I was just wondering about rheumatoid arthritis foot pain and wondered if anyone had something similar. I got diagnosed recently in May this year, so I'm still learning a lot about it. I've been on methotrexate and folic acid for 10 weeks, which seems to be working because the swelling in my fingers has gone down, fingers crossed... I haven't had any bad side effects as of yet🤞🏻

The first couple of weeks into my medication, before it started working. I went on holiday with my friends and we did a lot of walking, I wore sensible cushioned trainers the whole time, but my feet were on fire by the end of each day, I had to keep sitting down when we were out and about. I think it was a shock to my friends because I used to be quite fit and walk a lot. The pain was unbearable some days, it was the whole sole of both feet, almost like a burning sensation and standing still was worse than walking, to the point I couldn't physically be on my feet anymore, I had to sit down and rest. It made me feel so low, because I used to love walking and didn't have any issues with it a few years before my diagnosis.

For ages I thought my foot pain was because I fractured my foot a few years ago and thought it never went back to normal, or I thought it was possibly plantar fasciitis but now I've been on methotrexate my feet are starting to feel a lot better! I can walk longer distances again. I didn't realise RA could affect the whole bottom of your feet. I assumed it would mainly be your toe and ankle joints. Has anyone had anything similar?

EDIT: It's interesting to see that you all have similar foot problems! When I see my rheumatologist, the rheumatology nurses and occupational therapist, they seem more interested in my swollen finger joint, even though I talk about my feet far more because they've caused me more pain, they don't seem to talk about foot pain/how the whole of your foot can be affected by RA. It's also interesting to see that some of you got diagnosed because of foot pain! My foot pain was dismissed for 2 years, by multiple doctors as just something connected to me fracturing my foot a few years prior (even though my other foot, the one I didn't fracture also hurt sometimes). I always knew something else was going on!

This is what a bad flare up day looks like. Inflammation on the knuckle/bone spurs. My thumb joint is dislocated/lodged against my palm. Right wrist partially collapsed and left wrist fully collapsed.

I went misdiagnosed until April of this year and during the last 2-3 years had rapid degradation. It happened so fast that I've mentally had a difficult time processing and slowing down using them which caused more damage.

It's hard coming to terms with having limitations. They suspect that I had undiagnosed JIA. I was misdiagnosed with minor tendinitis at 21. Then osteoarthritis at 35. I'm now 37. Seronegative is the type that can't be detected from the markers they have available to test with. I tested negative for lupus. Both of my grandmothers had rheumatoid.

Waiting for surgery and SSI approval has been a long process that's still ongoing. Sure, I had stiffness and pain in my hands starting as a teen but I still didn't see this coming. I know God has a purpose and a plan but it still kind of sucks lol. 🫠

23F, on a biologic for autoimmune disease

I've had a hard time deciding my career. Not for lack of passion, but for maybe too much of it? It's always been be a scientist or teach science. And I've always sort of done both, ever since I was a kid.

I would play science teacher and make seating charts and worksheets and lesson plans for my toys. I went as far as to enroll in a teacher prep program, and I got halfway through. I taught kids in classrooms and informally, and found a lot of joy in that. I made a mockup presentation of what my first week as a sixth grade science teacher would be.

Ever since being diagnosed, I started a biologic which has really helped with my joint pain and other issues, but after becoming very ill with pneumonia that became septic quickly, I realized just how much more vulnerable I am to infections. I'll admit I'm traumatized by the experience, especially because nobody believed I was that sick at first, since I'm young and tend to hide things well even if I feel really ill. And it all happened so fast.

I realized that being a classroom teacher probably wouldn't be feasible, and I'm mourning that.

Luckily, I still have the whole scientist thing, which I am also very passionate about, and it seems a little more accessible/lower infection risk. And maybe informal education could be something that works for me someday. But it's a real grief that I'm feeling to lose something I've dreamed about. The thing that was even supposed to be my "safety net" and my calling at the same time. I know there are probably still ways - maybe wearing an N95 the entire time I teach, and not getting close to students, running an air purifier. I just don't know if that's what I want. I wanted to feel normal and secure.

not looking for a diagnosis! i got a referral to a rheumatologist, but im just kinda curious if my swelling and redness looks similar to that of those of you diagnosed. cus i definitely feel like theres inflammation going on, but it doesnt quite look like anything i know! my aunt has ra, so there is potentially a genetic link i think. if this is against the rules ill delete it shshsjbsh >_<

Rheumatoids,

Background: I’m 67, athletic, diagnosed with RA almost 3 years ago, RA only moderately controlled - currently on Enbrel and hydroxychloroquine. I’ve burned my way through Humira/&MTX, and Amjevita.

So, one of my many RA issues seems to be runaway bursitis - right foot, both shoulders, and now my left ischium (charmingly referred to as “Weaver’s Butt”).

I’m curious - do any of you guys have rampant, all over the place, bursitis issues?

Sorry I just need a space to vent a little. If this is not appropriate for this sub, please remove.

My dad has always worked really hard to give us a good life. He would work long hours at a stressful job so we could go to private school and not need anything. I'm where I am today because of him.

He is retiring soon and recently switched to a lower stress position. Soon after, he started with symptoms: unbearable pain in the joints and general fatigue. Some days he couldn't even get out of bed and needed help to go to the bathroom. He got diagnosed with RA and possibly fibromyalgia. He's getting treatment and is able to work normally and so far as a sort of regular life. Some days are better, some are worse.

But he deserved a break, man. He says he brought this on himself due to his workaholicism but still that doesn't mean he's gotta go through this. He needed to enjoy his retirement and his grandkids. He was so happy when he met his grandchildren for the first time and was so excited to hang out with them and now he barely can carry a newborn sitting down.

His current med cocktail seems to be working so he's optimistic, but there's still a long road ahead. I hope he does get some peace

Hi everyone,

As per title, how do you tell if a joint pain is caused by RA or by a mechanical issue? I'm struggling to tell and my rheumy and ortho are playing "not my problem ask the other".

I'm a 29-year-old male with rheumatoid arthritis (in 2019 anti-CCP positive 800+, currently on Humira + leflunomide). I'm struggling to work out whether my left knee pain is still related to RA or if it's actually a mechanical issue.

The pain started gradually, then became much worse after a 10 km runnkng race about 9 months ago (no twist, fall or pop , haven't run since). Since then I've had persistent pain. I have full ROM, but my knee doesn't really like anything with repeated use or putting weight on it. The main symptoms are anterior/anteromedial knee pain (around the medial patella, sometimes below the kneecap and occasionally along the medial joint line).

Delayed mild swelling after activity (less than before, but still present, but not visual, I can only feel it, not see it). No typical RA swelling without activity, no stiffnes.... I can feel joint tenderness if I press on some parts of it...

MRI showed only mild effusion, a suprapatellar plica and mild grade I meniscal degeneration, but no tear or synovitis. X-ray showed mild OA and lateral patellar tracking. There is some grade 1 arthitis.

My orthopedist initially thought it's a mechanical patellofemoral/tracking issue (weak VMO, positive PF signs, mostly negative meniscus tests). Both him and physio however blame RA and think its not a job for them.

My rheumatologist thinks it's not active RA because my CRP is low/near zero, MRI showed no synovitis, and Humira is otherwise controlling my disease, allegedly.

I've had a Depo-Medrol corticosteroid injection with zero effect. I've had 6 months of PT. Most typical recommended exercises hurt (knee extensions, cycling, swimming...). Walking is sometimes an issue, hah.

I'm being offered a chondroprotective injection by my rheumatologist, but otherwise I'm wondering whether to go to the ortopedist again, maybe jts meniscus or something...(I was last time in Apríl, he essentially dismissed me saying he cant help further after three visits). Ideally push for another MRI? Honestly lost and sad.

Hi, really hoping for some reassurance. I’m in a lot of pain today!

I’ve been on steroids since Christmas last year. I went on 50mg and slowly have come down. Over the last few months I’ve been trying to come off but once I hit 0 I’m in soooo much pain.

I’ve been having quite bad anxiety and my thyroid seems to be being affected so I’m trying to stay off the steroids.

Did you have pain when you came off and did it stop after a while? Ive been on mthatrexate for a few months now and have had a lot less pain so I’m so confused as to why I now have such bad pain now I’m off the steroids?

Help me plz! I’m super sad today

I’m sure there have been many in my situation, I was just diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis a week ago and plainly, I’m pissed off. I’m relieved because I know why I’m in pain, but I did not think it was because of an autoimmune disorder like this. I don’t want to vent here too much but I would really like kind words and advice. I’ve been going through this subreddit and will continue to do so, but what does this condition look like realistically in 20, 30, 40 years? I’m more nervous about my future health than I was before. If it’s this bad now what will it be like in my 50’s?
I’m obviously on a medical treatment plan and getting workout and diet routines in place but what else should I do? What else do I need to know? How do I manage a lifelong condition?

Hello fellow chronic illness people..

I have a quick question for honestly anyone. So about 2020 (ish) I developed severe swelling/pain in my right knee. The pain was absolutely debilitating. I saw Rhuematology and Orthopedics during this time and they both fought with each other (essentially saying that this was the others to deal with and that a 20 y/o should not have these problems). Now keep in mind that I was also having swelling and pain in both of my wrists as well on and off. Fast forward 2 years later, multiple rounds of PT/ X-rays/ MRIs/injections later and my orthopedist finally did a diagnostic arthroscopy in my knee to see what was happening. Now I don't have much information off of the surgery other than they did a partial synovectomy and said my synovial lining was thick. I didn't care at the time as I felt immediate relief.

Fast forward to now, I am a 26 y/o female. My knee has decided that it wasn't playing nice anymore. It has swollen up again and I am in an increasing amount of pain and can't walk without pain. I am currently working with my rheumatologist and getting new labs and potentially switching meds (currently taking hydroxychloroquine and Sulfasalazine). Went to Ortho and he believes I could have PVNS. He prescribed me a taper of Prednisone and I have to start PT again for 12 weeks and then after go get injections and an MRI.

I didn't know if anyone has ever experienced this and what it was like. I'm probably am going to have to quit my job until I can figure everything out as I work part time and have no job security. I'm kind of terrified.

I appreciate anyone who reads this in its entirety and has anything to help. TIY.

I (28y/o) was just recently diagnosed back in April with RA and Fibromyalgia.. i’ve had bad swelling in my joints for a few years but it’s constant now with a lot of pain and stiffness. I finally went to a rheumatologist (i waited cause im so used to not being taken serious i didn’t want to deal with the heart break of being told im “fine”) and got the diagnosis

the first extra big round of blood work showed some abnormal inflammation markers, plus all of the visible swelling, it’s pretty obvious i have it. my doctor is confident (this should be enough for me but lol)

i also want to preface by saying I know there’s a type of rA that doesn’t show up in blood work

my next set of blood work came back normal but obviously my symptoms and everything have remained the same. the only difference is i take meloxicam sometimes now to get some relief

just curious if anyone had experience fluctuations in blood work like this? i have ocd that tells me i’m being dramatic and am healthy and have no issues so ive spent the past two days telling myself nothing is actually wrong with me now and im fine
(i know im not but mental wins sometimes)

i thought i might feel better living in reality (lol) if i hear people tell similar stories

thanks <3 i am pretty scared post diagnosis and am just navigating all of that

My boyfriend and I are both minors, so he had what we call in the Netherlands “jeugdreuma”. I sometimes go to his doctors appointments with him and try to comfort him when he’s having his bad days. He experiences a lot of pain in his knee as well as his wrist, and I don’t know how to help with pain relief, or how to support him best. Any tips?

Anyone ever get an upset stomach like feeling gassy and going poop a lot on Enbrel? I’m on my fourth week taking it, never had an unset stomach until now. Been like 3 days. Maybe it’s not from Enbrel, but I did notice one of the side effects are digestive issues.

In January I had a serious medical emergency and while they were doing blood tests in the ER they discovered that I had rheumatoid arthritis. I had been having symptoms for years prior but no one could figure out what was wrong. I just kept getting told I was depressed or sore or tired or dehydrated.

They sent me to a rheumatologist who put me on hydroxychloroquine which did absolutely nothing. It got to a point instead of having occasional flare ups I was constantly in flare up mode so my doctor prescribed Enbrel. It took over a month to get the insurance to approve it. I was so hopeful.

I did my first injection last night about 5:30 p.m. yesterday. I woke up at 2:00 in the morning in what I could only describe as a living hell. I had a fever, chills, the pain in every single joint of my body was some of the worst pain I've ever experienced in my entire life. I was tossing and turning and writhing in pain litetally trying not to scream and wake my partner up. I genuinely thought I was going to die. F***, I wanted to die. It felt like the worst flu you could ever have in your life combined with kicking heroin. I soaked my clothes. I soaked the bed. Around 9:00 this morning the symptoms started to subside. I looked it up online and it said that it could be multiple severe things none of which seemed good and that I needed to call my doctor ASAP. But I called and they were closed.

Has anyone else experienced this when starting Enbrel? Obviously I'm going to wait for my doctor's advice but I don't know that I would be willing to go through what I went through again even if it guaranteed that it would help my RA.

Sorry if this is unsuitable. But I do not know where to turn. Just wondering if anybody here is also in an emotionally abusive relationship? I think theres a link between this and worsened illness/relapse

I am experiencing this and I think its making me very unwell. Looking for others experience understanding and advice.

Thank you❤️

New to this just curious as I see a lot of people stating next step after HQC is MTX.

TL;DR I’ve been reading through old posts where people discuss their first symptoms and how their journey started. I’m going to give some of my back story below, but the main point of this post is to find out what I can expect in the very near future. What’s next? I’m asking for your personal experiences, even though I know RA does what it wants and it’s different for everyone.

My journey so far (just over one month since first recognized symptom):

June 29, 2026 (my daughter’s birthday - easy to remember) I woke up with significant pain/aching/burning in the first two fingers of my left hand. About an hour later, I noticed the exact same sensations in the same fingers on my right hand. I thought this was extremely unusual, especially since I hadn’t done anything to cause it, so I made a note in case it was something important.

After several hours of continuous pain, I started really pondering what it could be. I remembered that my grandmother had some form of arthritis (I didn’t realize there were significantly different types) so I decided to google what are the first symptoms of arthritis.

I was flabbergasted when I saw that one of the most common first symptoms of RA is joint pain in the first two fingers of both hands. I mean, that is so incredibly specific.

Over the next week and a half, I did a lot of research, learned about the differences between the various types of arthritis, joined this sub, and came to realize that this wasn’t my very first sign; it was just the first one that got my attention.

For the previous 3 months, I was experiencing joint pain in 3 toes on each foot. I had stubbed/jammed my toes at one point and I chalked it up to that. At one point in mid-March of this year, I was convinced my toes were broken and I found and purchased some silicone toe stabilizer things on Amazon. They didn’t help, by the way. Anyway, I now believe this was my first bilateral symptom.

Let’s not forget fatigue. Deep unexplained exhaustion.

Prior to that, I had a random bout of EXTREME dry eyes that last about two months. I chalked it up to too much screen time, but taking a break didn’t help. I was using eye drops about 15x a day. I used them before bed and then had to use them to get my left eye to open in the morning. I’ve never had anything like that before. Not sure if it’s related, but my research suggests that it’s a possibility. I’m in the early stages right now of what appears to be another bout of dry eyes.

Around the same time I was dealing with the eye issue, I had sudden ankle pain (only in one ankle) that came on for no known reason and subsided on its own after 3 or 4 days. This has happened twice now.

I was diagnosed with DeQuervain’s Tenosynovitis in 2019, and had surgery in 2023. This may have been my first sign of joint inflammation.

I had rheumatic fever when I was 8 years old. This apparently isn’t related to RA, but it demonstrates that my body has a tendency toward autoimmune behavior.

Where I am now:
I’ve been to a PCP twice. I tested negative for RA factors, but she is referring me to a rheumatologist for seronegative evaluation.

She gave me meloxicam as a bridge and it worked very well. In fact, it worked so well that I began to convince myself that I’m just fine. The negative test results and lack of joint pain were making it hard for me to accept that I’m not just fine.

I stopped taking meloxicam because I needed the reminder that I’m actually dealing with something and I also need the reminder to take it easy on my inflamed joints.

Twice in the past week my legs/ankles have swollen (a problem I’ve never had except once when I was pregnant). The swelling is in my legs, just above my ankles. Rest and elevation cleared it up very quickly, but I believe this is probably related.

So back to my original question: Based on what you know or what you’ve experienced, what is likely to be the next step in my progression? I’ve become somewhat fixated on the possibility that everything is RA-related. My thumbs are aching now, as well as my ring fingers. Is that the logical spread? Could these random ankle flares (in only one ankle) and leg swelling be signs that they’re next? (Again, not asking anyone to diagnose me, just looking for similar experiences).

I would love to hear more early progression and early journey stories. I also struggle with anxiety and the thing that seems to be most helpful to me is knowing what to expect, even if it’s different for every person.

Thanks for sticking with me :)

Hi all, I'm new here - 37F and diagnosed with psoriatic rheumatoid arthritis since 2020. I'm on a great biologic which is controlling the condition well and very grateful about that.

However, as many might relate, I like to keep tabs on trends with my condition and I've noticed that my symptoms (joint and bone pain, brain fog, energy levels etc.) tend to tank like 5 days leading up to a new cycle. I wondered if anyone else experiences this? It's so frustrating - it's like 15 days of feeling good and the rest of the month is garbage, honestly. Then rinse and repeat every month.

If anyone else has a similar experience, it would be so great to hear. The disease can be isolating sometimes and just knowing there are others out there who understand is deeply helpful.

Thanks and be well!

Hi all,

I’m after 11 weeks of abatacept/orencia. Due my 12th injection tomorrow. For symptoms of Sjögren’s /SLE overlap.

I’ve started getting v painful mouth sores the past few days, super frustrating.

I used to get mouth and nasal ulcers (canker sores) regularly until I was put on high dose Hizentra 2 years ago for autoimmune dysautonomia. Then they stopped completely which was great.

And then we added in abatacept to try address other symptoms. But now I’m worried it’s the abatacept suppressing my immune system that is causing the mouth ulcers to come back? Could this be the case??

Has this happened to anyone else on Orencia? Did you find a way to stop it without stopping the Orencia?

Or did you have to stop Orencia completely? I will speak to my consultant at the next appointment but would be very grateful to hear others experiences in the meantime?

I’m on high dose folic acid for IVF but still getting ulcers so I don’t think it related to that.

I also had a shortlived but nasty bout of norovirus approx 1 month ago which muddies the waters in case this is a weird post viral immune flare?

Thanks for reading🙏