I live in a small town where there is a limited number of doctors. The first time I went to a doctor I was treated for Fibromyalgia.He treated me for over a year , then the knots started and the doctor started to look for another reason for the pain I was experiencing. This is when a blood test was done and the test showed Rheumatois Artritis.

As of this dated NO cure has been found.

Below are some picture of my hands and knee. I am not good at making pictures but I hope you will be able to see the swelling of the joints and the knots.

These picture were made to show you the deformities even thought I am on very strong medication. If I wasn't takeing the medications my hands would be red and double in size. I would not be able to move my fingers.

As you can see my hand has turned to the left
You can see how the joints look like they have doubled

You can see how knots have come up on my thrumb and fingers
The knots on the thrumbs are underneth
On the fingers they are on top of the joints
Believe me you do not want to accidentally hit one of the knots,they are very painful

I have had one of the knots removed from my left knee as I was constantly hitting it with my right leg

The medications that I am taking are Arava , Methotrexate , Diclofenac , B 12 and B 6
There are side effects with these meds

Arava side effects are diarrhea , high liver enzymes , loss or thinning of the hair , low blood cell count and a rash.

Methotrexate side effects are fatigue, loss of appetite and low blood cell count

Diclofenac help's to control the inflammation and pain

B 12 and B 6 Helps the blood cell count

I have to go once a month and have a blood cell count done

You ask" why do you take medications with side affects ?"

First Let me try to tell You what it is like with out the meds.
Have You ever had a tooth ache ? A dull persistent (usually moderately intense) pain , that is so deep that a pain medication does not even touch it. It just keeps throbbing and you can not get any relief at all.

Well that is only half the pain with RA. Ra is in the joint,and in the bone. It is so deep inside that massageing or heat can not get to it. The more you try to move around, sit up or lay down the more intense the pain and stiffness. There is no good sleep, the pain is just too bad

Now with the pain and no sleep you become very Ill. You do not want anyone around you.. You have mood swings for no reason at all.. I am very thankful that my Husband understands my condition.

You get very depressed. You can't do a lot of things you use to do. You can't open a jar of jelly or remove a pot from the stove because of the severe pain that occurs. You can't get Your hand into a glass to wash it.
You can't walk out side or go shopping because of the pain .Every thing you try to do is very painful and you become tired and depressed all the time, even to just walk a short distance.
It is a long term, destructive, connective tissue disease that results from the body, rejecting its own tissue cells. The basic treatment for RA is rest, mild exercise to help joint function, drugs for pain and inflammation, surgery to prevent or correct defects and a good diet. There are many drugs that a doctor can prescribe to possibe help the disease including steroids but as I have mentioned before, most have some very serious side affects that can be controlled and subject to constant laboratory work up and regular doctor visits.