Low mood

[Sanddancer1]

Hi I’m new here. Does anyone suffer with low mood when having a flare up or a painful day?

[Hidden]

Hi Sanddancer .

I think most people suffer a low mood when the disease is active . I do it comes and in hand flare up= low mood. It’s just another symptom this disease just keeps on giving🥺hope things improve

[springcross]

Hi Sanddancer1. I think low moods are quite common with this condition as it makes you very tired. Hope your discomfort decreases soon. x

[rab1874]

Very much so as this disease knows what buttons to push

[Shalf]

Definitely. Pain, swelling and exhaustion is nothing to feel high about. Look after number 1 , yourself! on such days. x

[patsymay13]

Yes it also makes me very grouchy with oh ...tiredness and pain is not a good combination im into my 6th week of a flare now and cant wait for my appointment with rheumatologist on 12th March, I hope you get some respite from it soon x

[Hidden]

I went on a small hike day before yesterday, and apparently am having my first flare up. ARGHH, I can barely move! My back is totally cramped up. First time this has happened to me, I usually walk every day and do other physical chores.

Does this give me a low mood? YES, I am going to have a spa morning, take a bath, then try to do yoga to get my muscles relaxed. Then read something good that's not about the virus or politics.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

My first big flare was after a lovely walk . 20 minutes from the car i ceased up my hands got so big I couldn’t hold a bottle of water to have a drink. Came from nowhere lasted 4 weeks 🥺 always that fear now if I’m on my own what would I do

[beeckey]

Yes when you are in a lot of pain for weeks and nothing seems to help you can feel very low but it will get better i hope I have been feeling like this but have given me oral steroids for 1 month so hopefully feel better soon x

[charisma]

Hi Sanddancer1

Yes, a flare or RA uncontrolled does affect me that way.

Welcome to the community. 🙂

[Jesnaskah]

Yes, i get depressed instantly.

[Vixen2]

Hi Sanddancer1. Nice name! If you’re ‘new’ to this disease then it will be a shock to the system. I was first diagnosed with r/a when i was 21. (I’m 48 now). Plus i have serious eye conditions. Now you have a rough idea of how frustrating & how emotional this disease can make you feel. Pain is exhausting. But there are worse conditions to have. I try & remind myself.

When i’m down & in pain & knackered. I simply put the kettle on, get a lovely slab of cake, plump up my pillows. (Sounds rude!) Get into bed & RELAX. Get the heatpad on if you’re in really bad pain. Get some comedy on my tablet. Or put on a good thriller. That can sort of take your mind off the pain a little bit. Just learning to spoil yourself. Learning to take it easy. You have to with this bloody condition. Don’t push yourself too much. Your body won’t let you! Listen to it. If you can manage to get into the bath DO IT. No matter what time of day. Just take your time with things & don’t be hard on yourself. I guarantee, that everyone gets low & emotional on this site. But that’s what cake & few glasses of wine are for!! Good luck & you can come on this site anytime & moan your heart out! X

[Mmrr]

Yes, all my energy and motivation seem to drain away when I have a flare.

A ' burst ball' day..... no bounce at all.

[SarahJane926]

I'm going through a flare at the moment, I can't for the life of me get my motivation back, definitely goes hand in hand

[Crystal197]

Hi Sanddancer1, yes all the time. I try to keep positive and not let the flare up or RA disease to take over. But easy said than done when in pain. Hope you feel better soon. 🤗

[auldreekie2]

it is hard to be positive sometimes when you are in pain, tired, as someone said already, we could have a worse illness and we are still here to tell the tale.

so lie back with a cuppa, cake and box set.

its my hip just now, hard to walk, or bend.

so what is the alterative ? we have to keep going and keep our chin up. spring round the corner.

[Troygirl]

Yeap! How can anyone be in a happy chipper mood when in pain? Some days are just awful!

[ryn17]

Hope you feel better soon, yes I do feel low during a flare when it's difficult for me to do ordinary things, but knowing it will pass help me stay positive and kind to myself.

[mjrminor]

Yes absolutely. Some days it can be overwhelming, especially when you're in the middle of a flare. But as others have already said, the best thing to do is take good care of yourself. I would also add it's easy to beat yourself up when you're feeling down. Some days I have to remind myself having this disease is not my fault (which sounds strange now I'm writing it down). But when you can't do everyday things or you have to miss out on fun times with family and friends, or even if it's just living from day to day with pain, it's easy to get down on yourself.

One of the best things I did after getting diagnosed with RA just over 2 years ago was to ask my GP to refer me for counselling. I got paired up with a counsellor who had suffered from ME at a young age and totally understood what it was like to live with chronic illness. It helped me to come to terms with having RA and make adjustments in my life for it. I still have down days, especially when flaring, but you just need to be kind to yourself, talk to others about how you're feeling if you can, and remember you won't feel like this every day.

[Sanddancer1]

Thanks everyone, your kind words and support have cheered me up x