Hello all , need some help on how to get rid of stress

divy0159

Hello guys, I am new to this community and was seeking people for support and also I am ready to support anyone in need. I am recently diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis but was undergoing joint pains for the past 4 years. I have been pressurized by a lot of people and I am so stressed by their attitudes towards me. Whenever I am feeling stressed I got joint pains immediately and I couldn't do any of my daily activities. Can anyone suggest how can I handle this? Thanks in advance.

chrisb

Hi @divy0159,

Welcome to the versus arthritis forum.

You are recently diagnosed with RA although you have experienced joint pain for some years. You are feeling stressed which triggers joint pain. You’d like to hear from any forum members who can advise how you might better manage this situation.

The forum members are a very friendly bunch and will I’m sure be able to offer you some valuable advice. In the interim these articles may be useful:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/rheumatoid-arthritis/

This link is to an existing discussion in the forum which you may wish to join on with:

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/59981/recently-starting-this-journey

I hope you receive some input which helps with managing the stress you’re experiencing.

Best Wishes

ChrisB (Moderator)

stickywicket

Hi and welcome,

"I have been pressurized by a lot of people and I am so stressed by their attitudes towards me"

Could you explain this a bit more? Do you mean they are pressurising you about your RA? If you mean consultants etc then I'd listen. If you mean ordinary people who all know someone who was 'cured' by some snake oil product, then just ignore.

For stress, in general, try not to think about what's stressing you and find and concentrate on other things, preferably whatever you enjoy. This varies enormously with all of us but is very effective.

divy0159

Hi,

Thanks for replying to me. I have come to the UK to pursue my higher studies, and the people I mentioned were once friends with me. I told them that I have some problems related to my health, at that time I don't know that im fighting with RA. They usually give me more works to do. They wanted me to do what they wish. Sometimes I have been ill-treated by them. I was sad and upset because of their behavior towards me. The day I broke down so much, I wasn't able to get up from my bed. I felt both my hands and legs will not work forever. So I took some heavy dosage painkillers which will make me drowsy for 2 days. But even though I took it I was not able to sleep because of the pain. Usually, the frequency of the pain will be 6 months once or 3 months once but after coming here I got the pain every week. All these weeks were hell for me. I had only one loyal friend to support me in all ways. He used to carry me to the restroom, prepare me food and feed me. Till now my other friends are showing their faces to me even though they know that I will become ill if I am stressed. From my month I consulted a rheumatologist in India and he provided me with some steroids and methotrexate and folic acid. I was fine till last week but my GP here in the UK asked me to stop the steroids which will become another problem for me. Now again the pain is starting because 2 days back I had the worst day because of my friends here. I believe if I am able to handle the stress I wouldn't get joint pain instantly, that is why I posted here.

stickywicket

There's no doubt that stress makes pain worse and I'm sure you're under a lot of stress. These people don't sound like friends to me. What sort of work do they give you?

You write about your GP but don't mention a UK rheumatologist. There's no way of dealing with RA with disease modifying drugs such as methotrexate and only your rheumatologist can prescribe them. Not your GP. It's a bad idea to become reliant on steroids as, long term, they can do harm. It's even worse to rely on strong pain relief as, unless taken as prescribed, they can do harm in the short term.

If you have a rheumatologist in the UK then I suggest you ring your rheumatology helpline. They can check your blood tests and see if your medication needs altering. If you don't have a rheumatologist here, then do ask your GP to refer you. Maybe also ask for a physiotherapist who could give you some gentle range of movement exercises.

Sometimes, with RA, we just have to sit out the bad times and wait for the better days to come. It can be very frustrating and painful but, with help, things will improve.

If you think it would help you could always ring the Versus Arthritis helpline. And do read the link that Moderator @chrisb has given you as it's very informative. I do hope you feel better soon.

divy0159

@stickywicket Thanks. I'm doing fine now, I have stopped steroids and continuing with Methotrexate. Right now I came away from the ones who were friends before, still facing some troubles with them but yeah I'm trying to manage. I am just eager to know at what stage of Rheumatoid Arthritis the bones start getting deformed and how I check whether my bones are getting deformed. I'm confused little bit because my fingers have some signs and I don't know whom to ask about this because my appointment with GP is on October of 2023