Hi pcreamer! I am newly diagnosed w/RA too. I am scared also.. it helps to know there are others who feel the same. I just started methotrexate & steroids.. don't know if it'll work but i'm keeping my fingers crossed (yeah right LOL)! I don't know if the meds work but hopefully soon we'll all be feeling a lot better. Hope you're having a better day. :-)

Well............Hello is the best I can do. The thoughts you have about not doing as well are probably from the dreaded " brain fog " that comes with RA, and it's trusty meds along side. I could be wrong. It sucks having this thing, nevermind having another auto immune along side. May i suggest that you get " schooled " on the subjects. The sooner you learn about the disease the sooner you will get a handle on it. This site is a great place to hang out a be with peeps in the same boat you are, but reading and learning from studies and schools that publish papers will do you a world of good. Learn what makes you tic and learn how to live with this, these, beasts. The more you learn then the more you can have a larger role with your doc's and how your going to attack this, these, things. It's not going to happen over night. Your life has just drastically changed. All i can offer is to tackle these things head on, don't let them win and come out the other end in better shape than you are now. You have a disease, diseases, that are out of your control, you didn't bring them on, they brought you on, fight hard and don't give up. There's a mountain of meds out there and we all respond different to them or any combination of them. find out what works for you, and just maybe you'll get your life back. Good Luck Keep Smilin :)

Hey there. I am also newly diagnosed...like 3 weeks ago. I'm right in the same boat right now which is just a big fear of the unknown! I'm a fitness instructor and it's been SO difficult to get through my classes lately. I'm on prednisone now, but will be off of it in a week and will start methotrexate soon after. I just don't know if I need to just back out of my classes for a few months or if I'll be okay. Should I fly my mom or sister out to live with me for a while to help me with my kids? I'm sure that the meds can't be worse than this stinkin' thing already is, but you just never know until you're there. It may be smart for you to just back off of school and take some leave off of work until you feel like you have some stability. It won't be the unknown forever but why add the stress of trying to do everything? For me, my family is first and foremost, so if I have to quit everything else in my life to be able to focus everything on my family for a while, so be it. Anyway, this is where I"m at right now. Good luck!

WOW!! Thanks for all the responses! I am def going to read up and learn as much as I can about this, I believe education is key in everything!! As far as everything else, I guess I will wait and see how everything goes before I make any decisions. I am scared, but also relieved to finally have an answer to all the problems I have been having! Thanks again!

A great website to help you learn more about RA and how to communicate with your doctor is rheumatoidarthritis.com. I wish I'd found this great resourse site earlier in my disease. There is not a quick fix for RA. Drug therapies take time to work and you might yourself trying different regimens for several months before they are abandoned and your doc tries the next one. Lupus overlap means you have overlaping autoimmune disorders. In your case it's lupus with RA.

Welcome.

Sorry for the reason you are here. It is scary . I was "fortunate" when I was diagnosed I was 48, and my youngest was just graduating HS, so it was much easier for me. My career was establish (I'm a nurse practitioner).

I have done well over the past 4 years since dx...except for the last 6 months have not been good at all. you'll have good days and bad days. I have to say everyone is differnet.

RA does give brain fog, but so does MTX which is usually the "go to " drug of rheumies.

Only you will be able to say if you should slow down or not. I work FT, but have no little ones at home, and am not in school. Right now, I've been flaring since November, so I personally could never do school at this point.

Read whatever you can. another great site is www.rawarrior.com

Kelly is the creator - she has a facebook page - Rheumatoid Arthiritis Warrior. There are about 7000 people on her page. her blog (mentioned above) has literally I think 300 pages of information about EVERYTHING you could think of - esp for the newly dx'd - a section all on that. I highly recommend every RAer checks out her site.

I wish you well!! it is a a challenge! You "don't look sick" and people just don't understand...At least in my circle of family and friends, some do, some don't... Oh well....Sending hugs your way

Hi, I am new too about 8 months. The prednisone works great, but my Dr won't keep me on it too long, on mxtrate, sulindac, and hrdroxycloriquine. So so, not 100%. I am hoping I don't have to upgrade to stronger meds. Determined to keep moving, thats key. The bike, swim, walk, as much as you can. I also read up alot on it at first, and found this site so helpful, its huge to have people understand.

It's nice to meet you but I'm sorry that it had to be through both of us having RA! This is a great source of comfort to me. Knowing that there are other people out there who are going through the same thing and understand what it is like is wonderful. When I was first diagnosed last July, I read as much as possible on the disease and tried to educate my family as much as possible. I have two children at home also although they are old enough to do a lot for themselves now. That makes this a little easier. Every day is different. Every med is different and everyone's reaction to them is different. I wish that I could tell you exactly how it is going to go so that I could reassure you. However, every day is different and I haven't figured out my own path yet. I can tell you that we are all here for you and willing to listen if you need us!

Hello pcreamer and welcome to this site. People here have a huge amount of knowledge and experience of RA and are very willing to answer posts and questions.

Everyone's RA responds differently to meds so the one med doesn't work for everyone. It can be a roller-coaster ride.
My only additional suggestions are take it one day at a time and diarise your pain and swelling daily so you can show it to the Rheumatologist. I also jot down any questions I have so I don't forget.
gentle hugs and good luck

I was diagnosed a few months ago. I found this site by accident. I found this site by accident but it has been invaluable. I would agree that journalizing your pain is a really good idea - your doctor will want to know that sort of thing and its really easy to do.

Welcome to all you newbies. It is kind of a frightening disease at first. And brain fog - I have experienced before I actually had joint pain, while taking a French vocabulary course. I couldn't memorize a word. I speak French, just could not retain anything. I had an asthma attack 2 days before the final, and took some prednisone. I managed to memorize all 500 words and do well on the exam. That is measurable brain fog.

It also happened to me last semester in Greek. This time, prednisone bailed me out again, because It turns out I am now allergic to aspirin and DMARDS. I went from not retaining a word when I did some advanced study over the summer, to literally recalling after one look at the word. Just weird that brain fog.

And you don't hear much about it from docs. But it is VERY real. Fortunately, there are better meds than prednisone to deal with it.

Lupus is a similar but different autoimmune disease. It is diagnosed with ana levels, as opposed to ESR levels. Some similar symptoms - they have joint problems, we have organ issues. But mostly RA is in our joints - I think lupus hits a lot of areas. I would pin the doc down about exactly what he means by "overlap."

Hi Pcreamer,
You have a lot of good advice! Mom's work hard each day. I was 40 years old when they added RA to me and was 27 when they told me I had lupus. I read every thing I could get my eye's on!!! I had 15 years of remission from lupus :)) At age 40, I was Mom, Full-time student, wife and a health Care Administrator. AS well as all the other relationships we have in life! I was happy to be at the end of my Masters to start enjoying some more time with the family when I started meds for RA and had five great years. The last three years have been hard, but I have hopes of getting well again! I had to give up my job and learn to reduce the stress in my life. I did not think every thing I was doing was stressful, I loved and enjoyed every thing I was doing!!! It was the best time of my life. I know I will get back to some of the joys but for now, I need more rest!

I am sure you will find balance and work with your health team so that you can enjoy an active life. Hang in and know we are with you in thoughts!!