New to rheumatoid arthritis

Chris_R

Hi @Beano100

Welcome to the online community,what a lot you are going through at the moment,what with RA and the worry over money and heating bills aswell as food bills, it is hard to make ends meet for a lot of people. You are obviously apprehensive and anxious.

In some areas there are community centers that give at least one meal a day,you could maybe check that out.There are also Food banks and services like community fridges that could help with food.also Citizens advice would point you towards help aswell,they are all in the local telephone book if you find it hard to get out.

Here is a link that may be useful to you.

https://www.versusarthritis.org/

Our forums are there for you to chat to people who understand what you are going through as everyone has different forms ao arthritis they also will give advice and help.

Please keep in touch and tell us how you get on.

All the best Christine

Beano100

Hi all, I have RA, I already had arthritis in my spine, my legs but then my hands started to lock, I could not move my fingers first thing in the morning and it takes time for my legs to wake up and I now need help getting in and out of bed I've already had a double heart attack and then a stroke it just seems one thing after another I'm fear of my electricity and gas bill coming through the door my bills was £170 this time last year a month what's it going to be now I've already cut down on food I have one hot meal every 2 days I have some digestive biscuits 2 times a day the £150 we got off the government was a joke and this £400 is a joke my bills this year are 3 times of what they were last year and the energy companies are getting away with holding us to ransome Conservatives don't care all there heating bills are paid for even £300.000 for one MPs horses to be heated in the winter they don't pay gas or electricity so they just don't care I can't afford to buy new batteries for my disability scooter there £900 how the hell they came to this I will never know I have not been able to afford to charge them up since march last year so now the £900 batteries are dead it stinks

Baloo

I really like the article about emotional wellbeing. I think to be in touch with our own feelings is important as it can then become like an early warning system that conditions are becoming worse, and knowing what to do, we can near enough pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps before it gets even more worse. My first feeling after catching arthritis was I become old overnight. I regularly check now if I am not feeling at my best.

bill1965

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/54886/new-to-rheumatoid-arthritis

hi I've got osteoarthritis in knees shoulders hips I still get on with it no point worrying about it I never did its life so I just get on with it you be OK don't let it get you down always someone else in a lot worse then we are take care don't worry live each day as it comes .

Arthuritis

Hey Beano, so sorry about your situation. I haven’t any magic solutions but perhaps a couple of suggestions:

1. sign up to Trash Nothing, everything on it is freely given away, include your situation in the profile.
2. You can make requests for what you want. I’d suggest requesting flexible solar panels first, as they are light, and can charge your mobility scooter. You can string many panels together to increase the amount of electricity going to charge your scooter. You would need to watch a few YouTube videos for beginners or read up, but I assure you it’s easy to learn. I cut my electricity bill in half doing this. Also if you have dual rate electricity (day rate/night rate) use cheaper night rate for those demanding appliances eg your scooter.
3. There may be food banks near you, they are often very discreet. Do sign up to Olio, which is like trash nothing, but for food. Also community food charities/meals on wheels type things. These tend to be local area specific so you’d need to do a bit of research. (Trash Nothing & Olio are apps usable anywhere, but typically the giving occurs locally).
4. Unfortunately the problem with the money is not the amount of £ you have, but it’s reduced ability to buy you what you need. Successive governments have destroyed the value of Sterling, so having more of a currency that keeps declining only temporarily delays the problem. Nobody complains about this devaluation because most don’t understand what has gone wrong with their £, and think it’s simply because everything costs more, but it’s because the £ buys less. It is less credible and desirable as a currency, and when foreign investors see it as less desirable, its value falls.The currency of countries with strong exports and market connections, efficient government use of money and not badly in debt is highly desirable, and that currency will buy you more goods. The previous govt sold off our National gold for peanuts, then kept borrowing to prop up highly paid government non-jobs, to make it look like there was high employment, but it was hocked up to the hilt, and when it could borrow no more, left a post it for the next govt saying “the money’s run out, good luck!”. The next govt destroyed any prospects of recovery by taking the UK out of the common market with our biggest trading partner, through the exit referendum and their cronies made millions selling Sterling Short, this resulted in farmers with produce rotting in the fields, small exporting businesses going bust because they can’t open up a European branch office and the customs clearance is now horrendously complex and expensive. This is of course a brief summary of why your £ does not buy what it used to be able to, why you need more of it. BTW, did you know Scotland has so much renewable electricity that they don’t know what to do with it, while England has to import electricity at a hefty price from France, because there is no big transmission grid to bring the Scottish excess production to England to lower costs. But we will have HS2, to allow people from the North to rush to the south(!). Sadly a transmission pylon has no photo op or grand opening that politicians love.

The apps above are very good as the people signed up on it are amazingly good kind and generous, so do please try. Maybe someone with a pick up truck might be able to bring you a load of solar panels, often discarded after big projects do their renewals, and end up in the council dump, but even discarded panels have over 80% capacity. They even work in winter sun! Try to learn as much as you can about solar. The sun is always there, and will never send you a bill for its services.

rebecca1001

So today I'v been officially newly diagnosed with an Auto -Immune Rheumatiod Arthritis at the hospital. A invisible chronic illness which is unfortunately not a curable disease. It's something I will have for life! It's about learning to manage my pain the best I can. As everybody knows I'v had problems with both my knees and joints and legs, it all started suddenly last year. Over the past eight months I'v had trouble walking up stairs, where my legs/ knees swell up constantly and I was unable to raise them. I'm unable to bend down on my knees or run. It has also affected other parts of my body like hands, wrists and arms. Myself and my family had a feeling it would be this but there was always that doubt it could be something different too.

Today has been a sigh of relief to hear this news officially, its been a long time waiting to see if it was anything else wrong. I have had x-rays of the chest, feet, both hands wrist and left arm. I also had a blood test done. The next stage is to put me on a new different medication called METHORTREXATE which is a potent drug, will wait for results first before they can talk to me about this. A long life drug.

Anna

Hello@RebeccaTaylor1991 and welcome to the online community,

I understand you’ve just been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis after several months of joint pain and difficulty in walking. As you say, it can sometimes be a relief to finally find out your diagnosis. Although there is no cure ( yet) for rheumatoid arthritis, there are several treatments, including the one you’ve got, methotrexate, that have made a huge difference to the lives of people with this condition, including many of our members. Everyone in this community lives with some form of arthritis and are happy to share their experiences and offer support and advice. Do have a look round - maybe tell us more about yourself in the Say Hello forum - and post any questions you may have.

Since you’re just beginning on your journey, you might like to have a look at the website below, especially for people who are newly diagnosed:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/newly-diagnosed/

Do let us know how you’re getting on,

Anna ( Mod)