So, in reality, I’m doing much better than I should be. It’s day 3 of 3mg of prednisone. I’m taking lots of naprosyn and oxy, but I’m still up and doing things for a few hours, most days. In fact, I’m gardening. It’s freakin hard work, but I’m actually enjoying it. I can only do about 30 minutes of real work a day, but the beauty of gardening is that the progress is very visible. And a little bit goes a long way. Instant gratification.
I’ve done a lot of reading about fasting as a means to reduce RA pain, and it works for me. Due to EoE (food allergies) my food intake has dwindled to next to nothing. And I discovered that this reduced my RA pain. The only dietary approach that ever has!. Less pain is much more appealing than any food ever could be (for me).
It’s clearly not sustainable, but right now, its working. I can get by on a few mouthfuls of food every day. It doesn’t matter WHAT food, just very small amounts.
I wouldn’t recommend it, in fact it might even be dangerous for some people. So don’t do it. But it works for me. There are several studies to support it, but obviously most people wouldn’t choose it, and the positive effects of fasting are temporary, and the pain returns soon after returning to a normal diet. But right now, I’m doing whatever works. And this works.
I haven’t heard back from my rheumatologist or my immunologist. The have both received an email and three phone calls a piece. Their staff confirm that they have read my emails. So I’m on my own and they can go to…the bahamas for all I care. I’m used to being on my own.
As long as my GP keeps supporting me, I’ll be off prednisone in four weeks. Which is pretty amazing.
Also, the steroid shots into my spine were incredibly good. They reduced my spinal pain by 50% at least. I no longer have knives stuck permanently in my spine. Just sometimes :). So I will probably pursue a radiofrequency ablation once I’m past this prednisone taper and the testing that my rheumy and immuno said they wanted to do. But it appears they’ve forgotten about me. Either way, less spine pain makes the world of difference to my life. It is the worst pain and the most disabling. I’m able to walk 200 metres now, and I haven’t needed my wheelchair since the shots. And I have confirmed that most of my lumbar pain comes from my SI joints and L3/L4 facet joints bilaterally. Now to make my pain management doc listen. Cos he knows MUCH more than me about my body and my pain…cos you know, he’s read books and stuff…
Well, books are cool. I love them in fact. Unfortunately, many people think books are the only way to learn. I think that is often the issue. Folks like me who love books forget it is only half of learning.