Hi

stonebridge

Hey

I have struggled with back pain for as long as I can remember. Numerous doctor visits. Always been told that it'll be wear and tear and nothing they can do. Finally in June this year(I'm 33) a doctor I'd never seen before referred me to a rheumatologist who sent me for an MRi scan, turns out it is sero negative spondyloarthiritis in my spine, due to it not being caught earlier my tailbone has almost completely eroded away and 5/6 vertebrae were also heading that way.

I am in pain daily, I'm on morphine at the moment for the pain but it doesn't help, have been on injections (amgevita aka biosimilar Adalimumab) for 3 months now but so far it's not working. Fingers crossed it starts to kick in soon

Sorry for the long winded hello , nice to have somewhere to speak to people

[Deleted User]

Hello stonebridge and welcome to the Versus Arthritis online community.

How frustrating and sadly common that you didn't receive a diagnosis earlier. I think it's usual for Adalimumab to take a number of weeks to start working, but disappointing to have been on it for that length of time with no result yet. I wonder if forum members can share their experience of starting that particular treatment?

Here's a link to the page on Ankylosing Spondylitis and other types of Spondyloarthritis on Versus Arthritis, with information on self-help and daily living just in case there's anything that may be helpful or new to you:
https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/ankylosing-spondylitis/

You are sure to find people who can relate to your experience on here. Do feel free to ask questions & I hope you get some relief for your symptoms soon.

With best wishes,

Ann
Versus Arthritis Online Community Forum Moderator

dreamdaisy

Oh dear, I am so sorry that it took so long to find a doctor worth his salt, there remains a perception that arthritis is only for the old. The auto-immune kinds of inflammatory conditions are vast in number and arthritis is on that spectrum; I was born with eczema, one of those conditions, and developed asthma aged seven (another one) so the arrival of my psoriatic arthritis was no surprise. Does anyone in your family have anything auto-immune going on? These things can start out of the blue but there is also a strong genetic feature.

Pain relief is a misnomer because it does nothing more than dull the sharper edges giving minimal relief, I call them pain dullers because that is a more accurate description. The stronger the dullers the more one is removed from the pain, not vice versa. I prefer minimal relief and maximum awareness, a choice made through experience. My back is, so far, OK whch is a complete blessing. I have taken humira for over ten years and it has reduced disease activity whch, for me, is as good as it gets. I began the meds far too late with far too little to make any significant difference but I hope it will be different for you. DD