Hand flare.

[teenieturner]

I have RA and been in absolute agony for a couple of days with a flare up in my right hand.Sausage fingers as i call them excruciating throbbing pain that was hot and tingly, no grip whatsoever couldnt make a fist or straighten my fingers.Short of chopping my hand off at the wrist i was in despair after one night of no sleep i knew i needed to sleep last night and took a sleeping pill as i couldn't get comfortable and the pain was progressing up my arm to the shoulder.This morning swelling almost gone as with the oain but my fingers are numb and tingly. Has znyone else experienced this and how long till feeling comes back.

[Boxerlady]

My RA isn't under control atm and I have the swelling and stiffness every morning with some improvements through the day although never back to normal but not with pain as bad as that - poor you 😢 I also have problems with my right wrist and one evening it was more swollen than usual and my hand went numb, tingly and cold to the touch - very odd. It lasted for about a day, I think. I did post about on here and someone suggested that it might be a trapped nerve due to the swelling. That was a couple of weeks ago and it hasn't happened again.

I've got an appointment with the rheumy nurse tomorrow for a joint assessment with a view to a medication change so I'll try to remember to ask her about it.

[Hidden in reply to Boxerlady]

Make a list of things you need to say.

[Brychni in reply to Hidden]

...and then only remember them when you're on your way home! I'm sure I'm not the only one..🤣🙄

[Hidden]

My hands look like yours today . My pain isn’t bad but my hands and fingers a stiff and straightening them is slow and achy. I have been doing so well .i get tingly hands when they start to swell

[Hidden]

Yes I've had the pins and needles and nbness I think it's caused by the swelling pressing on the nerves. Great way to get swelling down is dunking hands in a washing up bowl of very cold water. Add ice if you can. Physios used to do with me when I had severe flares before the days of biologics.

Have you got night resting splints?

[Brychni in reply to Hidden]

The tingling is just like after a brush with stinging nettles. I have it in my right foot as I type.

[Hidden in reply to Brychni]

A good description. I get it a lot on the thin skin (inside) of ankles comes and goes

[teenieturner in reply to Brychni]

Exactly, thats what my fingers feel like now and still numb thank goodness the pain has gone i was in despair and have a high pain threshold too. Funny how it decides to attack different areas randomly I'm learning something new everyday. I hope your ankle gets better soon i feel your pain.x

[oldtimer]

The tingling is probably due to the swelling pressing on nerves. Avoid allowing your hands to dangle down, support them on pillows or cushions. Moving them gently and frequently helps to disperse the swelling. Wearing well fitting supports helps to keep things in a straight line and also reduce any pressure on nerves at the wrist. I use wax baths (tedious but helpful) with swollen wrists & hands. And alternate hot and cold bathing is said to reduce swelling and relieve pain, although I've never had much success with that.

As the swelling reduces, the tingling will go.

[teenieturner in reply to oldtimer]

Thankyou for the tips,i will try in the future x

[Brychni]

Poor you. I am beginning to get this but with less pain than you are experiencing. Mind you , I had something really nasty just above my right ankle last night like a cold/hot stabbing pain that woke me up.

I've just started on sulfasalazine in addition to hydroxy. but as my symptoms are getting worse I am investing in things to make me more comfortable and ice packs are on the list!

I hope you find some relief soon. There are even kind of 'stick on' cooling patches which I got from the chemist, they are single use but great for going out. I have been using them for the kids when they hurt themselves but can see they will be great for hot feet and hands.

[teenieturner in reply to Brychni]

Thats a good idea cool patches haven't seen them. I think this flare was extreme as i was puffing and panting like i was in labour to try znd get through the pain,lol. That didn't really help as the pain was continuous, in the end i took a dihyrocodene tablet just to get some sleep. I don't like taking medication at the best of times especially if it makes you feel zombified but it was a case of needs must and did help me sleep for a few hours. Wish you better soon, its always a relief to know your not alone in suffering and can come on here for a little advice.x

[medway-lady]

Yes as my RA moves about but my right hand only is affected. Usually the knuckles not so much fingers but once I did get worried and it took a lot of ice to get wedding ring off and my fingers are usually just normal size. So I think I'd ring RA nurse to see about getting some help. In my case the swelling is unpredictable it can last an hour or a week and once in my ankle it was dreadful as could not walk and had 3 emergency steroid injections to bring it down as was on holiday on a cruise ship. Mind you being waited on hand and foot was rather nice and the bags of ice were super.

[Knit12]

I have been having problems with both hands for the last few weeks. Been wearing arthritis gloves which I got from Amazon. Pain and stiffness was so bad today I emailed my rheumatologist as I am only week 7 of new treatment. Within 10 mins I had a response and within a hour I was in at rheumatology (haven’t been out since mid March) with my mask and seen. Received steroid injection So hopefully that will give me some relief till meds are fully in my system. My advice is contact your rheumatologist and not to keep suffering

[Paisley58]

I get this quite a lot, not much to be done apart from speaking to your rheumy team. I was sent to see a hand physiotherapist who gave me exercises to do in warm water, investing in a wax bath and a shot of steroids. T he hand physio said I should keep doing everything as normal, helps to build strength and keep the movement going but when I can't just rest because it will probably happen again which unfortunately it has happened quite a few times. It's a real merry go round.