Rheumatoid Arthritis?

[gcs]

Anyone have it?

Was diagnosed with RA this past summer, am 70 now, Dr put me on methotrexate but I had some issues with it and was taken off after about 8 weeks, didn't seem to help anyway.
Now he wants to infuse one of the biologicals, After reading about the side effects, some severe, and the extremely high cost, which may not be covered completely, I'm highly skeptical to say the least. When I asked if hydroxychloroquin (palenquil) wouldn't be a safer option , at least to try, was told it wasn't strong enough.
My inflammation markers are currently low and the hydroxy is well established for mild to moderate RA, I would consider mine to be moderate at best.

So my question, Has anyone have any experience with RA and the associated drugs, including the biologics,? what side effects did you experience if any?
I appreciate the broad knowledge of the group,so figured I'd ask, Thanks...

[Old No7]

I'm hoping our "resident Doc" can chime in on this...

My daughter was diagnosed with the Juvenile version of that at age 3 -- and still suffers from it 30+ years later -- she had all those drugs you mention (or didn't mention, but alluded to) and they did help her. We were concerned she would not conceive, but have been blessed with a beautiful granddaughter.

...Sorry I can't share more, as the adult vs juvenile diseases are somewhat different (so I'm told), but I'll wish you well with this prognosis.

Old No7

[GunnyMack]

Yup, wait for Doc, you can take his info to the bank!

My sister has RA, she has had it for years AND she was one of the earliest LYME cases. Long before anyone really knew much about the effects of Lyme she has been crippledvup by it. She has a new hip, needs a knee, ankle too.

[1894cfan]

A friend of mine had RA real bad and swore by MSM, he got it from the local animal feed store. He also used pot to help regulate the pain. YMMV HTH

[piller]

Plaquenil, the brand name of hydroxychloroquine, seems to help some folks. Methotrexate is rough on a lot of people.

[wvfarrier]

My ex-wife has horrific RA. She was on methotrexat and it nearly killed her. She is now on some type of Biologic that works really well but cost $21000 a month!!!

[Grizz]

i wonder about the supplement derived from newzeland muscle farms . . . i am considering that based on the sales pitch, plus it's not big pharma, it's a little sea farm . . . if i recall the name i'll post it post haste . . .

†
grizz

[Mark in MO]

My wife suffered with moderate to severe RA for over 5 years before her death. Diagnosis was difficult at first because she did not show the normal markers. Initially her doctors tried steroids, methotrexate, Humira and Lyrica. All helped to some degree. For a while she even tried CDB oil but according to her the only thing it really did was help her to sleep at night.

Eventually her rheumatologist placed her on infusions of Remicade which helped immensely with her symptoms. I’m unsure if it is considered a biological or not. It’s been several years now, but I believe she received infusions every 4-6 weeks.

The Remicade was very expensive, but we were blessed in that it was covered by my insurance. We did have to get it reauthorized by the insurance each year. Usually that just entailed a letter from her doctor.

I know some of the side effects of most of those medications can be quite severe, something we were both concerned about. That said, in my wife’s case I feel the Remicade allowed her last few years to be enjoyable, productive years without the crippling pain she’d endured previously.

[Blaine]

DMSO is pretty good for my knees and shoulders, but I just have regular arthritis. Sometimes I use the white Tiger Balm.

[Tycer]

I have e good friend with RA. His hands hurt me to look at. He says the pain is real manageable with Hydroxychloroquine. He’s a woodworker and stays busy. Hi doc wanted to put him on the other stuff so he ordered some HQ from India on IndiaMART super cheap.

[gcs]

Appreciate the responses, Thank You

[piller]

Methotrexate really should be given in a once per week dose, with a folic acid, or folate, dose on the other 6 days to prevent harm. Folic acid is the standard, but AJMD429 has posted several times about the people for whom it does not work. He has given the name of a type of folate supplement which is even better. It can be ordered online, and works for even those with methylfolate reductase enzyme deficiency. I recommend trying Plaquenil, hydroxychloroquine, first. It is less harmful, and quite often is more helpful.