Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment

IMPORTANT FOR EVERYONE !!!
We know that we are subject to problems and illnesses with skin, bones, muscle, stomach, eyes, ear, nose, throat, guts, blood, heart, sex and reproductive organs, lungs, etc.; and that there are hundred of infectious, genetic, nutritional, structural and functional diseases of all our systems–hormonal, immune, musculo-skeletal, etc.
These illnesses come and go in a variety of ways to most of us , all of our lives…..
SOOOOOOO,,,,,,,,,,,,
Wouldn’t it be STRANGE if all of our brains always worked perfectly?
Mental illness is normal and natural. It may be acute or chronic. It might be curable, treatable, or intractable. Just like anything else from the common cold to hemorrhoids.

I cannot help you my love, but had an aunt who also had bi-polar diagnosed and also suffered from R.Arthritis – later it appeared she was a manic depressive – misdiagnosed. but this I did learn via her case and others I have heard about and that is that people with R.Arthritis do have in quite a few cases a history of mental illness, unfortunately research does tend to specialise in one field or the other so the links and prognosis are not always recognised. As for the way you feel with your therapist away all I can advise is if it worries you too much see the gp about interim help. but I think you are a very brave person who won’t just give in, and once they return you will be ok I know.x.

(((RedQueen)))
Once your true friends realise this they will be able to handle your “pushing away” and be there when you need them.
_()_

First of all, you have friends. Us!
Some of the things you mention could happen to ordinary people without any mental problems. Your description of your early years and the trauma and upset could be the lives of God-knows-how-many young people today, and not one of them mentally ill.
If psychiatrists cured people, they would be doing themselves out of a job.
I’d say seek help only for the things that truly cannot be cured by some other more ordinary means. Psychiatric medicine is dangerous to the human body.
You are a favorite here and we want you to be well and happy.
Love and hugs!

Red Queen, your children will understand and accept this much more than you realize. They will be so willing to jump in and help you – you have no idea. Our children are a lot more resilient than we give them credit for.
Remember life is what you make it! It does not have to be a “nightmare”.
We are who we are, good and bad. We must love and accept ourselves with all of it. I think you may be able to accept yourself a whole lot easier now, even with the added dilemmas!
I don’t think I need to tell you where and how I sought help, without the aide of others. I will continue to keep you in my prayers…

If all she gave you as an answer to bipolar is therapy, then she was wrong. There are meds to level your moods out. They do make you a bit apathetic but it not as bad as being suicidal and crying all of the time, especially in front of your kids.
I wish you the best of luck, and blessings from my heart. I wish I had something better to project for you, but I don’t.
((((redqueen))))

If you absolutely need to talk with someone, call the nearest mental health hospital. They have an on call therapist who can help you work through some things over the phone.
For those of you with bipolar or another mental illness, advice, please. While I absolutely respect my therapist, it is you who lives with mental illness. How do you cope?
Meds help, a lot. Trust me, I’m on one.
How did you get over the stigma of having a mental illness?
I just deal with it. They will never know unless they deal with it some time in their life.
I frequently misunderstand what others mean when they speak, cannot catch sarcasm, have no humor and take things personally — How to get around this?
Sorry, I can’t help you on this. Sarcasm is one of my main weapons in life.
I have no friends, yet I am frequently lonely. I will do all I can to push others away from me, and will deliberately do something to make them turn from me. I would like to be surrounded by others, but I have rushing thoughts and rapid speech. It’s humiliating, and I hate it. If you have gone through something similar, how did you get over it? CAN you get over the rapid speech? If not, then how do you learn to live with it? These speech patterns are present even during my depressive episode — it never goes away.
I’m still working thought this myself. Meds help here too.
Don’t apologize, there is no need for it.
(((RedQueen)))

{{{{{{{Amy}}}}}}} I do so wish I could come over and give you the biggest hug ever right this instant. But a virtual hug will have to do instead and just imagine it to be the biggest, tightest, cuddliest hug you have ever received, ok?
Now, as you may be aware (or maybe not, I can’t remember if I have told you about this or not), I do have depressed periods from time to time, sometimes lasting up to several days. I USED to be on antidepressants, but they have been stopped since the transplant. I also live with mum who definitely does have some kind of depression, although, as she refuses to go to the doc about this, we have no idea what sort of depression. So, I am going to answer 3 of your questions, but bear in mind that I have hardly any experience with dealing with depression. Depression, yes. Dealing with it, no.
1 – What do I tell my kids?
2 – Can I learn to control my snappish moods, or does this come about through the use of meds? What coping skills do you employ?
3 – How did you get over the stigma of having a mental illness?
Ok, my answers:
1 – The truth. That is the ONLY thing that will help both you and them cope and understand more, by them having all the details you do.
2 – The antidepressants helped me with this bit. This was something I really was not good at. Even now, I can get VERY snappy and moody when I’m feeling low, now, more than before the transplant.
3 – I felt a tiny bit ashamed. I told mum. Her reply was ok. I felt a bit encouraged. So I told one of my sisters. Big mistake. Her reply? You should start eating well, exercising, working, you’ll stop feeling depressed. After that, I didn’t tell any of my family. My other sister found out only by accident more than a year after I started the antidepressants, coz she saw a friend taking the same antidepressants I had, and she wondered why I was taking those tablets.
Ok. Now, you’ll be wondering why I said to tell your kids. Actually, of course it is entirely up to you. I’ll take my answer back to that question. Is there one of your children whom you are closer to, whom you think would be more understanding than the others? Maybe you could start with him/her then, and then get their help to tell the others?
Oh yeah. “I have no friends, yet I am frequently lonely” Did you mean you have many/some/a few friends Amy? If that is what you meant, then I will say this. Taking your friends into your confidence can be effing hard when you’re feeling like this. But you CAN do it, and you NEED to do it. And in fact, you’ve done it a bit by asking this question on here. Well done you
Amy… I wish you could see how PROUD some of us are of you, how much we love you. You wouldn’t be able to believe how much, and you’d be totally amazed and asking “so much?”
Sending you lots of love and energy and prayer wishes and angel wishes Amy.

Oh, sweet woman, how very tough life has been and is for you.
As a psychotherapist with no experience of dealing with diagnosed bipolar disorder, this is just my two pennyworth from my particular viewpoint.
Firstly, I am highly suspicious of psychological diagnostic labels. True bipolar is one of the few that is really useful, but even then, it lumps together a huge range of very different people, gives them a label and presents them with a set of expectations that are group-defined rather than related to that individual. And there is absolutely no dividing line between those with a mental disorder and those without. We all have quirks and odd nooks and crannies in our psyches – some end up with a label because their particular suffering causes them or those around them major problems, but the sickest person I ever worked with had never had a psychiatric label applied because she’d managed to avoid ever coming into contact with mental health services.
Secondly, I very much understand your sense that life could have been easier had your parents sought help for you. However, you may have been saved from a dreadful chemically-coshed life by their avoidance of the problems. All too many young people are ‘treated’ by medication which often does little more than suppress the ’symptoms’ and along the way crushes their creativity and life-energy. So it may in fact have been a lucky escape.
I truly believe that therapy is the most likely way that your relationship with your moods will change. Sure, coping skills/techniques can help, but it’s the inner shift that happens in good therapy that leads to coming into a different relationship with one’s suffering, moods, etc and behavioural change results from a change in the inner feelings.
Wishing you all the very best in the huge upheaval that this change in your perception of yourself has caused/is causing. Never forget that you have hugely wonderful qualities that have taken you through a life with great successes in it. Nothing has been lost; this change in perspective does not devalue all that you have done and it definitely doesn’t mean that your life would necessarily have been better with an earlier diagnosis. (((((Red Queen)))))

My 40 year old daughter was diagnosed with bipolar about a year ago. She was also very depressed for no reason. I went onto the net and connected what was happening to her, with Bipolar. When she started on medication she was like a different person. As her husband said, you would not believe it is the same person, she is happy and never depressed.
Today she spent the day with me, and we laughed all day. She has such a sense of humour and a most infectious laugh. You see, she used to feel like you do, but she does not anymore.
Of course discuss this with your children. By not doing so it seems that you are ashamed of your illness. There is nothing to be ashamed of. But, only do that if they are teens or older. When they are young, first get treatment with the prescription, then by example, show them how much better you are, and explain why. Teach them that there is nothing wrong with having a mental illness, that nearly everyone gets depressed in their liftime, but that some, like you and my daughter, seem to feel it more. Be proud of who you are. Hold your head up. Get this prescription from your Doctor and you will not know yourself in a little while.
Go into this site -
bipolar.com.au/questionnair.cfm
and answer the questions asked. Then, go to your doctor with that sheet of paper with all your answers on it.
That is what my daughter did and the Doctor was amazed that she had correctly diagnosed herself. He had all the answers down in front of him.
The name of her prescription is:-
APO-DIVALPROEX
But also remember, everybody is different. If this one does not work for you, ask you Doctor to try another one. I know one boy who tried three pills before he hit on the one that worked for him.

I can’t give you advice from the perspective of someone with a mental illness, but I can maybe say a little something about being raised by someone with mental illnesses.
My mother explained to me when I was around 10 maybe that sometimes she feels very, very sad and it has nothing to do with me. I understood that. I wasn’t always very kind about it, but I understood it and I’m so glad that she was honest about what was going on with her because it made everything so much less confusing. It made me feel that she trusted me and she was, and continues to be, a most fantastic mother.
When I was older (teens) she was very honest about exactly how she felt and we discussed it a good amount. I remember her telling me once that while the voices in my head probably said nice things to me, the voices in her head said very mean things. I know that may sound to some a very odd thing for a mother to say, I knew what she meant and it helped me understand how she felt.
I think there’s a good chance your children will have a similar reaction to this news as you did yourself. They may be shocked but it will likely help them understand some things. You know your kids, so you’ll do what’s best but don’t hesitate to be honest and open with them. Unless they are very young, they may be your best allies in this.