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Posted 8/4/2008 10:36 PM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone....in need of a little support today...

I am having a flare of my arthritis. It is so severe that i can hardly lift the Gallon jug of milk to make a bottle for my daughter. My shoulders/wrists/thumb and hip joints are soooo painful. I have not been able to sleep for two nights now.  I take 5mg percs 3x a day for my foot pain, and am getting NO relief at all from the arthritis. I can't take any NSAIDS due to my ulcerative colitis, but im in so much pain right now that im seriously considering taking some over the counter Advil and paying the price later for it....

Anyone have any ideas that might help? Im DESPRATE right now!!!!

Thanks for letting me vent and cry..i really need it right now....(my husband is sick of hearing my complaints, so i try not to complain out loud much)...

Shannon

Posted 8/4/2008 10:52 PM (GMT 0)
Shannon, don't do the advil! I have the same issue with not being able to take those and it's just going to make you worse ! I am so sorry for you pain ! What has worked for you in the past when you have a flair up ? I am taking Tramadol and it is helping more that the percocete or the vicodin or anything else I have ever taken. Have you tried it ? What about deep heat? a heating pad wrapped around your hands for a bit ? My PT does that with some of his patients
Again , probably not much help to you but I do hear you and hope you get some relief !
CP
Posted 8/4/2008 10:54 PM (GMT 0)
Shannon:

I'm so sorry you are feeling so crummy! Don't take the Advil. I know right now it seems like it would solve some problems short term, but you don't want to to just trade being sick one way for being sick another way. You wouldn't be able to care for your daughter then either.

Have you already tried taking extra tylenol? You can take up to 4 grams in a day (24 hours), which is 4,000 milligrams. 5mg Percocet usually has 325 mg of tylenol, so 3 of those is less than 1000 mg. Or could you call your doctor and ask for permission to take more than your usual dose of Percocet? Perhaps your doctor would give you permission to take a little more than usual during this flare.

I wish you the best and hope you are feeling better by the time you read this. I just feel terrible for you. I know how awful it is to feel so crummy, and I can't imagine how it difficult it is to care for your family on top of that. Praying for you!

Ry
Posted 8/4/2008 11:03 PM (GMT 0)
Hey there Shannon: You havin problems ? Call Your Doc tell the what is going on---- let the professional help You. Otherwise as Ry said You'll be in more pain in another area. God bless Tom
Posted 8/4/2008 11:04 PM (GMT 0)
I am so sorry your not feeling well Shannon. I know how you are feeling right now because my right leg has decided to join in the circle of pain today. It hurts clear to my toes and makes me feel like I just cannot seem to get a grip on the pain. I agree with Ry and CP that taking the extra advil will only cause you more problems. I have gotten permission from my PCP to go ahead and take an extra percocet for the B/T pain and it seems to at least knock the wind out of my pain for a few moments enough to where I can at least rest the back until the other side decides to chime in. arrrrg there just is no happy meduim with our pain is there?

Anyway....I hope you feel better soon. Your friend in pain

Scarred
Posted 8/4/2008 11:37 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks so much everyone! I would love to call my doctor, but when i was at my last appt. reported taht my meds were not helping me the way they used to and he was not open at all to upping the perc. He was down right aganist it stating that if i take more is when i might get into more medical problems as a result of taking more pain meds...So, after just having that conversation w/ him, i would honestly be afraid to call them about this (he has never treated me for my arthritis, and i think probally is not even aware of it). It's a sad day when i am afraid to call a doctor for fear of being labeled a "seeker"!!!!

I took a hot bath and am feeling slightly better, and i think i will try tomarrow to get in w/ my rhumatologist and have him send notes to my PM doc.

Thanks for letting me cry....u guys are so great!
Posted 8/4/2008 11:40 PM (GMT 0)
Shannon,

So sorry to hear of your pain. I will pray for you for sure. It is tough to cope especially with a little one in tow. I have my granddaughter and somedays I can barely get through the day. Today was one of those days, so I am there with you sister.

The extra tylenol and percocet sounded like good suggestions to me too. For me, I don't know if I have arthritis along with my fibro, but I have terrible pain in my feet. It feels like the joints are what is in pain. Anyway, the doc prescribed lyrica for me and it has been a wonderful drug for me. Just thought I'd throw that in there.

Honey, you are in my thoughts and I will pray for you right now.

God bless you.

Lindaloo
Posted 8/5/2008 12:49 AM (GMT 0)
Shannon:

You are so right. It is just sad that we have to be afraid to tell our doctors we want to have less pain! Something most people in the world take for granted and we are made to feel like deviants for wanting it. Just wrong. I think we've all gotten to the point where we have given up on the idea of living without pain all together, but at the very least we should be able to have our pain controlled to the point where we are able to function and live our lives. Is there a medical problem with your UC that your doctor is concerned about with taking more than the 3x/day on your pain meds? It just seems like they should be able to find a better dose or even a different medication for you then.

I hope you are able to get a better response from your rheumy tomorrow and that your PM will listen to his advice and make some changes to help you out. One thought I had...I know you cannot take ibuprofen because of your UC, but there is a new "patch" version of ibuprofen called the "Flector" patch available now, and I am wondering if that would be something you'd be allowed to use? It delivers the med subcutaneously and thereby bypasses your digestive system, plus it takes a smaller dose I think... I wonder if that is something that would be safe for you. I just thought I'd mention it so you could ask your doctor if you think it would help.

Keep us posted.
Ry
Posted 8/5/2008 1:21 AM (GMT 0)
Hi, Shannon,
I, too, am sorry you're having a pain flare. I think you've got a lot of good advice, especially Ry's suggestion about the extra tylenol. It wouldn't hurt to see if it helps. My cousin is a pharmacist and she's suggested to me that when I only take one percocet (although I usually need two) to take an extra tylenol and see if that covers the pain. Sometimes it does. She also likes the tylenol that's made especially for arthritis. She takes that herself. I prefer the fast acting capsules.

And another suggestion - maybe lifting one gallon jugs is too much, especially if the arthritis is in your upper extremities, I've had to buy the smaller sizes of a lot of things for several years because of that and my spine issues. I know it's cheaper - maybe someone could pour it into smaller containers for you to lift.

I hope the aches ease a bit tonight.

PaLady
Posted 8/5/2008 3:51 AM (GMT 0)
Shannon,
Maybe your rheumatologist & PM need to get together? I know that's easier said that done -- especially on the PM side.
My PM says he prefers phone calls, but really he'd rather have a report. I had to do that with him & my neuro. I finally got a copy of some of my reports from my neuro & brought them with to my appointment with my PM. Since then things seem to be going a little smoother. Everybody's on the same page & my PM now understands why the pain meds he was giving me before we're cutting it. Best of luck to you with your rh. appointment. Hopefully s/he can suggest something. :)
Posted 8/5/2008 12:16 PM (GMT 0)
Good morning everyone....thanks again for all of your help/support!

Today i seem to be feeling just a touch better. I am impatiently awating 9am to call the rhumy's office (let's pray i can get in). Today, my fingers are so swollen that i had to use soap to get my wedding ring off as it was feeling way to tight. I broke down and took a somenex (otc sleeping aid) so that i would actually be able to lay in bed....makes me nervous after reading everyones stories about urine tests, but at this point, im literally desprate. I did take two doses of tylanol arthritis yesterday which did NOTHING, but still got up this morning and took it again, just in case it might work toay....LOL

Had a hard time making my son's lunch this morning, but got through it.....even lifted the gallon jug of milk..lol...it so sad that at 35 im in such bad shape. I just seem to be falling apart.

anyways, thanks again everyone. typing w/ two fingers right now, as the rest of them hurt, lol, so time to sign off. S
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