I would not take the mtx. I would go to the appt, sit as far away as possible from everyone else. Hope you feel peachy soon.

What I've been taught is that you do not hold the dose of methotrexate unless it is a serious illness (pneumonia, etc.) Compared to other RA meds, methotrexate is actually fairly gentle on the immune system. However, every patient is different and has different accompanying conditions.

I'd say to use your own judgement. How sick do you feel? Do you have other chronic conditions that could be made worse by being sick? Are you taking prednisone? If you say you feel really crappy and answer yes to the other two questions, it might not be a bad idea to skip the methotrexate this week.

Definitely go to your appointment - just wear a mask, use hand sanitizer, and sit away from other patients if possible. We all know how hard it is to get in to see the rheumy. Again, this is general advice, and in no way meant to be concrete medical advice.

Hope you start feeling better soon!

Thanks for the replies, 2leftfeet and gdsonn2. I know it is hard to advise others over the internet, but all of this RA stuff is so new. Hearing what others have learned is helpful and definitely knocks the feeling of being overwhelmed down a few notches. Between this forum and my rheumatologist, I have learned quite a bit, but still have so much to learn. I have had to put so many calls into the doctor for side effects, questions, etc.. They don't seem to mind at all, thankfully. And I'm so glad everyone here is so helpful.

I am going to keep my appointment tomorrow. The waiting room is very large so I can sit away from others. I will take extra precautions so as not to expose others. They have masks and hand sanitizer at the door, too.

I don't feel awful, like the flu. So far, I think it's just a cold with a sore throat and congestion. The only other chronic thing I have is Hashimoto's (autoimmune thyroid). I am also on 5 mg prednisone. That's not a very high dose, so I'm not sure it will matter much.

I ordinarily don't get sick, but since starting the MTX 8 weeks ago, I have been sick often. I'm sure stress has contributed to that, too. Just a lot of adjustments to get used to, I guess.

Thanks, again :)

Since you are seeing your rheumy tomorrow, hold the MTX until you know your rheumy's stance on MTX and illness. I know mine is no MTX if you have a fever and if you feel really rotten with no fever. If in doubt, hold the MTX.

So go to the appointment and put on the face mask they provide(mine doc's office does that too and hand santizer) and start the conversation of when to take what meds and when not to.

Jen

It is a good idea to write down the questions you have, make sure your Rheumy answers them in "people talk", not medical jargon. I also jot down answers, come home and write each visit up while it's all in my head. It takes a long time to get your head around RA and we've all been where you are.

Thank you all for your helpful advice and suggestions. I decided to wait to take my MTX dose until I saw the rheumatologist yesterday (thanks for that suggestion Jen :) ).

The visit was good. The doctor said if I have a fever of 100.4F or am put on antibiotics, I should hold my MTX dose. I really liked how specific she was.

I did write down my questions, as Angel suggested, and it was much easier to just run down the list. So thanks for that tip.

Since my pain is up and my labs show inflammation is up, we decided to try the MTX injections. I am very apprehensive about shots but I am more afraid of continuing to take the pills with the stomach upset if they aren't seeming to work. I know it's only been 8 weeks but the pain goes back to the same levels prior to diagnosis, if I go below 5mg of prednisone. She checked each joint and I had pain in all except a hip, a few fingers, and a baby toe.

My husband had tagged along to my appointment for the first time. When we got to the car, after the appointment, he broke down. I was surprised and asked what was wrong. He said he didn't know that when I said I hurt all over that I really hurt throughout my body. I was sad that he hadn't understood the pain I'd been trying to explain to him for several years. It made me realize just how hard it is for others to comprehend what this disease does to a body. It also makes me realize we all need to be more compassionate towards others because we can't know definitively what they are going through.

Thanks, again, for the sound advice and suggestions. I am so very grateful for this group. It makes learning about and coping with this disease much more manageable.

Blessings,
Shar