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Date: 09.03.2011
From: poppy

Subject: medication for RA

since diagnosis 4 yrs ago with lowgrade RA, I have used the Margaret Hills treatment.I see my consultant regularly,& he has been ok with me doing this.I take paracetamol mostly,with symptoms in my hands & sometimes my feet. The degree of symptoms vary from day to day. I have a 5 yr old & wld like to do some work. Will I get any DLA & I am worried about taking sulphalazine
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Date: 09.03.2011
From: davina

Subject: Re: medication for RA

hi poppy dla is very hard to get, i made a claim that was rejected and then i asked for them to look at it again which they did and i got it but i am on crutches and have lots of pain and stiffness and can't get in/out of bath. i was given sulpheralazine which didn't agree with me so i had to stop it but lots of people get on well with it
good luck
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Date: 09.03.2011
From: Maz

Subject: Re: medication for RA

Hi Poppy,

It must be the pits to be dx with RA when you are so young & worrying when you are being told you need to go onto long term medication, but think of it like if you had diabetes or high blood pressure or needed heart medications, people with these problems all need to take long term medication. We are no different.

However there is no reason for you to think that you can't work, being active & around other people could actually be the best thing for you.

As for sulfasalazine I am sorry I can't help you with that, it's not a drug that is commonly used over here to treat RA & personally I am (1) allergic to sulphur & (2) not in favour of using the traditional meds generally offered.

I am sure that others will step in here & give you their thoughts on sulfasalazine & the other traditional meds used to treat RA.
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Date: 10.03.2011
From: Paula

Subject: Re: medication for RA

Hello Poppy

I can't help with getting DLA but from what I have read you now have to be a deaths door before you get it, probably because it's been so abused in the past. When I was first diagnosed with RA two people who knew alot about benefits, told me it was the easy benefit to get, all you had to do was fill in a form, sadly that is not what happens in most a cases now.

I am a member of a Facebook group for RA and someone's asked about Margaret Hill treatment, sadly all of the replies are the same, it doesn't work and cost them alot of money. You will find lots of things claiming to cure RA, I've just seen on another forum Chinese Plasters......you can be cured just by putting a plaster on.....I think not. If all of these wonder cures work I'm sure that by now the NHS would be using these and not spending lots of money on us with drugs, specialist nurses, pysios, OT's, orthotics, blood monitoring etc etc.

About sulphazine, I've been on it for nearly three years now and I have had no side effects at all, not even the most common one.......orange wee!!!! Everyone is different and we tolerate drugs different, I had MTX added May this year and again no side effects at all.

I have been told that full blown RA is far worse than any side effects from drugs. I am surprised that your consultant's not put you on any DMARD's yet, RA is a progressive illness and it needs something to slow it down. Paracetamol's are only treating the symptoms i.e. pain and not the cause.

At the end of the day it is up to you what you do and they will not force you to take any drug that you don't want to. Have you thought of ringing one of the helplines? NRAS have one and Arthritis Care do as well. Just google them and find the number, they are free phone ones.

Good Luck with what ever you decided to do.
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Date: 13.03.2011
From: poppy

Subject: Re: medication for RA

thanks for your messages. Feeling abit down about the drugs. I tried plaquinel but it made me feel terrible. I'm worried about sulphalazine because of the effect on your liver. Will it eventually effect your liver & you have to stop it. My symptoms are classed low grade but they still effect how I use my hands sometimes. I don't know if it would be worse if I wasn't doing all the diet & supplements, but even so it isn't calming down totally. My consultant has been ok about me not taking drugs yet because my tests are normal & x-rays show no damage as yet. He even said that taking paracetamol was alesser poison than other drugs! He has warned me I must speak to him if the symptoms change. I think you start to put up with the symptoms,when previously if you had a sore hand you would take something & not tolerate it if it did'nt go away. If I didn't have the knowledge that the side effects & the long term effects of the drugs were as they are & the symptoms I have were much worse I would start taking something now. Maz can I ask what treatment you use? Thanks
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Date: 14.03.2011
From: Maz

Subject: Re: medication for RA

I use AP (antibiotic therapy) to control the symptoms, you can read up on it on the Roadback website .. www.roadback.org/forum/

I you feel the need to ask more, happy to tell you!
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Date: 14.03.2011
From: bsk

Subject: Re: medication for RA

I met someone the other day who has had RA for many years. He hasn't taken any drugs because he is worried about the side effects but is on Margaret Hills diet. He was saying how well he felt at the moment but I couldn't help noticing the joints in his hands, feet and elbows were badly twisted. So much so, he could hardly do things in any kind of normal way.

It just reminded me of why I chose to take the drugs.
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