blood work

Went in today to get the blood test done. 6 tubes total. Let's hope i'll learn some new info when i call my rheumy in two days. So after getting that done i took a pred pill today, i'm hoping it'll help a bit since the blood is now done i figured it couldn't hurt to have it now.

Oh i've been reading the book "out of joint" by mary felstiner, i'm hooked I downloaded in on kindle for my phone and macbook, cause the sony ereader store didn't have it :( but either way i highly recommend it!

Soreee

hello sore fingers that I DO NOT MISS! :(

I had to leave work early I can barely move my fingers without feeling pain! I took some ibprof and a painkiller. Doubt it will work but we will see... I have some herbal compound here but i need to pick up some juice to mix it in. I am so desperate right now, im just glad my Enbrel is at the boyfriends house instead of mine or else I think I would have used it today.

Pain

I wanna shoot myself up with my meds so damn bad. I woke up this morning and I almost fell getting out of bed i have to immediately put my wrists braces on & my finger joints hurt and my elbows, it's getting worse. I'm at a 8 on the pain scale right now. Tuesday morning i'm rushing to the blood place to get that crap done and pray that I can start my meds again.

This pain SUCKS.

I HATE RA!

Sores Getting Better

With the help of the medicated steroid cream my Primary DR prescribed my sores have finally been healing!!! I woke up this morning to a smooth light red spot instead of a scabby red one like it has been during the healing process. I have a before and now pic too. I'm glad it's finally healing the others spots are too, my palm was pretty bad and it's almost gone! :D



I'm really sore again today and emotionally messed up, Norma Lopez of Moreno Valley, CA who was kidnapped July 15th was my brother's girlfriend, her body was found yesterday afternoon in a field, dead. :'( RIP Norma, <3 Please pray for her family and friends who are going through a hard time, thank you.

Update

On a scale of 1-10, i'm pushing a 6/7 on the pain scale right now. I've been dipping into pain pills and ibprofen. I've offically missed my sunday dose of MTX and my thurs shot of Enbrel. As ordered by my doctor until i can get more blood tests done on the 27th of this month. I'll be missing one more dose of MTX and two more shots until then. Let me tell you I am NOT looking forward to an 8 hour shift tomorrow 9am-5:30p and my boyfriend said if I need to leave early then that's just what I'll have to do. :(

After doing some more googling today concerning my skin reactions I've been getting I came across something called: psoriasis guttate

Here's what i've read so far: (taken from here: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000822.htm)

Guttate psoriasis is a relatively uncommon form of psoriasis. It is usually seen in patients younger than 30. The condition often develops very suddenly, usually after an infection, most notably strep throat. Guttate psoriasis is not contagious.

Psoriasis seems to be an inherited disorder. That means it is passed down through families. Doctors think it probably occurs when the body's immune system mistakes healthy cells for dangerous substances. See: Inflammatory Response

Skin cells grow deep in the skin and normally rise to the surface about once a month. In persons with psoriasis, this process is too fast and dead skin cells build up on the skin's surface.

The following may trigger an attack of psoriasis or make the condition more difficult to treat:

• Bacteria or viral infections, including strep throat and upper respiratory infections (I have been getting multiple infections lately)
  
• Dry air or dry skin
• Injury to the skin, including cuts, burns, and insect bites (this has been happening a lot at work)
  
• Some medicines, including antimalaria drugs, beta-blockers, and lithium
• Stress (which I have a lot of)
  
• Too little sunlight
• Too much sunlight (sunburn)
• Too much alcohol

In general, psoriasis may be severe in persons who have a weakened immune system. This may include persons who have:

• AIDS
• Autoimmune disorders (such as rheumatoid arthritis) **DING DING*
  
• Cancer chemotherapy

Up to 30% of people with psoriasis may also have arthritis, a condition known as psoriatic arthritis. Psoriasis may also affect the nails.

Okay so WHY didn't my RHEUMY mention this sort to me?! I guess I just have to figure everything out myself.

I saw the my primary DR on friday she gave me some steriod cream to rub on my spots this seems to be helping, been applying it twice a day.

This type "Guttate -- Small, pink-red spots appear on the skin." is exactly what it looks like on me. So I was 99% sure I had RA when i first saw my primary DR and now i'm 99% sure this is whats going on with my skin. Don't ever doubt a patient it seems I know my body quiet well now!

I will be taking this info with me when I go back to see either of my docs and let them know. Just like RA there is no cure for this skin issue. Why is it happening over the past few months? no clue. But as my rheumy says two autoimmune diseases open the gates for all others.

low white blood cells

So I went to my Rheumy yesterday, I have bad news :'(

ready for it?

...


I have been ordered to stop all my medications for minimum of two weeks right now. Why? well the past three blood tests my white blood cell count has been to low, dangerously low =/ this last test the end of june showed it was worse then the first. So the rheumy has to do this as a standard procedure to see if it's the Enbrel or MTX causing it which is extremely rare so he doubts it but the next step if it isn't the meds is to send me to see a hematologists (a blood Doc) to figure out whats going wrong or what else i might have on top of RA and Sjogrens.

I am so scared of what else I might have. & not having MTX or Enbrel for TWO weeks is going to be hell i'm sure. See i was already starting to feel sore even with both those so I had a feeling maybe the Enbrel was starting to stop working anyways :'( So I go in to Re Test in two weeks and he is testing me for Lupus also because I have a feeling I might have it. I've been pretty good so far with my "feelings" The thing is that I have been getting these sores on me and i dont know what they are from but my arm is starting to get more of them, well he is puzzled and doesn't know what they are from i've tried neosporin on them as well as cream, nothing works, they itch too, and even when I was on antibiotics for my ear infections and UTI I has this previous month it didn't clear them so he prescribed me the strongest antibiotic he could that he said he gives to people who can't heal themselves =/ It was 20 bucks for 7 pills I have to take for a week, so im hoping that clears up but according to google they may be a side effect of Lupus. So I guess we will start getting some answers in two weeks. I have so many thoughts running through my head I just want to know whats wrong with me. This explains why I've been getting sick a lot and having infections over the past few months, but I don't want to deal with another disease on top of the two I already have :(

Worst day ever yesterday, and I fear this is only the beginning.