There are so many questions I need answers to.
@ DorisDudley ..your jaw locked up.. before I was diagnosed with RA.. my arm locked up.. I panicked,,not knowing what had happened & it was couple hrs before mine opened up.. Still to this day I do not know what caused it..Could it be RA ? . Every time I have a problem .. I ask my Ruemy about it.. I ask him if my RA is causing it.. He always says it could be..very dissatisfied

@A myRAteam Member I sometimes get that answer, as well. Part of the problem is that RA and all these immune system issues vary so greatly from person to person, and even within our own bodies. I got sick of hearing "Medicine isn't an exact science." Sadly, it's true. It COULD be due to the RA, or it could be from something else. What you should do is what I did.... Here's the story.

I have had lupus for YEARS. I know when I'm flaring. I am very in tune with my body. I was having different kinds of pain and other issues with my hands and I was sure it wasn't the lupus, except for one thing. I pushed my doc to run different tests to find out. That' s how my RA, rupus and inflammatory arthritis were diagnosed. At the same time I was having terrible problems with my right hip. I thought I had pulled a groin muscle swimming as I was giving myself a real workout in the pool. In mid stroke (I was diong breast stroke) I felt a sharp pain in my groin area. I could not stand on that leg for a while, so I sat, in terrific pain on the side of the pool for a while. The pain never got better, only worse. My rheumy didn't know what to do. We took x-rays and saw the arthritis and what was happening. A year later another x-ray was taken as the pain was intensifying. There was major change - for the worse. A year later a few more x-rays and a visit to an orthopedist showed I am now bone on bone and that the scraping is causing bits of the bone to break off and they are floating in the joint. I was told by the orthopedist that what I experienced three years ago was the most common way people know they have hip problems. The pain is in the groin area and it's like flipping a switch.

I wish I'd gone to an orthopedist three years ago. Maybe I wouldn't be bone on bone today.

Lesson is always push for a better answer. Ask for more tests or a second opinion. Our diseases cause horrible things to happen to our bodies and we are the only ones who can tell what's bad, good or different. Never settle for "it could be" answers. While I was hoping that some issues with my hands would show maybe a pinched nerve, it was far more serious. But I pushed for more answers.

I hope this helps some.

Mentioned Users

A myRAtea...

Thank you everyone. I also have had my hand as foot lock up as well.

I agree with Mir. Way to go! I had asked my G.P. to refer me to an orthopedic specialist. So he ordered x-rays and that was all. So, knowing that my G.P. does not like to "out source" his patients, when I saw the specialist a few weeks later I asked her. She wrote out the referral while I was in the office. The orthopedist had a cancellation and I saw him about 2 weeks after that. I have bone on bone (with bone spurs) in my hand. I was put on the wait list for surgery that day. I really don`t care if my G.P. has his nose out of joint or not. He goes work and then back home in good health. He goes on vacation to South Africa 3 times a year. I had to take early retirement last summer because of deteriorated health...so I`m the one who is having a health crisis...so if I didn`t step on his toes and push things would not happen and I would be very ill at his expense. No, doctors are working for you! You are paying them to do the right thing for you. Push, push, push...and smile while you`re doing it...or not. I am so thankful to God for my rhuematologist Dr. Teo...she is amazing! My family and I now feel confident that I have an advocate in her. I no longer feel like I am standing alone facing a mountain. Blessings ladies

@ Mir
thank you, it does help. I need to push more..