Hello

Hi! I'm Deidra and I live in NC. I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 8. I'm now 30 and its been a long road. I had a total knee replacement at 19 and I'm going to need a hip pretty soon. I had my first child in May of last year and I love motherhood. The gift was unexpected but boy, has she taught me a few things about what love is and about being a grown up. When you're a sick kid you get kind of used to the fam taking care of you but the role reversal has been nice. As expected, I was in a bit of remission during the pregnancy. It even stayed away for a few months after, which was a welcome surprise because remission is an extremely unfamiliar state for me. The remission is now long gone and the arthritis came back full force just like the doctors said it would. Unfortunately, I have no health insurance and I cant take care of my illness the way I'd like. My condition is getting worse, but my baby girl keeps my spirits high. I'm excited to connect with you all and learn about your experiences. I'm especially interested in anyone who may have changed their diet to improve their health. [I type as I scarf down a heavenly slice of BBQ chicken pizza. ]

welcome. I'm new here too. Sorry to here that your getting worse . I'm in the same boat ,except I have insurance (well sort of ) . I have medi-caid and iehp. Mine is progress because I'm allegic to mtx, inflamatory meds,and prednisone. Can't take the other stuff because I got copd.

You are so lucky to have a baby your home. I miss the baby smells . (some of them that is =) ) 

You were so young to get a knee replacement and now hip problems . My knees aren't to bad but my hips ouchyyyyy. But I'm 44 . To young and having to go through the tuff stuff ,plus a new baby. yeeek  Can you get medi-caid or iEHP ? Even if for a short time it would help . 

IEHP has program s for lower income house hold .  They aren't the greatest insurance and it can take  a while to see a doctor but it's something.

Well just wanted to say howdy! And boy chicken sound good! enjoy!

Welcome Ladies!

You couldnt ask for a better group of Creaky friends than here on CreayJoints! 

Hope to be chatting with you all soon !!! 

Tess

Hi Deidra and Trippy, glad to have you here!

FWIW, 44 isn't too young to have hips replaced. I had mine done at age 37 and 40 and even then I waited too long. I'd do it again in a heartbeat - the improvement in quality of life was substantial.

Previously wrote:

welcome. I'm new here too. Sorry to here that your getting worse . I'm in the same boat ,except I have insurance (well sort of ) . I have medi-caid and iehp. Mine is progress because I'm allegic to mtx, inflamatory meds,and prednisone. Can't take the other stuff because I got copd.

You are so lucky to have a baby your home. I miss the baby smells . (some of them that is =) ) 

You were so young to get a knee replacement and now hip problems . My knees aren't to bad but my hips ouchyyyyy. But I'm 44 . To young and having to go through the tuff stuff ,plus a new baby. yeeek  Can you get medi-caid or iEHP ? Even if for a short time it would help . 

IEHP has program s for lower income house hold .  They aren't the greatest insurance and it can take  a while to see a doctor but it's something.

Well just wanted to say howdy! And boy chicken sound good! enjoy!

 

Thanks to everyone for the welcome! so sorry to hear that you're allergic to so many meds. It must be difficult for your Rheuma. to get a care plan going for you. Are you unable to take TNF-a inhibitors like Enbrel, Humira, or Remicade?

Hey,

Welcome, and FYI, I live in NC too!  I'm in the NorthEastern part.  How about you?

- Kati

Hi Kim! I saw that show last night, too.   I'd heard about it when it first aired, but hadn't seen it until now. I had to laugh at myself, waving at the screen and squealing like a teenager when I saw Seth on the screen. LOL

To answer your question, yes, and yes.   General fatigue is part of the package with autoimmune disorders, and the meds can sometimes contribute to it. There's a great article out there on the web called The Spoon Theory, have you seen it? It's here: http://butyoudontlooksick.com/navigation/BYDLS-TheSpoonTheory.pdf

Some days will be better than others, but even then you might find you tend to "hit the wall" quicker than a non-creaky.

Welcome to the board!

Welcome Newbies!  It is so great to have some more peeps here.

So I haven't seen the Housewives w/ Seth yet, but I've seen the ones leading up to the charity event.  Is it me or does it seem that CJ is sparking a lot of friction.  Who knew a bunch of arthritics were so controversial?   LOL!

- Kati

I don't watch the show very often, but there is something train-wreckish about it that's hard to resist.   Just when I think these women are the shallowest females on the planet, they go and show me something that makes me come back to watch again.

Controversial? Us? [grin] Irreverent, definitely! Subversive, uh huh! Grouchy, sometimes! Okay, often!

Thanks for your reply Carolan..that article was really interesting. Hope everyone is feeling well...it finally stopped raining today after a whole week of it non-stop!