long because I found it unpleasant but I still use high fluoride toothpaste.
Re your below comment about the internet and trying to self diagnose - it is important to be a critical reader, but I would never have learned very much about the reality of having RA without some good websites. It has really helped me to be better prepared about doctor's opinions, treatment options, when to be assertive, and whether I need to be patient.