stacey

welcome. we are glad you are here.

there is a nice sized group of 20 somethings on here and I hope every one will answer you, not just the middle aged crone here... :)

I strongly feel that their voices will hold you up and prop you.

I was able to go to high school and college without RA, to enter the job force and pack in some decades without RA and to birth and early raise children without RA.

You have tenacity and adaptiveness. Your career needs your voice,

I do know what you mean about the devil you know. when i hit the 3rd biologic which was only fair in controlling symptoms the rheumatologist wanted to switch to actemra, number 4 on the biologic hit parade. i did not as I did not want that curve of loading and symptom watch or the idea that it could possibly be less effective that what I am on.

why don't you get settled in the new place for a bit?

Depot

Glad to hear there is a large group of people my age on this site! It's very difficult for anyone to understand what is going on and how it affects my life.

I'm moving from PA to NC so i'm hoping that the warm weather down there helps my RA a little bit so I don't have to worry too much about switching to a new biologic. Fingers crossed!


Stacey

Welcome and youhave come to the right place for advice and support 24 horus a day!

I'm sorry you are suffering so and at such a young age!
Not long ago here-a young person was describing what it was like trying to fit in and having people treat them different...as I tried to explain to them-you do what you want,in your own way(due to your limitations at times) and if people are your friends they will be right there along side you...if they want to ridicule or stare then just ignore them because they aren't worth your time. Life is too short and precious to waste it so you go out and do what you want and find your own ways of doing things you want to do.

Thank you so much for the advice anettearizon! :)

I've definitely met some people who, unfortunately, don't understand my limitations at times and like to crack jokes about my health. A lot of "friends" my age cannot understand my disease and trying to explain it just leads to frustration. Thankfully, there are people in my life who help me and do what they can for me when I'm experiencing bad days. Nobody fully understands RA unless you have it, though!


Stacey

Oh how I admire all you young ones that have to battle this disease. But you have joined an awesome group young or old we are here to support you.

Hey Stacey!

My name is Elisabeth. I am also 22 years old. I was diagnosed with RA last November. I currently take Humira as my biologic and have been since March when the Rheumy said that the Methotrexate wasnt enough.

I totally get that our friends dont get it. Im exhausted a lot of the time, speaking of which this past weekend i manned a kitchen at a yardsale for the firedepartment for 3 straight days and i am still recovering. I go to college full time. Its hard as hell to explain it to my friends as they automatically thing arthritis is a Old Person issue and at 22 its just in my head im not really sick.

So i get whats its like to be young with this issue. Its mind numbing.

YOu are welcome! And you are correct-nobody can trully understand an illiness unless they have suffered thru a true illiness themselves

Hi, Stacey.

Congratulations on landing a job that's worth moving 10 hours away for. You must be good at what you do.

If I was in your shoes I think I would move and get settled with a new rheumy before switching biologics, especially if Enbrel is making life tolerable. If you're moving to the Research Triangle area of NC there should be plenty of rheumys to choose from. Have you been able to get a referral?

Hi Elisabeth!

I have one more semester of college and I cannot wait for it to be over! Mainly because of the people haha. Like you, I am always exhausted and like to stay in on weekends and just relax but since that's not the college norm for most of my "friends" they like to refer to me as boring and "no fun". It's so frustrating! If only they walked in our shoes for a little while!

Altoclef- That's my plan right now! I'm going to hold off on switching to a new biologic and hope Enbrel keeps me OK until later this year. I've never heard of the research triangle but I'll be close to the Charlotte area and I know they have a fabulous rheumatoid arthritis center that I'm going to try and get an appointment with! Doesn't hurt to get more opinions from doctors!

welcome in stacey. below is a link, i'm a diet freak that's had pretty dang good results. the link is pretty close to what i do except that i do eat seeds and nuts (mainly walnuts, pecans, peanuts-all raw, non roasted) and there are some green veggies and fruits and nuts that irritate me as well as what she mentions. get your system cleaned out, stay on a basic diet for a couple of weeks that doesn't hurt you, then add something to see if you tolerate it. you've a long life to go and it can be extremely productive and enjoyable if you work at it and are disciplined to what works for you. my back-to-basic diet is No Drain Tuna (find it at Publix, it is the only tuna without veg broth), bananas, pineapple (OMG i eat lots of it), romaine, apples, grilled chicken/pork (season only with lemon, sage, rose mary, black pepper, a little sea salt), carrots, english peas, green beans (once again, be careful with seasoning). packaged foods will hurt you if it has paprika (from red pepper, labels might say "natural flavor, natural preservatives, spices"), as will potato starch hurt you (cheap to produced, used lots as a gluten or starch or emulsifier).

good luck, we all deal with it, we all fight the "give up" demon in our head.....speaking of, you must learn to control the six inches between your ears because no one can do it for you.

idiot forgot the link...
http://www.thepaleomom.com/autoimmunity/the-autoimmune-protocol

Thanks nonightshades! I'll definitely be checking out that link :)

Hi Stacey! I'm not a "20-something anymore"--I'm 31 now--but I was diagnosed when I was 26. Before diagnosis, I worked in landscaping, so I was very active. It's a really hard adjustment to make from being independent and active to having to work hard to do every little daily routine. When I mention I have RA to people, I get a lot of "but you're so young!" I always respond "I guess the RA didn't care!! haha" Truth is, there are 300 million people in the US and only about 1-2 million of those have RA. By contrast, there are about 40-50 million or so that have osteoarthritis, so it's not too surprising that people are misinformed about RA, who it affects and how. The people who really care about you will try to become informed about this disease and will be supportive when you have bad days, and the rest you just gotta laugh it off cause it's not worth the stress.

I lived in Greenville, NC (in the eastern part of the state) a few years ago, and the Winston-Salem area, not far from Charlotte, until I was 5. It's a great state, and a much different rhythm than living in the north! Charlotte is supposed to be beautiful and have really good ethnic restaurants, so relax, take in the sunshine, and try all the delicious cuisine. Best of luck to you in your new job!

Hi Stacey!!
As so many people our age have replied- I'm 23 - it sucks being this young with RA. But it's so amazing and relieving almost to hear that we're not alone... I huddle inside and my friends ask, do you EVER go out? We've got this though. Every rose has its thorn I guess... I'm excited to be able to talk to people my age with the same problem as me!!

Hi Stacey!

I'm 26 but was diagnosed a few years ago. I still struggle with explaining RA to anyone new I meet. Im on methotrexate and humira and as a 20 something it's been really hard not to be able to go out and enjoy a few beverages like all my friends are able to so. I'm finding it particularly hard when it comes to dating.

Anyone have any advice on that??