Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. The disease is also systemic in that it often also affects many extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and...
Hi everyone,
I haven't visited much and I really should because I'm sure I can benefit from the collective knowledge here. I can really use the advice of this group as I renewed my commitment to do all I can to battle my RA and improve my quality of life. RA has robbed me of too much already so I'm fighting back. More on that in another post.
I wanted to share my experience this morning with my Humira pen injection. The last couple times I took the Humira the pain was so intense that I had trouble keeping the injector up against my skin. I certainly can't risk not obtaining a full dose so after reading some suggestions online I tried a couple and I didn't even feel the injection. What worked for me this time was to 1) warm the injector with my heating pad for about a minute. I'll need to check on this to see if it is okay to do this. 2) use extra of the ethyl chloride numbing spray I obtained from my doctor. I really let it soak into my skin and numb the area real good. 3) I always inject on top of my thigh but this time I moved further away from my knee up where there is more skin and fat to grab and pinch. 4) finally, I let my 16 year old daughter give me the shot. She has been my coach since Day 1 but never actually gave me the injection. I pinched a nice fold of skin while she administered the injection. The goal was for her to leave it in place regardless of my pain level. The pain, however, never came. I literally felt nothing though I knew it went in and I know all the dose was received. Maybe I got lucky this time but I will be trying this new approach again in a couple weeks. I hope some or all of my strategy will help someone else so I'm passing it on. I'm not a doctor and I will check to see whether warming up the pen in my heating pad is safe for the medication. I'll update this post when I find out.
Greg
I haven't visited much and I really should because I'm sure I can benefit from the collective knowledge here. I can really use the advice of this group as I renewed my commitment to do all I can to battle my RA and improve my quality of life. RA has robbed me of too much already so I'm fighting back. More on that in another post.
I wanted to share my experience this morning with my Humira pen injection. The last couple times I took the Humira the pain was so intense that I had trouble keeping the injector up against my skin. I certainly can't risk not obtaining a full dose so after reading some suggestions online I tried a couple and I didn't even feel the injection. What worked for me this time was to 1) warm the injector with my heating pad for about a minute. I'll need to check on this to see if it is okay to do this. 2) use extra of the ethyl chloride numbing spray I obtained from my doctor. I really let it soak into my skin and numb the area real good. 3) I always inject on top of my thigh but this time I moved further away from my knee up where there is more skin and fat to grab and pinch. 4) finally, I let my 16 year old daughter give me the shot. She has been my coach since Day 1 but never actually gave me the injection. I pinched a nice fold of skin while she administered the injection. The goal was for her to leave it in place regardless of my pain level. The pain, however, never came. I literally felt nothing though I knew it went in and I know all the dose was received. Maybe I got lucky this time but I will be trying this new approach again in a couple weeks. I hope some or all of my strategy will help someone else so I'm passing it on. I'm not a doctor and I will check to see whether warming up the pen in my heating pad is safe for the medication. I'll update this post when I find out.
Greg
Humira is definitely starting to help. I definitely have less morning stiffness and less pain in my knees. Sadly, once I get about 10 days in the Humira seems to become much less effective. I know others experience this as well. I wish I could inject on a 10 day schedule.
i don't know what your infection background is like. my rheumatologist once spoke to me about a more frequent, than standard dosing, with humira, but it was precluded for myself, due to how many infections i regularly get. why don't you ask your rheumie at your next appointment if you have not already?
coaltrain
i am glad you have a system down :)
racerunner
I appreciate your input as a nurse.
depot
I take my shot on a Thursday - from that following Saturday through Wednesday/Thursday I do feel a difference. Then after that......
What scares me is the insurance. I just went through a nightmare when the doc's assistant ordered the syringe instead of the pen. This turned out to be a 3 week ordeal which ended up cancelling out my original pre-auth for the pen. I'm afraid to touch anything - If they request a weekly dose I am afraid I will loose my bi-weekly dose and end up with nothing.