update

marooned

hi to everyone hope everyone is doing ok.
clare has been to her first physio appt today, she has been struggling a bit recently. the physio has advised she can start riding but start at ten mins a day, also mucking out not to lift and ask for help, she also said that if clare was not happy taking MTX to leave it for a while and just kep taking the hydroxchlorine one. her physio is to be in the hydro pool
, so we feel a bit better now as it was and is very upsetting seeing my 23 year old daughter in such pain , but the physio as advised to be up beat and not let RA grind her doww xx

valval

hi my mum 73 and i am 48 but my mum can not stand to see me in pain try not to let her but some days things r bad and you can not hide it, i find the exhaustion and stiffness the worse to cope with . so glad she is getting such good help staying positive does help good luck hope she keeps improving but do not let her over do it

cthornley

Hi
I don't know if your daughter is interested but when I was diagnosed at 19 I went to counselling in the university counselling service - basically it was just somebody else to talk to about it all as its quite overwhelming. She is lucky that she's got you to support her (I did it on my own & with my friends) but she may sometimes feel that she is burdening you ( i felt like this with my housemates) and sometimes just talking it out with somebody else helps you get it sorted in your own head.
It is an awful lot to get used to and she may want to look into it - GP's / hospital / uni's / Samaritans possibly even Arthritis Care may be able to point you in the right direction.
I only had a few sessions but it really helped
Chrissie

dorcas

Hi marooned and Claire

I thought it was really good to read that the physio appointment went well. It is so important that Claire feels in control and able to make the decisions for herself. I'm sure with starting to ride again she will begin to realise that with the right adjustments, advice and support... doing the things she loves most are still possible.
I am so glad that you both feel a bit better about it all.

It is tough for both of you (read your other posts) and support is important for both of you! the helpline is a great resource when either of you need to talk things through......x

I know that Claire has been really reluctant to take the Mtx......I think may be we all have at one time or another....but it is a really useful drug in the fight against RA and the other inflammatories and is prescribed and monitored with care.
It is always worth thinking about speaking to the doc and rheummy (they are the ones with the med knowledge and expertise) about the pros and cons of taking it....but at the end of the day it is Claire's decision. I was just a wee bit concerned that physio was the one advising on the meds?

lots of love and (((hugs))) to both of you....

Iris x

marooned

dorcas wrote:

Hi marooned and Claire

I thought it was really good to read that the physio appointment went well. It is so important that Claire feels in control and able to make the decisions for herself. I'm sure with starting to ride again she will begin to realise that with the right adjustments, advice and support... doing the things she loves most are still possible.
I am so glad that you both feel a bit better about it all.

It is tough for both of you (read your other posts) and support is important for both of you! the helpline is a great resource when either of you need to talk things through......x

I know that Claire has been really reluctant to take the Mtx......I think may be we all have at one time or another....but it is a really useful drug in the fight against RA and the other inflammatories and is prescribed and monitored with care.
It is always worth thinking about speaking to the doc and rheummy (they are the ones with the med knowledge and expertise) about the pros and cons of taking it....but at the end of the day it is Claire's decision. I was just a wee bit concerned that physio was the one advising on the meds?

lots of love and (((hugs))) to both of you....

Iris x

THANKYOU XX

frogmorton

Hi Marrooned,

Good to hear there has been progress for Clare. You knwo - just getting with those horses will be therapy in itself. Hope she isnt tempted to overdo it though

I hope things continue to progress for her and that the hydro works.

Love

Toni xx

sherry33

Hi, I'm sure Clare will get to a stage where meds control her RA enough to get back to some type of 'normal' life! I have good days/ weeks bad days/ weeks but have got to stage where I can muck out 3-4 days a week and ride 3-4 days a week even for up to a couple of hours now but I do suffer a bit with pain and stiffness- for me in my feet and ankles. I now find I can hack out for up to two hours but can only do small amounts of schooling etc as that takes more effort and concentration!!! It's probably taken me about three years to get to this stage, I've been diagnosed about seven years now. I feel that sometimes it's worth a small amount of pain and I don't mean doing far too much and being in agony just being a bit stiff and sore for a short amount of time, just to have the enjoyment and feel like I'm almost my old self again!! I can't really muck out every day I tend to do every other day and that seems to be a good way to pace myself. There are really good supports for horse riding made by a company with initials PC, they make wrist and knee supports which eventers etc wear which may help Clare. It all depends where her RA is worst but there are lots of ways to gently get round RA!!