Thursday, May 8, 2008
Unable To Ride???
Recently, I've been on a few motorcycle rides with the hubby, and one of them was a nice long 100-mile run. It was in support of BACA (Bikers Against Child Abuse) which we're going to join next month. I can't tell you how much I enjoy riding with him, and how much I look forward to riding my own once it's completed. But, lately I've been having some issues.
If we do a short ride, I'm usually ok. Key word: usually. On the longer rides, I am so sore at the end of the day, I need assistance to get off the bike, and I can barely walk. This is not your typical 'saddle sore', or tailbone pain. This is pain in the hips, knees, feet, etc. Pretty much every joint from the waist down is screaming at me. I started getting worried when the pain was lasting 2-3 days after the ride. Then I began to have pain on the shorter rides. It didn't last as long, but nothing helped. Not Advil, Aleve, Tylenol, Ibuprofen, Aspirin, nothing!
I mentioned to my Mom that this was happening and her response was,
Mom: You know that my mother had RA, right?
Me: Ummm, no, you never told me that.
Mom: I thought you knew that.
Me: How would I know if you didn't tell me? I never had the chance to meet her!
So I called the doc and made an appt. After an initial evaluation and some conversation, she tells me that it sounds like RA (Rheumatoid Arthritis). So off to the lab I went on Saturday morning, after fasting for 8 hours. Saturday mornings are always very ugly when I don't have a cup of coffee in my system. But the girl that drew my blood only had to stick me once, which is rare, and I was out of there pretty quickly.
Now I'm just waiting on the results. The weird thing is, they didn't give me anything for the pain. I told them that nothing was working, and nothing was offered. I'm going to have to call them to see what I can do. Saturday night was the last time I went out on the bike and I had some pain on Sunday, but it was tolerable. (It was a short ride.) But then on Tuesday night, I had pain so miserable that it woke me out of a dead sleep. This is extremely frustrating! I cannot imagine not being able to ride anymore. I really need to get these test results and figure out what's going on and what can be done to fix it!
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10 comments:
Oh No!!! Well, I think if it is RA, they have treatments that may allow you the freedom to ride again. got my fingers crossed for you and hope the pain is gone soon!
I hope everything goes ok. I think Paula is right, lots of people have RA and can live freely with it :-) Until then you can try taking fish oil pills. They are to loosen the joints and discomfort. I have really bad shoulders and have had surgery on one, fish oil pills are the only thing that helped me, not even the good stuff!
I hope everything goes ok for you and the results come back with great news!! We are all praying for you and sending good vibes your way! Tell your Dr. you want some vic's!! :)
Ann, I hope this link I sent you works. I'm not a Dr. but I have many family members with RA. Glucosimine is a great drug for joint pain. My boot camp trainer even recommends it for extreme training when your joints are giving you trouble. It doesn't start giving you a noticeable effect until you take it for at least two weeks. Maybe you can ask your Dr. about this drug. Whatever we have to do to keep our sister on two wheels! I would be absolutely miserable if I couldn't ride any more. I would have to start spending alot of money at the shrink's office! Boo Hoo! I'll be thinking of you. Hope it goes well! Lady R
http://www.glycosimine.com/dtzsch/198537/rheumatoid_arthritis
Ann
When do you get the test results?
Chris
Boy, I sure hope this turns out okay for you Ann. Hopefully once they find out what it is, you can take steps to fix it. Hoping for the best for you Ann.
Thanks to everyone for your kind words and thoughts.
Kfuj: I will try the fish oil.
LadyR: I did get the link...thank you. I will look for glucosamine this weekend. If that doesn't work...I'll suffer with the pain...I cannot go without riding!
oh boy :(
I really hope you find out it's something else Ann. I didn't even know what RA was until I worked a job doing a new pharmaceuticals plant down in W. Greenwich, RI a few years back. It was for the AMGEN Corp. They make a drug called Enbrel: http://www.enbrel.com/?channel=GOSEA&subchannel=SENC
It is supposedly a near miracle drug to treat RA. They actually put on a lunch for us at the site one day, and a woman with severe RA addressed us all and thanked us for our hard work in building the plant. At the time Enbrel was new and in very limited production, and folks like her desperately needed it. That really touched me. In all my years of doing construction, it was the only job I ever did where I really felt like I was helping someone who needed it.
As much as I'd like to help you too, I hope it doesn't end up being this way. Good luck! I'm prayin' for ya!
Joker: thanks for the kind words and prayers. I'm hoping it's something else, too. Thanks for the link, too. I've heard this stuff is really a miracle.
As long as I can still throw a leg over, I'll be happy! :)
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