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Rheumatoid Arthritis
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Posted 7/27/2014 9:16 PM (GMT 0)
Hi! I am new here! I have been diagnosed with RA. I am starting methotrexate (spelling??) tonight......wish me luck! I am terrified to take it,though, with all of the side effects. Everyone seems very friendly and helpful, so I wondered if I could ask a couple questions.....does anyone else wake up with feet tingling kind of like they fell asleep? Also, I wake up with terrible lower back pain, and my neck and back hurt almost all day. The dr does not want to really look at this, saying it is a separate issue from my ra. But some of my limited research seems to say that it could be related. Any thoughts? Thanks so much and I am glad to have found this site! Traci
Posted 7/28/2014 4:29 AM (GMT 0)
You could ask your RA Doctor (provided this doctor doesn't have you on pain medications) that you would like a referral for pain management,
This will either get your doctor thinking your in real pain and thus will give you a prescription for pain medications , or you'll get a referral or he will possibly dis miss you.

However, if he/she's not willing to treat your pain then you might just want to find a better RA Doctor as to me its crazy not thinking RA can't cause pain. RA causes pain and your doctor is not listening to you, that is not what I would want in a good doctor, don't sell yourself short, this is going to be a doctor you'll need to rely on for further treatment and help, so start looking for the best RA Doctor for you.

Many well wishes...

You can read older postings on here about methotrexate ( mtx) I was really afraid of it too, but it is a good medcation if it can help. Give it a try and good luck, I wish you success with mtx...
Posted 7/30/2014 7:09 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Welcome
don't be afraid of the MTX just have a good dinner the night you take it to ward off any nausea and he probably gave you Folic acid to take on the days you don't take the methotrexate
you might notice a lot of people have degenerative disc disease or some back issues and a lot of us have been told - oh no that's not related to the RA I have learnt to accept what they say but keep looking at treatments for it.
Keep telling your Rheumy it is a problem and see if he/she refers you to a Orthopaedic person or someone
hang in there and keep bugging them don't let them avoid any questions you have
Posted 7/31/2014 12:29 PM (GMT 0)
I want to thank you both for taking the time to reply! I did start mtx (did I get that right, Chartreux? ) Sunday. I didn't feel sick until Tuesday, so maybe I just had some sort of bug or something, I don't know. I am grateful to talk to people who have been dealing with this! Hopefully after taking mtx for a week or so, the symptoms go away?
:-)
Posted 7/31/2014 1:53 PM (GMT 0)
Yes, mtx...call your doctors office usually mtx is taken once in a week, not taken daily...something sounds off. Also ask your doctor about folic acid when you call the office.
Prescription folic acid helps with side effects...also vitamin c can help.

So make the call to your doctor about 1. How often to take the mtx and 2. If you could get some folic acid as your having side effects...

Many well wishes...
Posted 8/2/2014 6:48 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, I am now taking folic acid every day. Mtx is once a week.Felt very sick two days after and just a nagging slight nausea the rest of the time, but now I have an ulcer in my mouth and yeast infection.....some headaches as well. Did you guys have this at the beginning? Just wait and things may settle down? I have a rheumy appt Tuesday.
Posted 8/17/2014 8:57 PM (GMT 0)
Hi. I just joined in. Dignosed with RA. I m very confused about this as ALL lab tests are clean. No RF nor CRP, yet doc says he diagnosed on his findings. Is this possible ?? Anyone diagnosed like that ?? I have pain on my joints not serious swelling at the moment.

Also gave me Mtx 15 mg / week, prednisone 16 mg / day and plaquenil 200 mg / day. Plus folic acid, vitC etc. Reading the side effects make me more nervous.
Posted 8/26/2014 4:30 AM (GMT 0)
Traciboone1, I too am on MTX as well as Sulfasalazine and started with just 1 folic acid a day but my doc increased me to 3 folic acids per day to help with side effects. That helped a lot too. I also found that the second day after taking the MTX dosage I was more tired. The mouth ulcers is a side effect but may get better with an increase in the folic acid, ask your doc about that. It takes a few weeks for the good effects of MTX to kick in.
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