Hi Everyone,
I am a 43 year-old male that was diagnosed with what we believe to be PsA about three years ago. Back in Sept. 2016, My left knee flared after doing the stationary cycling machine. A couple of days later, the right knee flared up. About a week later, my hands and elbows flared up and I had these red patches on my elbows and then my knees. My wife and I thought it might be PsA because my dad has psoriasis. I showed my GP my elbows and he thought it might be PsA as well.
My Gp prescribed me mtx to take until I could get in and see a rheumatologist. I was freaked out about taking it so I held off for a couple of weeks but the pain was so bad I decided to try it. Within 10 days, I could tell a big difference in my pain. After about two weeks on methotrexate, I decided to quit because I was having some strange side effects. The top of my feet near my ankles would start to turn blue at night and I was starting to get incontinence. I also learned several months later that I have 1 mutation on my MTHFR gene and that may be why I was not tolerating mtx. I may try it again but this time instead of supplementing with folic acid, I will try methylfolate to see if that helps with the side effects.
I soon started a food elimination diet shortly after getting symptoms and I was only taking Celebrex for pain. I eliminated gluten, then dairy and all processed foods. After about a month, my skin problems cleared up all the way but it had no to little effect on my arthritis. I then found out about the Paddison Program and tried his vegan diet. I did it for 8 weeks and didn’t get any better. By this time, I had arthritis in my spine, jaw, ankles, wrists, hips, and feet as well. For a while, Celebrex would help with the small joints like my hands and elbows but it doesn’t work much anymore. I tried an anti-candida diet, paleo, raw food and nothing worked. After a few months being diagnosed, I had to get on something so I tried Humira. Humira was helping but not very much at first. It wasn’t until I hit the 4th month AND going on a low carb diet, eliminate all grains, that the pain started to go away with the help of Humira.
With the new low carb diet and Humira, I have been able to get out of most of my pain but still struggling. I still have a job and I have a family to support with two boys ages 9 and 11. I often worry that I will lose my job and am scared about the future. The PsA has effected my ability to work well. The pain makes it hard to focus. I’m not sure if the Humira will help any more than it has and I am about to have to temporarily stop taking it because I have a strange “infection” in my nostrils. My nostrils are slightly inflammed and red in places. no congestion or drainage. Mucous is clear. It has been going on for the last 10 days. I am on my second round of antibiotics and it has not improved at all. I am one week into my last shot and I assume that is why the antibiotics aren’t working well.
So right now, I am in a low spot, waiting to see how this will play out over the next month. I am thinking about trying methotrexate again in the future, this time using methylfolate to see if I can tolerate it better. If anyone has any insight on mtx and MTHFR and whether methylfolate helped you, please give me a shout.