Does anyone have arthritis along with Type 1? I finally was diagnosed with it after the birth of my second daughter 7 years ago. I find this to be much more of a challenge than diabetes. Living with daily pain can be very difficult at times. I feel like auto-immune girl.
Hi. I don't have type1 but do have RA and Sjogrens. My son has Type1. I assume it is RA you have? It is a huge struggle, daily pain. What are you taking for medication because there are some things out there that are amazing now. I was diagnosed 15 years ago right after college graduation. Anyway, I am happy to answer any questions you have. I am doing well right now but have spent a lot of time on my exercise, eating, and health to determine what makes me flare and what doesn't. Hope you feel well!
Thanks for your response. I have inflammatory arthritis, probable rheumatoid. I was on plaquenil with great results other than it made ½ my hair fall out and it never grew back. It also made my vision blurry and stained my skin. So, I have been off and on it over the years. I have been on methotrexate for 6 months and it is helping but I have inflammation in 2 fingers on both hands and on my met heads on my feet. I feel like a granny walking on my bones on the hard wood floor when I get up in the am. I take fish oil, flax oil and primrose oil daily. I do have much better control of my bs’s since my arthritis is under control- last year was difficult. Methotrexate has many other side effects all of which are actually less than the plaquenil was but it is a chemo med which makes me worry of my liver/kidneys. I have no side effects of diabetes which I have had for 26 years so this disease is a drag. Any ideas or thoughts are so welcome. Please share!
One of my daughters was diagnosed 2 years ago at age 5 with type 1 too. How old is your child?
Thanks!
Yep, I've got Type 1 and Adult Onset Still's Disease - which is like RA with a twist, lol.
And I'll definitely agree that sometimes the arthritis is harder to deal with that the diabetes....and as far as feeling like atuo-immune girl, I totally understand that also. LOL But I do remember, years ago, a doc telling me that once you have one auto-immune you are much more likely to get another. I'm personally hoping that 3 is my limit - Ive got psoriasis also.
Its crazy but my Dads side of the family, specifically his moms branch of the family tree, has autoimmune all throughout. We've got the T1, RA, Stills Disease, Sjogrens, Graves disease, psoriasis, and a few others. Most only have one, my great grandmother and I are the only 2 with more than one and the only diseases that repeat are the graves, arthritis and psoriasis.
My Still's treatment is currently steroids and plaquenil...I was on methotrexate but hubby and I want to start trying for a baby so I had to stop that med. I've tried all the other meds out there, Humira, Enbrel, Orencia and Remicade but had no luck and/or reactions with each.
Yes... sorry about your plaquenil issues. I did plaquenil when I was first diagnosed and had issues with it. However, there is great news. There is a new line of drugs called biologics that are an amazing advance. In fact they are using one of the drugs Remicade on initial onset of diabetes to try and stop the immune system from attacking the beta cells. If you have not been formally diagnosed I would go to a Rheumatologist and have a formal diagnosis with blood work, etc. and work with the Rheumatologist. The primary care physicians cannot prescribe or administer the new line of medications. I initially went on Enbrel (self injection) about 8 years ago and it was transforming in my life. I took 5 different medication prior and was down to Methotrexate and Enbrel and was back to my old self (or as close as I could get) exercising, playing volleyball, etc. I went on to Remicade about 6 years ago (with breaks in the middle to have children) and managed to get off everything except Remicade. I feel well, and am doing well so I would recommend you see a Rheumatologist and talk to them about these new drugs. They manage the inflammation and stop the progression of the disease so you don't end up with joint damage. To give you an idea, I was bed ridden when I was diagnosed and couldn't do anything for myself (not even dress) and now I have three active children and run around with them and have less fatigue. Many of my friends don't even know I have RA. You can and will feel better.
I charted my diet and how it made me feel and eliminated the foods that caused flares (tomatoes, egg plant, some spices) and built an exercise program into my routine to help me feel better. You can get better than you are today, I really believe it. I am happy to tell you more/talk more if you want to contact me let me know.
Oh... my son is 5 and was diagnosed 1 year 5 mos. ago. How is your daughter doing?
Hi, So nice (but not really, actually) to see another type 1 on methotrexate for RA. I've been type 1 for 29 years and just got dx with RA three weeks ago. Took my second dose of methotrexate yesterday. Been hoping to find out how others have done on the drug. So far nothing, but it's still early days. I will say that yesterday my joint pain suddenly flared and I don't know if that's coincidental or a side effect. It's been hit or miss trying to gather information which is so strange to suddenly feel like a newbie when dealing with a chronic disease. I've been comfortable (and fortunate) with my diabetes for a while now... Would love to hear more about your experience with methotrexate.
How is your RA doing? I have been on plaquenil, methotrexate and now started on Enbrel 3 weeks ago. I wish I started on it a long time ago so far it is making me feel so much better. I did find that methotrexate took about 5-6 weeks to make improvements.
I have type 1 and have osteoarthritis on my fingers and knees. It is weird at times, when my arthritis flares up, my blood sugar goes up too.
I'm not suprised by this. Any type of inflammatory disease can cause fluctuations in blood sugars when there is a flare up. I see it in my daughter as well. She has type 1 and before being diagnosed with Celiac I knew she had inflammation going on based on the difficulty of controlling her sugars. It shouldn't be that hard when you are invested in keeping your sugars tight. If it is there is usally something else going on too. As a nurse I see it all the time. If I have a flare regardless of my meds that I take on a daily basis I take some ibuprofen and it gets my sugars right back on track.
I have been type 1 for 65 years. In my late 40s I was also diagnosed with RA. That was in the mid 1980s. I saw an arthritis specialist, and he said my RA was probably due to my diabetes. Diabetics are more likely to develop RA, than non diabetics. I have never used a medication for my RA, but I do have pain and much stiffness. I am also 71 years old now, so the stiffness might be partially due to my age.
My RA diagnosis was more than 20 years ago. I wonder if an arthritis specialist would say, at the present time, that a diabetic's RA is due to their diabetes.
I've been diabetic for 35+ years and had arthritis with various degrees for the last 4 years. The stiffness and pain varies. I've found switching back and forth between different types of mouses and keyboards helps. The greatest thing I've discovered was using those grip master hand weights to exercise my fingers and build up strength. They hurt like crazy at first, but the more I use these little hand weights (available at Amazon) the better I feel overall.