Val....I don't have a lot to add...I was diagnosed in Late August and barely started treatment in November! But what I can say is there are a lot of really great men and women here with lots of great advice. The waiting is the worse. And you're so young. I hope you and your doctor get it figured out.

With RA, it's all about the insurance coverage as the best drugs are very expensive and you need good coverage. Nothing over the counter(OTC) really helps. People will tell that eating certain foods can control Ra but take my advice.....take the drugs prescribed and then eat the foods they tell you to try. Personally, after battling Ra since 1977, I haven't found any foods that help or hurt.

I was 25 when I got Ra and I'm now 64. I married and worked and had kids and my Ra never stopped me from doing anything I really wanted to do and that was before the good drugs they now have. These new drugs can actually put you into remission.but you have to be at a certain level of the disease process to qualify for them. You may not be there, yet. Ra is a waiting game.

I was just reading the risk factors for Ra and the older you are when you get it, the worse it will be so being 17 is actually a good thing. One time when getting sick at a young age is good!

Sorry you have to join our group at your age but we are here for support and knowledge so.....take one DS group as needed...or PRN.

gentle hugs..........Jen

I guess all you can do for now is be patient. As Jen says, this disease & its treatments costs some $$$, so you do need to have your insurance ducks in a row. I'll guess that not much happened over the holidays, but maybe things will start moving forward now. Did you feel OK about the doctor you saw?

Molly, how is your treatment going? What does that include? My rheumatologist says I'll have to take up therapy, but since I have no kind of experience in this I'm not sure what that would look like...



Jen, I've only been taking OTC (the naproxen the doctor suggested and occasionally Tylenol for arthritis when it gets harder to stand the pain). I feel the Tylenol helps somewhat.

I've had the same experience with one of my teachers and my mom. He swears by the "paleo diet" and was telling me about how I have to stop eating tomatoes, potatoes, and other foods. It honestly just left me more confused. Also, my mom swears every time I eat red meat, my hands get really swollen. I haven't really noticed that any food have any major impact

How great that it didn't prevent you from doing what you wanted. Do you recommend working the body parts that are swollen? I read online that overworking them can cause you to inflict or progress the damage being done.

I appreciate your feedback. It helps ease me a bit since I panic to think that I'll have to spend the rest of my life with this pain. I mean I haven't even graduated high school yet.... Thank you for answering my post.



alto, yeah I'm hoping I'll hear back from them soon. My mom has been constantly calling them to check up how it's going, with no answer, until today. Hopefully it doesn't take too long.

My rheumatologist was really really nice and helpful. She immediately forwarded me to another insurance company that's specifically for minors with arthritis.

When I was first diagnosed, my teacher (mentioned above) suggested I see another doctor for a second opinion, but I don't really understand why. What do you think?



Thank you all for your feedback, I really do appreciate it.

I think this particular teacher means well and is showing his concern, but is a bit misguided. He may think "she's too young for arthritis" or "she just needs to clean up her diet" or "there's a 'natural" cure* for this", all of which is just plain untrue. If you don't see a relationship between symptoms and food, most likely there isn't one. You did nothing to cause RA, other than maybe inheriting some crummy genes. Nothing to do about that.

I'm glad you like your rheumatologist. You are embarking on a long-term relationship there and having someone you trust, respect, and even like is a good thing.

How much to use swollen joints is pretty individual. For me, not moving around and exercising is the worst- overdoing is less hurtful than underdoing it. Walking is usually better than running, as it's lower impact. Exercising in a warm-water therapy pool is a favorite of lots, although I have never had access to this myself.


* If anyone suggests eating raisins soaked in gin as a cure for RA, you have our collective permission to throw things at them.

Hi Val. I have been diagnosed since 2012. It takes time to find the right drug combination and as it has been been pointed out it can get very expensive. As others have said diet does not seem to make a huge difference for a lot of us. The Paleo way of eating, while it can be healthy probably will not help. I have three Paleo cookbooks, I have done many of the recipes, but it hasn't helped me. Alto we could have a food fight with raisins and yes I tried that one too. I eat as healthy as I can, organic when possible, and I am taking drugs which are the only thing that helps. I really hope that you can get on an insurance plan that will cover this

I am so glad you found this group. People here are so supportive. I was diagnosed in Dec, 2009 but that was when I was around 65.
I really feel for you being only 17 but, as Jen says, it may work in your favour. Your mum sounds supportive and I'm sure your teacher means well re Paleo Diet. Two of my three daughters keep asking me to try Paleo and keep sending me articles. Lol My Rheumatologist says it's good to eat certain fish up to three times a week grilled, not battered, of course). For some "no nightshade vegetables" works, for most no difference.
Exercising when you have a flare/pain is very individual. Walking or swimming in a heated pool is low impact on joints but you have to see what works for you personally.
Re your mum suggesting swelling when you eat red meat, try a couple of weeks red-meat free and see what happens.
Keep a short record daily of what's hurting, swelling and how long it lasts, what meds you take to show your Rheumy and also take photos of any joints which are red and swollen to show her, too.
RA is an incredible learning process.

Val...My doctor just upped my 6 pills a week of MTX up to 7. My RA seem to just come out of the blue and fast. I'm 50 years old and some days feel like I'm 95.

My worst times are 7 days a week every morning. I get up and feel nauseous every morning (even before the meds) and generally ill. But by 9 AM by the time I've done some chores and had a really hot shower I am good to go for the rest of the day....until about 7-8 PM then I get very sleepy and tired. I think finding a good line between staying active but not too active works for me. If I overdo it on the weekend I pay for it on Monday.