It's been a while since I've updated and that's because...frankly....I feel like CRAP. I guess the medication doesn't agree with me very well. I feel nauseous a lot of the time and have a lot of stomach pain. I've been extremely tired-to the point it's hard to function-and that's no fun. Also...the pain has been very bad. Most days it's around a 7, but I have had several days of 9-10 pain levels. The pain is still in my arms and legs, but the worst in my foot and now my knees are really starting to hurt.
I have an appointment to see my GP next week about the h. pylori infection, but other than that I am just waiting for the Plaquenil to start working.
PLEASE let it start working soon. I am barely functioning right now. I'm missing out on life and I hate it. I can't go on like this. I'm so miserable.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Houston We Have A.....
DIAGNOSIS!!!!
I got in to see my rheumy this morning because my pain the past two days has been HORRIBLE and they didn't want me to have to wait until the 19th. He has diagnosed me as having Undifferentiated Spondyloarthropathy. I can barely pronounce it, but it's what my doctor thinks I have. I will from here on out refer to it as USpA. You can read about it here, but basically I get the impression that it's a seronegative (meaning I don't have the positive rheumatoid factor in my blood tests) rheumatoid variant arthritis. It is chronic, but seems to be fairly easy to treat.
I'm now going to be taking a drug called Plaquenil twice a day. It's a slow-acting drug, but it's the "least toxic" of the drugs we can try, so we'll start with it. I might not see results for 2-6 months. (ugh)
He saw a lot of inflammation in my scans and I also have osteopenia (so I will be taking Caltrate). I have a vitamin D deficiency so I'll be taking lots of vitamin D for a while. I will continue to take the Lyrica three times a day, Arthrotec twice a day, as well as that stomach medicine that I can't ever recall the name of. Oh...I also have an h. pylori infection that I have to go see my GP to get taken care of.
LOVELY, eh? Should be a fun journey.
But at least I have an answer. And a plan. And I'm going to take a nap now.
Thank you for all the support. It means the world to me!!
I got in to see my rheumy this morning because my pain the past two days has been HORRIBLE and they didn't want me to have to wait until the 19th. He has diagnosed me as having Undifferentiated Spondyloarthropathy. I can barely pronounce it, but it's what my doctor thinks I have. I will from here on out refer to it as USpA. You can read about it here, but basically I get the impression that it's a seronegative (meaning I don't have the positive rheumatoid factor in my blood tests) rheumatoid variant arthritis. It is chronic, but seems to be fairly easy to treat.
I'm now going to be taking a drug called Plaquenil twice a day. It's a slow-acting drug, but it's the "least toxic" of the drugs we can try, so we'll start with it. I might not see results for 2-6 months. (ugh)
He saw a lot of inflammation in my scans and I also have osteopenia (so I will be taking Caltrate). I have a vitamin D deficiency so I'll be taking lots of vitamin D for a while. I will continue to take the Lyrica three times a day, Arthrotec twice a day, as well as that stomach medicine that I can't ever recall the name of. Oh...I also have an h. pylori infection that I have to go see my GP to get taken care of.
LOVELY, eh? Should be a fun journey.
But at least I have an answer. And a plan. And I'm going to take a nap now.
Thank you for all the support. It means the world to me!!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Not Sure How To Manage Pain
Well.....today's pain was a 9 all day long. I've been taking all my medicine and the pain is worse than ever. I don't know how to handle it. I really don't. It's not fun.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
I think we are getting close....
to a diagnosis!
I went to my new rheumatologist yesterday morning. Wow. After he took my medical history (in which he asked more questions than most job interviews I've been on), he did a very thorough exam. Then he brought me back into his office to explain what he was thinking, give me some reading material, and let me know the plan of action. I, then, had 7 vials of blood drawn, about a zillion x-rays (on the HARDEST table in the world-ouch!), and a bone density test. Today I am going for a bone and joint scan. I feel pretty confident that my doctor will figure something out with all of these test results. I go back on the 19th and he will go over my results with me then.
For now, he is leaning toward Psoriatic Arthritis. He put me on Arthrotec 75 twice a day and also another medicine (The name escapes me right now) to help counter potential stomach issues as Arthrotec is an NSAID.
My pain in my left foot/ankle/knee was horrendous last night. It kept me up during the night for a while. Hopefully this new drug will start working soon. I'm really ready for the pain to be gone for a while.
I went to my new rheumatologist yesterday morning. Wow. After he took my medical history (in which he asked more questions than most job interviews I've been on), he did a very thorough exam. Then he brought me back into his office to explain what he was thinking, give me some reading material, and let me know the plan of action. I, then, had 7 vials of blood drawn, about a zillion x-rays (on the HARDEST table in the world-ouch!), and a bone density test. Today I am going for a bone and joint scan. I feel pretty confident that my doctor will figure something out with all of these test results. I go back on the 19th and he will go over my results with me then.
For now, he is leaning toward Psoriatic Arthritis. He put me on Arthrotec 75 twice a day and also another medicine (The name escapes me right now) to help counter potential stomach issues as Arthrotec is an NSAID.
My pain in my left foot/ankle/knee was horrendous last night. It kept me up during the night for a while. Hopefully this new drug will start working soon. I'm really ready for the pain to be gone for a while.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)