how long for meds to work?

page35

Hi
i am going to see Rhuemy on mon, have been on hydroquine for 3 months and they may have helped a little but in that time i have had pains in places where i didnt have pain before ie wrists and jaw.
i also still take anti infams most days as i did before.
i have early RA and dont know if i should give hydro a bit longer to work or push to be put on Methotexate.
sorry ive spelt the drug names wrong hope you know what i meen.
Also rhuemy a bit useless, so not much confidence in him.
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suncatcher

I felt i was on hydroquine too long and i had pain in movement and struggled. i needed a steroid injection and they soon put me on metho.
The first year they left me alone and thats when i neeed support as i did not know when a flair was a flair or not. The hydro did not work for me.
The hydro did not need as much monitoring and i felt they should have. Its up to you how you are feeling if you are not happy speak to rhoumy. and see if you can change . The metho works for lots of people and makes a huge differance. Takes time to build in body they all do. hope u feel better soon joanne

elaine5000

Hi Page
I have been taking Hydroxychloroquine for 18 months now. Some peeps notice an improvement within a few weeks but it took 6 months for me to benefit. I have now had 12 good months with just the odd niggle.
It's worth giving it a few more months as it is one of the mildest DMARDs and needs less monitoring than many others. If you haven't done so already It's advisable to ask your GP about having your eyes checked at least every 12 months whilst on Hydroxy.
Hope you get some relief soon.
Hugs Elaine x

mistywillow

page35 wrote:

Hi
i am going to see Rhuemy on mon, have been on hydroquine for 3 months and they may have helped a little but in that time i have had pains in places where i didnt have pain before ie wrists and jaw.
i also still take anti infams most days as i did before.
i have early RA and dont know if i should give hydro a bit longer to work or push to be put on Methotexate.
sorry ive spelt the drug names wrong hope you know what i meen.
Also rhuemy a bit useless, so not much confidence in him.
Page[/quote

Hi Page
Sorry to hear that your pains havent been helped much. We are all different when it comes to how long it takes or even if we are going to respond to a drug at all. I started on hydroxy like you and was on it for about 3 months with no effect, in fact I continued to deteriorate. At my 3 month check with the rhemy, we discussed it and when I told him that I couldnt carry out the majority of daily functions he suggested methotrexate. It worked well with a combination of steroids (tablets and the odd injection into a joint) I am a little bit different from just having straight RA as I have spinal problems abd have the whole of my spine fused which causes me a lot of pain including neuropathic (nerve) pain. I had to continue taking tramadol etc for that. Trying to separate which pain belongs to which problem, I think I can say that methotrexate helped enormously and my flares only happened because the rheumy tried to lower my dose after being on it for 3 years. I deteriorated with each lowering but because I hate taking drugs I sort of struggled along as I thought maybe things would get better. I was really bad when I joined this site earlier on in the year. I went to my rhemy a couple of months ago and when he looked at my notes he said as I had deteriorated so much on the lower dose I should increase it again. So back to square one and possibly even higher, but I am feeling so much better Have even managed to go up to town this last weekend with my family. SO after my long post, I do think you should go back and discuss it with your rhemy. You have a young child too I think dont you and it must be so difficult for you.
If you dont have much confidence in your rhemy perhaps you can be referred to another one or if not try and get as much info under your belt as possible and steer your own course of treatment a bit.
Hope you start feeling better soon. Sorry for the rambling :shock:
Love Gillxx

kathbee

Hi Page

Sorry to hear you arent doing so good.

I didnt find Hydroxochloroquine did anything
for me.

I take Methotrexate along with Leflunomide so
hopefully a drug combo can be found soon for you
that will help.

Kath

page35

Thank all for your replies
i do strugle, i always ache somewhere but dont really know if this is just how RA is and i need to just learn to live with it or if with the right meds i could feel something like "normal".
my youngist child is 2yrs and i work mornings in a playgroup, which i love but am finding it incressingly differcuit.
in fact im finding most things a strugle and cos my jaw hurts even eatting isnt easy.
i feel alot stronger in mind though, was very down after being diagnosed, but thats nothing to do with meds, having you all to chat with helps me so much.
will see what rhuemy says may give in another month but dont think i can wait any longer than that.
thanks again
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page35

Joanne
i dont know when a flare is a flare i just always ache feel tired alot and some times some joints hurt more than others. and more joints keep being added to the list. is this normal for early RA?
Sorry always asking questions
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suncatcher

I get extra extra tired and achy when in flare to normal you begin to know self and you swell i know others hands go red mine dont i suppose we are all differant. I get more pain when i am in flair also and find it harder emotionaly can be more mood swingy. I know i did not like my first year I still think more support should happen in those first years. My hospital did a pationt education of just two sessions in the second year i was diagnosed met lovely people and these to sessions helped. I wanted more and to talk to others face to face in same boat. I do think counselling should be offered its very hard to take in. I hope your meds settle and you start to feel better sorry to hear you are struggling at work. joanne

mistywillow

joanneprice wrote:

I get extra extra tired and achy when in flare to normal you begin to know self and you swell i know others hands go red mine dont i suppose we are all differant. I get more pain when i am in flair also and find it harder emotionaly can be more mood swingy. I know i did not like my first year I still think more support should happen in those first years. My hospital did a pationt education of just two sessions in the second year i was diagnosed met lovely people and these to sessions helped. I wanted more and to talk to others face to face in same boat. I do think counselling should be offered its very hard to take in. I hope your meds settle and you start to feel better sorry to hear you are struggling at work. joanne

Hi
I agree with you on that Jo. The one thing I really wanted for the last few years was to talk to other people who actually had RA and were coping with its symptoms on a day to day basis. Thats why I think this site is so helpful.
Gillx

page35

Yes i agree with you both
it can be lonly as those without it just dont understand, i wouldnt have either before i got it so not blaming them.
Thanks for your help
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