Hello to all! I am a 45 y/o male, married, with one awesome son. I was diagnosed with PsA several months ago and to me it has progressed fast. The big toe joints on each foot and my two pinkies are my biggest problem areas (and my hands in general). I am on methotrexate and folic acid but I don’t feel they help much if at all. I am very active, especially with jiu-jitsu and cross-fit but I really need to figure out a way to get some relief. I am in great shape 5’10 157 lbs and eat very, very well. Anyway I am one of those “scared of meds” guys since my wife is a stage 4 cancer survivor but since trolling this site for a bit I realize I need to be more scared of the disease. I am a take charge proactive type of guy so I immediately made an appointment to see my doc and tell him I want to be put on embrel or something. Anyway that’s my story…thanks!
Welcome,
The last bit of your post made me smile. It certainly seems the mantra said so often on here namely ‘fear the disease, not the meds’ hit straight home for you. And I’m so glad too. Have you had the appt with your doctor yet?
Hi Mike!
You’ve condensed a couple of years’ worth of typical just-diagnosed thought patterns into a few months! You don’t hang around, do you?
Sounds like you’ve got a brilliant angle on all this already and it’s great to hear the forum has helped with that.
Good luck at your appointment.
11/6/19…I will keep you posted!
Hi Mike,
Check out the Keystone Approach by Rebecca Fett. It is compelling. I am an anti-meds person, too. I told my rheumatologist I was absolutely NOT a candidate for those MABs like Humira, etc.–too dangerous & too flaky, IMO. Anyway, she consults to Celegene & prescribed Otezla. It works great for me and it is a PDE4 inhibitor. I supplement this with generic Celebrex that mitigates the pain. Note: your insurance co. may insist you go on a monoclonal antibody therapy. Just a heads up. ~Alex
Hi mike I got diagnosed 4 years back myself and played football at a good level for over 15 years,after everything sorted out medication wise and after a few steroid jabs I usually only have a flare up now and again and still keep myself in shape ie gym kettlebells weight lifting etc,I read that you do CrossFit and other keep fit activities the only advice I could give you is to keep active if possible and stay on you’re meds,I take creatine protein zma omega milk thistle glucosamine and folic acid on a daily basis and seems to work for me,wouldn’t advise running as can be sore with the pounding on joints,would strongly advise low impact fitness classes and not to much lifting of weights as this can put stress on joints,hope this helps you 
Welcome Mike!
Thank you for sharing your story. I think you’re coming at this from a great place physically and mentally too! I’m sure you’ll find this forum supportive and a useful source of info. I find it a great place to get opinions and share experiences.
Welcome to what might just be the best source of combined information on PsA. Because of the unique nature of how and when PsA manifests itself, keep in mind that your journey is YOUR journey…glean from others experiences and knowledge but apply wisely. There are few absolute answers or quick solutions and just when you have things figured out, it gets surprisingly better or worse. I’ve had PsA for over a year but only diagnosed 9 months ago. From my brief experience, be very careful of finding your physical limits, as in what was too much, by pushing yourself. Once damage and enthesitis sets in causing pain, it is a slow process to “heal”. Stop the exercise while you feel good. All the best on your journey!