51 and newly diagnosed

[Guest guest]

Hi -- I was recently diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis after a few

months of chronic pain. I'd had lower back paid for years and just

attributed it to lack of exercise. I became less and less active as

various joints began to ache, which I attributed to too much weight

and my age, plus lack of physical activity. I finally experienced

swelling in my fingers and hands which I thought was an allergic

reaction due to rubbing various ointments on my aching back and

joints. When it began to hurt to pick up a stapler at work or lift

more than a couple of files, etc. I began to fear that I would no

longer be able to work, but tried rest and various ointments. Rest

just seemed to increase the pain, rather than lessen it. Then my

feet and ankles started getting puffier -- since my mother

experienced congestive heart failure after suddenly gaining nearly 25

pounds of fluid, I got scared and went to the doctor. One look at my

hands and ankles and she sent me to the lab for extensive blood

tests, etc. My rheumatoid factor was up, she said so she prescribed

a packet of 4mg methylprednisolone tablets to take (6 the first day,

5 the next and so on, until I took 1 the last day) and 50 mg of Vioxx

for the pain. I took them before bedtime and felt wonderful the next

day -- the first time I'd been able to function normally in a long,

long time. My fingers continued to feel feverish and achy and I was

worried about having a relapse (just the thought of going through

that sort of pain again was so depresseing), so I went to see her

again. She referred me to a rheumatologist who sent me for more

tests and took me off Vioxx and prescribed high doses of calcium

supplements, 1MG folic acid per day, and put me on 10 mg. prednisone

per day.

My pain kept getting worse (as a result of being off Vioxx) so I took

a few that I had left and the pain was immediately reflieved. I went

back for a follow-up after 10 days and told him that he must give me

something for pain as without it I couldn't do the daily things I

need to do just to live and work. So he reduced the Vioxx to 25 mg.

and said he wants to eventually get me down to 15 mg. per day, and he

also prescribed 15 mg. of Methotrexate to take once per week. I went

back after a month and he said that my swelling hadn't gone down much

and I had gained 31 pounds since I first went to his office about 6

weeks before (I swear I wasn't eating more than enough to gain maybe

5 pounds tops). He said the large weight gain was due to the

prednisone. I asked him to take me off it because I was ballooning

up and couldn't keep gaining weight so fast -- that I felt too

bloated to do anything and was getting winded pretty easily. He

didn't like the idea, but he prescribed a large amount of 1 mg.

tablets for me to gradually reduce my dose by 1 mg. per week. I'm

now down to 5 mg. per day and the swelling in my hands and ankles is

coming back (although I'm not having pain, thank god, due to the

Vioxx).

Has anyone else experienced a flare-up when coming off prednisone?

Also, it doesn't seem to be doing much for me. I want a medication

which will slow down the advance of rheumatoid arthritis and I don't

know what role prednisone has in that. Is methotrexate supposed to

do that? My doctor explained that it helps with the autoimmune

system . . . something about how I have an overactive autoimmune

system which caused the arthritis. But what is good for the joints?

Also, I'd like to know if any of you have had good luck with high

doses of glucosamine and how much are you taking per day? Thanks!!

(Geez I am so glad I found this group...at last, someone I can whine

to when I'm in pain and everyone else thinks I'm exaggerating....)