Guest guest Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Dear Tammi, I can tell you that all of us have felt like you do right now at one time or another with this disease. I know that doesn’t make your situation a whole lot better, but at least you aren’t alone. This is a great group to find out information about psoriatic arthritis and it’s even better as a place to go for a shoulder to cry on. Finding a good doctor is the first step to getting control of your life again. It took me about 3 years and around 5 doctors before I found one I liked and one that knew what I had and how to deal with it. I also got into pain management to control the pain. Since I went so long undiagnosed, probably in reality at least 5 years, I did major damage to some joints that are painful everyday now. I also wouldn’t have made it without pain management in my life either. So don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it. Remember that there are new drugs on the market now that really do help some people. I wasn’t too lucky with the new drugs, but a lot of people are. Even though I had two really bad reactions, I didn’t give up and finally found Arava to be my magic pill, as we call our miracle drugs here. Also new drugs and new treatments are coming out every day, so it’s probably more hopeful than it’s been in years on that front as well. In reality though, it’s not all-good news and it can and did change my life and life style very dramatically. All you can do is learn all you can about your disease, be a strong advocate for yourself with your doctors, and don’t give up the hope of feeling better one day. Sometimes I think hope is the most important of them all. Anyway, welcome to our group. If you ever want to talk personally, just email me. fran@... <mailto:fran@...> Take care and hopefully, you will not be in pain much longer. Take care, Fran in Florida What a year!!(18 months to be exact) Pain in my achilles tendon, neck, hips, knees, feet and all for no reason! so i thought!! This is very scary to me to have so much pain, I never had pain my entire life. guess I was spoiled! and now a diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis........hmmmmmm....took long enough to figure this one out. 3 Drs. later. I'm very scared! _____ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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