Living With Rheumatoid Arthritis

It is official...I have Rheumatoid Arthritis which is a lifelong disease. The good news is that my doctor has assured me that we caught it early and I won't end up looking like this...

I like my doctor and he is conveniently located within 20 miles of home and 40 of work, but when I went to visit him the other day his office had switched from being a clinic to an extension of the hospital.  This means that all my visits would be out of pocket until I reached my $1,500 deductible.  I just can't afford that.  I will be having blood work and appointments every 2 months (around $200 each time) and yearly x-rays.  I will probably get close, but never reach my deductible.  With a chronic disease, I just can't afford to do that.

Now I have to try to find a new clinic doctor. Preferably one  that does x-rays and blood work in-house.  Visiting a specialist at a clinic only costs me a $35 co-pay no matter if they are doing blood work or x-rays.  That I can afford.  Without changing doctors, I might as well not even have insurance because it won't even kick in to help pay for anything.  So now I will have to try to get a referral to a new doctor that will most likely be located over 100 miles away because that is were the nearest facilities are located that my insurance approves of...

Here's hoping that I can find the right doctor.  That is my big prayer now.  I am currently on RA drugs (methotrexate) and I am waiting to see if they will work for me. Apparently they work in 2/3 of the cases.  I have to get blood work done on a regular basis because they can damage your liver. There are just so many considerations with a chronic disease.


UPDATE: I did find a new doctor that was within my "network". Unfortunately, he is located 100 miles away, but fortunately, he is awesome (think Mr. Rogers). He has put me on new meds that work for me, and I am not required to have yearly x-rays either. I am now "living with RA", but I am living a life that, for the most part, is completely normal! And I thank the good LORD for this!

The Reason Is...

Sorry I haven't been blogging lately. I have been having trouble doing just about anything I don't have to because of my joint pain. By the time I get home, I'm wiped. This last week has been the worst yet and I just couldn't get myself motivated to write a post. Unfortunately the pain affects my mood and I've been a little depressed lately. A person can only take so much constant pain without starting to get down about it. Thankfully, I finally get to see a specialist on Thursday, so I'm hoping to find out something soon.

UPDATE: I have since been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. This has actually been a blessing because I no longer feel crazy. I used to feel as if I had all these aches and pains that weren't connected. Now I know that all those aches and pains were due to RA. It is unfortunate to be diagnosed with a lifelong disease, but I'm glad that it was diagnosed and that I have good medication to cope with it. HUMIRA has changed my life!

Behind Again...

I'm really getting behind on my blogging. I just haven't felt like taking the time. I've been super busy at work trying to get papers graded and lessons planned, so I've been staying late most days. Then there is the joint pain...

I went to the doctor last week, then had my blood drawn. Found out that I do have elevated levels of inflammation.  The ortho doctor (hand specialist) that I saw said that there was something big picture going on...something rheumatic. She said if I hadn't already had labs ordered, she would have ordered it for me. That tells me that it is definitely rheumatic and not bone related. I have an appointment with a rheumatologist at the end of the month.

I'm hoping to get a diagnosis soon, but I've heard a lot of horror stories about it taking years for some people to get a diagnosis. I'm praying that I'm one of the lucky ones.

Yesterday was a really bad pain day. I almost stayed home from work, but I had too much grading to do and all the papers were at the school. I would have had to drive in to work to get them anyway.

Here's hoping to find relief soon. I will try to do better with the blogging!