All posts tagged: RA autoimmune disorder

The Gut RA Connection

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By now  most of us know  that our intestinal system is home to trillions of  bacteria busy doing their job populating their ecosystem in the lining of out intestines. Collectively they are called the gut microbiome or gut flora. The beneficial bacteria in the gut have names that we see on the list of ingredients in a good yogurt such as  lactobacillus acidophilus. These bacteria help maintain a consistent environment, protect the body from foreign invaders, communicate with the immune system and the brain. The gut microbiome is complex and gut imbalances have been implicated in the development of RA as in other inflammatory diseases.  “Larger-than-normal populations of  specific gut bacteria may trigger the development of diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and possibly fuel disease progression in people genetically predisposed to this crippling and confounding condition,” according to Mayo Clinic Researchers. An imbalance in the gut microbiome coupled with a genetic predisposition to RA may be the initiating factor in the RA disease process. There is a lot of research being done. Using probiotics  medically as …

RA Fog

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Last month I finally filled out the form for the Arthritis Foundation, made out my $20 check and mailed it in. A few days ago I received my first copy of Arthritis Today. I was surprised and impressed. It is a small magazine, not cluttered by pages of ads.  The focus of the magazine is to be helpful to those with arthritis. It is. There are interesting and helpful articles. I enjoyed the article about Clark Middleton. He was the DMV guy on the series the Blacklist. Funny character. He had juvenile idiopathic arthritis as a child. He had many joint replacements and continues today with methotrexate and a biologic. His is the story of a man who has accomplished a lot while coping with a debilitating disease. The article on Brain Fog reminded me of methotrexate fog. That was a hurdle for me as I settled into methotrexate treatment. I was a sharp business woman. I had to be in order to stay in business for over 25 years. I had always done my own …

RA and Yoga

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My first yoga experience was about 15 years ago. I belonged to Riverpoint, a sports and wellness club in Albuquerque. All classes were included in membership price. The evening I was at the club, a yoga class was just starting. I thought I would give it a try. I knew nothing about yoga. No mat and no clue. I walked into an advanced class. I was so very fortunate to have an excellent, progressive teacher. She welcomed me. I was also welcomed by her class.  I took classes with her for about four years before she headed off to Costa Rica. She believed people should start where they are at. She said yoga is not competitive with yourself or with any one else. I learned good form. I bought a yoga mat and thanks to her I still have a yoga practice. The first two years after my RA diagnosis I tried classes and just couldn’t do it. My feet and my wrists hurt too much. So I stopped. Looking back I could have done …

The Classic Symptoms Of RA

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The Classic Symptoms Of RA Symptoms may vary during a day and from day to day and from person to person. The unpredictability of symptoms makes daily activities harder to plan. The following are symptoms common to Rheumatoid Arthritis. Pain is a hallmark of rheumatoid arthritis. Pain comes in many forms in the same person. It is sharp as the edge of broken glass. It is burning. Aching. It is incapacitating and it can be unrelenting. Consuming. Sometimes it is excruciating. The middle joints of the fingers, the knuckles, wrists, the joints in the toes and the feet are affected. The shoulders, elbows, knees and ankles, and the hips become affected. The cervical spine is frequently affected. The lumbar and thoracic spines can be affected but less commonly. Pain may make it hard to get out of bed in the morning. Pain may increase as the day wears on. Pain can wake you in the middle of the night. The trouble is that the pain is not isolated to one spot. It encompasses many joints …

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Coping with the Symptoms of RA

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Beginning with the first symptoms of my rheumatoid arthritis (RA), I have lived in daily pain. It has been over four years. It has been a long time. Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease. My body is on a suicide mission to destroy the linings of  the movable joints in my body. It is a scary disease in that it is unpredictable and it is progressive. I spent the first two years with severe fatigue/malaise. And it was as bad as the pain. This malaise is caused by cytokines, products of inflammation. Cytokines circulate in my bloodstream spreading RA damage. Add that to a high level of pain and it can be overwhelming. I wake to stiff, painful joints. In the morning as I walk painfully down to the kitchen to make coffee, there are times when I have become angry and tired of it all. I start the day in pain and I end the day in pain. It is too much. My feet are becoming deformed and I find it difficult to walk …

Four years of RA

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  I was diagnosed with RA four years ago, this month. The first few years were whirlwinds as I was also diagnosed with two cancers that each involved surgery and radiation treatments.  My RA moved to the back seat then to the front and again back and forth. Now it is center stage.   In 2015, I was started on infusions of Orencia. Once I realized that the biologics only help your RA by about 50%, I settled in and appreciated that they helped that much. In July the next year, I developed a horrific flu. I haven’t had a flu for years. It was exhausting. Plus, the Orencia was not working any more. I started having bad flares. My rheumatologist stopped the Orencia. After a few weeks, I was started on infusions of Remicade, a TNF inhibitor. By the third loading dose, I was having a severe flare plus I was having a bad reaction to the Remicade. I was ill. It took two months for the Remicade to clear my system and for …

RA Journal 10-17-16

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I took the last pill in the medrol pack this morning. I am back to sleeping again. I feel better.  My feet as well as my hands remain a problem. Swelling. Stiff. Pain. But manageable. After being a recluse for a week, I made it out to Kohl’s to use my 30% coupon yesterday.  Fall clothes and a few Xmas presents. Panera’s for squash soup and salad. Michaels for a Lion’s Brand wool that is not easy to find. It is cranberry, bulky and beautiful. Home to rest. Today is another sunny day in ABQ. Still a warming fire is pleasant. Life is good. The medrol pack has saved me again. I was very ill and was getting discouraged. I don’t know how long this improvement will last but I will enjoy it while I have it. It feels like a stay of execution. I came to the conclusion a while back that my RA is progressive and that there is no cure. There is only symptom relief. For some, the biologics hold the promise of damage control. That promise at best is for 50% of …

Remicade

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My treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, RA, is moving in the opposite direction of normal. Because I was diagnosed with two cancers and rheumatoid arthritis in the same year, the wonder drug biologics were off limits for me. They presented a higher cancer risk. Eventually as my RA worsened, quality of life became a factor. Methotrexate(MTX) injections help, but not enough. I had tried the triple treatment of MTX, Plaquenil and sulfasalazine without success. Leflunomide was next, but it didn’t work either. The small molecule DMARDs were exhausted as treatments.  The biologics were next. Rituxan was considered the safest both by my rheumatologist and by my oncologist. I was infused with Rituxan. It didn’t work. Next safest was Orencia. I was infused with Orencia. It helped. It helped about 50% which was the norm for it. I received monthly infusions. But my flares became much worse at 10-11 months. Orencia was stopped. Next is Remicade. Remicade, infliximab, was approved for RA in 1999. It is a TNF inhibitor. My rheumatologist had a serious discussion with me …