I don't understand two things mainly, one is why I'm not getting any back pains after having them for about two years with the last school year being every day and some days nearly all day. Even the burning in the lower left of my back isn't burning. I say 'school year' because I work in a school and struggled so much the last school year.
The fact I'm not sitting on chairs that are way too small for an adult has got to be a big factor but still ? Normally it would hurt at home even when 'trying' to relax and watch some t.v and propped up with loads of cushions.
I'm at the end of my second week of taking 500mg x 2 of co-codamol about 3 times a day and Naproxen so is that the reason. I'm certainly not complaining but I'm just unsure because I'm still having the horrid leg pains in strange places not just my knees and feet. For some reason my thighs at the front keep really hurting at the front. Its not severe pain but it's either waking me up or stopping me from going to sleep. I mentioned a while back that an old mri scan showed significant nerve root irritation in lower left lumber region and sponylosis in neck area due to a bilateral foramina which sometimes causes nerve like pains in my right arm and are as sickly as hell. Then a back specialist recently found facett joint problems in mid back. It was her who said I probably have PsA due to my medical history . Sorry its long but would love some advice.
P.s I still have quite bad stiffness after sitting and constantly moving my neck with gentle yoga stretches and the double chin stretch to relieve discomfort at the back of my neck. Which is def made worse after sitting in front of my lap top. Which has been raised about 5 inches off the table . So its not completely gone but compared to the past year I'm pleased but confused .
OK, Nana, help me understand what you don’t understand. You don’t understand why your back isn’t hurting now? Why your thighs ache so badly? Well maybe it is because you’re on some new meds, but that is symptomatic relief. You’ve still got the problem. I’m guessing that if you quit the drugs, you’d have the pain back. Or maybe it’s slightly different demands on your body these days. And now the thighs hurt? If what you have is PsA, you’ll have to get used to the itinerant pains. One day it’s this. Next day it’s that. PsA doesn’t just attack joints, you see: it has a go at your ligaments too. So your knee joints might hurt, but your forearms could be aching as well … all the work of our friend PsA. It’s one of the really frustrating things about this disease: the pain waxes, wanes and moves around at will. Make a note of it for when you go to see the rheumatologist. You are NOT imagining this, and you are not crazy.
Stiffness! Oh yes. How well I recall the days when I’d stand up and need to deep breathe my way through some stretches to be able to move. The worst was the end of a long flight: more than one flight attendant has asked me if I was all right. Of course I lied! I was undiagnosed back then, except for what they thought was osteoarthritis of the knees. Never could understand why my arthritic knees would make my whole body rigid during a flight. Sounds very dumb in retrospect, but once I was diagnosed with PsA it all made perfect sense. Unfortunately. LOL
One of the many things about having a chronic illness that does my head in is that, in the run up to an appointment with a specialist, I do not want any of my more persistent symptoms to do a disappearing act. It's ridiculous - I want to be well, I want to feel well. But it's not helpful when I look and feel better on the day of my appointment, only for symptoms to return afterwards without having been addressed.
I don't know if this is behind some of your current concerns. But you can certainly tell your rheumy that you have a long history of back pain that is currently not too bad in some ways. And as Seenie says, PsA pain does move around, it does come and go. I do like the 'go' bit!
I don't have the medical knowledge to understand the test results you've had. But if you also have some 'wear and tear' arthritis i.e. osteoarthritis, in your spine, it can come and go for sure, very much depends on what you're doing on a daily basis.
PsA is confusing. You can only tell your rheumatologist what the situation is as clearly as you possibly can and then he or she should start putting the pieces together. If you read posts from people who've had PsA for many years it's amazing how they've learned what is and isn't significant in the way their body behaves. You're on a learning curve and can't expect to get up to speed immediately, none of us do. But strikes me you're doing your utmost best to get a handle on things.
You’re very welcome, Nana. I hear you, I really do. I had terrible fear about not being diagnosed and then when I was, I was scared of not being diagnosed properly. I am not fearful now that I’ve been properly diagnosed and sorted out at an excellent clinic. The whole business of getting a diagnosis is terrifying, and many of us know it only too well. It’s the fear of being told it’s all your own fault. Or you’re exaggerating. Or the fear that you’ll be made to feel that you are imagining things and look out there, see that waiting room, it’s full of people who are REALLY ill, unlike you. Keep notes, and be confident going into the consultation. I know: easier said than done. Something’s not right with your body. Trust your instincts.