RA newbie

May 30, 2009

Hello All...I am a 24 year old female from Wisconsin who recently found out I

have RA. My grandmother and her father both had it as well. I also have been a

light smoker for the past 8 years which may have contributed. I am new to all of

this and would greatly appreciate any resources/info anyone can share with me on

living with RA. I have not started any meds at this point and would like to hear

what others have tried. Also, wondering how others experience pain-it seems so

spontaneous. I wake up EVERY morning stiff as a board all over-usually takes a

few hours for that to subside. I also get random sharp/limiting pain in joints

to the point where I just can't move the joint at all and even if I am not

moving the joint the pain radiates and the area gets warm-is this normal? Some

days I am " okay " and others I can barely move....

--

May 31, 2009

I hate to hear about this when people are so young, I as diagnosed last year

when I was fifty-six. So dealing with it at your age is a full plate. The first

thing to do is find a good Rheumatologist and you'll find they will recommend a

complete treatment plan. That could be anything from very light meds to a very

aggressive treatment. Generally at your age they might approach your condition

with the idea of getting it into remission. It all depends in what your health

care provider thinks. The three things I have found most helpful is:

1. Range of motion exercise. Keep yourself as flexible as possible.

2. Fish Oil. Found at any drug store, I had amazing relief in my wrists and

joints from taking this twice a day.

3. Glucosamine (1500 mg) is long term but it does have a beneficial effect if

you keep taking it.

I use Tylenol products fore pain because I've been told everything else

interferes with the medication we take. Unless of course, you are prescribe

something else like me for when the flares are really bad. Then I learned to

keep a better schedule because you learn how to deal with your physical

abilities and your energy. The best thing about RA is that you do have your good

days, the worst (for me) is how random RA can be on daily basis, one day you

have a left hand and the next you don't. I hate the not knowing how you're gonna

be during the week. And last, try not to dwell on it all the time, go to a

movie, do thing to take your mind off of it. This group is a great place to do

that too, Welcome.

Stan,

Seattle, Sun!