Re: Hello to Everyone...I'm a Newbie Lyn

May 12, 2006

Hi Lyn:

Welcome to the group! You will find out so much great

information here, our moderators, and a, are

the best. The people here are very supportive and

really understand what you are going through - it's

great to talk with people who really " get it " .

I was dx with RA when I was 45, 7 years ago. My

grandmother had RA, and was pretty crippled by it. I

am sorry to hear that your mother, at her later age,

has been diagnosed with it. RA knows no boundaries as

far as age - we have some members who are here through

their mothers as they are only toddlers or elementary

school age. No matter what age, RA stinks, but I

think the younger you are when diagnosed, the worse it

is, and especially when you have young children to

care for. My kids were 15 and 12 when I was

diagnosed, old enough to kind of understand what was

going on, and to help me, but still young enough to be

scared of what was going to happen to me. My husband

is very supportive too. How is the rest of your

family? Are they supportive of you and your mom?

You do have a lot of medical issues besides the RA,

and that must be so very difficult, and painful too.

Two spinal surgeries - I am so sorry to hear about

that - you certainly have enough pain on your plate,

my friend, and now RA too. What medications do you

take for the chronic pain you have had for years? I

just recently got on Ultram and it has been the first

pain med in a long time to really help. I still have

pain, it never really goes away completely, but for

the first time it is low enough that I am actually

able to be more active than I have been in a long

while. Are you on sleep meds? Ambien CR is very

helpful to me - actually get to sleep at least 8 hours

now which is great.

That is terrible that you already have destruction of

bone in your hands from RA, but hopefully with the

meds the disease process can be gotten under control,

and even stopped. What else do you take besides the

Mtx? Are you on any anti-inflammatories? I hope that

this post finds you having a better day - take care -

Kathe in CA

Kathe

" To ride a horse is to borrow freedom. "

__________________________________________________

May 13, 2006

Hi Kathe,

Thanks for your post and support! If I stop and think about my health I

get pretty depressed.....but I'm not letting it get me down except on

Saturdays. Even this Sat, it's a beautiful day outside and I'm inside

because 1. MTX is still making me a little nauseous even with taking

Phenergan... 2. the Phenergan makes me drowsy so I don't take the

chance of driving anywhere even if I felt like it..then #3. I had a

tooth pulled last Monday and the site is now infected even thought I've

taken my antibiotics like I was suppose to.

I have been on pain meds basically since my last surgery in 2001. I did

go back to work for a couple of years but by June 2003 I couldn't take

the stress that the pain and the meds were doing to me along with having

a very stressful job. I quit in June 2003 and file for disability and

was approved for LTD thru the company in 6 mos but took 1 1/2 yrs for

SSD. I've now been on SSD since Feb 2005. I've taken several different

pain meds but have been on Oxycontin since April 2003. I take

Prednisone 7.5mg a day. Folic Acid 1mg daily, Arthrotec 75/200 twice a

day and I also take generic Oxycodone 5mg 4 x day as needed for

breakthru pain. I'm not on any sleep meds but probably need to. I wake

up several times a night especially when I turn over as that is

painful.....yet if I don't turn over then I have even more pain when I

get up!!!

I know this sounds like I'm down and out and I'm really not. Saturdays

are just not fun days for me. I had a great day with one of my

granddaughters yesterday......I took her to the mall....she LOVES the

mall and is only 2 yrs old! We walked and sat and walked and sat and

had a great time. I took to the toy store obviously and out of all the

toys she could have picked...she picked a bright Pink Soccer Ball as the

give she could not live without!!! My 8 grandchildren give me reasons

to keep going and find a way to overcome the pain and degenerative

effects of my diseases.

Have a Great Day...tomorrow will be much better!

Lyn

>

> Hi Lyn:

>

> Welcome to the group! You will find out so much great

> information here, our moderators, and a, are

> the best. The people here are very supportive and

> really understand what you are going through - it's

> great to talk with people who really " get it " .

>

> I was dx with RA when I was 45, 7 years ago. My

> grandmother had RA, and was pretty crippled by it. I

> am sorry to hear that your mother, at her later age,

> has been diagnosed with it. RA knows no boundaries as

> far as age - we have some members who are here through

> their mothers as they are only toddlers or elementary

> school age. No matter what age, RA stinks, but I

> think the younger you are when diagnosed, the worse it

> is, and especially when you have young children to

> care for. My kids were 15 and 12 when I was

> diagnosed, old enough to kind of understand what was

> going on, and to help me, but still young enough to be

> scared of what was going to happen to me. My husband

> is very supportive too. How is the rest of your

> family? Are they supportive of you and your mom?

>

> You do have a lot of medical issues besides the RA,

> and that must be so very difficult, and painful too.

> Two spinal surgeries - I am so sorry to hear about

> that - you certainly have enough pain on your plate,

> my friend, and now RA too. What medications do you

> take for the chronic pain you have had for years? I

> just recently got on Ultram and it has been the first

> pain med in a long time to really help. I still have

> pain, it never really goes away completely, but for

> the first time it is low enough that I am actually

> able to be more active than I have been in a long

> while. Are you on sleep meds? Ambien CR is very

> helpful to me - actually get to sleep at least 8 hours

> now which is great.

>

> That is terrible that you already have destruction of

> bone in your hands from RA, but hopefully with the

> meds the disease process can be gotten under control,

> and even stopped. What else do you take besides the

> Mtx? Are you on any anti-inflammatories? I hope that

> this post finds you having a better day - take care -

>

> Kathe in CA

>

> Kathe

>

> " To ride a horse is to borrow freedom. "

>

> __________________________________________________

>

May 13, 2006

Sharon<ribbon54sews@...>

Hi Lyn,

I want you to know that your not alone, we all believe there's 1 more day

that the " Cure " is coming. That is what my daughters tell me. I've had a

stroke/aphasia/RA. LOL, the " cure " . Huggles, Lyn and be strong and look

into the skyblue of Tennessee.

Sharon

Lyn <skybluetn@...> wrote: