Not a crazy question. This is just from my experience (although i bet most of us have tried several things, most things) but I can limit swelling and pain with a strict diet that consists of no nightshades, no red meat and no processed sugar. I can get temporary relief from pain by using Frankincense or Cypress oil as a topical rub. NEITHER OF THESE DOES ANYTHING TO STOP THE DISEASE. The only thing that I've found.....and that the thousands and thousands before us who suffered and had no relief.....are the new meds, the biologics.

That's been my experience.

Private profile........hmmm......if you're on this board in order to try and gain some business this will not be pretty for you.

Hello. I am new and not sure how to set up a profile. I will work on it. I am disabled, not looking for business.

This is the eternal question from newbies to the disease. Or, people who are fed up with the side effects of the meds!

I have tried every diet, and every possible alternate cure, and nothing has helped. Even the naturalpaths I have visited have not told me to go off my meds. Which is the right thing for them to do!

I worry terribly about placebo effect. It is when people are doing something alternative, and they think they feel better. Well, they may actually feel better, but in fact, the damage and progress of the disease continues.

I've told this story so often that I should just type it up and store it, copy and paste it when the question comes up.

In the 1990's when Remicade first came out, there was a large study group at the University of Alberta. They xrayed the hands and feet of everyone in the study. Then, 1/2 the group got Remicade, and half did not (placebo group!). At the end of a year, 52% of the people in the placebo group said they had significantly improved. So they re-xrayed their hands and feet, and saw considerable deterioration of the joints in the placebo group, compared to the group that actually got this biologic. The study had to go to an ethics group, and they decided to discontinue the double blind study, including the placebo. Everyone got the biologic, and the joints of most people showed much less progression of the disease.

So, beware if you go the herbal/diet/quack nostrums route! Because just because you feel better doesn't mean the disease is under control. Controlling damage is the proper outcome for diseases, not the relative value of how you feel.

I know several people who have had success with "natural" remedies. Some very complicated, some very simple. Good luck.

i think it's a chronic disease for some a lifetime defined as a whole lot of decades. I have ended up with a lot of permutations of treatment. I figure other folks will too.

welcome!

depot

I'm off Methotrexate and Prednisone completely. Right now I'm taking eastern medicine (nature herbs). Beside that I take Vitamin C,D, MSM,Turmeric. I can feel little by little improvement every morning when I wake up which made me very happy. I don't feel pain at the joins or swelling anymore but my muscle still weak but compare to the time I on MXT and Pred, I feel 70% better. I still have another 3 months to go with this Natural Herb. Wish me luck

Thank you everyone for the replies! Those of you trying natural methods please keep us posted

DITTO - tried it ALL! Many things will EASE THE PAIN. But, nothing will stop the progression of the disease and that means nothing will stop possible crippling. Check out the link to a video where you can see what this disease did to me because I am 72 and have had it for 40 years - before there were DMRADS and biologics:

http://tinyurl.com/MirahRA-video

I so agree, WG! All these treatments might ease the pain, but make sure you are getting annual xrays of your hands and feet to see how fast the disease is progressing. They are much more objective, than how you feel, and how convinced your brain is that the RA is better.

I'm such a skeptic, for natural cures! No wonder I can't get any control with these natural "cures!" Lol

I know everyone on here says NO. - and they are right.
I have found ginger helps with aches a little. Will not prevent or "heal" the disease but it helps my pain. Worth a try. I chug ginger tea a lot. :) mmmm

You can never go wrong with a good diet and exercise. Natural foods, like ginger, turmeric, garlic, are tasty, even if they never did a thing for you. A good diet just makes sense for your health, as does exercise. With the latter, do what you can. I have WC and walker friends, but they find ways. And, seriously find ways to remove stress. Some like yoga, I prefer T'ai Chi. If you don't meditate, know how to shut out the clutter of the world, it may be the miracle you're looking for. There are lots of supplements that purportedly good for you, but understand their effects and proper dosage. Fish oil, Omega-3... I know people who pop pills like crazy, but if you regularly cook fish with olive oil, you'll get what you need. Unless you crave fast food, and eat tons of french fries and cheesburgers. You may need more then, BUT, and this is my point, do things mindfully. Seek the counsel of a "qualified" nutrition/metabolism specialist.

Robust health does not come in a single pill, or injection, or infusion. It's a commitment you make to getting the most you can out of life. This is the only life we know, the only world we know. You may believe there's more ahead, but make the most of what you can.

Amen.

ditto joline.

a low bmi, not smoking cancer sticks, clean eating and great cholesterol, great ac1, none of the amercian sad co-morbidities will end up kicking you in the teeth. find your joy. when I was vegan for six and half years I did the great food experiment and it brought me a lot of happiness. it did not vaporize the ra. but it certainly gave me a wicked low cholesterol to double when I underwent the great actemra experiment that failed. laughing.

unfortunately i was also having fantasies about salmon for dreams at night so something had to give. enter pescetarian. but it was a great long train ride. maybe there is a happiness quotient also. i think when folks are looking for natural stuff it is part of them from the inside and they have to do it. it usually shows up in other positive ways in their lives. like endless recipes that no one wants. beautiful colorful plated pictures. and empowerment. i did that initially to do something to myself that others were not prescribing to me. i don't regret it.

depot

A natural approach is excellent for dealing with the pain and with the inflammation, and keeping both of those under control is an essential part of the management of RA. To the best of my knowledge though there is no evidence that the actual disease itself, the part that's attacking your immune system, is affected by anything other than the standard meds. I am trying everything I can to manage the pain and inflammation in ways that won't have side effects, but after a lot of study and thought I've decided I'm not willing to take the risk of further irreversible loss of function in my hands. If I could see peer-reviewed, science based evidence of ANYTHING that would stop this disease without side effects you can bet I'd be on board. We each have to weigh the pros and cons of our choices.