RA and Fribromiagia pain
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I was diagnosed with RA and Fribromiagia back in August. I am seeing a Rheumatologist and he has gradually increased the medication Methotrexate to 8 pills a week and several different doses of Prednisone. He also has put me on Gabapentin and Sulfasalazine. I am finding no relief from these medications. Also every visit he's asking me to pinpoint my pain as RA or Fibro. Because my pain varies I do not know what to tell him. I just hurt somewhere every day. If my hands are swollen and my fingers can't bend I assume it's the RA. When my neck and arms hurt I assume it's the Fibro. I'm going stir crazy not getting any relief and I'm on all this medication. Do I need a better doctor who can tell me what is causing each area of pain. Some days I will hurt all over my body and I will be so weak I need help to even walk. On those days I also run a high fever and my body feels lifeless if that makes any sense! I am searching any advise because I'm about to lose my mind!!!
0 likes, 7 replies
EileenH bevybaby59
Posted
Has anything of that mix helped at all?
bevybaby59 EileenH
Posted
Rowbirdie bevybaby59
Posted
i can only speak from the RA point if view, but had pains in my neck, shoulders, arms as well as fingers ,wrists, knees and feet. At one point the shoukder pain meant I couldn't stretch my arm forward to pick up a mug of tea- couldn't turn key in car or do up seatbelt, turn on taps , lift anything.
So RA can affect far more areas than you think. You are especially aware of joints being stiff, swollen, painful, but improving during the day until you sit for a long time. The fatigue is all part of it. If your RA does not improve after 6 months on methotrexate and sulfasalazine you may be eligible for a biologic which has made a difference for me. The fever is def linked to RA.
My friend with fibro says there are particular areas on the body which hurt if pressure is applied. I don't really know how you d tell that until your RA is under control . It might be good to assume all the pain is RA unless its a pain in response to touch nowhere near a joint. She has good days and bad. Rest helps her, whereas sitting/ lying for a long time with RA makes me stiffer. I don't know if any of that is helpful for you? Hopefully someone else on the forum will have experienced both and can give you more insight.
bevybaby59 Rowbirdie
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Rowbirdie bevybaby59
Posted
You mentioned you were beginning to feel better- then downhill again. Was that linked to finishing the course of prednisolone or not really?
EileenH bevybaby59
Posted
Fibro really is a"left over" diagnosis once everything else is ruled out - because as Rowbirdie says, there is no real test, the dx is made by saying there is pain at specific trigger points of which there are 18 and you must have pain in at least 11 of them (I think, that's off the top of my head). Something called polymyalgia rheumatica also produces pain in some of those trigger points and it is easy to confuse the two - though it is also possible to have both. The difference is that PMR responds to pred at about 15-20mg/day, fibro doesn't. PMR also looks very like RA in terms of the stiffness and other things Rowbirdie mentioned - but there is no joint damage and some of the RA blood tests aren't positive, but then, they aren't always positive from the start of RA and about 1 in 6 patients is first told they have PMR but the diagnosis is revised to RA later.
bevybaby59 EileenH
Posted
I will discuss the possibility of PMR with my doctor, thank you!