In your 20's and live in Northwest ?

cathhankin

Hi guys.
Thought it would be worth posting on here to see if there is anyone in the NorthWest of England ( i'm from Wigan) and in there 20's and suffers from JRA or RA ?
Would be great to here stories fo people my age and even better if they live close by as you never know we could end up meeting up I have already successfully found a fellow sufferer in Warrington and just knowing she is there is the best ever, we have helped each other through our hip replacements and she is just the best .
If you coul share your stories that would be great x x x

Cez

Hi! I'm 27, from Liverpool and have recently been diagnosed with RA.

Initially started with pain in my left knee which then moved to my right knee, left me unable to walk properly without using Diclofenac. At which point my doctor thought i had a displaced knee cap and referred me for physio. I wasn't happy with the diagnosis and when i started getting wrist pain a few weeks later, i saw another doctor for a second opinion. He thought it was RA straight away, sent me for blood tests and a week later i had a hospital referral after i had positive rheum factor. The rheumatolagist initially thought i had inflammatory arthritis but the ultrasound revealed damage to some of the joint lining in my foot and the blood tests showed very high levels of inflammation associated with RA.

I was upset at first but diagnosis = treatment and if i can reduce the amount of pain I'm in then that can only be a good thing. After an initial steroid injection (which worked wonders) I've since started Methotrexate, Hydroxychloroquine and Folic Acid. I'm yet to see how they work out!

cathhankin

Hi!
The steroid injections do work wonders
How long have u been on the current medication ?
are u coping well with the methotrexate ? I didn't really it was a nightmare but everyone is different. Where have you been referred to ? i'm at St Helens hospital they are fantastic x x

Cez

Hi!

Tomorrow will be my fourth week of treatment and i;m very lucky that so far, i've had no side effects other than a little heartburn after my 2nd dose of meth. I think the drugs are starting to kick in as i;ve had very little joint pain this week and have stopped taking my Diclofenac, which is great. The only problem is i've had 2 colds since starting my meds but i guess it's a small rice to pay!

I've been referred to University hospital Aintree and they too have been brilliant! x

jennylynn

hi cathhankin,

sorry i'm a bit late to respond to this! i dont often check the young peoples forum cos i wonder if i am too old?! :oops:

i'm 27 and have PA (similar to RA but with the skin ailments to boot!), had it for a fair few years now. Started with a diagnosis for raynaulds in my early teens, and got my first psoriatic arthritis diagnosis when i was 17 - basically over the past ten years there arent many drugs i havent tried or injections i havent received!

I'm not based too far away from you, i actually live in chorley

Its nice (in a way) to know people are in a similar boat, and sounds like you have a very positive attitude (and its half the battle!!)

Hope to see lots of updates from you on here,


Jennyx

cathhankin

i myself know too well about all the different medications and injections out there - to the point where my rheumy sed i was out of options so i went back on the enbrel.
i'm not great at the min, wrists are sore and im just so tired . however turns out i have an infection in my mouth- which is why i have the joint pain as my immune system has woken up again to fight the infection bad times. im on anti biotics at the mo but having the tooth out on Monday.
What job do you do ? does your arthritis 'get in the way?'

Catherine x

jennylynn

Hi Catherine,

i know how you feel with the wrist pain and tiredness - i have a resting splint and a working splint for my left wrist - and its making a huge difference! feels a bit strange to sleep in to begin with but i have to admit i have alot more use of my hand if i wear the splint.
i am at uni at the moment training to be a dental therapist (funny you should mention teeth - lol) so i can do fillings and teeth cleaning etc. The course is intense, and i treat patients two days a week (they are my most tiring days) the arthritis does get me down sometimes, but i work around it as best i can. It hasnt stopped me doing my job yet (touch wood!) but i take every day as it comes.
Hows old arther treating you at the minute? does it affect your working life?

Jennyx