why are some joints doing better than others

[Guest guest]

6 weeks ago I was started on methotrexate and prednisone and for the

first 2 weeks it was like a miracle. I am taking 12.5 mg of mtx and

7.5 of prednisone. After about 2 weeks pain has returned but not in

all my joints which was the case prior but my hips and back are

still very sore. Sleeping is the worst as I cannot get comfortable.

I am trying to do at least 20 minutes of walking every day as this

does help except for today when I thought I would go a little

farther and I was not sure if I would make it home due to the pain.

I do appreciate in the pain reduction in my feet and hands and my

knees. I do a lot more around the house than I have in years.

Unfortunately the prednisone is giving me elevated mood and I do

want to get off of it as soon as possible because of this. I have

bipolar and it is triggering mania. I appreciate the fact that I can

actually get on the computer and type without pain. There are many

pluses. Why does the meds effect some joints differently than others?

Janice

[Guest guest]

I think it's a combination of the effects of the medicines, the disease, and the increased work around the house you are doing. Sometimes our bodies take a while to adjust to the medicines and that could include working more on one joint than others. Also your disease might be increasing at a faster rate than your current medications can control. It usually takes quite a while to get RA to be really stable. The third thing is that as you do more work that will often cause a flare to remind you to slow down. I think since you want to get off Prednisone you are likely to need more and/or different medications. You could go up to 20 or even 25 mg of Methotrexate with your doctor's permission. It might be better to add one of the biologics but because of expense many insurance companies will not allow a biologic until less expensive medications have been tried for several months. If you increase your Methotrexate you might also need to increase your Folic Acid to keep side effects under control.

----- Original Message -----

From: Janice

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Sent: Thursday, October 27, 2005 3:09 PM

Subject: why are some joints doing better than others

6 weeks ago I was started on methotrexate and prednisone and for the first 2 weeks it was like a miracle. I am taking 12.5 mg of mtx and 7.5 of prednisone. After about 2 weeks pain has returned but not in all my joints which was the case prior but my hips and back are still very sore. Sleeping is the worst as I cannot get comfortable. I am trying to do at least 20 minutes of walking every day as this does help except for today when I thought I would go a little farther and I was not sure if I would make it home due to the pain. I do appreciate in the pain reduction in my feet and hands and my knees. I do a lot more around the house than I have in years. Unfortunately the prednisone is giving me elevated mood and I do want to get off of it as soon as possible because of this. I have bipolar and it is triggering mania. I appreciate the fact that I can actually get on the computer and type without pain. There are many pluses. Why does the meds effect some joints differently than others?Janice

[Guest guest]

When my hips and back are really sore I sleep in the recliner. I bought a new

oversized lazyboy and I can sleep in it when I can't sleep in the bed. Also I

bought one of the memory foam mattress toppers for my bed. It is 2 inches thick

(cheap at Sams club or Costco). It made a big difference in my shoulders. I am

a " side sleeper " and I would roll over on my sore shoulders in my sleep and wake

up. The mattress topper helped a lot.

>

> 6 weeks ago I was started on methotrexate and prednisone and for the

> first 2 weeks it was like a miracle. I am taking 12.5 mg of mtx and

> 7.5 of prednisone. After about 2 weeks pain has returned but not in

> all my joints which was the case prior but my hips and back are

> still very sore. Sleeping is the worst as I cannot get comfortable.

> I am trying to do at least 20 minutes of walking every day as this

> does help except for today when I thought I would go a little

> farther and I was not sure if I would make it home due to the pain.

> I do appreciate in the pain reduction in my feet and hands and my

> knees. I do a lot more around the house than I have in years.

> Unfortunately the prednisone is giving me elevated mood and I do

> want to get off of it as soon as possible because of this. I have

> bipolar and it is triggering mania. I appreciate the fact that I can

> actually get on the computer and type without pain. There are many

> pluses. Why does the meds effect some joints differently than others?

> Janice

>