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Just diagnosed.

Posted , 6 users are following.

tony09890
tony09890

I've just been diagnosed with RA and prescribed Methotrexate, 10mgs to start, increasing to 20mgs over two weeks.   I'm currently also on Prednisone (16mgs) as my GP thought it was PMR so I have to taper the Prednisone and wean myself off that.   I took my first 10mg dose of Methotrexate Monday last but the pain seems to have gotten worse which I've read is common when starting on Methotrexate.   The RA affects my wrists, forearms, elbows, upper arms and neck but the wrists are affected the most, I'm basically unable to use my hands without suffering severe pain, particularly late at night and in the mornings.   Question:   will the Methotrexate lessen the wrist pain and allow me to function or is the wrist pain going to be a permanent fixture?   I've also noticed severe cramps in my trapezoid muscles when rising from rest, is this common?

0 likes, 23 replies

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  • tony09890
    tony09890

    Posted

    I have the same problem getting up of the floor, hands will not take the weight or the pain, embarrasing crawling around on knees and forearms/elbows trying to get up.   Fortunately my lower body still works fine.
    • lyn1951
      lyn1951 tony09890

      Posted

      Oh God Tony I feel for you, an easy chair, I sort of learnt to climb up the front of the couch chair, then shuffle myself onto the couch, on my face, once I got there, I was able to push through my hips, even that became impossible after a while, due to hips being bad as well. Had about 3 years of not being able to get down onto the floor at all, just coudn't get back up, still struggle with it, but slightly better, wish my second THR was also a good one, but its not, so plenty of ongoing problems here. I am supposed to be my husbands carer, he has heart failure, not good I'm afraid, result is we end up caring for each other, what he can't do I do, and what I can't do he does, and we muddle through for the most part, neither of us wants to go into a nursing home, but long term I suspect we will have too.
  • tony09890
    tony09890

    Posted

    You should get hubby to put in for a carers allowance for you - twice the money!   I'm starting to feel a little sorry for my wife, she has been my carer for a number of years due to OA, but nothing as bad as this.   I'm only 64 and my wife is 62, a young healthy 62 at that, I really don't think it fair for her to be saddled with a young/old cripple like me, she should be enjoying herself.   I hate being such a burden
  • lyn1951
    lyn1951 tony09890

    Posted

    The carers pension in australia is almost impossible to get, if you answer the questions truthfully, and it only adds $60.00 fortnight to our pension. We manage on our pensions, but there is not much fun involved, we have no mortgage, we own our own home, we are both 64 so I do know exactly where your coming from with age. God certainly played a dirty trick on us didn't he.

    Re your wife, how long have you been married, we are on our 43 year now, and I think we are stuck with each other now, and wouldn't have it any other way, ask her how she feels about losing you. When I thought I was going to lose him a 3 years ago, I really struggled with coping, the Dr's were telling me he was dying. Well he has proved them wrong, as the specialist himself says, your husband is teaching us about heart failure, comment one time "he is soooo far removed from the text books we are guessing what will help him", they are very good at watching, but I have been the one researching, will no medical knowledge to start with, but now even specialist Dr's are listening to me, and going with my advice re medication that might help, a couple have been a wonderful help, and one of my finds soooo far off left field, but they are now using it in the local heart hospital, like the specialist says "It works".

  • tony09890
    tony09890

    Posted

    My wife had no problems getting the carers allowance, probably easier for her though as I was on a military disability pension at the time, I don't think they'd give both of you an allowance though, only politicians are allowed to double dip I believe. I'm in Adelaide BTW.
  • lyn1951
    lyn1951 tony09890

    Posted

    Tony - and here was I thinking you were in England. I'm in Queensland, just north of Brisbane. 

    How are you coping with the heatwave, nightmare I suspect.

    I did apply for carers allowance when husband first diagnosed with heart failure, and answers questions truthfully, and got ourselves refused, questions did not allow for his condition at all, even had problems getting disability pension.

    Centerlink staff had the cheek to tell us that his cardiologist letter was of no interest, they were interviewing him to send him back to work.

    With 23 % ejection fraction 4 days previous he had been unable to walk across his hospital room to use the toilet, how he was supposed to go back to work I really don't understand.

    After we got home from that interview, and had a cup of tea and calmed down from my utter fury at being treated the way we were.

    I suddenly had the thought, when I was at work there was a self reporting rule in the workcover act. Took me a little while to track down what it said. But very simply is you have an obligation to report yourself if you have a condition wereas you may hurt somebody else. Centerlink staff had just hours earlier, quoted us that my husband was going back to work.

    I then invoked the Workcover Act and sent a written complaint to workcover reporting centerlink, and the staff member, included the letter from the cardiologist.

    Two days later received a letter from centerlink, telling us to come in. Also had a Justice of the High Court lined up, he was looking for a fight with centerlink, and was smiling like a shark when I told him my story, he went in with us, for the 2nd call in, talk about red carpet treatment, our feet didn't touch the floor, we were offered cups of tea and biscuits by the manager.

    No I didn't accept their apology, I told the manager their attitude could easily have caused a heart attack that day, or husband collpasing in front of them at the very least, and I knew who to blame.

    Justice rather disappointed, but happy for us. 

    Should apply again, I believe we can now more than 2 years have passed, and my husband is not improving, if anything he is getting worse, but that is the lot of heart failure victims.

  • tony09890
    tony09890

    Posted

    Good on you Lyn, always good to hear of someone sticking it to the system.   I've lived in QLD, as well as just about everywhere else in Australia, last place was Hervey Bay which we left in 2010.   Only moved there because we heard it was the pensioner capital of Australia so assumed medical services would be good - yeah right.
  • lyn1951
    lyn1951 tony09890

    Posted

    Here in northern Brisbane, not too bad, for medical services, although you have to find you way through the maze.

    Would'nt let Redcliffe Hospital touch me with a forty foot barge pole for heart problems, but they have a heart clinic, run by a regular GP.

    We go to Prince Charles for my husbands heart problems, his entire file is there now, and I have a copy of the same file in an old computer bag. eights about 10 kilos or so.

    Royal Brisbane for prostrate as Redcliffe is the hospital nominated by the health dept for those problems, but they are not going to do any surgery on a heart patient, and to be honest i woudn't want them too.

    I go to Redcliffe for my RA as one of the better specialist rheumotologist's runs a clinic there, you can see her privately as I understand about $300.00 a shot, very hard to get an appt, all depends on severity.

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