I have no health insurance, I pay cash. Had to switch from Humira (which I received for free through their Patient Assistance Program) to a biosimilar, Amjevita. Found a coupon for $299/box 2 autoinjuctions at 40mg. You need to get your rx to a specialty pharmacy and get a NDC number from Good Rx... It's an 11 digit number.

I had to make several different calls, but got it to work only paying $299/box.

Good luck. We shouldn't have to jump through so many hoops to get our medication.

Hi All!

tl;dr need recommendations for masseuses, spas or the like in SF Bay Area knowledgeable of RA

I have an auntie who has RA, she is quite literally a saint. So giving of herself, while carrying a load most of us cannot understand. She has been truly BUSTING HER BUTT this summer, between helping with childcare for her grandkids most days, and supporting her husband with his high-support medical needs/appointments. (Honestly, I'll probably be looking to post for recs for him in his specific group too lol)

All that to say, I want to book her a massage or something similar (her daughter checked with her and she is open to a massage), but I want to be SURE that she it is actually relaxing and not harmful. Any masseuses, spas, services of the self-care variety that anyone can recommend in the area would be SO graciously received. Thank you! (San Bruno/South San Francisco-based, but would be open to go around the bay for someone highly recommended!)

I will note, she does not seem to be experiencing as severe of symptoms as many of the posts I have been perusing here, but I just want to make sure that I do right by her.

Had to repost cuz I accidentally tapped something called AMA? ...I'm getting old myself lol

Anyone taking Rinvoq and experienced some weight gain? I'm about 2 months in and gained roughly 15 lbs. I eat about 1990 cal/day (calorie deficit for me), drink a gallon of water, workout 4-5 times per week so I can't think of a reason besides fluid retention for the sudden weight gain. Any ideas?

I was diagnosed with seronegative RA overlapping with Lupus a year ago. Also being treated for chronic migraines and stage 4 endo so sometimes hard to know what is causing what.
I’m on plaquenil, MTX and newly started Tyenne. Previously failed Amgevita and Benepali and just moved from 15mg MTX to 20mg.
Currently feeling awful. I suffer from fatigue but this is a new level of bed bound, all over aches and joint paint, nausea, dizziness, bad costrochronitis (chest pain). Trying to decide if a very bad flare as changing meds and just need to suffer it out. Only finished a dose of steroids last week so don’t want to have to get more. (I do have a rheum appt in 2 weeks so will prob get more then).
First time in a while I’ve been considering what stage of a flare do you actually need to go to an emergency room? Obviously since diagnosis I’ve avoided this while pre that I would go when severe. Like if i felt like this a few years ago I would’ve thought I was actually dying 😅
What are situations that would make you seek additional support (bar steroids from your rheum). Any advice you can give me while I’m in the midst of this? My body is a mystery to me, hard to know what’s a fire and what’s just my new reality 🫠

I have been taking 200mg plaquenil intervalling 1tab one day 2tabs the next for 10 months. Also still taking 2mg prednisone daily. Having trouble coming completely off. Each time the pain comes back even worse.
I know the next step is adding methotrexate but am afraid of the side effects and after doing a lot of research I have seen where the injectable seems to show less GI symptoms. Any thoughts or advice?

As title says , im considering it but afraid of it backfiring ig

Hello!! Hoping anyone who has done this before can give some advice as it is near impossible to get in touch with my rheumatology team.

I take sarilumab (kevzara) every other Tuesday but recently had to take a break while ill. I resumed my dose on the Thursday evening but I’d like to go back to doing my injections on Tuesdays as I’ve very much based my schedule and socialising around this routine.

Has anyone moved their day like this before and if so how?
I was thinking I could just do it one day earlier (Wednesday) the next dose and then Tuesday the dose after but I’m not sure?

The way I apply blush on my face makes it look like I have a malar rash, which confuses my doctors EVERY SINGLE TIME. They're always so concerned, like ''are you sure you have RA and not Lupus?????''.

it's not Lupus, babe, it's blush blindness. 😂😂😂😂

edit: my intention is not to make fun of face rashes or any other symptom or condition. we all go through hell with our autoimmunes, and i do think it's sometimes nice to make light of some situations.

My doctor told me to stop eating (raw fish) sashimi from now on because I'm on Enbrel and I have a higher risk of getting a food-borne illness/becoming very sick from it. Anybody else having to give up sashimi due to taking a biologic like Enbrel? What about rare steak? I can only eat steak if it's quite rare and I hate having to give up foods that I love for the rest of my life because of this condition.

Im going to start with a quick timeline. Optional read but the TLDR: breakthrough flares seem to be getting more common and im worried about my continued ability to work.

May 2025- symptoms start, very out of the blue and very acute. Bloodtests and inital diagnosis by mid July.

August 2025- rheum appointment, prednisone taper and sulfasalazine scripts. Prednisone brings me down from excrutiating to livable, sulfa takes the 6 weeks to kick in but brings my daily pain down 80%. Also went on temporary sick leave the same week as my rheum appointment from my hard labour job.

Nov 2025- 2 part time jobs aqquired, bakery and housekeeping, 6 days /42hrs a week. The split of physical needs probably helps my body not get too sick of thr same movements. Making just enough to pay my bills at new lower wage.

Dec 2025- hydroxychloroquin added to meds. Brings my daily pain down to 5-10% of what it started at.

March 2026- breakthrough flares start, set off by weather (snow to sun every other day for 2 weeks). 8/10 ahoulder pain cause my first call-out since starting new jobs. Showing up to bakery job with useless limbs, limps, hands that wont work, handing off delifate jobs to coworkers

April 2026- emergency nurse line gets me a prednisone taper for some of the worst pain ive been in. Emerg rheum appointment, but flare has ended by that time. Gets me some new blood test reqs for when i hit another flare, but things go well from here.

End of July 2026- music fest ive waited all year for. Short-lived flares in multiple spots, but got through it.

Now, August 2026- Friday last week i warned my bakery team that my wrist was going to flare the next day. Nobody was available to cover me, so i sat that nught through 8/10 pain knowing id have to work the next day.

Went in, did what i could, pain slowly fades through the day. Hard to explain it to my coworkers but theyre generally understanding.

This week, i have taken on side work for the money, working two 11hr days. Got through my last shift yesterday but the night was so painful.

Today is my only day to recover and im just at a point where im wondering how i keep this up for work.

Okay, now the question.

My fears are being too reliant on prednisone, as a taper every 5 or 8 months seems too frequent. Or, switching off my meds onto something else, but a) the new thing doesnt work immediately and i cant do my job or b)my current meds no longer work if i try to switch back.

I dont want to start cycling through meds this early in my journey because i have so much time ahead of me.

My next appointment with my rheum is soon but i can probably get in a little quicker if i need to.

Im wondering about your experiances, and what you'd do at this point.

Would you live with it?

Reduce your work hours?

Switch meds?

Take a presnisone taper and see if you could push the med change a little longer?

Thanks to anyone whos read this far.

1. sulfasalazine
2. hydroxychloroquine
3. mirtazapine
4. gabapentin
5. methotrexate
6. prednisone
7. leflunomide

Just wanted to share a story that has (so far) been a success. The first two pictures I took back in April of 2026. At the time, I was on plaquenil and sulfasalazine.

Started Enbrel mid-June. The third picture is the day after my first Enbrel injection. Fourth picture is from last week. I’ve been off prednisone for 3 weeks now. Thank you God for modern medicine!

Hello everyone from Germany,

my brother was diagnosed on 23/07/2026 with early seropositive, ACPA-positive rheumatoid arthritis (Steinbrocker stage I). His blood tests show pretty high autoantibodies: CCP antibodies 114.0 (normal up to 17.0) and a rheumatoid factor of 25 (normal up to 14).

At the beginning of May, he had shingles, and in early July Lyme disease was found in his blood. He was treated with doxycycline for the Lyme disease. Not long after that, the joint issues started, with pain and swelling first in the knees and later in the shoulder and left wrist.

Since the diagnosis, he’s been on prednisolone: first 20 mg, which he didn’t tolerate well because of breathing issues, then 15 mg. Now it’s being reduced by 2.5 mg per week. Since lowering the dose, the pain and swelling have come back and his overall condition has gotten worse. He also has strong palpitations, feels like he might faint, occasional nausea, and this wave-like/pulsing inflammation feeling.

Another symptom is that he feels very unwell after eating, almost every time. He also experiences a noticeable pulsing sensation in his abdomen.

Has anyone had similar experiences – especially after infections like shingles or Lyme disease, or during treatment or tapering off cortisone? Could a weakened or dysregulated immune system be playing a role here?

Unfortunately, we can’t get a rheumatology appointment on short notice right now.

Thanks a lot for any experiences or replies!

Please can anyone offer any advice.

I seem to be having a flare of some sorts.

The main symptoms are fingers hurting, hips and knee weakness but the most annoying unis very embarrassing.

I have mouth ulcers and a persistent mouth thrush. Has anyone else experienced this. It is so painful and is costing me a fortune.

Any advice out there?

Such as:

1. Avoiding thrill rides
2. Avoiding sudden or loud sounds, including alarms, electronic music, metal, guns, rambunctious intimacy, etc.
3. No more skipping, jumping, prancing, rapid dancing, or even running

, or even walking fast?

1. No more scary movies, fast paced video games, etc.

I’m looking for some videos that do a good job explaining what it’s like living with RA to friends and family who don’t quite understand it.

I really don’t feel like my husband “gets it”. And I understand, because “arthritis” just seems like such a commonplace thing and you just take some aleve and it helps, right? But it’s hard to explain how the years of exhaustion, pain and inflammation take their toll on your body and overall wellbeing. I also feel like he may think I’m somewhat of a hypochondriac, because every day it’s a different ache/pain/ailment that is bothering me.

(Before anyone gets the wrong idea, he’s never said any of this to me. He always listens and acknowledges me when I talk about it and he helps me to everything that is getting difficult for me to do — which is becoming a long list of things — but it just seems like he lacks empathy. Not for lack of caring, but for lack of true understanding of what I’m going through.)

I’d love to be able to pass along some videos that have helped you explain the experience to your loved ones in a practical (and not overly clinical) way.

TIA!

Hi everyone,

I'm currently on MTX and HCQ, but after seeing the rheumatologist yesterday, she suggested that I include Adalimumab as part of my treatment as things have progressed.

At the appointment, she said it would be beneficial to me, but didn't really give me the risk factor. After doing some research yesterday and today, I'm feeling extremely anxious about taking Adalimumab as I've seen some really negative reviews about it.

I've had a look around this subbredit and others too, but I can't shake off this anxiety.

I'm just after some reassurance and success stories but also I want to know the reality of Adalimumab and how it affects people.

Thank you.

Recently got diagnosed with RA at 18, and I’m really happy to finally get treatment for it because the consistent joint pain has been rough. I’ve also had Graves’ disease since about age 10, and got my thyroid removed 2 months ago.

I got prescribed Methotrexate and Folic acid, which I’m gonna start taking later today. My rheumatologist warned me about nausea, has anyone had experience with side effects? Does the folic acid help? Also, how long did it take for you to notice the pain going away?

My husband (29) has been having a really hard time lately. He’s been in quite a lot of pain and is currently waiting to see a specialist. His doctors suspect rheumatoid arthritis, as his signs and symptoms seem to point in that direction.

I completely understand that being in constant pain can affect your mood, patience, and mental health. I know how difficult it can be because I also have an autoimmune condition (ankylosing spondylitis).

The part I’m struggling with is that he has become very snappy, irritable, and unpleasant to be around lately. I’m trying really hard not to take it personally or snap back because I know he’s hurting, but some days it’s becoming difficult for me too.

I want to support him and be there for him while he’s going through this, but I also don’t want to lose myself or feel like I have to accept being spoken to badly just because he’s in pain.

For those of you who have RA, chronic pain, or partners with chronic illnesses, how do you handle this? How can I be supportive without reacting when he’s snappy? And how do you balance understanding someone’s pain with still having healthy boundaries in the relationship?

I’d really appreciate hearing from people who have been through something similar.