Hi I just wondered how people cope with flare ups, i find them very painfull and tramadol, diclofenic, co-codimol, paracetamol nor iboprofen help at all so i tend to just suffer them, which makes me feel like crying at times.
Iv only been diagnosed a couple of months and have been told its far to soon for the methotraxate to take affect. Any suggestions please xxx
Prednisone may help. Does your doc know about your pain level? Don't overdo the pain meds. I personally built up a tolerance to tramadol fairly quickly which left me with few options as I cannot take nsaids. Watch those narcotics, they just make things worse in the long run. Save them for use as the "big guns" only when you really, really need them. I hope you get some relief soon. It takes weeks for mtx to build up. I was on it for 12 weeks with an increase in dosage at week 8, to no avail. If your rhuemy agrees and insurance permits, maybe the use of a biologic due to your extreme pain levels could be moved up in your treatment. Hugs and blessings for relief soon.
Dmara is right, about the prednisone, till the mtx kicks in.....your in the UK, so i don't recognize the names of the meds....I'm guessing, it's some sort of NSAID, anti-inflammatory. and she is also right about the biologics
Hope you get things under control soon!
I really don't enjoy those flare-ups! Not remotely fun. When they are mild, I usually tolerate or reach for the Advil. When Advil is not going to help, I have gone to NSAIDs but sparingly. I have had one really horrible flare up when everything in my body cracked, moaned, and hurt and used prednisone.
I had been humming along somewhat well, but the last two weeks my entire body felt like I had the flu and could not shake it. every inch of my body hurt and joints burned. that was horrible. this week is better, thank God. I seem to be having more flare ups so wondering of the Enbrel is helping as much as before. ya know?
This is the craziest disease.
After about a week on the narcos, most people become more sensitive to pain. Save them for something MORE than a flare.
I know it sounds trite, but hot pads, hot bath any kid of warm moist heat seems to help we are very lucky that we have a natural hot springs not to far away. A day up there will help me get through anything especially with a shot of torodol and a pitcher of margaritas. If its really bad I'll do a burst of predi (only a few times a year) I'm not much for tapers.....
I have had the same questions breckstar, I don't know but I has a shipment a few days late a while back and decided it was more effective than I thought......
hi Anjie,
I found that my OT department were very good during the time it took before my MTX started to kick in. They had started a new exercise programme called health and motion, its based on Shibashi Tai Chi.........slow gentle movements, it was a bit weird at first especially as I was the youngest in the group, we were all creaking and cracking but it was lovely to relax and do the movements in time with your breathing with gentle music. Gentle swimming also helped me, I think I was tempted to restrict my movements as they caused pain but the more gentle exercises i did the better my movements became. I found pain relief was useless and just make me 'spaced out'. If you feel like having a good cry then do, you will need to grieve for your lost health, its a healthy way to move forward, be gentle on yourself and don't expect too much from yourself. Ive been on MTX for a year now and i'm so much better, but having a small flare up at the moment so being easy on myself, Take care x
oh thank you Louise, i do tend to be hard on myself i feel weak when i cry but i always thought people around 75 got arthritus not me i still feel young in myself and its hard sometimes to realise i cant do all that i used to do xx
Louise Hoy said:
hi Anjie,
I found that my OT department were very good during the time it took before my MTX started to kick in. They had started a new exercise programme called health and motion, its based on Shibashi Tai Chi.........slow gentle movements, it was a bit weird at first especially as I was the youngest in the group, we were all creaking and cracking but it was lovely to relax and do the movements in time with your breathing with gentle music. Gentle swimming also helped me, I think I was tempted to restrict my movements as they caused pain but the more gentle exercises i did the better my movements became. I found pain relief was useless and just make me 'spaced out'. If you feel like having a good cry then do, you will need to grieve for your lost health, its a healthy way to move forward, be gentle on yourself and don't expect too much from yourself. Ive been on MTX for a year now and i'm so much better, but having a small flare up at the moment so being easy on myself, Take care x
prednisone was the only med that helped while the MTX took its time. My daughter is still in pain, but the prednisone helps her a lot (she is on a low dose).
Ok so after 6 months on mtx and till no relief im going to try anti tnf injections, which im very nervous about. Anyone tried this or can give me any advice or info .. Thanks x
There’s a lot of people on this site who have anti TNF meds and they will be able to give you advice and reassurance about starting them ( we know then by different names here in the uk)…you’ve already been on MTX, so you’re already half way there, these are just the next generation drug really, they work differently but sound very effective for a lot of people, and from all the input from people on here if and when I have to start on them I won’t be half as frightened as I was when starting MXT 
I tried mtx for 3 months and did feel some relief but not completely. My rheumy started me on Enbrel injections afterwards. The combination of the two has made a great difference in my life and improved the quality. I am by far not 100% symptom free but much better. No major side effects worth mentioning. Hang in there.
anjie45 said:
Ok so after 6 months on mtx and till no relief im going to try anti tnf injections, which im very nervous about. Anyone tried this or can give me any advice or info .. Thanks x
I also am on mtx and enbrel. I still have flares but instead of a flare a month it is about 6 per year. I am having a bad one right now so forgive my typing. I hope you find the combination that works for you; I am sending you hugs and prayers.
I have only tried the prednisone taper about 4 times. I found I would flare so badly as the dose reduced below 10 mgs a day it just is not worth doing the tapers for me. It seems best to really rest, take my meds and wait the flare to pass. But we are all different. I hope yours let's up quickly, I am sending you hugs and prayers.
I’m not a fan of mtx at all but it’s true it dose take time to start working. I had tryed to take prednisone while waiting for the mtx to help. but it just maks the flares way worse if u stop or tapper. So what I do is hot baths any heat treatments and because my legs are the worst part I elevate them non stop. I hope u are on an inflammatory in the mean time. They are a big help.
well i started the enbrel injections last week and found it a lot easier than i thought it would be, just have to be patient now and give the meds time. heres hoping.
Can i just say a massive thank you to everyone for your thoughts, advice, guidance and sympathy, it really is reassuring to no we are not alone, that in itself makes me feel better. xx
Honestly my Rheummy usually prescribes me a prednisone pack when I have a flare. I'm going thru one right now i'm on day 3 of prednisone and I feel better today than I have in a week. But a prednisone pack you only take for like a week. They wean you off it slowly day by day. I have an aunt that takes 5 mg of it every other day or she can't move at all, she has RA. But right now I just call my rheumatologist and she orders it when I flare. I've had a couple of small flares that i've just basically dealt with since July but this is my first big flare since then and I think it's a combination of stress, and weather that caused it. I've been miserable!
Mimi, It sounds like we are on a similar path. I have been tapering down on the steroid (tomorrow I go down to 16 mg a day - I was up to 48 mg of predinlisone at my highest) and 15 mg mtx a week. I don't feel so great now. Not terrible. Nothing like how I felt a few months ago when I couldn't walk at all but I don't feel great, I am worn out so quickly. I think this is about my 7th week on mtx. I know I need to give it more time. When were you diagnosed?
Oh wow, you have been struggling with this for a long time. I am sorry.
Your chart sure gives a lot more information than mine! Mine just says 'inflammatory polyarthritis."