Sjogrens can add to it, and there are things you can do to reduce dental problems. In addition to take Evoxac, I also use MP paste. You can order it online and dental hygienist who had Sjogrens told me about it. It helps replace and repair ENAMAL! I use an enamal guard toothpaste and all with dry moth make sure your MOUTHWASH is ALCOHOL FREE!!

I am not a fan of Biotin. It is touted for dry mouth but does NOTHING except give some momentary relief. I much prefer ACT dry mouth lozenges. Tee tree lozenges are also good. And some of the sprays. I like Thayers.

well, peachy!

Thank you! :)

just as a gentle reminder: we don't diagnose on here. ask the doctor (smile) - it's saturday night - have fun!

depot

mckvirginia,
My rheumatologist always asked me about dry eyes (Sjogrens) and any rash (Psoriasis) to see if he could better pin down my seronegative polyarthritis. I always said no to the eye question, because my eyes always tear a lot. It was only then a few months ago that I felt my eyes were dry and sticky, and I was waking up almost every morning with red, bloodshot eyes lasting a few hours. Ophtho saw no signs of inflammation but did the Schirmer test anyways - and it was positive. I am waiting to see my rheum next month to figure out additional testing. So don't ignore the eye thing if you are tearing a lot. As others have said -- you could then at least get some additional treatments to reduce bothersome (and expensive dental) problems.
Back to the original post
No cysts, rare colds, tired and would love more sleep but usually don't get it. I wake a lot in the night to drink water or sometimes because my hands ache,

Doodle - were you told to use eyes drops?

I fault the doctors who simply ask if your eyes are dry with our explaining that tearing can be an indication. Apparently we produce two kinds i tears and when the one that is supposed to keep our eyes lubricated is reduced the other over compensates.

I also never understood why they put in tear duct plugs for dry eye. It plugs the drain cuts.

LOL! It's obvious a lot of process this disease very differently from one another. I like to know what's going on rather then just so, "Oh there's something wrong, I'll take some medicine for it". Not saying that's a wrong way of looking at it, it's just not ME. I like to map out everything that's going on, catalog it, I have Excel calendars that maps my flare ups, it's the way I keep from going insane wondering.

True. I also never understood people who say they are afraid to get tested for whatever .....
I'd rather KNOW than not know and worry that I might have something. But everyone is different.

Then there's those who refuse to take medication and will try every "natural" cure. To each his own.

I did not even think twice about having dry eyes since I did tear a lot -- though I also knew that wasn't right since it seemed to be excessive and more L than R. It didn't really hit me until my eyes felt dry, and the redness is really what was the final straw that made me go to ophtho. And I didn't even tell my rheum about it - got a referral from my PCM. The other thing that can make it confusing is that you can still cry with Sjogrens, just like you can make tears, and can still have saliva. My mouth isn't dry but my throat is very dry, and I clear my throat a lot, especially towards the end of the day if I have been talking a lot. It makes that simple question about dry eyes a little more confusing for those who don't realize it's not all or none.

I was using OTC artificial tears occasionally for a few months until my ophtho eval last month. Since the ophtho got the positive Schirmer test, I am now on Restasis and erythromycin ointment (for the anti-inflammatory effect, not as an antibiotic) in addition to artificial tears. I need to do a little more for my throat dryness.

Regarding testing - I am glad to get testing....I am just a little frustrated with the lack of positive tests to help explain my joint pain.

Evoxac helps me with the constant need to clear my throat. Of course I AM NOT A DOCTOR and am NOT PRESCRIBING.....just sharing what works for me!

I have pretty bad cysts on my wrist, they keep getting larger and are twisting the anatomy of my arm. The got really bad when I was having insurance issues and went without MTX for a month.
I get colds and whatever is passed around about a week earlier than everyone else. I work in a school and have noticed this.
My need for sleep is so much greater since RA, luckily I can wake up early now but an entire week of waking up at 6am takes it toll. When my body has had enough, I can go to bed around 10 or 11pm and not feel rested till 10:30 am. I feel so guilty about this and its hard to get people to understand.

GardenCandy - I have long ago removed guilt from my vocabulary and thoughts. I sleep 10-12 hours anytime I can and do not apologize! (Of course I have the luxury of living alone with no one to apologize to!)

Are you sure what you have on your wrist is cyst and not an RA nodule??? Either way if it is interfering with function, I would ask about having it removed or incised, depending on which it is.

I clear my throat ALL THE TIME, it's now just 2nd nature but then again all this could be from being a smoker for 20yrs as well. I quit finally in 2007 thinking, "Well maybe it will go away" but the coughing is still there & of course the throat clearing as well. Back when it first started I also had this very bad sensation whenever I took the first bite of anything right after waking up of that "sour lemon" feeling as if you just bit into a lemon? Where your glands behind your jaw just go nuts? I'd have that with ANY food I ate, it since has kind of gone away but rears it's head every once in a while. My cough is typically bad when I eat anything that's crusty. Like the BEST foods are crusty, french fries, cakes, pies!!! I basiaclly won't eat anything crusty at a restaurant or dinner party just because I don't want to start hacking in front of anyone. I never would have even thought of putting 2 & 2 together with Sjorgrens & maybe it's still an allergy (what the doc's suggested) but at least it's a possibility.

Before I was diagnosed with Sjogrens i couldn't eat anything but soup, protein shakes, and ice cream. I lost 35-40 pounds and it it wasn't for the ice cream i would have lost more. Still cannot eat anything spicy.

FUNNY STORY about shoat clearing... I was standing at the cashier in a clothing store. There was a clerk with her back to me, doing some paperwork. When I cleared my throat, she turned around and gave me a dirty look as if I did it to get her attention - hmmm. It was FUNNY to me. I wanted to say: "hey lady, not, I am not being snotty, I have a frog in my throat!"

@ WG!! LOL!!!

That happens to be all the time or should I say that I'll be in a line like yourself & I'm thinking to myself, "Crap I really have to clear my throat but if I do this person's going to think I'm being impatient or what not". I've had people even turn around & say, "Oh go ahead" & I have to say, "No sorry I just have a cold & need to clear my throat".

When I first started the coughing/clearing throat back in 2003 I wasn't able to control it the way I do now so at it's worst I would throw up, I too went from 170 to 142 in about 2 months! When I finally got to a point of being able to control it a bit & go back to work & gained back about 10lbs but never fully gained all of it back, (that was a good thing! LOL). But (and this will sound gross) I remember driving home from work one day & for no particular reason started to cough a bit & threw up in my car! It wasn't even that hard of a coughing fit!

Yes to cysts. I do get colds though not as often as before RA but when I do they are bad. I require no more sleep EXCEPT for the first 36 hours following MTX injection........the fog of methotrexate.