What medications for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) work for you?

I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis 23 years ago at age 53. I switched specialists within the first year and was then treated at Hospital for Special Surgery in Nee York City. I learned very quickly to be proactive regarding choice of specialist. It is my understanding that the standard approach to a new diagnosis is to begin treatment with the most common medications used for new patients along with pain medication if needed. Then it is a ‘see how it goes’ in the subsequent weeks and months. Each medication may or may not help. Frustrating when you try several, that can have different ways of working and your pain is still there. In the first five years from memory I was prescribed 4 or 5 different meds. This is the only way to find one that bingo! Works Well for you. You might stay on it for a time and then find it doesn’t work as well as it used to. So you go up the scale to the next med the doctor chooses for you based on your own individual symptoms. The disease can progress also leading to another choice by the doctor.
It is common to ‘go through’ several meds - don’t be discouraged. You are important to your own care. Always report any new symptoms - patient portals are great for this.

I found plaquenil worked for quite some time but now I question if its affecting my eye sight. I had to wait a month before I could get my eyes tested by which time Id been off it a month so would that improve things ( if plaquenil was the problem )?? Im not game to risk finding out.

Methotex rate 20 years no problem

@mimf I’ve had RA for thirty years, and I couldn’t agree more with the comment above. I was stable for many years on Plaquenil. Then it’s been a rougher ride since I started biologics. I was on anti-TNF drugs (humira, embrel, Cimzia) until I developed antibodies, then tried Rinvoq, and Actemra. Actemra is an IL 6 antagonist and it seems to be working for me now. Just keep trying. Don’t get discouraged. When the biological work they are magical, but it takes time to find what works for you. Tell your doctor exactly what you’re experiencing because truly they have no other way of knowing what’s going on. Blood tests only say so much. I feel lucky now to have a very good rheumatologist with whom I have a good rapport. I think that’s the most important thing.

@synthiame

Did you have any dizziness, weakness, and skin rashes on Methotrexate?

@synthiame

Did you have any dizziness, weakness, and skin rashes on Methotrexate?