
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...

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OK...I finally bit the bullet and started taking the plaquenil (the generic form) Sunday night. So far...no nausea. I have a husband who knows how to take meds. and avoid nausea, and his advice seems to be working, at least in that respect.
On the other hand, this med. seems to have taken the 'oomph' right out of me. I feel very lethargic, a bit headachey, and have slept very poorly the past two nights - very, very restless and wakeful, with intermittent weird dreams. I do not usually remember my dreams at all. My face also feels very dry and is flushed. I am just not feeling *right*, and the aches are still there.
I have heard that this drug takes anywhere from 4 - 12 weeks before there might be a noticeable improvement in inflammation. Does anyone know why that is? Also, how long does it usually take before some of these side effects subside - or will they?
Also, what are the physical ramifications if inflammation in the body goes unchecked? I am trying to get a better understanding of the disease progression. Again, I do not have an absolute diagnosis of RA - just good ol' inflammatory (or undifferentiated) arthritis. I have the high ESR and CRP, but no other positive test results at this time. What *might* happen if I just stopped taking the plaquenil and relied on some of my naturopathic rememdies that have been recommended by my naturopath? And no, she isn't recommending that I stop the plaquenil - she wants to supplement it with other things.
I don't want to feel like a fraud, since I don't really have RA - or at least my rheumy has been reluctant to diagnose me with it.
Anyhow, can anyone relate to this whole dilemma, when the patient begins second-guessing herself and what she should be doing to feel better?
Thanks for any and all advice. :-)
Jennifer
On the other hand, this med. seems to have taken the 'oomph' right out of me. I feel very lethargic, a bit headachey, and have slept very poorly the past two nights - very, very restless and wakeful, with intermittent weird dreams. I do not usually remember my dreams at all. My face also feels very dry and is flushed. I am just not feeling *right*, and the aches are still there.
I have heard that this drug takes anywhere from 4 - 12 weeks before there might be a noticeable improvement in inflammation. Does anyone know why that is? Also, how long does it usually take before some of these side effects subside - or will they?
Also, what are the physical ramifications if inflammation in the body goes unchecked? I am trying to get a better understanding of the disease progression. Again, I do not have an absolute diagnosis of RA - just good ol' inflammatory (or undifferentiated) arthritis. I have the high ESR and CRP, but no other positive test results at this time. What *might* happen if I just stopped taking the plaquenil and relied on some of my naturopathic rememdies that have been recommended by my naturopath? And no, she isn't recommending that I stop the plaquenil - she wants to supplement it with other things.
I don't want to feel like a fraud, since I don't really have RA - or at least my rheumy has been reluctant to diagnose me with it.
Anyhow, can anyone relate to this whole dilemma, when the patient begins second-guessing herself and what she should be doing to feel better?
Thanks for any and all advice. :-)
Jennifer
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I was on plaquenil and mobic for awhile - didn't help. Don't worry about second-guessing yourself - you need to get as much information as you can and quiz your doctor. If he or she is uncomfortable with that - you have the wrong doctor because you are going to be battling a very invasive disease.
If you are not aggressive in your treatment, you run the threat of joint damage. Maybe you remember the actor Coburn who in his later years had hands that looked like bent twigs - that's one possibility. In my Remicade group, there were people who had to have joint replacements and other major surgeries.
I don't want to scare you (the whole situation is scary enough) but if you have any possibility of having rheumatoid, you need to pin down your doctor. While the diagnosis may not be easy, if it is more likely than not, go to war against it. Waiting is not a good option when your joints are at risk.
All my best wishes to you; I know this is not easy in any way.
I also eat most of my foods from the anti inflamatory list and avoid inflamatory foods, take fish oil and do water therapy. Good luck!
My Rheumy prescribed Plaquenil at my last visit 6 weeks ago, he said it was to supplement the mtx. I take 400mg a day, the only side effect that I have encountered is dry eyes and tiredness.
To early yet to know if it is working, I have good and bad days. have a Rheumy appt this week, will be interesting to see the blood test results. all the best Lorri
Sorry if you've heard this all before, if nothing else it helps to remind me. ;-) So now as I step into my repeating of my doctors spiel:
Plaquenil is actually an anti malarial drug that takes several months to accumulate in your system. That is why you don't see the over night pros of it like our beloved prednisone does for us. It's also why your doctor should have also requested you get your eyes checked in about six months as it can affect the cornea and macula of the eye and not in a good way. :-(
Fortunately when you stop taking Plaquenil the effects are usually reversed for the cornea. The macula can be more serious but a trained professional can spot the issue before it causes severe and permanant damage. This type is also usually seen after long term use as in years versus weeks or months like the cornea issues.
Nightmares, headaches, emotional changes, hives, itching, diarrhea, stomach cramps, blisters, and liver problems are just to name a few the other possible side effects.
So why on earth am I still on it and would say give it more time too? Because it is one of the oldest proven drugs to help curb the course of RA. We know what the long term use of it will do to us unlike the new biologic response modifiers like Enbrel. Now they show great potential but we really haven't had enough time with and on them to know how decades of use of them act on us like we do with Plaquenil and methotrexate.
If there is any chance that what you have is RA and your liver and eyes are holding up well, keep on keep on for at least a couple of months would be my vote and the approach I am personally taking. Things may eventually at a snails pace prove beneficial to you and hopefully to me as well. ;-)
Here's to having extreme patience and good luck!
My treatment started over 6 months ago with MTX, sulfasalazine, plaquenil, and prednisone. I took those dang drugs for SIX months and they didn't do squat for me. Now obviously they do help some people, but if I had to do it over again, I wouldn't waste my time with these "more gentle" (according to my MD) treatments. After 6 months of being totally disabled, I'm losing my job, my house, my possessions---I've already lost the joints in my feet and hands, plus all my hair, and more importantly, my sanity.
Go straight for the throat of this disease with aggressive treatment if there's even a chance you have it. Of course hind sight is 20/20, but from here on out I could never tell someone to do anything other than declare full-out war with this blasted disease.
Good luck to you in the battle.
Lynne
If you are unsure about your dx, I would see another Rheumatologist and get a second opinion.
Good luck.