Hello and thank you for reading or responding. I am 59 and have been on a 2 year journey to get a diagnosis. That’s a long story but now with a move to a new city and a new rheumatologist I am told I have Sjorgrens, a strongly positive diagnosis and RA with a non typical presentation. I am negative for the CCP antibody, but yes to the other RA tests. I had very expensive tests to rule out mixed connective tissue disease and lupus. I am on plaquenil for 1 year which has helped the sjorgrens symptoms except for the joint pain. I failed methotrexate and Arava and Imuran. I’m simmering at tolerable pain with 7.5mg of prednisone and plaquenil and some occasional ibuprofen. It’s not ideal and I suffer but it’s what I have right now. My new doctor is ready to get approval for Orencia. She said the Enbrel and humira and remicade could push me into lupus. She said the sjorgrens is a sister to lupus and she’s trying to keep me from going down that path, hence the Orencia. She needed for my insurance company an ultrasound of my wrist to find some inflammation. My joint pain presentation is sternoclavicular joints, ribs and sternum, think costochondroitis that never improves. I’ve never had swelling or pain in any small joints etc. I was asked to wean off prednisone and ibuprofen for the ultrasound of my wrist yesterday, which I did. Uncertain of the results yet but need it to show some inflammation for my dear old insurance company. My question, weaning off prednisone and ibuprofen I was positively miserable, I could barely walk I was so stiff, of course my shoulders and ribs and arms were on fire but my hips and knees and legs and my calf muscles and everything! I felt like a tin man with no grease can. Is this RA pain? Generalized stiffness and pain? Oh I had no pain or stiffness in my head, my hands and my feet, the rest of me was lit up like a Christmas tree! Is this RA?? My stereotypical idea of RA does not fit with my symptoms the last few days. I’m now on a prednisone taper to get this flare under control! Any information about non typical presentation of RA and how it might look and feel would be helpful. I keep thinking I don’t have it, but it’s been confirmed and I believe it, but it’s strange to me.
Thank You!
stephanie