I promised an update after my appointment today so here it is.
My doctor and I had a long talk today (that probably cost me a couple hundred dollars) about my diagnosis and my medicines. He agrees (finally) that my diagnosis is correct. He fully believes that I have Psoriatic Arthritis due to the effects I have had with the medication. He feels that this has been what was plaguing me last year but just didn’t present itself correctly at that time. I think that he blew me off but that is a whole other matter.
We talked at length about my medicine. I told him of the side effects I have and he gave me options. He wanted to switch me to a different drug all together (a biologic) but said that I won’t qualify for it due to my lack of insurance. He said that the drug companies give discounts to those with health insurance but not who have none. That seems backwards to me so I am going to check into it more. In the meantime, he has upped the meds I am currently taking despite my not wanting to take it anymore. He said it is my only option without changing to a biologic.
If anyone knows anything about programs for the uninsured for the meds like Humira or Enbrel, I would love to hear about it. I obviously can’t afford these meds outright but I believe that there has to be help for someone who has no insurance. I take my medicine every Sunday so I am hoping to find out more before I have to buy my medicine again at the new dosage.
Anyway, that is the update. Oh, and he gave me a new antii-inflammatory and told me to lay off the Ibuprofen. He isn’t happy with my taking it around the clock. Oops. I told him I take it because I hurt and he knows that I need something so hopefully this new medicine he called in helps and I can afford to buy it! He also told me to continue going to yoga because it can really help loosen up my joints. I think I will!
Oh, one more thing I have to share! I have lost 21 pounds since this time last year. What a great thing to see on the scale. I knew I had lost weight but didn’t realize it was that much.
Thanks for asking about me. I’ll let you know how things go as I find out more.
photo credit: Charles Williams via photopin cc
Piper says
My dad went through the partnership for prescription assistance (http://www.pparx.org/en) to find programs for his medications a few years back before he got insurance again. It was a lot of paperwork but he was able to enroll in a couple different programs to get the various medications he needed at te time. Might be worth checking out 🙂
Natasha says
I agree with a lot of the points that you made – there’s good and bad aspects to it. I have also started paying more attention to diet because it really can make a huge difference.
april says
Sorry to hear about this for you! I have recently started moving towards a paleo diet for various reasons and you may want to look into it as a possible way of helping reduce or eliminate your symptoms. I did a quick search and saw this article, http://thepaleodiet.com/success-story-healing-psoriatic-arthritis-with-the-paleo-diet/ . A great site for autoimmune and paleo info is Against All Grain. Thought it would be worth mentioning to you. Best of luck!
Stefany says
April, I have actually started looking more into diet because, you are right, it definitely has an effect on autoimmune disorders! Thanks for the info. I will for sure check it out.
Piper says
Adding a fish oil supplement and a Tumeric supplement can help–they are natural anti-inflammatories.
Michelle Liew says
Going to the doctor’s certainly has it’s ins and outs. sometimes the medicine actually makes one feel worse! great share, Stefany.
Stefany says
Thanks Michelle for stopping by. Yes, the medicine makes me feel awful but my joints are feeling a bit better. It is a tradeoff that sometimes doesn’t seem worth it. LOL