Jean
I was diagnosed with RA several years ago. I take an infusion for the RA every two months. At first I was ok, but the last year my fatigue has grown much worse. My joints have become run down and I have had a knee replacement, shoulder replacement and now need a hip replacement. Anyone else having this many replacements?
Oh, goodness,
. I am sorry you are dealing with all of this. And, I know at least a few of our community members can relate. Two of our contributors have dealt with multiple joint replacement procedures; Kelly Mack -- https://rheumatoidarthritis.net/living/joint-replacement-surgery and Daniel Malito -- https://rheumatoidarthritis.net/living/joint-replacement-surgery-expectations. They can definitely relate to what you are dealing with and Daniel is pretty active here and can probably answer questions you might have or just offer a virtual shoulder to lean on.
You're not alone in this, but I know facing yet another procedure and all the work and stress that come both before and after the surgery are, well, daunting, to say the least.
Best, Erin, Team Member., you are definitely not alone. Both of my knees and both of my hips have been replaced. I have a reverse shoulder replacement as well. RA attacked my large joints first.
Between the surgeries and medications, I am pretty sure that I am the most expensive thing in the house 😀
Hang in there. I hope your hip replacement goes well.
Hi
. I happen to the husband of Kelly Mack (Erin mentioned her above). Yes, there are definitely people here who understand the fatigue and having multiple joint replacements. You mentioned an increase in fatigue. How do you feel your other symptoms are doing? I ask because if your joints are rapidly getting worse it may be helpful to talk with your rheumatologist about whether your treatment should be adjusted. Kelly wrote this article on signs that it may be time to change medications: https://rheumatoidarthritis.net/living/when-to-change-medications. One of the reasons I bring all of this up is that Kelly and Daniel were both diagnosed as children, before modern treatments, so had a lot of damage from years ago. Finding the right treatment can be difficult (lots of trial and error), but the hope is that a treatment can be found to control inflammation and slow the damage. People here definitely get it. Please feel free to keep us posted on how you are doing and to ask questions. Best, Richard (Team Member)
