Rheumatoid Arthritis

I am a 38 yr old female and seem to be having symptoms of RA and/or lupus but doctors are having difficulties diagnosing what's exactly going on. I have had thousands of dollars worth of blood work done over the last 18 months, hand surgery on both hands, injections, MRI's and x-rays. Two pathology reports from hand surgery indicated rheumatiod nodules, however my RF is well within the normal range. My ANA panel is normal. I have had every blood test Anti-Sm, Anti-Ro, Anti-La, Complement, ESR, CRP, etc. All are normal. While I realize there are patients that are seronegative, it is so frustrating that I can't confirm a diagnosis. My physical symptoms include: significant fatigue, fever, depression, dry eyes, bumpy skin on my forehead, dry patches of skin on the bridge of my nose, rheumatoid nodules on my hands and feet, arthritic pain in my joints (hips, ankles, hands), early signs of cataracts. My health history includes hypothroidism, pernicious anemia, asthma and chronic tension headaches which started about 18 months ago. any suggestions?

Oh my kindred spirit I can truly say that I totally understand where you are coming from.

I have been suffering for about 2 years now in pain and my family history is stuffed to the gills in auntoimmune diseases - My mother was diagnosed with RA right away, and now it might even not be RA but Psoratic Arthritis (since she was taking Enbrel and got horrible psorsis on the soles of her feet.)

As for me, I am gonna be 34 years old, a newlywed and mother of a wonderful 9 yr old boy. I have Type 2 diabetes (Thanks genetics!) Hidranitis Supprativa (a type of autoimmue disorder of the skin) - In the last 5 years I have also developed an allergy to Sunlight (which I think my paternal grandmother had because though it was never mentioned, in my memories I recall her never going out in the daytimes or always was in shade) and now severe arthritis of my knees, back and hands that causes me to be unable to sleep due to pain, my quality of life has degraded drasticly and yet all the blood work comes back okay - they say it "Has to be OA". Yet I still have the more than 30 minute stiffness upon rising, sometimes I have to take a hot bath or sit with ice packs on my knees just to get dressed. Driving is becoming difficult, I've had to quit working and now I am even having a hard time doing my housework. I have hot flashes when Im in alot of pain, my joints get swollen and warm, The pain and lack of good sleep is causing me to become worn down and when Im in a really bad spell I get depressed.

When I get a sunrash severe enough they will give me a Medrol steroid pack and it works great other than messing my sugar levels up so they really arent happy with that form of a treatment - One Orthopedist said that Synivisc would not benefit me and neither would any other types of injections - They have checked for RA, Lupus, its been 2 years and no answers! I cant get disability with no diagnosis nor can I get treatment.

The most I have been getting lately is Physical Therapy and pain medications but recently the family doctor I had been seeing left that doctors office and I got a new doctor who is very unsympathetic and has even stopped my pain medications. Now Im in worse shape and fustrated!

I just want to know whats going on...Why does my body hate me so much? I want to get treatment and I just want to have a life back, It is not fair to my family to see me this way, my son doesn't understand why mommy hurts so much. He wants to comfort me and my husband becomes angry and helpless to see me in pain and he cant stop it.

What is it? Is it a mutated Autoimmune disorder of both? It is real, and the answer has to be there.

Here's hope they find something for the both of us...and know you are not alone if you can find one more...there are so many out there silently suffering! Keep on Keepin' on!