I have had P for over 20 years now in small patches on the usual places, elbows, knees, scalp etc but also in my nails. In fact if my memory serves me correctly one of my nails may have been the first to show signs.
I have never really bothered about it and simply applied my ointments when necessary and taken some sun baths whenever the British weather permits.....which believe me....isn't very often :)
However over the past year or so my nail P has significantly worsened making me quite self conscious and probably a little withdrawn.
I began to notice signs of arthritis with swollen joints and bumps on my fingers.
Stupidly I accepted this as the normal course of my P and also a symptom of heading into my mid forties! I did not visit my doctor until about 2 months ago when I could barely move my thumb without hitting the ceiling in pain. I visited thinking that I must have sprained it, expected a few pain killers maybe a splint and be sent on my way. To say my doctor was a little shocked would be an understatement and he immediately referred me to a Specialist at the local hospital.
To cut a long story short I have of course been diagnosed with PsA and I am one week into my Methotrexate. I am certainly worried about the medication after reading the very scary side effects listed on the patient info I received with the drug ......and in the dark and scary corners of the web....but I am determined not to let this get me down :)
I look forward to reading and learning from your invaluable and experienced collective wisdom and I'm going to keep smiling throughout. :)
Thank you.
p.s.... I sometimes have a tendency to waffle on a bit.
p.p.s .... you may have noticed. :)
p.p.p.s ... please tell me to shut up whenever required. :)
Welcome to the group! It's not uncommon to think that there might be an injury, only to realize that you don't in fact recall anything that could have possibly caused the injury. It's good that your doctor picked up on this.
All of the meds have seriously scary lists of side effects, and most people experience minimal side effects if any. With methotrexate, if you have not already been prescribed folic acid with this, ask about it. It can minimize the most common side effects, namely mouth sores.
A lot of people have also said that the injectable MTX causes much less side effects, particularly gastro-intestinal.
The discussions here are searchable, so take some time doing research here, and of course, ask questions. There's no question too trivial.
Welcome. I am a newbie too. Diagnosed about a month ago. I have a Rheumatologist who basically diagnosed me in 10 minutes. Of course I came with a long litany of issues that made the diagnosis easy for her. What I found out was that for about 15 years I had had symptoms that were singular issues that were dealt with as if they were all unique - TMJ, plantar fasciitis, bursitis, low back pain, tendonitis, swollen finger, tender balls of the foot, painful knees (at the IT band) the occasional dry skin on the eyelid and in the ear, and like you I had that one nail that became ridged and would send me through the roof if I hit it. Also like you, I thought they were all age issues or injuries or just separate concerns that came and went most of the time. Then, about a year ago I had a cold, that became a sinus infection and bronchitis, followed by pleurisy. After 5 different antibiotics they finally did sinus surgery and then while recovering from that about six of the above areas inflamed. The immune system went into overdrive and the disease was recognizable. The pain was progressive and I was very frightened. Finally, I asked my general practitioner for a referral to a Rheumatologist because I knew this was more serious. But - now a month later she has put me on methotrexate, folic acid and an anti-inflammatory that really works for me. I started my MTX yesterday and I was very nervous. I took the day off today in case I had the side effects of nausea, fatigue, etc. But....I didn't have any side effects (at least not yet). Yahoo! The prescription anti-inflammatory helps me I feel more human...not perfect but not without hope either. Hang in there...they call this time "the gap"...the time you and your team work to find the right medical mix for you. I hope they find it soon!
Just me- What is the anti inflammatory med prescribed to you? Seems like we have the newly start up of MTX in common! I will follow you two closely as well as post my experiences. Blessings:)
Sorry, in my efforts to not waffle on too long on my first post I forgot to mention that I am taking 5mg of folic acid 3 days after my MTX. (I am starting off on 10mg MTX but should be put up to 15mg after a month)
I agree Just Me, I was the same. Looking back I have had many symptoms of PsA over time but I have always put them down to getting older, going too hard on the bike (I started cycling around 18 months ago) or perhaps over doing it some nights with friends on the beer! :)
It is only now that I have been diagnosed that it is all starting to make sense.
I have had many x-rays at the hospital and I'm told that I have damage to two fingers on each hand and my right foot. I also feel I have "something lurking” in my shoulder and knees and my back can be agony, mostly first thing in the morning.
I'm hoping, despite my stupidity in not going to the doctor sooner, that it has been caught in time for treatment to make a difference. Nothing I can really do to change that now so got to keep calm, keep smiling and carry on.
I also haven't had the side effects of the MTX yet so yahoo x 2 ..... I was wondering, however, if it takes time for these side effects to take hold. Time will tell I suppose.
Apologies for any typo's in the above but hurriedly typing whilst on a work break :)
Thanks again for the welcome and I look forward to learning more about our condition.
I am taking the Nsaid - Oxaprozone. It helps a lot more than the meloxicam did. Still not perfect, but I can do more while on it. At age 58 I still have a lot of living to do!
Ygarcia209 said:
Just me- What is the anti inflammatory med prescribed to you? Seems like we have the newly start up of MTX in common! I will follow you two closely as well as post my experiences. Blessings:)
Welcome to this site Nifty, although I realise I’m a bit on the late welcome, and glad you’ve joined some other Brits at Cuppa House. So how are thinks doing on MTX, I presume you’re now at a higher dose?
My dose was increased to 15mg some time ago but after a visit to the hospital again last week they want to put it up to 20 or even 25mg...
I'm not to happy about this as I am exhausted at the moment, I believe partly because of the MTX.
They have increased my folic acis to 5mg a day too, instead of 5mg per week.
I've read some scary things about too much folic recently too......
We are trying the increased folic as an experiment for a month but to be honest I then think it may be time to try another DMARD. Going to hospital again in one month and then making decision.
The general census of opinion is that traditional DMARDS like MTX usually take at least 6 months to start working, and from my own experience it has proved to be true. I’ve been on MTX since 2010 and it did take a while to start working. I take 25mg by injection on a Sunday morning and feel washed out til Tuesday, your fatigue could well be from the PsA and added to by the MTX dose. If you do go on another DMARD that will at least add to the evidence to move you towards a biologic med if you don’t start improving.
Good luck
I am amazed at how many of us have identical stories! I was a newbie here 5 months ago, and if you look at the members list ranked by recently added it is crazy how many of us join every month!!! For you newbies who have just been diagnosed, I want you to know, biologics are very safe. I had Ps and PsA a long time, when finally I found this website and people, mostly the moderators, convinced me to fear the disease–not the meds! Since I had it for so long and my rheumy couldn’t convince me to take NSAIDs or dmards, my dermatologist was able to get me on Enbrel last month. For Ps, the dose is doubled x 3 months. Anyway, enbrel has made me feel at least 70% better–and that started right away with the first shot! The only SE is a pink blotch at the injection sites for a few days. Just wanted new people to not stress out as much as I did over possible SEs from biologics. Hopefully your docs will get you on one ASAP! I don’t take mtx or anything else but occasional OTC pain meds, salonpas patches, ice and heat. I think I have an extremely high pain tolerance and such a fear of developing liver problems and other SEs from too many pills that I would rather cope with the pain (which is probably why I was sort of ‘ugh’ depressed) before I started Enbrel. I’m not saying that is the right approach for anyone else–it was just right for me–I’m a lot older than most of you (60), so that also makes a difference. Good luck, and welcome!
I certainly haven't had the SE I was expecting after, as you rightly said, reading the scary coners of the world wide web, but I do feel completely exhausted at present.
I do now understand that the PsA and the MTX combined will be making me feel how I do and I realise that it is going to take time for me to get accustomed to the condition and the treatment so just trying to knuckle down and get on with it.
I must say I do have faith in my specialist and GP so to me hopefully I'm in good hands.
Welcome Nifty. It does sound as if you have great doctors in your corner which will make your battle sooooo much easier. Lots of us have old war stories of being blown off by both GPs and Rheumies. With education and getting it out there hopefully those bad old days will be history.
