Welcome Charlestonsunset,

I'm not a doctor but I've certainly learned a lot from many of the established members on here. What seems to hold steady & true. Is get a good Rheumy, diagnose early, treat aggressively, keep active/mobile if possible, don't get paranoid over internet stock photos you see out there, they're typically very old & shows what "used to happen" or "could happen" if you don't treat aggressively. Don't rely on herbal or "natural" methods solely. Get the right medications like a DMARD & or Biologic.

Thanks. That advice is really helpful. My appointment isn't until the end of September; my primary doctor is trying to refer me to somebody else hoping to get me treated sooner. I'm 33 and usually pretty active. The pain from this is slowing me down a lot though. I work in a factory, and I think that might be aggravating the symptoms a little at this stage. My coworkers are the ones making me paranoid telling me how other people that have worked there have ended up on disability from RA and one guy told me his grandmother died from it. I don't think they are intending to make me panic, but when I start to deal with this better there wiil be revenge. I'm thinking plastic mice would get a lot of them back for freaking me out. (btw pain makes me a little mean, any advice on pain management without meds?)

I've found that there is a great deal of ignorance about RA. I know I didn't understand it before I got it. Now when I tell others that I have it, they tell me stupid stories. Some of them would be scary if I didn't know how off track they are.

My primary gave me prednizone to reduce the swelling until I seen the Rhuem. That helped a lot with the pain.

I would still go with the plastic mice.

Welcome to the group.
There is a huge range of symptoms and severities, so try to stay grounded when you hear or read something about RA.
Other than what has been said....keep a journal or diary of your symptoms, like which joints bother you (pain, swelling, redness) each day. There are apps for this too. Include how many minutes or hours you are having joint stiffness in the am. Keep track of general fatigue or fever, rashes, etc. Write down your questions so you don't forget them. Read up on some of the medications -- like DMARDS and biologics. Pin down your rheum about what to expect with meds, how long you should expect to wait for results, and what you are going to do if you do not have improvement in that time. If you can bring a family member or friend with you to help keep you on track and to learn about the disease. It is helpful to have the support.

Staying as active as possible, with care of not overdoing it with your affected joints. You may need to find some alternatives or ways to help do typical daily tasks.

Ask questions here when you need, or just come to vent.

Thanks everybody for the advice. My primary doctor called wanting me in the morning for more lab work. She is trying to get me in with a different doctor for a sooner appointment but he is wanting more tests. I'm still learning about RA but I've already been dealing with the symptoms for almost a year now. I didn't think to mention it to my doctor because I thought it was just normal wear and tear on my body from my job since everybody else was complainig about being achy too. My doctor discovered this when I got sick and wasn't getting any better. I might be past the early trearment stage now.

I too work in a factory. It can be rough..trust me. I was diagnosed in October 2016. Im slowly finding stuff out too. I soak in epson salt like every other day. Helps a little. Take the medication and it helped me a whole lot. Like overnight it seemed like. Stay positive. I struggled with it for a while and still struggle..it sucks. But try your best to stay positive and surround yourself with the ones who love you.

I too work in a factory. It can be rough..trust me. I was diagnosed in October 2016. Im slowly finding stuff out too. I soak in epson salt like every other day. Helps a little. Take the medication and it helped me a whole lot. Like overnight it seemed like. Stay positive. I struggled with it for a while and still struggle..it sucks. But try your best to stay positive and surround yourself with the ones who love you.

Number one: call the RA's office every single morning when they open and if there's been a cancellation then you'll get to GO!

Numerous Numbers: To possibly help you now and later, Frankincense works well for me as a topical to reduce swelling and "catching" in affected joints, you can get it at most health food store, about $22-$30 a bottle. Yes, that Frankincense that was one of the gifts to the Christ child from the Maji. Just need a drop or two rubbed in. It smells a little odd but it works and you can use it at work which you can't do with epson. Did you know that if you sprinkle some epson salt on tomatoes it'll force them to bloom and bear? SPEAKING OF TOMATO, and white potato and red (paprika from red pepper) and green pepper and cranberry and pimento, eggplant, peaches, these are in a classification called nightshades. Google "Nightshades + RA" and learn. Don't believe me then google "Tom Brady's diet" and read why he avoids these along with other things that cause inflammation. This diet change has helped me tremendously before the meds were started as well as now.

brittnee is very correct, stay positive. It'll take work to maintain the most important real estate in the world, the six inches between your ears. RA will cause you anxiety. The meds you'll eventually take may heighten the anxiety. A drop of Frankincense rubbed into the skin at the very base of your skull where the spine enters helps to level the anxiety.

You newbies will be fine. Hang in there, call the RA every morning so you get in earlier than scheduled.

I just started the RA diet. No night shade veggies, sugar, processed, very few spices, etc. I am using a book "The Healthy Kitchen", written by an RA patient. I'll look up Tom Bradys diet. I would cross my fingers, but that hurts too much

Right now I'm using Icy Hot which seems to work preety good. I'm still trying to figure out which foods are causing me the worst problems after eating them. Pizzas off my diet now, which sucks.
My doctor is still trying to get me in with a different Rheumatalogist for a sooner appointment. I live in a rural area so I'm limited on specialists within driving distance.
Thankfully, when I spoke with my boss he told me whenever I get an appointment, if it's at a time where I'll miss work, I can work an altered schedule so I don't get penalized for missing any work.

I think it's a lot like the horror stories about labor and delivery that some women feel compelled to share with pregnant women. It makes no sense, but it's somehow wired into people's brains to be like that. I guess they get something out of it. I think it's a control thing, in a way. Some part of their reptilian brain is thinking oh, I can make this person afraid.

here's something to consider: what makes the evening news? It's the building on fire, not the hundreds of thousands that aren't. Or, to make the analogy a little better, it's not the ones where a tiny fire started and was immediately put out. Or where something was fixed just before a fire broke out. You just don't see headlines that say "Local Man, 43, Repairs Faulty Outlet Days Before Fire Breaks Out!"

The fear mongerer types only cling to, and perpetuate, the scary stories. Not the boring ones.

My point is that there's a ton of people who have RA, find a med fairly quickly, and go on about their daily lives. They tend to not get a lot of attention. (They also tend to not hang out on support groups online, so remember that the stories here, while honest and heartfelt, are not representative of the entire RA community).

Here's hoping that your RA journey is a boring one that will never, ever be used to scare someone else! But no matter what, you've got to do what pregnant women do: assess the situation; if it's dear batty old Auntie Mildred, you just smile and change the subject, but if it's the Snark Queen Control Freak in the next cubicle, arch one eyebrow and say "now, why would you feel that you need to tell me that?" or something equally withering. Well, maybe that's not very withering. i've never been good at withering, but I keep trying. If they're genuinely good people, perhaps you can just say hey, this isn't helping me right now, I am asking you to not dump these horror stories on me.

People are so weird, aren't they? But most of them mean well.

don't talk about it with co-workers. i agree with katie - the when I was pregnant I did this crap... it manifests itself when folks broad brush. your case will be unique to you and maybe it will be mild and easily treatable. maybe it won't and you'll end up taking a lot of twists and turns. undeducated masses are just going to make you miserable and for that matter so will the educated masses that do not know your case in particular. wait and see. talk to your best in person live friend. if workers persist, turn the light on them. ask them what their adjusted gross income was on their tax return this year (laughing) or when they last got it on (laughing again).

depot

I agree. Don't hang out with the cow-orkers. Stay engaged, learn everything you can., see the RD with questions and make him/her answer them, and if you don't understand, the answer or the spiel, ask more questions. If you don't know this already, doctors tend to me dismissive of women, so take an interested male with you to appointments. Get him to take notes.

Wait just a minute. Did I read it, or am I assuming you're a woman? I mean no offense.

Also, I want to add that I've tried the "no nightshades" diet, and it didn't work for me. I only know of one person for whom it's worked, and you've already heard from him. xjennyx, what's "the" RA diet. I firmly believe in a good diet (Medieterranean-like, low inflammatory), combined with exercise, and there are any number of ways to eat that will help, in general.

Just sayin'. Welcome.

Sorry to here you have been told you have RA. I have to agree with everyone. Early treatment and aggressive treatment. I have been dealing with RA for 4 yrs and some on here for alot longer. Get a good Dr. One who listens to you. My first one said I had corpal tunnel and just squeezed my fingers and never looked at the blood work my family Dr faxed over. Dropped him real quick. Don't hold back on what you fell either let the Dr know.
I will say this isn't something I would wish on my worst enemy. I drive school bus and have had to miss work fro. It. Thankfully I have a boss who is understanding. I don't think I will be able to do it much more and will probably have to go on disability, but I will try for as long as I can.
Praying for you.