Community Forums Roundup: Treatment Side Effects, Work, and Exercise With RA

Here at RheumatoidArthritis.net, our community members and the stories they share in our forums are invaluable sources of connection, knowledge, and support for all, no matter where they are in their RA journey.

To bring more awareness to important topics in the community and to highlight some of the amazing conversations taking place in our community forums, we are continuing to gather together a few perspectives on this month's most popular discussion topics. You can find the previous month's forum roundup here.

In each of the topic sections below, you can enter your own response to the prompt in the white box and click "Share my response," or click on "View all responses" to read advice and stories from fellow community members and Health Leaders. We'll see you there!

RA treatments and side effects

Depending on the treatment plan, many people with RA may experience side effects as a result of certain medications and other treatment modalities.

Community members have recently shared some of their feelings of apprehension about side effects, as well as treatment experiences:

Rebeccatech75: "I am new to RA and therefore new to the medications. I am on methotrexate, and my doctor wants to add hydroxychloroquine. Can anyone tell me their side effects and if it is worth taking..."

ChrisEliz08: "Has anyone experienced swelling and a red face that's hot to touch after taking a methotrexate injection? This happens to me the day after I take my injection, and I told my doctor about it today and she seemed to blow off my question..."

RA and employment

Living with RA can make it difficult for a person to carry out work responsibilities. Many people with RA choose to change career paths or stop working altogether.

Some community members have wondered what they should do next when it comes to balancing RA with a career:

Kaffee: "I would like to know if you can still work with RA?"

RHall: "Whether due to RA symptoms like pain and fatigue, circumstances like an unreliable schedule, or dealing with bosses who just didn't understand — we are looking for experiences with retiring or changing careers due to RA..."

Exercising with RA

Regular exercise has many well-known benefits for many people. But exercising with RA can be a challenge, especially when trying to minimize stress on the joints.

Some community members wonder about being able to do the physical activities they enjoy while managing their RA symptoms:

Kim_Jeter: "I want to remain hopeful. Is it realistic to think with the right medication I can still live an active life? I am also realistic that I will be at a modified level based on how I am feeling. I love to hike and swim..."

Bunter: "My thumb is not happy with the standard shift with turns. Joint pain and debris in it. Any ideas are appreciated. Biking outside keeps me going!..."

RA community poll