Could it be Ankylosing spondylitis? or RA

[Lmnardo]

Someone fix me please.

Lower back and pelvic pain - Extremely painful in the morning. back, legs, neck everything. My back feels like it is curving inward really deep and no matter what I do to stretch it (try to curl in a ball ) nothing helps except getting out of bed and walking around for an hour or so. back, legs, neck everything.   Lessens through out the day but still there in back, pelvis & neck but not too bad.  Body feels weak all the time.  
CRP and ESR high.

Extreme gas everyday no matter what I eat.

Psorisis or excema of the scalp.

Weird head aches in temples.  Also alot of sinus headaches and infections.  No allergies this season - I think it is the DHEA.  

Legs go numb and tingling after a few minutes of sitting.

Dhea is helping with staying awake and not having to take a nap everyday.  Getting really angry gives me some energy but then I crash about 1/2 hour after I get mad.  So I have to clean really fast.  Extremely low DHEA Levels.

Fattest I have ever been but all thyroid tests are fine.

Bad hair days - Wirey weird some times - feels like melted plastic.  Hairdresser never felt anything like it - then it just went away and comes back on occasion.  This never happened before and I was a permed, dyed hairball from the 80's and this is nothing like regular run of the mill overprocessed hair.

Extremely oily hair and face - probably due to DHEA.

I woke up one day - a great day - and all these problems were gone.  I was losing weight, my depression lifted and I had not one ache in my whole body.  I felt as strong as an ox and planning my wonderful summer ahead.   I was so happy for a few weeks I thought finally its all over and I can be happy and have fun again.

I was pregnant and had no idea.

All the symptoms went away the minute I became pregnant and returned with a vengance after I delivered.  

Somebody fix me.  Please!


CRP and ESR high.

Low blood pressure 90/60 is about average for me.  Except when pregnant - goes to 120/80 or so.

Hypoglycemic

Adrenal is supposed to make dhea and it is not.  Extremely low without taking supplements. last reading without supplements was 91 should have been somewhere around 1000.

Arthritis in lower/middle back.

Borderline on antibody test.

Thryoid tests all normal.

173 lbs. now and was 170 when I got pregnant and felt great.  So it is not the weight.    There is something wrong.  But no one can tell me what.  This has been going on for 7 years and is getting worse.


Lauren

[streetdevil]

Hello!
        I am a patient of AS...I have had this sickness since 2005... it happened in a matter of weeks and I was totally bedridden. I couldn't walk, sit, stand nor sleep properly... I was in bed for around 6 months. I went through several tests- x- rays, bone scan, HLA-B27 and others. amazingly my HLA-B27 test came out negative. But, my doctor told me that there are cases when HLA-B27 is negative but its still AS. I was in painkiller (nimisulide) everyday. 3 painkillers a day, I was also taking gluco-corticoids and methotrexate.
         To cut my story short, after a year of pain and suffering... my medicine was changed to Piroxicam 20mg for two months in a decreasing dosage...the side effect was pimples (lots) but it was worth it...my pain and inflammation reduced and now I am living a normal life. Now, I don't take my medicine everyday, I just take it when ever its painful.
Some other things to consider-
- loose weight as much as you can.
- don't eat high protein food (legumes, red meat, beans etc)
- don't eat raw onion or tomato.
- drink lots of water
- stretch as much as you can. (twice a day 1 hour each)
- go for a physical therapy.
- need plenty of rest
- stay warm at all times
- try to avoid sudden change in body temperature
- sit and stand straight
- sleep on a hard cushion bed. (very important)- they have this bubble/ egg crate mattress now a days..its very good for AS patients.
- always take your shower in warm water
- don't drink alcohol or smoke (especially beer)
- eat more of vegetable and fruits
                   I hope this would help you abit, coz it did help me. Take care!!

[ASsurvivor]

You need to go to a Rhuematologist and get blood test and see if yo are HLA-B27 positive and check your creatin levels and sed rates. You may have AS and/or possibly other inflamatory disease. If so, there is help if you have or can get the right meds. These are revolutionizing care for inflamatory disease. They are called Biologics and go by the names of Humira, Remicade, Embrel and now Orencia.  

I know intimately your pain and feel for you I have delt with it since 1983 and not until I discovered Biologics(TNFa inhibitors) did I get relief and my life back. I still have AS but it is under control and I live life again.

Hope this helps

[Zak_Han]

hi,

My opinion is that you are probably suffering from psoriatic arthritis,you should go to see doctor for blood test. nothing about AS or RA.I guess.
Take care!