22nd April 2004
OK....maybe 43 isn't 24, but I am here to offer some support. I was diagnosed with PA (psoriatic arthritis) which started with one swollen finger.... At first I only took NSAIDS but they only treat the symptoms without reducing the damage that comes from our arthritis. At the point where I ached all over and found it hard to function, I agreed to start on
MTX... in the pill form I found that I still wasn't managing the severe flairs I was still going through so my rhuemy suggested using the injectable forms. Yes the MTX initially made my hair start to thin..... when the MTX alone was still not managing the pain and inflammation he added Arava....I have to tell you that that combo of MTX and Arava together have made my life "normal" (funtional, fun.....) again. I have saved the predinsone stints for times when I end up in a flair and I really need to break out of it. I think the key for you is finding disease modifying drugs that will give you back quality of life. I know you are young and may want to have children (but most of these drugs are nasty from that stand point) Let your system clear before thinking about getting pregnant... Some women say their arthritis did better while pregnant... My seemed to start after a difficult third pregnancy. Depression seems to feed the disease along, so find a support network, whether an online chat group or local arthritis group. My biggest regret was waiting before starting on the drugs that could have prevented the joint damage I have now. Hang in there.. you are not alone.
MTX... in the pill form I found that I still wasn't managing the severe flairs I was still going through so my rhuemy suggested using the injectable forms. Yes the MTX initially made my hair start to thin..... when the MTX alone was still not managing the pain and inflammation he added Arava....I have to tell you that that combo of MTX and Arava together have made my life "normal" (funtional, fun.....) again. I have saved the predinsone stints for times when I end up in a flair and I really need to break out of it. I think the key for you is finding disease modifying drugs that will give you back quality of life. I know you are young and may want to have children (but most of these drugs are nasty from that stand point) Let your system clear before thinking about getting pregnant... Some women say their arthritis did better while pregnant... My seemed to start after a difficult third pregnancy. Depression seems to feed the disease along, so find a support network, whether an online chat group or local arthritis group. My biggest regret was waiting before starting on the drugs that could have prevented the joint damage I have now. Hang in there.. you are not alone.