I know it's common for people with PsA (or any autoimmune illness) to have other autoimmune issues as well. I was wondering how many people here have more than just PsA, how that affects your life, and what you're doing to be as healthy as you can be.
I have celiac, hypothyroidism, PsA, spondylitis, and was just diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis. I also have non-alcoholic simple fatty liver disease, which puts me at greater risk for more liver damage (I already have scarring). I'm on a gluten-free diet due to celiac, but am tweaking my diet even more than I already have to eliminate most processed foods (not that I was eating many in the first place), and am researching to see if higher protein would be of any help with my issues since that's what I've been craving. I'm also trying to exercise more, which works well the first three weeks after my Remi infusion, but no so much the three weeks before infusion. I'm also trying to mediate more and stress less, as I know stress can play a huge role in health.
I have PsA and Sjogren's now. I have had Raynaud's since I was a little kid, but it never became an issue until I got frostbite on my toes after my first child. That was when I first went to a rheumatologist for testing, but I am seronegative.
How do I cope? Obviously meds. I try to eat well, and am working on losing weight. I've lost almost 15 pounds since April. My knee and hip have become more of a problem, prompting the weight loss.
I try to stay active, although that has gotten more limited. I walk as much as I can, and ride my bike. Always with limits though. I have PsA and osteoarthritis in my hands, and am actually waiting to see the surgeon, to see if he's ready to fix my thumb at this point. I'm ready. So that limits what exercises I can do.
Believe it or not, I don't feel like I have a lot of ongoing stress in my life, and have never really noticed exacerbations when I do have stress. I definitely have seasonal flares.
For the Sjogren's I am using Restasis, Evoxac, and self-care measures. I also had my tear ducts plugged.
I have PsA, Vitiligo, and I'm being tested for Lupus as we speak. I've had Vitiligo since I was a kid but it was in remission until about a year ago. Since then, I started a gluten free diet and took up a yoga class. I'd say it has helped drastically. I'm hardly achy anymore. It's a huge improvement considering the last two years of high school I had to be home schooled because it was just that bad. I'm much more active now and I have more energy.
Hi Nym, I have an autoimmune disease called angioedema . It makes me look like the “creature from the black lagoon” lol. Not really so funny. It started when I had great distress over some family matters about 9 years ago. Oddly enough I was also experiencing a lot of muscular and tendon pain which has come to light as PsA here in the last 6 months or so. Right now I’m on methotrexate and it doesn’t seem to be helping very much. The psoriasis in my scalp seems to be better but I am having extreme pain in varying places…hand one day…ankle one day…wrist…big toe etc. hoping to start a biologic soon before my joints are completely shot. Having to wait on the Rhuemy. Good luck and don’t give up…I’m not!
I feel like I have so many issues, autoimmune and otherwise, that sometimes I get overwhelmed trying to manage them all. Some of the treatments for some of my issues are counterindicitive for others. I am not left with a whole lot of options. I have Psoriasis, PsA, celiac disease, osteoporosis, spondylilothesis, MTHFR (blood clotting factor), anemia, insomnia, and I am allergic to dairy.
Celiac and the dairy allergy cut out a lot of medications for me as there is lots of gluten and dairy in medications. The celiac disease also creates vitamin deficiencies for me. I am chronically deficient in Vitamin D, calcium, folic acid, and B12. The folic acid and B12 deficiencies are compounded by my MTHFR (which means I don't metabolize folic acid correctly), the sulfasalazine I take, and the fact that I am vegetarian.
The best piece of advice I can give anyone dealing with multiple health issues is to do your research. You have to know what issues each disease raises so you can counteract it with something if necessary. Such as the sulfasalazine and its affect on folic acid. Normally, I have to take extra folic acid to keep my blood from clotting, so after I added the medication I had to triple my folic acid intake to make sure it doesn't affect my blood clotting. My rheumatologist advised me to take a folic acid supplement when she prescribed the sulfasalazine but she forgot that I had the MTHFR blood clotting factor so if I hadn't reminded her she wouldn't have advised me to triple the folic acid.
You have to be your own advocate and understand the diseases and health issues you have. You cannot rely on the doctor to remember it all, especially when you have multiple issues they don't normally treat (like celiac). After I got my diagnosis of celiac disease 16 years ago, I went back to school and became a nutritionist so I could learn how to eat. Keep in mind there was not a lot of information about celiac disease back then. In fact, my gastro had never even heard of it. If I hadn't brought it up (after doing lots of research) then I may not have gotten my diagnosis until years later. This is probably an extreme example, but I was frustrated about not knowing how to eat and many of the nutritionists I saw didn't understand what it really meant to be gluten-free. So I took control of my situation and learned about it myself.
It is just important to be as informed as you can. Doctors are human too and make mistakes, so I figure the more I know, the safer I will be.