Not all pain down to RA - a revelation....

[Harpey]

I've been feeling really low lately - I had steroid injections in my foot in January which meant that I've thankfully had no pain there since which was great. However, I then seem to have had really painful shoulders, elbow and hips in rotation, one after the other.

When I had an appointment with my doctor yesterday to check results from blood tests - RA and menopause - my doctor said that pains in larger joints can sometimes be caused by a hormone imbalance and are not necessarily down to RA. I 'Googled' it when I got home and came across a menopause blog which described really similar symptoms - no swelling, but debilitating pain. This was an absolute revelation and has really cheered me up - I still struggle with the idea the RA isn't going away but if even some of these pains are down to the menopause then they will potentially go away. I've started on a low dose HRT to see if this helps - may be a temporary 'happy bubble' but I'm going to make the most of it.....

[Shell1967]

Good morning I was In a similar position sometime last yr,I had no swelling but so much pain in joints,my dr first thought it could be menopausal as im the right age etc,I eventually was diagnosed with RA but he said not all your aches and pains have to be RA,so I'm hoping some of my aches and pains will go away after menopause hits,I'm peri menopausal,so fingers crossed Harpey we won't feel like this forever :))) i also have no swelling just pain,lots of love and hope you have a good day Michelle xxx

[AngelWings]

Hello. I read your post with interest. As you are right not all your aches and pains are down to RA, because I have Vitamin D & B12 (pericious aenamia) deficiency as well. Vitamin D levels are normally around 70-80 in a healthy person. Mine once it was diagnosed found to be 15 which is critically low. This was diagnosed in 2009 before my RA (diagnosed 1 Aug. 2010) was discovered and now my Vit D levels are back up to 65 which is good news for me. So please check your D & B12 levels, because these when low give you pain in your bones which are really painful. I still have B12 injections every 8 weeks and take 1000 mgs per day of Vit D. If you have low Vit D levels you will be started on a course of injections and high doses of Vit D to begin with, which will taper off to about 1000 mgs per day. Good Luck with everything.

My RA regime is Methotrexate Injections, Hydroxychloroquine, Steroids & I have just had my second Rituximab Infusion after a long time juggling different meds. Hoping this infusion is a miracle worker, as I am really tired of trying all these different medications.

[Josie2]

Harpey i cant believe im reading this as im getting my hormone levels done next week and gp said i would probably going on hrt. Im quite young (i think at 44) to be at the dreaded time of life but mum was only 39, mines been since 41 but no periods in nearly a year. Gp said hrt would help my hot flushes but never mentioned the joints.

Im now hoping the same as you and some of my pains will go with hrt.

I dont swell a great deal but my pains are mainly shoulders, knees and hips, i do get some pains in my left wrist but not as often as other joints.

Im ever so grateful that youve posted this as i can feel myself cheering up at the thought.

Please please let me know how you get on with the hrt, im actually getting excited about taking it lol.

Thanks again

Jo

Xxxx

[Harpey]

Let me know what your dr says about the joint pain and menopause and how you get on with the HRT - it will be interesting to hear another opinion.

Tx